The Malm—Cluett Team Page 1

Volume XII, Issue 6

Getting

Organized

If the kitchen is the heart of your home, then making it an inviting, comfortable space that functions well

should be a priority. But how? What can you do to make it more peaceful? How do you make it function more efficiently? Here are a few tips that can help:

1) Get rid of the clutter. Clutter creates visual confusion. Go through everything in your kitchen

and decide whether you use it and love it. If it doesn’t meet this criteria, it’s clutter! You may find a dish set you don’t use anymore, glasses that don’t match, duplicate cooking utensils, or small appliances that were a

good idea at the time, such as, a coffee grinder, food sealer or ice cream maker. Once you’ve decided what you don’t need, you can donate it, trash it or sell it.

2) Assign homes to items. The biggest secret to an organized kitchen (or any space) is to assign

homes to every item. Start by dividing your kitchen into zones, based on what you want to accomplish in each cabinet grouping or counter space.

You’ll want to mark out a zone for your everyday dishes, preferably near the dishwasher, to save you

time and footsteps when you’re putting everything away. You may want your glasses near the refrigerator to make them convenient for drinks.

If you cook often, save counter space for a food preparation zone. If you bake a lot, set up a baking

zone, which might include flour, measuring cups, mixing bowls, and cookie cutters.

Other zone ideas:

- A kids’ snack zone on a low shelf or in a drawer.

- A zone for packing lunches, including lunch bags, thermos’ and snack packs.

- A paper goods zone: all paper cups, napkins, and party ware.

Kitchen organizing secrets help create peace and functionality

The Malm-Cluett Team Jenny Pruitt & Associates barbaramalm@jennypruitt.com 404-310-5164

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Volume XII, Issue 6

3) Designate a “landing strip.” When you or your family members arrive home, you need a place

to put your keys, coats, shoes, backpacks or briefcases. If you don’t assign a home to these items, they find their way to kitchen counters, coffee tables and the floor. Create a landing strip by setting up shelves,

baskets, a small table and/or hooks for each family member to unload their goods upon arrival. It will make finding things in the morning easier, too.

4) Group like items in your pantry. Use clear shoe boxes or other convenient containers to divide

and conquer pantry clutter. Put all your canned vegetables together in one box; place all your jarred sauces in another box. Group your pastas. Wrangle those ranch dressing and taco mix packets into the same container. You can also assign large dry goods to their own shelf space: the cereal shelf, the paper goods

shelf, etc. Then, label every box and shelf so your system will work each time you return from the grocery store.

5) Contain your mail and papers. Create a desk area or countertop file box to aggregate all the

papers that come into your home. Eliminate 90 percent by immediately discarding unwanted catalogs and advertisements, and by shredding junk mail offers. Toss the envelopes your mail comes in. Then, group like papers into action files or trays, such as: To pay, To file, To call, and To read. Set a regular time to review

these files.

Keep things organized by taking 15 minutes a day to return items to their homes. Remember to involve family members in this new habit that will benefit everyone.

Once you get rid of the clutter and assign homes to items, you are on your way to a more peaceful and functional kitchen that you can enjoy.

© 2008 Laura Ray Organizing, LLC

Kitchen organizing secrets help create peace and functionality cont...

You’re about to start a big project, but first you want to give e-mail a quick check. One hour later, you close

e-mail and wonder where the time went. Your whole schedule’s thrown off. You vow to not let that happen again.

Usually the problem is your e-mail in-box. You want to get it under control, with a few minutes answering e-mail here, and a few minutes sending and forwarding there. If the types of e-mails don’t change and the way you handle them doesn’t either, then it’s likely more time will disappear from your schedule.

Protect your in-box. Route e-mails away by:

- Unsubscribing from e-publications and other mailing lists that you are not interested in.

- Creating filters or “rules” that will automatically route e-mails from the publications or companies you

choose into an e-mail folder you’ve created, or even the Trash folder. This means they won’t even appear in your in-box, which is helpful for non-urgent, non-essential e-mails.

- Setting up e-mail folders for categories of e-mails you need to keep (from clients, for projects). You may

even want to create a “read later” file. Just put it on your calendar for when “later” is.

- Using a separate e-mail address for companies who ask for it (from Internet purchases, your favorite store, a personal e-zine you read occasionally).

