ORGANIZING & MOVE MANAGEMENT TIPS, TRICKS & INSPIRATION
Practical decluttering, downsizing and organizing ideas from Naples’ Premier Professional Organizer & Certified Move Manager
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PLAN NOW, OR ELSE
As a professional organizer, I work closely with widows, widowers and their children and know all too well the realities of what happens when you’re not organized and don’t plan in advance for the inevitable. The time to plan for the future is now, not later.
JUNK AS ART – – RECYCLE YOUR TRASH
Call me crazy, but when it comes to the environment, I have zero tolerance for litterbugs. In fact, I’ve been known to pick-up other people’s carelessly dropped candy wrappers, soda cans and water bottles and drop them in the recycle or trash bin when I get home.But, rather than harp upon my...
TRAVEL LIGHT, TRAVEL RIGHT: HOW TO ORGANIZE YOUR TRAVEL DOCUMENTS
As a professional organizer, not only is my life (both personal and professional) über “organized,” but, as you can imagine, so are my get-away-from-it-all-what-mountain-to-climb-next adventure vacations. This being said, it probably won’t come as a surprise when I confess that even before the...
GET ORGANIZED: PACKING TIPS FOR A WEEK, WEEKEND OR MONTH
When trudging through an airport, do you enviously stare at those seemingly “perfectly organized” people who can pack for a trip, no matter how long or short, and no matter what the season, in just one carry-on bag? You can too with this invaluable list of packing tips. Packing for a week, weekend...
BE ORGANIZED, BE PREPARED AND WRITE A CONCISE PASSWORD & USER NAME LIST
One of the #1 secrets to being organized is being able to write things down in a concise manner. The fine art of “list writing” can range from writing a daily “to-do” list to writing travel, password, home maintenance and hurricane checklists, to name a few. Regrettably, the most important lists,...
WHY RENTING AN OFF-SITE STORAGE UNIT IS NEVER A GOOD IDEA
Dollar for dollar, hiring a professional organizer to help expedite the project and keep you on task will cost less than the cost of renting the unit for a another year; not to mention the peace of mind you’ll achieve once you’ve cleared out all the “stuff” and moved on with living your life!
GET ORGANIZED: 10 TASKS TO STAY ON TASK
The secret to staying organized comes down to two things: knowing where everything belongs and making the time to put things away. Thankfully, because I know where everything is supposed to go, the task of keeping my office neat and tidy, among other things, is fairly manageable.
GET ORGANIZED: RECYCLE, UP-CYCLE & REPURPOSE
Typically the words recycle, up-cycle and repurpose are referred to when speaking about plastic, glass and paper products, but when it comes to getting organized and helping the environment at the same time, there’s no better place to start than your closet.
GET ORGANIZED: HOW TO BE THE PERFECT GUEST AND THE PERFECT HOST
There’s nothing like having a house full of guests to throw even the most organized host or hostess off his/her game.
TO GET ORGANIZED, SAVE MONEY AND SAVE TIME YOU NEED TO STOP SHOPPING
Save money. Stop shopping. I love shopping! Yes, me, the same person who recently sold/consigned/gave away every single piece of furniture and accessory in her living and dining rooms in order to start fresh with the minimal amount of “stuff” in her life and the same person who is so anti-stuff...
EASY TRAVEL IS POSSIBLE WITH AN ORGANIZED TRAVEL CHECKLIST
I find the pre-travel preparation to be exhausting and terribly stressful. To alleviate some of the stress, I keep a track of everything by keeping an organized travel checklist.
ANNUAL TAX ORGANIZATION IS AS EASY AS ONE-TWO-THREE
Setting-up a simple three-file filing system to help you keep track of your paperwork and tax papers is the easiest way to keep on top of the paperwork year round. All you need are three files, one marked “taxes,” one marked “taxes/medical” and one marked “donations” and you’re on your way to being organized.
BEING ORGANIZED IS THE GREATEST GIFT YOU CAN LEAVE YOUR LOVED ONES. THIS GOES FOR DOWNSIZING AS WELL
The greatest gift you can give your children is to organize your life by organizing your paperwork, decluttering, sorting out old photos and memorabilia and clearing out off-site storage units and the attic.
GET ORGANIZED BY NOT RENTING AN OFF-SITE STORAGE UNIT
If there’s one thing that makes me crazier than people who text while driving, it’s when people throw away their hard-earned money in order to store “stuff” in an off-site storage unit. And you thought Bernie Madoff was a crook? Trust me when I say putting your grandmother’s chipped, scratched and...
JEWELRY ORGANIZATION IS A BREEZE WITH THESE GREAT HINTS
Here’s an organizational conundrum sent to me by a friend: “Over the years I’ve spent more money on costume jewelry than most people spend on the real thing. I know I should probably try and get my shopping habit under control, for now the problem is not how much I spend, but rather where...
ONE’S NEAT, ONE’S NOT/THE ODD COUPLE
Wondering how to tackle what’s behind closed doors and stuffed under the bed? Challenge everyone (slobs and neatniks alike) to an all-day purge-a-thon. At the end of the day, the person with the cleanest, most clutter-free room wins. Prizes can range from cash to services, such as the “runner-up” washing the winner’s car, or a special dinner out for the whole family. In the end, there are no losers, just winners.
HAVING AN IN CASE OF EMERGENCY CARD (ICE) COULD SAVE YOUR LIFE
No matter if you’re young or old; single, divorced, widowed or married; a college or high school student; senior citizen, baby boomer, millennial; mother or father, businesswoman or businessman, every adult should carry an up-to-date ICE Card in his/her wallet at all times, which, God forbid there be an emergency, could make the difference between life and death.
STOP THE MADNESS AND CUT THE CLUTTER WITH THESE GREAT HOLIDAY GIFT-GIVING IDEAS
Am I the only person who thinks holiday gift giving has gotten out of control? It’s bad enough when stores force employees to work on Thanksgiving Day, but when customers risk their lives in pursuit of this year’s “hottest gifts” and get trampled to death even before entering the store, you’ve got...
ORGANIZING SEASONAL PLATTERS, DISHES & LINENS
For those of you who can’t resist having an assortment of serving dishes for every occasion from Christmas and Hanukkah to Easter or Passover to Halloween and Thanksgiving, here are a few ideas how to organize your seasonal dishes, serving platters and linens year round.
WHEN IT COMES TO HANDBAG ORGANIZATION, THINK LIKE A FRENCH WOMAN
Editor’s note: In England, Canada and Australia, the commonly used word “pocketbook” (a hard-sided handbag) has been replaced by the generic term, “handbag,” and the word “purse” (a ladies coin purse) is now called a “wallet.” For the sake of clarity in writing today’s column about handbag...
Discover More Organizing Secrets
Delve deeper into the world of clutter-free living! Explore our latest blog posts or reach out to Marla for personalized organizing services tailored to your needs in Florida.