Tag Archive | organizing

I’M SO EXCITED for THIS AMAZING CHALLENGE!

Apr2

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I’m so excited to share with you an amazing challenge that just started! During the month of April, I will be participating in the Ultimate Blog Challenge hosted by Michelle Shaeffer and Michele Scism.  Let me tell you what it is all about!

WHAT IT’S ALL ABOUT

This is a 30 day challenge of daily blog writing.  It is designed to encourage the daily habit of blogging, motivating the development of creative writing and help spread each participant’s message while connecting with other amazing bloggers.

WHY I CHOSE TO PARTICIPATE

I chose to participate in this activity because I have always been motivated by  challenge and have been trying to sharpen my writing skills.  Since I missed the last challenge, I made certain to calendar this one early.  It’s certainly going to be interesting trying to keep up with the daily accountability, but I really think the effort will be worth it and may even turn out quite interesting!

WHAT WILL BE DIFFERENT ON THE BLOG

What will be so different, you may ask?  If you are checking in frequently on the blog here at LS & Co, you will find three things different this month:

  • There will be more posts to read (that’s a plus, isn’t it?)
  • There will be many different types of posts (funny, inspirational or even sad) and not always connected to organizing or business.
  • You will find some interesting things about me personally (personal based posts are welcomed)

WHAT IS MY GOAL

By participating in this awesome challenge, I’m hoping to widen the reach of the blog, develop more skill with my own writing (which I love to do), build connections with other like-minded individuals and share the amazing benefits of organizing.

I want this blog to not only be instructional and motivational, but have dimension.  Most importantly, I want the readers to get know the face behind the writing and connect with me to build a relationship.  Lofty goals I agree, but I was always one to shoot for the stars and settle for the moon!

I hope I’ve piqued your interest and you’ll CHECK BACK OFTEN to read what I’ll create for you.  To make it easier, why don’t you SIGN UP to receive our blog posts & newsletter (targeted launch is April) directly into your inbox!  CLICK HERE (to sign up).

I begin this amazing challenge with great excitement and hope you’ll join me on my journey.

P.S. If you’re interested in joining this challenge with me (and so many other wonderful bloggers) CLICK the image below to find out more.

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Inspiration to Fall into Organizing

Oct14

 

Fall has officially descended upon us here in the northeast part of the United States.  It has brought the gloriously warm, sunny days and envelopes us with its crisp mornings and cool nights.  This season always provides such great joy and inspiration!   As the days begin to shorten and the thermometer falls, we are reminded that the cold weather is not far away.  What better way to get ready for it than to organize some of your outside areas?  Let the fall season provide the inspiration and motivation to conquer those outside areas!  HERE ARE SOME PROJECT IDEAS TO CONSIDER TACKLING.

ORGANIZE YOUR GARAGE:  Has your garage become a dumping ground and you don’t even remember what its intended purpose is?  Have you thought about organizing it, but quickly gave up the idea because it was too overwhelming? You’re not alone. There is a way to tackle the project easily – break it down into manageable steps and work on them one by one.  We’ve posted 8 Simple Steps to Organize a Garage on our Blog to find out how. Click Here to read it.

HAVE A YARD SALE:  Cleaned out the garage or basement recently and have a lot of stuff to get rid of?  Want to make a little extra cash while having someone else take away your junk?  Remember…”One man’s trash is another’s man’s treasure”, so why not have a yard sale!  Do you think there’s no time for one or does the thought of all the work freak you out?  Visit our Blog for the Recipe for a Successful Yard Sale and you’ll get great tips on cooking up an awesome event. Click Here to read it.

CLEAN OUT THE SHED: Has your garden or storage shed become overloaded or too hard to maneuver around in during the past summer?  Have you put off organizing it all because you’d rather play in the warm weather or has it been too hot to drag all that equipment outside and clean it off?  The weather is now cooler and there’s no time like the fall to close up shop before winter sets in.  We’ll be posting a great slide presentation with easy tips to close up your shed on our blog.  Check back on the weekend of Oct. 19th to read it;  getting it ready for winter will be a piece of cake once you view our presentation!

Don’t let the winter catch you off guard.  Clean out the garage and organize it so you can maximize that real estate, maybe even bring in the car this winter.  Have a yard sale so someone else can take away your junk while you make a little extra cash and get ready for the winter by cleaning all your equipment and organizing your shed.  There’s still plenty of time to conquer all of these organizing projects AND  enjoy the fall.  Visit the links listed in this post so you can get out there and tackle it!  If you need a helping hand, contact us, we’ll be happy to help get you on your way to a war. 

