by Heidi | May 21, 2015 | Professional Organizing, quote
There are a few basic Guiding Principles that I consistently introduce clients to while I lead them through the organizing process. One of my favorites is by William Morris:
“Have nothing in your home that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.”
How simple and freeing is that?
As you look around the various items in your home, take a moment to consider;
Do I love this item?
Does it bring me joy to admire this?
Does it serve a function or purpose important to my current lifestyle?
Am I using this?
If the answer is ‘no’ – move it out.
Donate. Sell. Discard. Gift.
No guilt allowed.
Even if someone precious in your life gave you the item.
Even if it once belonged to someone in your family history.
Ask yourself;
Will I think differently about the person who gave this to me if I do not keep this?
Will I still have fond thoughts about this person for bestowing this item to me?
Do I have other mementos that remind me of this particular person or event that I love more?
You simply do not need to keep the physical evidence of each gift of love & thoughtfulness.
Need some help remembering this principle?
Here are two free printable images to hang up and encourage or motivate you:
(click on the links below each image for your free download)
by Heidi | May 11, 2015 | Uncategorized
Have you ever felt discontent about the current state of your home?
Maybe you’re consistently feeling over-whelmed and under motivated to create or maintain the home of your dreams.
Do you find yourself waiting until the next move, or a future house to really get intentional about creating a haven of beauty peace and rest to retreat to?
Love the Home You Have is written to you. To inspire and motivate you to create the home of your dreams right where you are…
Melissa shares honest and sometimes comical stories of her own journey of learning to truly embrace the house/s she found herself in over the years…
“After living the house-hopping life for so long, I was tired of searching. I was ready to quit running on the squeaky hamster wheel, trying to arrive at perfect circumstances. Instead, I would start considering what contentment actually felt like and what was required to live in it. I craved simplicity. I wanted to slow down and feel gratitude for what I already had. I wanted to stop looking for something more beautiful beyond my reach and just embrace the daily pleasures and things I learned to love in every single house.”
She encourages us to not focus on creating perfection in our homes, but rather on the little habits that eventually build a place of beauty and rest…
“We are blessed to manage our own little heaven on earth— our homes— wherever they might be. There is divine purpose in caring for our homes and wanting them to be places of loveliness and peace. Our homes won’t ever be perfect, but we certainly can enjoy the process of creating beauty, and we can appreciate the lessons we learn along the way.”
I especially appreciated and related to Chapter/s 6 & 7.
‘Decluttering the Nooks and Crannies’ shares:
* Motivation to create room for living in your home
* Ideas for getting over a slump
* Practical suggestions for eliminating excess
‘The Reward of Daily Routines‘ shares about the power that simple daily habits will provide toward keeping a neat and tidy home.
You’ll learn how to develop a few simple habits and gain more understanding of the freedom you will enjoy in your life as a result
Her authentic and down-to-earth writing promises to encourage you to embrace your current home and inspire you with simple and achievable ideas to create more beauty and function in your home – right where you are.
Author, Melissa Michaels writes regularly on on her blog, (The Inspired Room) about her own home and things that inspire her about decorating, homemaking and organization. She shares posts on how to decorate, or to get inspired when you are in a slump, how to organize a home and keep up with homemaking. In her book, she builds upon similar simple and achieveable ideas like four daily routines and plenty more inspiration and motivation on how to fall in love with your home.
Ready to get encouraged, motivated and inspired to Love the Home You Have!?
Check it out!
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* Disclaimer*
I was provided a printed copy of ‘Love the Home You Have’ for the purposes of sharing my honest opinion.
I only agree / volunteer to review products and services which I feel are truly relevant to my readers and clients.
by Heidi | Apr 20, 2015 | Craft Room Organization, Home Organization, Professional Organizer, Uncategorized
Occasionally, my fantastic clients graciously volunteer to share the amazing transformation of the spaces we work on together.
Here is a peek of what a craft room looked like before Operation Organization by Heidi was called in for aid:
The clients hobby of choice is scrap booking, but shared that due to the overwhelming state of the room, she did not feel like going into the room at all, much less work on any new projects.
After just 2 1/2 hours, here was the result (and, yes, everything but about 5 small items went back into the room after being sorted – but with intentional placement) :
The client shared that she needed some direction in the best use of the ample cabinet space available for her family photos and scrap booking supplies.
Here’s a few before and after photos of the inside of some of the cabinets:
After adjusting the shelf spacing, the albums are now all in once location and can all be placed upright, plus are now much easier to access.
Cabinets that before had very little stored inside, now intentionally have the entire collection of loose photos ready to be easily resourced for the next album creation.
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by Heidi | Mar 27, 2015 | Uncategorized
Occasionally, my fantastic clients graciously volunteer to share the amazing transformation of the spaces we work on together.
Here is a peek of what a master bedroom looked like before Operation Organization by Heidi was called in for aid:
Several of the other rooms in the home had undergone some renovation / repainting, and clutter began to build in other rooms of the home as a result.
NOW, the room is a much more serene and relaxing space to unwind in:
The homeowner was delighted to be able to add a few decorative updates in the room like that beautiful mural and antique sofa after all the excess clutter was sorted and either relocated to another area of the home, or removed.
Here are a few more angles of the space:
And, a final side by side of the first few photos:
Here is a before / after of the attached master bath.
After it was clear, it got a fresh coat of paint and a a few additional decorative wall hangings.
by Heidi | Mar 20, 2015 | Uncategorized
Here is a fun and simple solution to keep your calendar and family schedule organized!
Color Code activities and events with POST-IT flags!
Even with all the electronic options available for calendars these days, it is still my personal preference to have an old fashioned paper planner.
{The one pictured here is a very basic ‘At a Glance‘ brand monthly day planner from my local Staples office supply store.}
I have always been a fan of color coding as it allows you to quickly and easily identify items or tasks. With just a glance, I can recognize who and what type of activities are scheduled.
I have experimented with simply using colored pens or highlighters in the past, but found that ink went through the thin pages of the planner which didn’t look very nice when you turned the page.
Also, in my work as a Professional Organizer, it occasionally happens that a client needs to re-schedule their appointment. You can’t erase pen and highlight. I LOVE how easy it is to simply pull up the post-it flag and re-attach it to another day! That feature is also super helpful for recurring tasks like a long term project or extra curricular activities for children – just keep moving those flags!
I have been using this system for about 3 months before sharing to make sure that I didn’t have a problem with flags falling off, but so far it has worked beautifully! I purchased all the supplies for this project at Staples in Peachtree City.
Here’s my Current Color Code Rundown:
BLUE: Business – Mostly Client Appointments
RED: Events Relating to Husband
GREEN: Events Relating to Children
YELLOW: Recreation / Entertainment
PURPLE: Personal Appointments / Reminders
Disclaimer: I was not reimbursed for the use of or mention of these products. I’ve just had personal success with them and like to share what works well for me and my clients. All opinions are my own.
