My Organizing Blog | Organizing Goddess - Part 69

A Cautionary Tale about Q-Tips

My mother called me the other day to tell me that she had 750 Q-tips and was hoping I would agree to take some of them off her hands. Here’s how it happened.  My mother noticed  that the package of 300 Q-tips that she purchased at Walgreen’s quite a number of years ago was almost empty.   However, she was determined to buy a smaller package, since she and my dad use them up so slowly, and, like most of us…

Read more →

Paper Handling Guidelines

Do you have a problem with paper?   Does it seem to multiply overnight?  Do you get your desk cleaned off, only to find an intimidating pile there again just a few days later? You are not alone.   Most of my clients struggle with managing paper, and I myself wage a weekly battle with the top of my desk.

Read more →

Practicing What I Preach

As a Professional Organizer, I live the advice that I give my clients.  I regularly donate unworn clothes and unused items; I efficiently process incoming e-mail and paper; I manage my time using an effective to-do list. But even I’m not perfect. That’s why I found it so satisfying last week to tackle something that had been nagging at me for a while — something that was violating TWO of my six basic organizing principles.

Read more →

Packing Tip: Plan Before You Go

Packing / Travel / 

I’m breathing a big sigh of relief, because for the first time in months, I’m not packing. We spent the first two weeks of July on a family safari in Africa.  Then, a few days after we got back, we drove our 13-year old daughter — and her luggage —  to camp for a six-week stay. In the weeks before I go on a trip, people always ask me, “Are you packed yet?”  They assume that, because I am an organizer, I pack my…

Read more →