 

ORGANIZING INSIDE: A Little Time Now Pays Off a Lot Later!

Sep30

Organize Your EntryWay Quickly & Easily

Fall has exploded and the cooler weather has set in!  The advent of this season serves to remind us that we will soon return to the indoors and begin our winter hibernation, but is your entryway ready for move indoors?  Is it overrun with shoes, hats/coats and a plethora of things you’ve been meaning to put away?  How can you organize your entryway quickly and easily, so that moving back indoors will be more enjoyable? Three simple steps: clear out the clutter, find a home for the homeless items and put in a system that works for your lifestyle.

Clearing out the clutter can be simple and doesn’t need to take a lot of time.  Go through each non-stationary item in your entryway and place it into one of three categories: Stay, Sore Elsewhere or Send Out.  When finished, find a home for the the homeless items in the Store Elsewhere category and take the Send Out items to the trash or donate.  Your space will actually look bigger when you finish this first part!  Don’t foget to do a thorough cleaning of the area to preapre it for the next step.

Next, you need to put in a system to keep what’s staying in a neat and orderly fashion so you can get what you need when you need it.  This system could be a simple set of hooks to hang things and a bench to sit on with storage underneath or it could be as elaborate as a custom built wall unit or closet system that is color coordinated.

Another step to organizing this space is to contain all the daily paperwork.  This can be done by hanging up folders on the wall next to or above the hooks for each person in the house.  Have one for mail, too, so that you can sit down and peruse it each night; only the important mail should enter the house.  Make sure there is a wastebasket underneath so that items not being saved can be easily tossed out.

Lastly, you need to retrain everyone in your home to use the new system(s).  Ask everyone to hang up their backpack on the hooks, throw their shoes in the bin and drop the mail/schoolwork directly into the folders each time they enter.  If there is a specific place for everything,  it won’t take long for everyone to adopt the new habits.

So get up and get moving!  Take the time now to organize that entryway and customize everything in the space you have available and to suit your needs.  Once you reorganize this much used area, you will be able to grab all the things you need when you need them.  You’ll find moving inside for the cooler months will be a breeze when there’s a place for everything and everything has its place.  Remember, a little work now will pay off a lot later!

8 Simple Steps to Organize A Garage

Sep23

Do you find that your garage has become a dumping ground and you can’t even remember its intended purpose?  Have you thought about organizing it, but quickly gave up the idea because it was too overwhelming?  You’re not alone.  There is a way to tackle the project easily – break it down into manageable steps and work on them one by one.  Read on for some tips on how to accomplish those steps.

 PREPARE FOR THE RIDE: Check out the weather so you can pick a date that works well with your schedule; commit to the project by marking it on the calendar.  Assemble supplies you will need: plastic garbage bags, cleaning solutions, gloves and a dust mask top the list.  Make sure you have easy-to-grab food on hand and lots to drink so you can keep yourself nourished.

 DIVE INTO THE SORT: The easiest way to sort is to bring it all out; utilize your driveway or backyard for the sorting.  Create sorting zones with a pile for Keep, Donate, Move Elsewhere and Toss.    Remove the largest items first, work your way through the rest and tackle small items last. 

 CLEAN IT OUT:  Pull on the gloves, put on the mask, then clean it all out … get in there with some elbow grease to dust, sweep, wipe down walls and prepare your space for its transformation.  Don’t skip this step…think of it like a blank canvas that is being prepared for a beautiful painting.

  TIME TO DISPOSE:  Dispose of the trash, move out the items going to another area, send the give away items to their homes and you are left with only the items to be returned to the garage.  Group like with like and categorize the items left (sports, decorations, gardening, tools, etc).

 PLAN IT OUT: Sit in the cleaned space and evaluate what is to be returned.  Determine how you wish to store it and decide if you will use shelving units, stock storage systems or call in a company to customize the space.  Sketch out a floor plan for your reference and note measurements for any storage systems/containers to be purchased.  (Remember – measure twice to purchase only once!) 

  FINDING A NEW HOME:  Utilize all of your space efficiently.  Shelves are a great way to store large items & local home improvement stores have many storage systems available.  Plastic bins are good for small items, hanging racks are great for sports equipment and bikes can be hung well from the ceiling. 

 DIVIDE & CONQUER: Create zones in the garage for the categories of items you have and clearly define these zones with labels.  Make sure to factor in visibility and access: frequently used items should go in easy to reach places up front; permanent storage items in less accessible places in back of the garage.  Return the sorted items to their zones.

