Thursday, January 22, 2009

Organizing your bathroom

Even bathrooms need to be kept organized. Here are some tips on how to do it:

• Take regular inventory of medications. Medications have an expiration date which should be followed. When they expire, be sure to put them in the trash and not down the toilet.
• Keep inventory organized. All your extra tubes of tooth paste should be next to each other as should the extra toilet paper, shampoo, etc. This will help you to know at a glance how much you have of everything. When you are down to your last shampoo, put it on the list to get more. This keeps you from running out or having too much in stock.
• Throw away old make up. Make up has a shelf life. If you haven’t used it in a while, toss it. Or if you have been using the same mascara for a year, it may be time to replace it. Keep your skin healthy by using fresh make up. Keep your bathroom organized by throwing away what you don’t use.
• If you aren’t sure about certain items, use the box trick. Get a box and put all the items you aren’t sure about in it. If you have to go into the box to use something, put it back into its proper place (do not put it back in the box). After one month, whatever is left in the box is unnecessary. It can be donated or thrown out (if expired or old).
• Have you been collecting hotel soaps, shampoos and lotions? Or do you have several make up samples that you will never use? If so, either use them now or donate them to a women’s shelter. They are always in need of toiletries.




Meagan Farrell, professional organizer, is the owner of Clear the Clutter organizing services. She can be reached at (360) 631-7268 or at clear_theclutter@yahoo.com. Check out her blog at http://cleartheclutterprofessionalorganizing.blogspot.com/

Friday, January 9, 2009

Keeping Clutter Out

How about this for a New Year’s resolution – keep the clutter out. You should guard your home against clutter like you guard it against dirt. People worry about keeping their home clean, yet they don’t hesitate to fill it full of un-necessary stuff. Here are some tips for safeguarding your home:

1- Don’t buy it. How often do you find yourself in a store’s clearance aisle thinking “I am not sure what I could do with this, but at this price, I will think of something!” Stop right there. Why are you willing to pay (even if it is only 75 cents) to add to your clutter??? Walk away.
2- Don’t keep it. It is during the holidays that we get so much stuff – often stuff we don’t need, won’t use or just don’t like. Return it if you can. Give it to Goodwill or have a garage sale. Or you can even make it fun and have an exchange with friends where everyone brings stuff they don’t want and swap with each other. No matter how you do it, get it out of your house. If you put it away, chances are really high that it will stay there, taking up valuable storage space and a small piece of your sanity.
3- Give it a temporary home. If you get a gift that you just don’t want/need, but you feel like you owe it to the giver to hold on to it, give it a temporary space in your home. For example, if your mother-in-law gave you a sweater that you just don’t like/doesn’t fit, but you feel like you need to keep it, only do so for the season. After sweater season is over, you can clean out your sweaters and let it go. She won’t expect to see you in it in July and by the following year, she will be focused on what she gave you this year, not last.

The bottom line is that you are in charge of what lives in your home and takes up your valuable space. Don’t be afraid to be selective.


Meagan Farrell, professional organizer, is the owner of Clear the Clutter organizing services. She can be reached at (360) 631-7268 or at clear_theclutter@yahoo.com. Check out her blog at http://cleartheclutterprofessionalorganizing.blogspot.com/