Clutter Support Group to Begin February 25th

Join us for a 6 week educational support group for those struggling with getting and staying organized!

There is an educational module we will cover each week, and participants will benefit from discussion and the facilitation by two Certified Professional Organizers. All members of the group will receive a Success Binder, and learning materials. This is a highly interactive group.

Location: The Productivity Center at Discover Organizing
672 Washington Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15228
Time: 6:30-8:00 p.m.
Day: Thursdays, beginning Feb 25, running through April 1

Facilitators: Jill Revitsky, CPO, and Jodi Eisner, MSW, CPO

Call 412-344-3450 or email jill@discoverorganizing.com for information on pricing and how to register.

Past participants have found this to be a very effective way to learn new ways to conquer their challenges with getting organized in their daily lives. Stop wishing your life could be simpler, start making some changes with the right support!

Shoeboxes - A Green Way to Store More than Shoes

Recently, I was in a new client's home to help her organize her everyday and archival paper. We finished with her daily paper management, and I asked her where she stored her receipts (we had a small stack gathered). She began to blush, looked a little embarrassed, and said, "you won't like this, but I use a shoebox in my closet". I asked her if the system "worked"? I usually can tell if an existing filing system works if the client:

• doesn't lose or misplace papers often
• can find them easily when needed

She stated how she uses the boxes, where she stores them, and after hearing her process, I gave this system my whole-hearted Professional Organizer approval. This was a GREAT system! She had a ROUTINE, she knew WHERE they were at all times, and USED the process every year at tax time to her advantage. Perfect!

If you use a shoe box, a baggie, a plastic container, or drawer - make sure you use it regularly (routinely), label it so that anyone else that might need it (besides you) can find it quickly, and make sure it doesn't have a dead end - in other words, make sure it has a purpose (i.e. end-of-year accounting).




If you prefer a pretty, polished system, grab a Receipt.Catcher from Buttoned Up - available at Discover Organizing Store.

Economic Organizing, or "When the going gets tough, the tough get organized"

In these anxious times, some home-sellers' (and buyers') dreams were put on hold due to the current state of our economy. My take on this? Let's fall in love with our houses again, and have fun doing it! When the going gets tough, the tough get organized.

Let's think about that basement - you were going to clean it out anyway if you moved, so why not tackle it now, while you are waiting for the market to pick back up? It WILL pick back up. We are Americans - we will shop, eat, and play no matter what! So, to get ready for those new purchases to come, here are some ways to make space in your great, existing, home:

Pick the largest storage areas first: Basement, Garage, Attic
Set up 4 cardboard boxes: Keep, Toss, Donate, Sell (use ebay or local consignment shops)
Work Left to Right, Top to Bottom: Read your room, and clear at least 1 Square Foot per day
Create Zones for Your Things: Home Decor, Seasonal Decor, Memorabilia/Photos, Outdoor Games, Gardening Supplies, Hardware/Tools, etc.
Label and Contain Everything: use plastic bins and apply clear packing tape over index cards, labeled with large print for the contents


Just think how prepared you will be when it comes time to really move!

Getting Dressed - This should not be hard!

It's morning, and one thing after the other is happening - phone rings on the land line - it's the doctor/mother-in-law/long-lost friend who just found your number - and your morning just fell behind by 15 minutes. What do you do?
a) reach for your outfit, which is one of 5 that is ready to go - you washed and pressed these days ago
b) iron a shirt while trying to wake up your kids, letting the coffee get cold, and do the makeup in the car
c) cry because you haven't done laundry in days, and nothing is pressed, or ready, and there is absolutely no milk for cereal, the only breakfast food your entire family eats

If you answered A, you are Mary Poppins! If you are B, you are Lorelei Gilmore, and if you answered C, you are Bridget Jones with kids, right?

Well, here is the good news - you can be Mary. This is not hard. Just like with anything else, if you take a little extra time to prepare, you will be ready for anything.

Ok, the first tip is easy - always have 5 outfits ready to go - and have some basics in your closet that make anything work - black pants, brown skirt, basic black shoes, neutral sandals, white shirts. You get it...now just make sure it is all clean.

Second - let's deal with time management - a 15 minute interruption cannot ruin your morning - always give yourself 15 minutes on top of any task or process. I for one, usually get lost in new territory. I always leave 15 minutes early when going to a new place. Just because I am an organizer doesn't mean that I am not directionally challenged. (I just got a GPS on my new Blackberry, so let's see what happens...)

Third and finally, establish a routine - it is your backbone to your day, your week, your life. That way, if interruptions happen, and they WILL, you can fall back on that routine to get back to normal. Bridget Jones probably didn't do her laundry regularly, and it caught up with her. Not that every Thursday has to be laundry day, but once a week should do it - just pick a day and get to it.

-Jill, your new blogger, now that Waunetah moved back to LA! :(

Do you deign to decorate? Make it fun again...

Do you love to decorate for each season or holiday, but find it's becoming more trouble than it's worth? Do you have to go through every bin to find what you're looking for? Do you find yourself asking, "Where's that bunny-shaped cake pan?" or, "What is in that blue bin way up there?"


Keep yourself and your items organized by color-coding or decorating separate bins for each holiday/season. Gather the cookie cutters, tableclothes, placemats, decorative serving pieces, etc. associated with each holiday/season and store them in their new home. This way seasonal items are not taking up space in your kitchen cabinets or drawers for the every day items that you use most.

If your kids are stuck at home on a snow day, this is where those old magazines or catalogues and glue come in handy for bins decorated with flair! If you prefer a more streamlined approach, a Dymo labeler works just as well. Just make sure the font is big enough to read easily if you prefer to store items up high. Ideally the bins would be labeled on 3 sides, making them readily identifiable. Depending on your storage space though, make sure at least the front and the top of the bins are labeled.

Here are a few bin decorating ideas:

(Ahem), if you still have Christmas or New Year's decorations out:

• Red and green for Christmas
• Gold and silver for New Year's
• Blue and white for winter

February fun:

• Red and pink for Valentine's Day
• Black and white for President's Day
• Purple and gold for Mardi Gras
• your team's colors for the Superbowl Game Party supplies

Marching ahead:

• Green and gold for St. Patrick's Day (March 17th)
• Pink for International Women's Day (March 8th)
• Easter (March 23rd)
• your favorite NCAA Basketball team colors for March Madness
• and if Punxsutawney Phil was accurate, we'll need those Spring decorations about now!

However you decorate your home or place of business, keep it simple and easy to do. That way it won't become a chore. You can go right to the bin, bring it to your decorating space and have a great time! When the last hoorah is done for the holiday/season, all those items now have a designated home where they can live organized and happily ever after until next year.

At the Discover Organizing Store in Mt. Lebanon we have a great variety of bins available. Come in and see which sizes work for your decor storage needs.

Happy decorating,

Lead Professional Organizer
Discover Organizing
672 Washington Road
Pittsburgh, PA
412-344-3450