 KEEP UP THE MOMENTUM:  Once you’ve created your ordered space, adopt new habits to keep it orderly: take a few extra minutes each day to put items in their designated spots and schedule weekly cleanups. These will be a breeze now that everything has been organized!

Conquering the clutter in your garage and creating an organized space can be a simple and easy process if you break it into manageable steps.  Check out our Photo Gallery and see how one of our clients tackled her project in 8 hours!  Once you’ve finished the garage, what’s the next space going to be?  Drop us a line and let us know – we’ll be able to give you some tips on organizing that area too!

 

 

 

SUMMER SERIES: Organizing to Travel – Post 1 of 3

Aug4

8 EASY STEPS TO PREPARE YOURSELF FOR DEPARTURE

Lately, my inbox has been flooded with emails for travel destinations and a myriad of travel products.  This doesn’t surprise me since summer seems to be the quintessential season to travel.  But have you ever felt like preparing to depart makes you too exhausted to even think about going on a trip – I sure have!  If you find yourself losing time preparing for your trip, your stress level skyrockets and you dread traveling, read on for eight, easy steps to solve this problem!

LIST IT OR LEAVE IT: Create a packing list in advance; a packing list will help you to remember what you need to take, prevent you from taking too much and keep you on track.  Think of it as the blueprint for your trip!  Create a master list by writing down all of the things you could possibly need for your trip and review it after each trip to refine it for the next.  After all, you should always pack what is on your list, but you should never pack what isn’t on your list!

CORRAL THE CONTAINERS: Don’t get caught with broken luggage just before packing.  Gather the luggage you will be using ahead of time and check it for holes, rips or broken closures; repair or replace if needed.  Save time and eliminate pressure by setting your luggage out and open in an easy to reach place.  When you come across something you want to take with you, just pop it into the appropriate bag and it’s one less thing you have to remember!

MAP IT OUT & TEST DRIVE: Take the time to lay out what you will wear so you can assemble outfits and accessorize ahead of time.  Once your outfits are all put together, pack it in the luggage that is open and waiting.  You’ll eliminate the last minute decision making that causes so much stress by taking your clothes for a test drive.   Remember that comfort should always come first and sticking with a color theme makes it easier to mix and match with less pieces.

ADD A SPECIALTY BAG: Try using a toiletry bag inside your luggage.  Purchase sample bottles to store your hygiene, makeup or shaving items and put in a hanging bag – smaller, sample sizes saves space and can easily be replenished after your trip.  An extra bonus:  you won’t have to unpack the items individually – just remove the bag from your suitcase and hang it up….more time for you to play!

DON’T FORGET THE MEDICINE: Don’t be caught without your prescription medicine during your travels.  Review all medicines that you will need to take ahead of time, refill any prescriptions and store them in the original containers.  Always keep your prescription medicine with you at all times.  DO NOT pack them in the checked luggage – it’s a good idea to keep them in a clear, sealed bag in your purse or carryon bag.

FIRST AID TO THE RESCUE: It’s always a good idea to take a portable, first aid kit with you when traveling.  This kit can range from a simple assortment of Band-Aids and antiseptic in a travel size pouch to an insulated, lunch bag containing commonly used over the counter medicines and a larger selection of first aid accoutrements.  It can certainly save you a late night trip to a drugstore that might be far away if you get a particularly nasty sunburn or bee sting!

BRING THE GOODY BAG: It’s always a good idea to have an activity bag that you pack with special things to keep you busy when traveling – there’s always a delay somewhere!  If you have children, create a toy bag or backpack that you use only when traveling – this will make the items seem “special”.  Fill it with small, easy to use items including books, colored pencils and small toys.  A goody bag doesn’t just apply to the kids – get creative and make an adult version!

WHO AM I & WHERE AM I GOING: Make sure that you keep your id, credit card, cash and travel information on you at all times.  A small wallet portfolio is great for keeping this information together and a check size accordion file is great way to store it if you are traveling by car.  You could use your phone as a file cabinet, too, for all of your details: leave yourself a message, put the trip details into a text or store it in a password protected document.

As you can see, getting ready to depart doesn’t have to take a lot of time, create undue stress or make you dread your journey.  Your trip can be fun and create lasting memories if you follow the above eight, easy steps.  So go on, dream away and find that fantastic place to travel to this summer….you’ll be able to get ready in no time.

As always, drop us a line and let us know all about your adventures – we’d love to share them with our visitors.   Happy traveling!