Changes in Attitude...

Do you HAVE TO use an area in your home for the purpose it was designed?  If you don't ever have formal dinners in your dining room, could you morph that room into something you could use every day - an office, playroom, craft room, or homework nook?  Does it have to remain a formal dining room because the realtor, your floor plan, or a relative told you that is what the room was designed to be?

Eight years ago when I moved into my current home, I had a little baby and I was starting a new business.  I needed to be in the main part of the house and didn’t need much space, so our 1980’s wet bar was my office and my little guy’s art area.  Soon his art materials and our home schooling adventures took over my office space in the wet bar.  And my organizing business was growing to the point of me needing more than a work surface and a single cabinet.  The wet bar became an art/school area.  My office moved to (and has taken over- Hallelujah!) the spare bedroom. 

(Photo of our art/school supplies circa 2009- organized, containerized, and labeled)

Fast forward a few years and we are no longer home schooling.  The homework area has expanded to a small table in the corner of the dining room, the couch, or the computer desk – depending on kiddo’s mood and type of homework.  In turn, the wetbar, which stores art supplies and games, has really become a catch all for all sorts of – well – detritus. 

What’s an organizing Mama to do?

Find out next time!

It is time for you to get organized, manage your time, and set up systems in your home and office.  You deserve better efficiency and harmony. Shoot me an email at juliebavi@gmail.com, stalk me on twitter@juliebavi, and show me some Facebook love https://www.facebook.com/OrganizeWithJulie.  

Now through June 15, Find out how you can receive 4 FREE hours of organizing services. 

Let it go! Let it go!

My hubby, infant son, and I moved into our current home 8 years ago.  Before that the longest hubby and I had resided in any one spot was a maximum of 2 years.  Moving often gave us the freedom to part with unused items rather than storing them.  Who wants to pay to pack, move, and store junk time and time again?

I’ve noticed, however, that in the past 8 stationary years – with a growing kiddo – that the willingness to store unwanted items has become a little too comfortable.  So what’s the solution?

First things first:
Get rid of the broken stuff.  You really aren’t going to fix it.  Part with the trash.  Anything that is truly not of salvageable worth needs to go to its proper dumpster home. 

Then what?

Sell. Sell. Sell. 

I take any good condition kid clothes and toys to semiannual consignment sales.  Doing the inventory and tagging myself is a little work, but the paycheck I get within a week is really really really worth my time.  Did I mention how worth my time it is?

I have also gone the more conventional route using area consignment shops.  I feel it is a lot of work to keep up with tracking the inventory over time and I don’t have control over the pricing of my items.  However, I do get some money back for my clothes while expending a minimal amount of physical effort. 

For big items, like furniture, large appliances, swing sets, and other heavy/hard to move things – Craigslist is my go to source.  Selling online has been profitable and I don’t have to move the items myself.  I have always asked for cash and have used precautions to stay safe. 

If you have lots of stuff and the time to do it, a yard sale may be your best bet.  Yard sales are easiest when you have a buddy.  Whether it is a friend, neighbor, or spouse -- it’s just nice to have someone to chat with during the lulls, and to give you a potty/snack/cool-off break when needed.  Advertise on line and in your local paper.  Put up signage the day before your sale.  Be ready early in the day.  Make sure your big ticket items are really obvious to draw in those looking from the street.  Keep things off the ground.  Hang clothes from a drying rack (or a makeshift rack of a pipe).  If you don’t want people IN your garage, close the door.  Have plenty of change and keep the money on your person. 

At the end of the sale, don’t let unwanted items trickle back into your home.  There is a service in the Jacksonville, St. Johns area that pays per pound for textiles (clothes, sheets, linens, shoes).  *If you want to know more about how to help people in need and get paid for your unwanted items, let me know!  I'd love to put you in touch with http://www.jaxcashforclothes.com/!* Check your local listings to see what charities (Vietnam Vets) will pick up unwanted items.  Set a date and say good-bye to the old.  Load up your car with the remainder of the unsold stuff and make a trip to your favorite drop off spot.  A few of my favorites in my area are The Betty Griffin House (Fruit Cove/JCP), Goodwill, and The Salvation Army.

So are you ready to do it with me?  Part with your unwanted unused items this month and let me know how it goes.  I'll post back with some pictures about what I have dug out of our (already organized) 8 years of build up.  

If you'd like to learn other ways to LET IT GO, get organized, manage your time, or set up systems in your home and office for better efficiency and harmony shoot me an email at juliebavi@gmail.com, stalk me on twitter @juliebavi, and show me some Facebook love https://www.facebook.com/OrganizeWithJulie.  

Doctor Who? Organizing in a Moment's Time.

Do you have time to get organized?  If you have 15 minutes, then YES you do! 

I constantly hear the reason for people being disorganized is that there isn’t any time to get it all done.  Here’s a little secret friends – it doesn’t have to get done all at one time. 

For today’s organizing moment, let’s look at the medicine cabinet.  If you have small children, this may be something you can do nearby while they splash in the tub.  Use commercial breaks between shows in the evening.  Sort through while you’re waiting for the shower water to warm up or the mirror to defog.

Why is it important to organize the medicine cabinet?
Ingesting some expired meds can be toxic.
If medication is organized you can clearly see what is out of stock.
Medication mix ups are common and can have serious repercussions. 

Remove any expired or outgrown medications.  (Locally, our sheriff’s department will take old medications off your hands.) 

Keep track of your first aid supplies too!
There are a couple of different ways to think about organizing what’s left—

1. Situate medications by the person (or pet) who takes them so that each family member can find their own. 

2. Separate medications by type: cold/allergy, pain relief, tummy troubles. 

Containerize using small baskets, drawer dividers, or whatever your space will accommodate and…
Label. Label. Label!

And done! 

I’d love to hear from you.  How old was the oldest medicine you found? What was it? A client and I once found decades old Mercurochrome in her “bug out” stash.  We both got a good chuckle out of that.

If you are in the Jacksonville/St. Johns area and would like your home better organized and would like the assistance of a professional organizer, e-mail juliebavi@gmail.com  You can also find me on Facebook by clicking HERE or by searching for Organize With Julie.  Stalk me on twitter @juliebavi.

GO MONTH 2013

Greetings!  We're halfway through the first month of a new year.  Don't you just love packing up the Christmas decor, sending the kids back to school, and getting life back to "normal"?  I have been a purging and organizing fool around my house.  The bug has finally bit me to let go of things I was holding onto.  I used some of the same excuses you do "I have the space for it" or the ever popular "I may need that someday".  It's easy to justify holding onto stuff sometimes.  You know what's an even better feeling though?  Letting go of stuff!  Freeing your space and your mind of the clutter.  Letting someone else benefit from the things you pass on to them.  What could a professional organizer possibly have to purge?  Art supplies, books, outgrown workbooks, coloring books (where did all of these coloring books come from in the first place?!) - donated to the school.  Pantry items - to the local food bank.  Toys and clothes - to the consignment sale or handed down to friends. Magazines and catalogs - into the recycle bin.  Each week is like a new treasure hunt to see what I can purge next.

So tell me: What's cluttering up your house and mind?  What do you need to purge from your home and life?  Do you need some help along the way?  That's what I'm here for!

If you are in the Jacksonville/St. Johns area and would like your home better organized (or you want some help Simplifying YOUR Season), and would like the assistance of a professional organizer, e-mail juliebavi@gmail.com  You can also find me on Facebook by clicking HERE or by searching for Organize With Julie.  Stalk me on twitter @juliebavi.