A friend asked me a few weeks ago what I thought of getting a skip (dumpster) to do a big declutter.

I said to her that while that would work for some people, it wouldn’t work for me.

1) I don’t have that much junk

2) I prefer things to leave my house a bag or two at a time because I’m a baby steps person.

I thought of that when I decided to simplify my make-up.

My secret organising fantasy is to have just one lipstick that looks good with all my clothes and wear only that.

Well, until that time comes, I’m simplifying my make-up very, very slowly. Baby steps.

Before I got to the before pic, I threw out about 3 – 4 lipsticks.

It was time to go through it again. I don’t make a big deal about organising/ decluttering/ simplifying – I wait until things feel like they need a tweak or until I get a bee in my bonnet and then I just have at it.

That’s what happened one Saturday evening after we got home and put the kids to bed (that’s why the pics are this strange shade) – on this particular night I tossed another 2.

BEFORE

AFTER – the stuff I use every day in the pink candle-holder and the rest on the other side

this plastic container with my eyeshadow rests on the top

this is what I use every day – lipliner, lipstick and an eyeliner and most days, some eyeshadow on my (very light) eyebrows

dental floss, blemish stick,brush, night cream and some other lipsticks and some lipliners

So… I want to know from you

Are you the type who gets the dumpster or do you declutter a bag or two at a time?
And.. do you wear the same shade of lipstick every day?

PS thanks to Chloe for giving me the idea of keeping the everyday make-up together. I love it

Okay, today’s your turn.

There’s a little organisational nightmare going on in my house.

To be fair, I’m being just a tad dramatic because at least it’s working about 50%.

I’m talking about my little Kendra’s hair accessories. This is one of those times I thank God I’m not a girly girl (although I do like hot pink!) and don’t actually buy this stuff from choice because there’d be three times the amount of “pretty”. Everything she owns is mostly practical (I know, some of you are thinking, poor kid!)

I have long hair but I have about six stretchy scrunchies and they live inside my bedside table drawer in an upcycled formula can.

We have a few headbands (the stretchy ones), Alice bands, a few clips/ grips/ barrettes (I think that’s what you call them) and then, my nemesis, a gazillion ponytail holders.

In theory I love this idea… it’s attractive, has nice, clean lines and is very organised.Very, very nice but too fancy for me.

but this is more my style because I’m a very lazy organiser … toss in and hope for the best.

We currently use a small, 3-drawer plastic system – one for the ponytail holders, one for the headbands and one for grips and it’s okay.

But I find these things lying around all over the house, taunting me.

As I’ve been writing I think my system is actually the best for me. Open the drawer and toss in – that’s it.

I just need to bribe train Kendra to collect all those things and return them to her wardrobe.

Tell me, how do you store your hair accessories?

teal frame

I saw this frame at the Crazy Store and fell in love with the colour.

What colour is it, by the way? Do you call it turquoise/ teal/ what?

You see, I’d seen something on a blog where they used a similar frame to organise their lives – the person used the three sections for To do, a shopping list and something else (maybe her weekly menu plan).

And yes, their frame was probably a bit bigger than mine but still, same concept.

I hadn’t got to this project yet when I found another makeshift dry erase board I made last year.

For that project, the photo frame broke but I kept the glass, printed a cute background (you could use scrapbook paper or gift wrap) to put in between, and used two big binder clips to hold it all together. I then hung ribbon from the binder clips.

It worked aesthetically but it felt too messy for my study.

All that writing and erasing and re-writing

Yet I forgot that when I saw the idea on the blog.

How often do we do that?

We see something cute and think that it will work for us without stopping to think about our preferences or our family’s needs.

So for me, no dry erase in my study.

A plain old notebook still works best for me. Actually, I have two.

One for my business goals for the week – Beth and I chat every week and I write down (yes, with a real pen and paper) both our goals in a notebook which stays open on a corner of my desk.

And then in front of my computer I have a scrap notebook for my scribblings.

What works for you? dry erase boards, your electronic device of choice or a good old pen and paper?

