Category Archives: Organising

How Do You Clean?

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Do you clean all like things together or do it room by room?

From an efficiency point of view I suspect that it makes sense to do all of the sweeping or clean all of the light fittings.  On the other hand , I like knowing that I have completed one room.  An example is the bedroom – I may strip the bed then remove any cobwebs, wipe the windowsills, clean the lightshade, clean mirror, dust and polish furniture, vacuum the carpet, remake the bed with fresh linen – and it is all done.

Anyone who has been reading this blog for a while will be aware that the office is the unofficial dumping ground here and getting it the way I want it is a struggle.  Since the weather has been miserable today I have stayed indoors and continued to work on this area.

I am very pleased with my achievements so far.  Here is the desk.

2012-03-04 01Another view of the room.

2012-03-04 02Finally, the pile of stuff that I have yet to sort and find where it is going to live – either in this house or elsewhere.

2012-03-04 03Wish me luck!

Accessories – How Many?

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I have written here previously about my 1 handbag and an evening purse.  In many minimalist and decluttering blogs there is often a focus on clothes and even shoes which led me to thinking about other accessories and how many is actually enough.

I am not a huge jewellery fanatic but I always wear earrings – I don’t feel dressed unless I have them on.  I do not tend to wear dangly earrings as I am not terribly tall and do not find them flattering.

This is where I keep my earrings.

2012-02-25 01Here is my entire collection of earrings – 9 pairs.

2012-02-25 02

My apologies for the poor quality photo, but I am sure you get the idea.  They are all fairly simple, classic designs which is what I like.

The only earrings I have are ones that I love and use.

What do you have enough of?

What to Keep?

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From my own experience and what I have read, I think the most difficult thing to declutter and keep under control is paperwork.  It seems to be so insidious.

After my post the other day, titled ‘Gone From the Office’, Angasagain asked, “How long do you keep bills and bank statements for? Some of my filing sleeves are bulging but I’m not sure how ruthless I should be.”

The first thing to remember is that there are legal requirements regarding documents relating to tax returns.  In Australia, you need to keep all taxation papers and relevant documents, such as bank statements, for 5 years after the completion of the tax year.  This may be different in other countries so it is important to check the local laws.

I have set up the suspension files in the filing cabinet with one for each year.  At the moment we have:

Current year 2011-2012

5 previous years

2010-2011
2009-2010
2008-2009
2007-2008
2006-2007

When the next tax return is done, I will discard (shredded) the 2006-2007, add 2011-2012 to the previous years and create a new “Current year” which will be 2012-2013.  This is based on the principle of 1 in, 1 out.  If you do not do this regularly you are likely to find that you have 20 years worth of tax returns bulging out of the filing cabinet.

In conjunction with the annual cull of tax stuff I also get rid of the relevant year of bank statements.  Remember to shred all documents carefully to protect your security.

For all other paperwork, I find the best method is to ask yourself why you are keeping it and what possible scenario could arise where you would need to refer to it.

Household bills – we usually keep for 1 – 2 years so that we can compare them with the same period of the previous year.  I do not keep a record of how much we spend on particular bills over an entire year but some people do.

Product warranties, instructions and receipts are kept for the life of the item.  I would suggest setting up a 6 monthly schedule to review all of these documents and discard any that are no longer relevant.

In order to reduce the amount of paper, we choose to receive whatever bills possible via email and save them in the electronic format.  We only print them if required.

Being a good gatekeeper is essential.  Stop that paper before it gets in the door.  Consider putting a ‘NO JUNK MAIL’ sticker on your mailbox.  What will you miss?  Store catalogues advertising stuff that you didn’t even know you needed?  Flyers advertising services that you do not require?  If you seriously want to follow what grocery specials are available, I believe these can be accessed online although I personally have not done this.

Everyone’s requirements will be different.  This may depend on whether you are renting or have a mortgage, are studying, employed or receiving Centrelink benefits.  The most important thing is to review all paperwork critically when it arrives in your home and decide:

Do I need to receive this information?
Do I need to retain this information?

Please tell me how you go about deciding what documents come into your home and more importantly what gets to stay and for how long.

