Staying Organized

As much as I love technology, I do prefer an agenda to keep me organized. These are my favorites for this year...

This what I bought last year, My Agenda. My only complaint is that they don't lay flat.

Student Version of MyAgenda

Kates Paperie.

Bob's Your Uncle 8 Days a Week Planner from See Jane Work

Mini 8 Days a Week Planner from See Jane Work.

Cookbook Roundup

Part of my new focus on life has been simplification. I think that goes to all elements of life including material things. Clutter is stressful so I try to reduce that as much as possible.

Several years ago I was a cookbook fanatic. I bought tons of cookbooks. I had stacks and stacks. After we moved into our house and subsequently didn't sell it like we planned, I decided that I have make do with the limited storage I have. My stacks of cookbooks had to go.

I narrowed those cookbooks down with one rule in mind. If there are less than 5 recipes in the cookbook I use, then I type the recipes into my computer (I use MacGourmet) and sell the cookbook on ebay or at a bi-annual consignment sale.

Obviously too I have had to curb my cookbook buying. Now with all of the online recipe resources I can find most recipes online and I reserve my cookbook buying to particularly special books.

As you can tell, I still have quite a few favorite cookbooks lining my bookshelves. These are my favorites:

Anything by Ina Garten (Barefoot Contessa)

Paula Deen Celebrates

Nigella Bites

How to Be a Domestic Goddess

Martha Stewart's Cooking School

Anything by Elie Krieger

The Kind Diet by Alicia Silverstone

Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child

How about you? What are your faves?

How do you quell your material obsessions like books or cookbooks?

Cleaning Up and Cleaning Out

This weekend Chris and I purged a huge amount of stuff from our house.

First, there is a bi-annual consignment sale in the city we live in. Basically they fill a warehouse with clothes, furniture, books, accessories you name in and there is a two week sale. Chris and I unloaded some unwanted wall art, the chair from our bedroom I had mentioned last week, two extra end tables, a lamp and some books and picture frames. Hopefully we will make a little money but if not at the end everything is shipped off the charity and we get the tax deduction.

I also cleaned out my closet. I do this every spring and every fall. My number one rule is....

If I didn't wear it this season then it goes either to ebay or goodwill dependent on the condition.

I apply this to everything in my closet unless it's something super special. This rule really works for me because I hate clutter. Also we filled the back of the car and dropped a lot of stuff off at Goodwill.

Do any of you have any organizational rules or traditions?

Anyway, I digress onto the point of this post. With every passing showing-less week, Chris and I confronted with the fact that most likely our house will not sell and we are going to be here for a while longer. It's not a big deal. We really knew there was a chance it wouldn't sell. With that realization we have been planning all of the cool things we want to do to the house when we take it off the market (we are renovators at heart). One of those projects for me is to actually have a closet in our bedroom. Right now I use the closet in the guest bedroom because ours is tiny. I want to condense my wardrobe down to what can fit in an armoire and a dresser.

This is a tall order but I think I will love building a small but excellent wardrobe focusing on quality not quantity. The only problem is the space issue. I immediately thought of Nicole at

Making It Lovely who used ikea's organizers to make an excellent closet for herself...

Inspired by Nicole and her awesomeness. Here's my plan...

Invest in a small dresser to replace my bedside table. Store my jewelry, unmentionables, and lounge/gym clothes there.

Invest in a good sized armoire to house all of other clothes.

No idea what to do with my shoes though....

I might have to steal part of Chris' closet. :)

Happy Tuesday!

Best Office Ever

If you haven't read it yet, there is a great article in Traditional Home this month about Russel + Hazel (you know they make all of those great organization accessories?). They offices are amazing and the tips in the article are great. I never would have thought to use a big jewelry box to organize my desk space!

Do You Love Your Shoes This Much?

I love these ideas from Living, Etc.

Paperless!

Yesterday I was so excited to be featured on Penelope Loves Lists. Meredith asked me all sorts of questions about how I stay organized and store inspiration for my blog. Most of my answers about how I stay organized resolved around the fact that we are essentially paperless.

My paperless journey began at my job because we are a paperless office. All of our files are stored on a server and accessed through our laptops. I was amazed at how easy it is to stay organized if you aren't dealing with piles of paperwork. In addition, I am a tree hugger so I am always looking for ways to reduce waste. Eventually I translated these rules into our home and to my blog. While it's not possible to be entirely paperless, these are the steps I take to be as paperless as possible:

1. We receive all bills and banking statements via email.

2. Digital Photos. We store and organize all of our photos on our computer and only print out pictures we use for framing.

3. I love my design magazines. After a new issue comes in, I take the prior months issue and tear out any and all ideas I want to keep. I scan those images into my computer and upload them to Picasa. This has eliminated binders of ideas I kept and also it allows all of my readers to use my ideas as well (see them? Look to the right.)

4. We are just now starting to scan in other financial docs like receipts, etc. Make sure to back up critical information.

5. Keep all necessary paper documents (tax documents, marriage licenses, etc.) stored, labeled and organized in a filing drawer or box.

6. Store all recipes on your computer. I am a big fan of MacGourmet, which allows me to store my recipes on my laptop. I can even upload photos of the dishes.

7. Sort Immediately. Do not let paper pile up. Toss or recycle junk mail as soon as you walk in the door. File any necessary documents. Scan any documents you can keep in digital form. Toss, recycle or shred anything you no longer need. You need very little of the paper you keep especially in our digital age. Be discerning.

8. Use your technology. I love notepads and cute paper but I do try to use my iphone for lists when I am traveling or away from home. Laptops and Smart Phone all are great places to store lists and notes.

You will be surprised how easy it is to be organized when you are as paperless as possible. Also the earth will by happier too!

In The Fridge

Real Simple had the best article on organizing your refrigerator. They had so many great ideas including using these containers for beverages since they take up less space.

Crate and Barrel carries food containers like these that help organize fruits and veggies. I really need some of these herb keepers.

Organization just makes me happy. Check out the article. It's great.