© 2008 Laura Ray Organizing, LLC

Get through e-mail faster by protecting your in-box

The Malm—Cluett Team Page 3

Volume XII, Issue 6

Clutter -- whether it’s mental or physical -- is not helpful. It clogs up your life. Clutter is defined as “stuff”

that is unnecessary and extraneous, or “unmade decisions.” Many American households store clutter in their garage or basement. The spaces become the “I don’t know what to do with it” areas or the “I might need it

someday” zones. If you want to get organized and conquer your clutter, here’s how: To start, pull out every item in the space and ask yourself these questions: 1) Is it broken? Like closet doors or broken furniture. If it is, toss it, or set a deadline to fix the item if you

love it. If it’s not fixed by the deadline, out it goes. 2) Have you used it in the last year? Like sporting equipment from a sport you used to play? Or clothes you used to wear? For example, if clothes end up in the garage or attic, there’s a pretty good chance you

haven’t worn them in a while. Donate the good stuff and toss the rest.

3) Is it a remnant from the past? Such as items from an old hobby? Or costumes – and you don’t even go to costume parties anymore. Make room for the present and let go of the past. If it’s a special memento,

start a “treasures box” in a closet or your attic.

4) Is it worth less than 25 dollars? If it is, you probably could buy it again someday if you really needed it, like baskets or scrap wood. Don’t wait for “some day” to come; carpe diem!

Make room for what you use and love; toss, donate or sell the clutter. Take courage and make those hard choices to rid the clutter. Then, you’re on your way to enjoying your new space!

Tips for Getting ready for a garage sale:

Plan ahead – sort items so customers can easily shop

Attract Shoppers – make your collection attractive and eye appealing

Create great deals – group items and sell as a “package deal”

Stay focused and organized – keep it organized and use color coding

After sale – get rid of the leftovers!

© 2008 Laura Ray Organizing, LLC

Conquering clutter in your garage or basement

Before After

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Volume XII, Issue 6

1. Create a family communication center

2. Get your junk drawer organized

3. Set up a cleaning station

4. Make a great project box for kids

5. Keep your arts and crafts organized

6. Store and protect cherished memories

7. Organize and manage household projects

8. Create an office in a closet

9. Magazine storage know-How – Create a filing sys-

tem to organize clipped articles

10. Organize your media utilizing storage units

Contents provided by The Container Store Inc.

Have only 30 minutes? Quick 30 Minute Projects

If you have several areas to be organized just start with one!

Allow plenty of time

Clean House – donate, garage sale and use a two year rule

Take inventory – Once you have decluttered decide if it’s in the right location

Look for wasted space – think creatively!

Maximize vertical space

Divide the space – add shelves, stackables or baskets

Keep it Moving! – consider storage options on wheels

Organize with Color

Visibility – Use the three rules: visibility, accessibility and flexibility

Accessibility – need it all the time………..keep it easily accessible

Flexibility – Select storage units that are flexible and can adapt to change

Contents provided by The Container Store Inc.

Top 12 Tips for getting organized

For additional information relating to Laura Ray’s

articles please contact Laura Ray directly at

(404) 630-7212 or via email at lauraray@bellsouth.net.

You’ve probably heard the saying, “a place for everything and everything in its place.” So, you ask, how do I know where to “place everything” in my office? Here are a few helpful tips you can use to declutter your desk and find things faster:

What you use daily – keep on your desk, in your desk, or within reach of your desk (without leaving your chair). Examples: stapler, a few pens/pencils/pen cup, 1 box of paper clips, note pad, computer and printer, one ream of paper for printer, active client or project files

What you use weekly – keep in your desk or within reach of your desk, but not on your desk. Examples: tape, scissors, rubber bands, calculator, extra paper for printer, reference files, reference books, stationery, labels

What you use monthly or annually – keep in a nearby supply closet, credenza or bookshelf, or if you have an assistant, have them keep items for you. Examples: extra office supplies (pens/paper clips/note pads), inactive client or project files, books, seminar and training materials, phone books (try searching the Internet first)

With some time and effort to “place everything,” and a few minutes a day to put things back in their “place,” you can declutter your desk, find things faster and be more productive.

© 2008 Laura Ray Organizing, LLC

Declutter your desk