Keeping Things Contained

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One aspect of organisation that constantly eludes me is pending paperwork.  We do not have much as most of our bills are direct debits or paid online as soon as we get them.  I am quite efficient at filing things once they are dealt with but where do you keep things such as concert tickets, flight itineraries?

I have seen all sorts of systems that different people have but none really seemed to suit this household.  That is the important thing – make sure your system suits your needs.  Do not expect that just because it works for others that it will work for you.

Yesterday I decided to use a binder with plastic sleeves in it and label each sleeve starting with 1st through to 31st for each day of the month.  There is also a sleeve at the back labelled next month and some spares if I need them.

2012-02-15 01

Here is the folder and so far I have put the tickets for a dinner we are attending on Friday night in the relevant sleeve.  There will be other things as they turn up.  This is not a permanent filing system but a dynamic container for paperwork that we will need to access in the coming days and weeks.

I am hopeful that this will eliminate the various bits of paper lying around on the desk and kitchen bench.

The other thing we have contained is all of the fittings for the bathroom renovation.  They are all tucked away in an alcove ready for the work to start.  The plan is for it to commence next week.  How fortuitous that I am away for 3 nights for work!  It will not be too much of an inconvenience as we have a second toilet near the laundry as well as a fairly basic bathroom downstairs.

2012-02-15 02

I am really looking forward to having it all done.  I will post more photos once the action begins.

Making A List…..And Checking It Twice

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Santa Claus certainly had the right idea when it came to being organised.

2012-02-14 01I am doing some paid work at home tomorrow but also have a long list of things to do.  It is essential that I write a list to ensure nothing gets forgotten and also to do things in the most efficient manner.

Things I need to do include:

Put out rubbish and recycling bins for collection

Pick cherry tomatoes at neighbour’s place

2012-02-14 02Pick up parcels from the Post Office
Deposit a cheque
Take poster to the picture framers and choose a frame
Drop off stuff to the op shop
Go to the Co-op to buy tamari, peanut paste, shower gel and face wash
Go to the IGA to buy bacon and salami
Pick up seeds that I have ordered
Meet friends for coffee and to swap/share our produce

2012-02-14 03The list in italics all needs to be done in Maleny which is a 16km round trip so I make sure that I bundle everything together and get it all done in one trip.

2012-02-14 04Now I am off to set up a new bit of household organisation.  More on that tomorrow.

Pantry Overhaul

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Even though my pantry was reasonably organised, I decided to give it an overhaul today.  I had noticed that there were a few things stashed in containers at the front of the shelf that needed to be used or relocated.

This is what it looked like before I started.

2012-02-12 01The photo does not show the top shelf which has 2 tubs of glass jars – ones with pop-top lids in one tub and those without in the other.  I sorted all of the jars, made sure they all had lids, labels had been removed and were ready to be used when I need them.

I took a lot of the stuff out and re-arranged the jar storage system so inevitably things looked a lot worse before they got better.  Here is a view of the kitchen earlier this afternoon.

2012-02-12 02And more….

2012-02-12 03To add some interest to my day, The Duke announced at lunchtime that there were 3 branches that needed trimming of the lime tree but they were laden with fruit.  He was prepared to leave them for the time being but since the tree is never completely dormant I decided now was as good a time as any.  I picked a 10 litre bucket full of limes and cut the offending branches off.  So, in the midst of the pantry project I juiced the limes and have frozen them – some in ice-cube trays and some in 400ml blocks.

I moved a couple of things from the pantry to the sideboard so we cast a critical eye over the contents of the sideboard.  The Duke and I agreed that a few things could go.  A true minimalist would probably get rid of almost the entire contents but that is not my style.  However, it is good to refresh your memory of what is actually stored and I have resolved to use some of my ‘good’ things more regularly.

My op shop bag is now full and ready to go when I am next going to town.  I also have a bag of a few items for Belle.  I always offer anything which I think may be useful to my daughters before I consider sending it to the op shop or Freecycle.  However, they understand that there is no compulsion for them to accept it and I will not be mortally wounded if they say no.

I have finally finished revamping the pantry and this is the result.

2012-02-12 04Bottom shelves

2012-02-12 05I threw out a couple of bits of foodstuff – a few crumbs of powdered mustard in a tin that must be at least 10 years old, some jam that had gone mouldy and a handful of glace cherries that  were over 12 months old and were all dried and shrivelled.  I had about 3 bottles with a tiny bit of oil in each so that was all decanted into the current bottle.