PS that gorgeous frame will not go to waste – I plan to either use it as a photo frame or to frame my monthly, quarterly and annual goals.

What would you use it for?

On a couple of the blogs I read, the bloggers did a 40-day challenge.

It’s linked to Lent and the idea is they declutter 40 spaces in their home and get rid of 40 bags.

I love the idea of it but it wouldn’t work exactly as intended for me since my house is already relatively clutter-free.

Although I could easily do about 3 – 4 bags

Nevertheless, I thought I’d link to this excellent wrap-up post. Katie shares what she leart, what worked well for her and what she recommends for future challenges of this nature.

Katie, here’s your “featured at Organising Queen” button.

Code

<a href=”http://takechargesolutions.org/blog/” target=”_blank”><img border=”0″ src=”http://takechargesolutions.org/blogjjd/Organising%20Queen%20Button4.png” /></a>

When you do any large-scale organising project, it’s important to:

1) have a plan of attack

2) create the time to do it (schedule it in your diary)

3) use small steps to produce huge results over time

4) have some accountability, both to motivate you and to help you celebrate your victories

The last big organising project in my house was when we went from this…

to this…

I had to get really honest about what I was keeping and why

If you need to tackle some areas of your home this month, Organise your home will help you. It’s a step-by-step system using only 4 days a week for 30 minutes at a time.

What was the last big organising project you did?

All over the internet I’m seeing projects to do with spring.

Crafts, printables, clothes, decor, etc.

Wouldn’t it be fun to sort out our homes this spring? (Or autumn, if you’re in the southern hemisphere like I am)

Do you want to get your home organised?

When: 12 weeks beginning whenever you want

Where: Online, self-paced

How: A lesson in 4 parts delivered to your inbox on the same day every week.

Who: Anyone who wants to get their home organised, or more organised

What: 12 weeks of lessons, tips, tricks, pictures and practical help tackling all the rooms of your home

Why: So you can have the peace and calm that being organised brings

Price: $99 dollars – take $20 off when you use code SPRING20. Expires 3 April.

Get organised here

(if you’re not sure, download the sampler)

If this is not the right time for you, no worries. Just enjoy the weather

What’s your favourite season?

Mine is autumn, then winter, then spring

This week, let’s tackle some of those tasks around the home and office that we don’t get around to normally doing.

I’m specifically choosing Quick and Easy tasks so that you can build up some momentum and feel good about getting things done.

What gets you motivated?

Is it MUSIC? Then put on some 80′s tunes to get yourself energised.

Is it COMPETITION? Then challenge yourself and see how many of the tasks you can accomplish in an hour.

Is it being ACCOUNTABLE? Then post a comment on the blog telling me what you’re going to do and come back to tell me when it’s done!

Is it SOCIAL INTERACTION? Then make a coffee date with a friend, but ONLY once you’ve done an hour’s organising.

Is it reaching a GOAL? Then reward yourself once you’ve done all the tasks. I’m doing exactly this by reading after I do about two hours of organising.

Now that we know what motivates you, let’s get to it!

In the home

1. Declutter and sort through all your old magazines. Tear out the articles you want (recipes, etc) and toss the rest.
2. Organise your launch pad – the place in your home where you DUMP things when you walk in the door.
3. Collect all the clothes you need to dry-clean, declutter, launder or get mended.
4. Clear off the front of your fridge. Toss the magnets and recipes you’re never going to try.
5. Throw away any old food in your fridge and freezer, and give the surfaces a good wipe down.

And now for some…

office organising

1. Do your filing.
2. Collect all the bills and invoices from around the home and schedule the payment dates in your planner.
3. Shred any junk mail with your name on it.
4. Organise your desk.
5. Delete 100 emails from your Inbox and Sent Items. There are tons of good ideas in the Organise your Office system.

Whatever you manage to do, give yourself a pat on the back!

What motivates you to get organised?

Is there something else that I don’t have on my list?

Your goals form for Feb is ready over at my site. If you’re already signed up, you will have received the form this morning. Otherwise, when you sign up, it will be delivered to you in the welcome pack.

