Before stocking the pantry with items for your Thanksgiving feast, organize it. Clear off one shelf at a time. Check expiration dates. Remove all expired items. Donate anything you won’t use before the expiration date to the local food bank. Group like items together and put back in the pantry with the closest expiration dates in front.
*** I have one more classe in my fall line up. You can obtain more details about this Clearing the Clutter Class on mywebsite. I’ll be offering more classes in the spring. Hope to see you in class.
*** I’m happy to share that I’m the NAPO-New England Volunteer of the Month for my contributions as a Success Group leader, as a BCPO liaison, and for recommending SOWMA as the non-profit organization we helped through our LET’S GO campaign.
*** Question: Do you pay for off site storage? Please share your answer.
The splendor of autumn is upon us, and I’m enjoying nature’s colorful display, but we all know what comes next… gift-giving-season. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the holidays, and take great pleasure in giving, but I’m not enthusiastic about being pressured to buy more, and more, and more. Therefore, I give intangible gifts. I give experience, and I give consumable items. Here is a list of Organizer friendly gift ideas that I’d like to share. I hope you find it helpful.
Do you reduce?
Let’s face it. We live in a consumer based society. It’s fun to shop. It’s fun to give gifts. It’s fun to hunt and track down the best bargains. It is so easy to bring stuff into our homes, but it is much more difficult to get it out. So, what do you do with it all?A large part of organizing is getting rid of stuff we no longer need, want, or use. I call it reducing. When we reduce, we minimize what has to be organized, and we eliminate clutter. Therefore, getting rid of stuff (reducing) needs to happen often.
When I say often, I mean weekly. We take out the trash weekly. So, reduce at the same time. Set up a donation bin by the trash, and add to it weekly. Then once a month, or when the donation bin is full, donate the items. For a few suggestions on where to donate read the blog articles listed below and click here.
Finding new ways to recycle, for myself and my clients, makes me happy. Everyone is more motivated to get rid of something when they know it is going to someone who will really use it.
This is why I was happy to find that a Habitat for Humanities Re-Store was opening close to me in Attleboro, MA. They are a nonprofit home improvement store and donation center that sells new and gently used furniture, appliances, home accessories, building materials and more to the public. They are located at 9 Washington Street, Attleboro, MA, and are open Tuesday through Saturday. Check them out.
Shoe Drive
I’ll be collecting shoe donations for Boston’s Dress for Success Shoe Drive. I’ll be collecting donations until November 13th. Donated shoes need to be appropriate for women to wear to job interviews. Solid colored shoes are best. No open-toe shoes, slingbacks, mules, stilettos, or platforms. Call me to arrange for pick up, 508-699-6652. Thanks in advance for your support.
From,
Janine Cavanaugh, CPO®
(508)-699-6652
If you’ve worked with me in any capacity, I’d be grateful for a review. Simply click on this link and answer 3 questions. Thank you and happy organizing!
https://helpfulorganizer.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/projects9.jpg281211Janine Cavanaugh, CPO®https://helpfulorganizer.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/15-Years-LOGO.jpgJanine Cavanaugh, CPO®2016-10-28 14:33:302022-12-12 17:42:31Do you Reduce?
Schedule yearly bathroom purges to help keep your space organized. Items to purge include outdated lotions, makeup, and topical skin products, broken bath toys, soiled bath linens, and expired medications and prescriptions. The Drug Enforcement Administration website has information on safe drug disposal and the national drug take-back initiative in October.
My clients tell me all the time that it is easier to get rid of stuff when they know it is going to a worthwhile cause or someone truly in need. Therefore, as an incentive to reduce and de-clutter pick a worthwhile local charity and give.
One thing many parents have a difficult time getting rid of is the things their children have made. Some items are cherished treasures, like a drawing that showcases their personality, their first hand-made Mother’s Day card, or a precious clay bowl. Other items are less meaningful, but are equally important to the giver. That causes problems, right? These things have a high sentimental value. I understand that, but we can’t keep everything. You know we can’t. So, what goes and what gets kept?
Setting limits is a great way to minimize what is kept. A good limit is to have one ‘keep bin’ per child. This one bin will hold all the art treasures that are being kept from that one child. Label this bin and use it to store the creations each child makes. Set some guidelines on what is kept. For example keep only those items that significantly highlight your child’s personality and talents. Go through the bin yearly to reevaluate and weed out items.
Another way to minimize what is kept is to re-purpose and reuse. Below are some creative ways to do this.
Scan or photograph art work and use several images to create family calendars. Let the originals go after the calendar is created.
Have a gallery wall were you display art work for one month then let it go.
Use scanned images of the art work as a screen saver on your desktop computer. Share who made the piece, when they made it, and what they have to say about their creation.
Separate art work by season and save a few special pieces to put up with other seasonal decorations.
Take photos of the art work with the artist and scrapbook the images with details.
Add the art work to a digital frame or tablet and showcase at their birthday parties and holiday gatherings.
Frame a few of the artist’s favorite pieces in a shadow box for one year. Then add another piece right over the previous year until the shadow box is full. Then store in a keep bin (listed above) or let it go.
It may be difficult to make decisions on what creations to keep, but your child will thank you for only holding onto one ‘keep bin’.
https://helpfulorganizer.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Child-artwork.jpg9071300Janine Cavanaugh, CPO®https://helpfulorganizer.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/15-Years-LOGO.jpgJanine Cavanaugh, CPO®2016-09-01 01:29:242016-12-01 20:41:22What To Do With Children’s Art Work
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