Show ‘N Tell Tuesday In A Girl’s Bedroom

I have this wonderful friend who has the sweetest little girl. She is a happy 4 year old. Every night she refused to sleep in her own bed. She would always sleep with her parents.

Because I am a professional organizer my friend asked for my help with clutter control in her daughters bedroom. She showed me her bedroom and after doing an evaluation of her room we decided to get rid of clutter and see if that would help her daughter sleep in her own bed.

Her mom got rid of clutter by separating the toys and making a home for all of them. She downsized the amount of dress up clothes to clear clutter and make space. Other toys were donated and some were sold to a local consignment shop.

The result was her daughter slept in her own bed for the first time in months!

What have you done to get rid of clutter that has made a big difference to you and your family? (For me it is that I don’t waste hours looking for something important as things have homes and they live in their homes when not being used—that is most of the time).

I to love to read. (My favorite books are murder mysteries) I have to read every night before I go to bed no matter how tired I am. The other night I couldn’t even get through one paragraph without dozing off. So I turned off my light and as soon as my head hit the pillow I was wide awake—what was up with that? I was irritated.

As a professional organizer I have recently worked with several families who also love books. They have books stacked all over their homes (and they don’t like it as these wonderful books create clutter).

At my book signing in Colorado Friday night half the people who stopped to chat about my book had the same problem—books everywhere that were creating clutter.

Here is an organizing tip on how to clear clutter books can create:

·Instead of a traditional night stand use an attractive book case that has cupboard doors to hide the books and yet has space on top for a lamp, radio, a book, glasses etc.

What do you do to clear clutter when you have books everywhere?

All week we have been chatting about clutter control and getting rid of clutter in the living room. What did you do this week?

It is Friday and that means it is product review day. As a professional organizer as I work in people’s homes I encourage those who don’t use this product under their throw rugs to go right out and buy it.

Non Slip rug ‘liner’:

•It prevents accidents from happening as rugs aren’t slippery.
•It can actually (or so I have read) extend the life of your rugs.
•It can be used in the cupboard as a thin padding to put glasses on.
•It comes in many sizes and can be cut to fit.

I have never found that any one brand is better than another. Have you? You can find this product at all variety stores in the house ware section.

Please share your clutter control tip for the living room!

What do you like best about your living room? Is it that it is free and clear of clutter. We visited someone once and were shown into their living room. (While we waited for her husband). There was a beautiful asparagus fern that had shed a few needles. She said she loved this plant because it shed sometimes and that reminded her to vacuum the room. I sure don’t need a plant to remind me when it is time to vacuum or get rid of clutter.

I took a look at my living room and I was secure in my knowledge (or so I thought) thinking there was no clutter in my living room. That is until I looked in my piano bench. There I found a scarf, a partially eaten chocolate candy bar, a beautiful print, and an old newspaper. I declare clutter can seep into just about anyplace.

•If you have your TV and DVD player in the living room keep a basket for the purpose of holding the remote controls. You can always find them and it helps with clutter control.
•A night light with an auto sensor or an LED night light (I love mine—there is never a bulb to replace and they have hundreds of hours of light) is nice to have to prevent stubbing your toe in the dark if you or someone else is in this room at night.
•When you start to get rid of clutter; start from the inside and work out. If you have bookshelves, piano bench, or an armoire start there. I know as a professional organizer this saves a lot of time.

What have you found in your living room that you have been looking for?

Does this ever happen to you? I keep our living room free of clutter, neat and tidy and as soon as books get tossed around and a coat and maybe a scarf and shoes are left around someone comes to visit? It’s rather irritating don’tchathink? I think so too. But it happens to all of us and life goes on.

This week we are talking tips for clutter control in the living room in case you are just joining us.

•Rearrange furniture to make the room easier to navigate. Be careful where you place coffee tables or end tables because hard corners can hurt when bumped into. If the room is crowded with too many tables maybe it is time to donate to family or a charity of your choice. If you are working on clutter control this may be an easy way to get rid of clutter.
•Do you read in your living room? Be sure you have adequate lighting for this and other tasks. Use three-way light bulbs to allow you to adjust your lamps’ brightness and save energy. I just read that they now have a three-way LED bulb.
•Keep warm, comfy blankets or quilts contained in an attractive basket. This keep clutter under control and within easy reach when needed.