Happy planning

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On Saturday morning I tried to squeeze something into a cupboard and when it wouldn’t fit, I  just lost it.

I then chucked out stuff like crazy.

Why do I have four huge plastic salad bowls when I only ever use at most two at a time?

I use these ones for baking when it’s a 3 cups of flour or more recipe too, and of late, for my sweet and savoury snack mixes.

And that’s how it went.

I had a pile big enough for two grocery carrier bags on my table and told Nester (our cleaning lady) to please help herself to it all. Or otherwise, to toss!

I’ve been seriously decluttering and organising for just over 6 years now, as long as we’ve been in this house and it was my stinginess that started it.

I actually considered getting a kitchen cupboard built to house all my extra stuff and when they quoted me R5000-odd in those days, I nearly fainted.

But I did have an aha – those things I wanted stored weren’t nearly worth R5000 so why would I pay for storage to house rubbish that I probably wasn’t using anyway.

Let that be some inspiration for you!

What do you need to clear out this week?

PS Organise your home will help kick-start your decluttering journey.

I only bought my 2012 diary (planner) on 1 December!

I do believe this is the latest I’ve bought my diary in about 5 years.

It’s a combination of not getting to the shops with enough time to have a good old browse and just not seeing something that jumped out at me and said, “YES!”

While I liked the A5 size I had this year, I found half of it went unused because I just don’t have as many appointments as I did in years past.

Effectively I was only using the notes section and a tiny portion of the week-at-a-glance.

So for next year I’ve gone even smaller (A6) in a gorgeous teal Italian leather. I’m super-tactile so I already can’t stop touching it.

It’s still a week-at-a-glance format with notes paper on the right but it somehow feels less overwhelming to me.

It’s from Legami, by the way.

And whenever I write a post like this, all of you very helpful readers tell me I should use online tools.

People, I’m a paper gal – years ago I kept trying to be an electronic person (and I’d stop being effective because of trying to use various online tools that didn’t work for me). Now I’ve fully embraced that I need to organise my life on paper.

If this is speaking to someone out there, embrace your paper-loving self.

Have you bought your diary yet?

I’ve just come back home after having been out with some girlfriends and realised I still needed to post for today

Kim says:

I really need to figure out an easy way to STAY organized…apparently all the different ways haven’t worked for me, or I would be organized, right???? I’ve tried, but can’t seem to stay upon it. Not sure what is really going wrong.

Today, I’m taking the easy way out.

If Kim asked you this question, what would you say are your best tips to help her stay organised

When you sign up to my weekly newsletter, you get my free Time Management Purpose Pack and an email that asks you if you have any questions for me.

Mostly I just refer people to specific posts on the blog (as I seem to have covered most of them) but I liked this question I got recently so I thought I’d answer it here.

Kimberley said

I seem to not be able to get rid of things! I often feel emotionally attached to objects/ stuff may need them again!

I love questions that talk to the mindset about organising. I think I spent about half the workshop talking mindset because it is that important.

Remember my definition of clutter is things you don’t love or use (and I think I saw this on Laura’s blog, “that you don’t have the storage for”).

So if you know you should get rid of things and you feel emotionally attached, start asking yourself why you feel that way.

Sit with the question for a couple of days if you must because this is very important and you’re going to breeze through the rest of the organising process if you spend time upfront thinking about these things.

I also want to add that if you feel like rushing through thinking about this, that might be all the more reason for you to really think about your motives…

1. Maybe you have some hoarding tendencies because you didn’t have much money at some point in your life?

Ask yourself if you really, honestly couldn’t get x again if you needed it.

2. Maybe you’re hanging onto things because they’re from special people in your life?

Remind yourself that the thing does not define the special person. They don’t love you more because you hung onto the ugly vase

3. Maybe you’re hanging onto things because they remind you of special times?

I wrote about sentimental organising here. So… take a pic and let the item go.

Two questions for my readers:

Do you have hoarding tendencies?
How do you make it easier to let go?