I now know that everything in the pantry is useful, in working order  or fit to be eaten.  I also know exactly what is there and can work on using up some of the odd items which are not part of my regular basic stores.

Remember Lazy Brownie?

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Early in January, I wrote a post about my Christmas plans for 2012.  It is here.

As I suspected I did not get everything done on 25th January as planned but I am making progress.  Here is what I had on the list.

January

  • Sort and file Christmas cards and letters – DONE
  • Make sure any contact details are updated in address book – DONE
  • Update Christmas card list – DONE
  • Set up complete contact list for 2012 e-cards – NEEDS A BIT MORE WORK

In conjunction with updating the contact details in my address book I embarked on another project which took me a couple of weeks.  I have made sure that I have current contact details for all of my friends and relatives in my physical address book as well as my email contacts address book and my mobile phone address book.  The Duke checked that he had the relevant ones in his mobile phone and we also have some that we need at our fingertips in the home phone speed dial.  Now all I have to do is make sure that I update all locations when I am given new contact details for anyone.  I really hope that I keep on top of this issue as I do not want to have to do the sorting and cross-referencing of the past couple of weeks.  The memory of that should be enough to keep me on track.

2012-02-09 01I have also been doing some sewing today and have finished making the first 2 of my Christmas gift bags.  They are not for anything or anyone in particular but my aim is to have a collection in a variety of sizes so that I will have one suitable for whatever the gift happens to be.

2012-02-09 02

A Precious Resource

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When we think of resources many would think of water, electricity or the minerals in the ground.

For those embracing a simple life, one of the greatest resources is time.  Time to make your food from scratch, time to repair your possessions, time to refashion clothes, time to spend in the garden growing your own food and so on.

Time is a valuable resource and it is in our best interests to use it wisely.  As some of you would know from previous posts, I am not a great fan of multi-tasking.  Nor do I expect that we should be ‘doing’ something all of the time.  Taking time out to just ‘be’ is as important as any task.

Sometimes it is worth looking to see if you can identify time which is just being wasted.  For me it would be the 2.5 hours I spend travelling on the train each day.  I often use the time to write my blog, reply to emails, plan menus for the week or update my diary.  Sometimes I knit or do some hand sewing.  Today I have redone the hem of a dress for Missy.  I also stitched the facings down as they had tend to roll out otherwise.

Do you have any windows of time in your day that you could use to take the pressure off what you try to fit into 24 hours?  Perhaps it is while waiting to pick up children from school or a sports event?

Another Book

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Tonight I want to tell you a little about a book I read recently. It is an ebook which I found at Extra Organized, by Kim Woodland.  No disrespect to my American friends but it is refreshing to read an organising book written by an Australian author.

The sub-title of the book is, “How to use the best of organizing to shape a meaningful life”.  This sums up the essence of the book beautifully.  Organising is not about buying more boxes to put things in.  It is about using your organising skills to manage all facets of your life and really living your life today, in the here and now.

I love the simplicity and clarity of purpose used in the book.  I have read the book twice so far and I know it will continue to be a reference and source of inspiration for me.

If you are interested in organising to make a real difference in your attitude to your possessions and relationships I would thoroughly recommend this book.  Just pop over to her blog to find out more.

A Quick Fix – Utensil Drawer

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Today I have been working on sorting out my email address book and making sure all of the details for my contacts are current and also that they match my hard copy address book which sits on the bookshelf.  This is an arduous process and I have also linked it to other jobs such as cleaning out the business card folder.

2012-01-28 01This is necessary and even admirable but sometimes you need a job which is small on effort but big on results to give you a boost.  This morning I did that by cleaning out the utensil drawer in the kitchen.  It was a spur of the minute decision as I was putting the clean dishes away.  I noticed that there were crumbs everywhere and it looked rather grotty so I took everything out and wiped the drawer out thoroughly.

In true minimalist fashion everything really had to earn a place to go back in.  This drawer has been seriously decluttered before so there was not much to go – just a corkscrew and multipurpose bottle opener.  Many would say I still have too much but it suits me at the moment.

2012-01-28 02Here is the finished project which gave me the incentive to go on with my other jobs today.