Best Life NOW! Blog

One big misconception for professional organizers like myself is that we are only for those who are really messy.  So messy that they can't open their front doors and they appear on the show Hoarders.  Not so.  Have I worked with and am I trained and educated to work with the chronically disorganized and hoarders - yes. However, my service is for anyone.  I work with people who need a spruce up for their kitchen, closet, home office, etc.  For that situation, they may just want to consult with me and get ideas as well as possibly a step by step plan to get them de-cluttered and organized.  In that case, I talk with them over the phone and then schedule a time to see the space they need ideas on - I do this either in person or over the computer or through emails depending on where they live. I work with professionals who's office or filing systems are not working for them.  I have set up a filing system for a client who just used the tops of surfaces to pile because she di

Guest blogger Audra Fettinger gives you solutions on what to do with all of your children's clothing that is no longer "in play." What do I do with all these kid’s clothes? When my children grow out of clothing I put them into one of three places: Save: Clothes that have sentimental value. Too Small: Outfits that I plan to sell. (Garage sale, consign or eBay) Donate: Clothes that are in good, but not excellent condition. Mommy Tips: Label another tote “too big”. Store clothing here that are hand-me-downs or end of the season bargains. You’ll know just where to go when Suzy needs a new pair of pants. Use under the bed storage bins as an alternative to having the totes in the closet. Written by AF

The funniest things can happen when you are de-cluttering.............. Yesterday, while a client and I were de-cluttering her bathroom closet she came across a really old bottle of Aqua Net.  Well, my client is a very tactile person (a.k.a. she has to touch everything).  So when she said, "I'm just going to see if there's any left before I toss it," I thought okay, no problem.  The nozzle got jammed and it would not stop spraying!   So picture this - she and I are standing in a very small bathroom, with a can of Aqua Net that is not going down without a fight.  No sooner do I say, "Put it in the shower," that my client takes off for the back door of the house - with the defiant Aqua Net in hand.  So, I follow after her.  She's alternating between laughing/screaming, screaming/laughing and I'm doing the same.  We pass her husband who's sitting at the kitchen table eating his lunch who's jaw drops to the floor as we fly by him.  She gets

In his book, Does This Clutter Make My Butt Look Fat?: An Easy Plan for Losing Weight and Living More (great title, right?) Peter Walsh explores the correlation between physical clutter in your home or office and physical clutter on your body (excess weight). I think he has something there.  Of course, anyone that's ever talked to me knows that I believe Peter Walsh is a genius, but let's explore his concept further...... Let's say if your home is cluttered and disorganized and you have no idea how to fix it and you are an emotional eater, you may be substituting food for working on de-cluttering and organizing your home.  Often, food is used to push down the feelings that we have or to make us feel full or whole.  You may come home from a long day at work, enter your home and it's an absolute wreck.  How do you feel about that?  Sad, ill at ease, unable to relax and  unwind?  You may reach for that bag of Oreo's to improve your feelings.  Of course, your home w

You may be wanting to call or email me for help clearing your clutter, organizing (either in person or virtually) or are interested in a social media package but are wondering what happens once you make contact with me.  So I'm going to run through what happens once a potential client contacts me. First, I return the call or email - sounds logical, right?  I chat with you about what you are needing help with.  I may either send or email you a questionnaire so that I can get as much information from you, to help you as possible. Then I schedule a telephone consultation with you to learn more about your challenges, ask questions and we talk some more.  After the telephone consultation, I schedule a home or office consultation where I come into your home or office and you show me your challenge areas - or the whole home or office - whatever you are comfortable with.  We look at the space that needs attention together and I ask more questions.  At the end of the consultation we tal

So to prepare for my interview on WNDU's morning show, I wrote out everything that I thought I could fit into a 4 minute interview...............I didn't even get 1/4 of what I wanted to say said.  After the video was posted on WNDU's site I couldn't believe that it was almost 4 minutes long - to me, it seemed like seconds had passed!  You can still watch the interview by visiting here . I debated on whether or not to bring containers and the Purse Perfector.  I was glad that I did so that I had a visual - something interesting to look at.  However, I don't want viewers to think that if they buy the containers, that everything will organize itself.  I always tell clients (and whoever else is willing to listen - friends, family, strangers) to buy containers after you de-clutter and organize the keepers.  That way, you will know exactly what size container you need for each category of keeper.  And when I say container that could mean a bookcase, file drawer, clear