What tip do you use to control clutter in your living room?

Show N’ Share Tuesday is a living room. Don’tcha just love before and after photos?

As a professional organizer I always say when we are getting rid of clutter things get worse before they get better! (And isn’t that just the truth?) Obviously we were getting rid of clutter in this room. In the living room we went through every book and made piles for donate, sell and keep. Then we put the books back on the shelves. The baskets look nice as they add another dimension to the shelves and paper backs can also be stored there or cords of one kind or another if they go to electronics in the room.

Getting rid of clutter also meant removing things that didn’t belong in this room. Things such as children’s toys they ride and magazines that are old and never read.

It is exhilarating getting rid of clutter and creating a room where you can welcome your guests and have a relaxing place to read.

What do you use your living room for? For some it is a family room, a den, or a rec room. It could be the space where you entertain, read, and watch TV or even plan your next vacation. You’ve probably decorated it with things you love.

However you use this room either as a place to relax or a hub of activity this week I will give you ideas to help you create an even more “livable” living room. Make it a goal to clear clutter in your living room during the month of February.

•Is your furniture comfortable but sturdy?
•Treat all fabrics with a stain resistant coating. This will help the fabrics stay bright and clean longer. Patterned fabrics will help camouflage spills. (Who says we spill?)
•Reduce clutter by using baskets for magazines, newspapers, children’s toys and catalogs.

What do you do to clear clutter in your living room?

I really, really, really like this bag. I am shocked I haven’t done a product review on it before! This is one of those bags that can be taken into any store and used for whatever you purchase instead of using their plastic sacks. (Is is bags or sacks? I think it depends on what part of the country you live in).

I have at least 9 (or more) other plastic bags that I can use when I go shopping and they are great too. My problem is I forget to get them out of the trunk of the car so I moved them to the back seat—still I forget them, so I moved them to the passenger seat—I still forget them. They get buried under other stuff I have in the car. Or I simply don’t look over and grab them.

This little bag is the best solution I have found.

•It is small and it fits in my purse so I always have it with me
•Fabric is washable
•I don’t have to remember to take it in with me!
•It holds a lot
•I don’t have to remember to take it back to the car after I unpack the groceries! And that’s a real plus when it is 25 degrees out.
•Not having to use the grocery sacks from the store has helped get rid of clutter.
Now, if I buy a lot of groceries the two I carry in my purse isn’t enough—but it is a start. I bought this one at Bath and Body Works for $2.00. I have seen them (even smaller) at Wall mart (but not as pretty) and my daughter picked up the cutest one in Canada. Just look around by the check stands to get your compact, recycle bag (sack).

How have you solved the problem of remembering to take your “use over and over” bags from the car to the store? Don’t you feel great when you use them to get rid of clutter?

Give yourself a pat on your back today for all the efforts you have made to clear clutter in your home and life! Saturday we went to an appreciation brunch as we’re docents for The Heritage Foundation. This organization educates and works to preserve old buildings in Utah. It feels good when someone appreciates what we do.

I think we all need to appreciate the things we do to make our lives better when we clear clutter. It is something that happens over and over again and we are constantly (in a good way) working to eliminate clutter in our lives.

Let’s face it, we can’t stay organized, but we can keep organized. I want you to look at your successes in clearing clutter and give yourself a big pat on your back!! Be happy with what you have done no matter how small you think it has been!

Will you share with us a success you have had?

As you know I was all in a panic at not being able to find that elusive quilt block. Halleluiah I found it! I even remember exactly why I put it where I put it.

I had placed it by the side of the filing cabinet so it would be almost in plain sight and it would remind me to work on it and also I foolishly thought I could find it fast.

The only thing I can console myself with is in the process of looking I was also getting rid of clutter. I reminded myself that everything has a home and when not being used the item needs to live in their own place or home. If I had made a home for this block it would have lived with my other fabric which was about 14 ½ inches away. (Yet hours away as I hunted for it).

As a professional organizer getting rid of clutter is important to me and those I work with. It makes us feel liberated from stuff, happy, feeling in control and it gives us a sense of peace. I can tell you hunting for something lost has the reverse effect.

How do you feel when you get rid of clutter? Do you miss it?