I am still a total planner devotee. I have a wall calendar for family/friend stuff, a big notebook-style planner and Google calendar for school, a small purse-sized planner for the blog. In 2013, I tried a new sticky note system for lesson plans (based on the one made popular by Victoria, a.k.a. The Wise and Witty Teacher) that helped me visualize what I could accomplish in a week. It keeps my Sundays hyperventilation free!
I organized my closet. I didn't do a 30 x 30 wardrobe challenge in 2013 even though it seemed to be all the rage. Instead, I reasoned that I want to be able to wear all of my clothes, and my biggest problem was not being able to find items quickly. Now, I've got everyday work clothes on the left side of my closet (easiest to get to), and casual items and dresses on the right. I'm storing summer clothes and luggage on the top shelf, and I added a plastic drawer for shoes and purses. So far, this system is helping me mix and match a lot of different outfits rather than getting into a rut.
I organized my closet. I didn't do a 30 x 30 wardrobe challenge in 2013 even though it seemed to be all the rage. Instead, I reasoned that I want to be able to wear all of my clothes, and my biggest problem was not being able to find items quickly. Now, I've got everyday work clothes on the left side of my closet (easiest to get to), and casual items and dresses on the right. I'm storing summer clothes and luggage on the top shelf, and I added a plastic drawer for shoes and purses. So far, this system is helping me mix and match a lot of different outfits rather than getting into a rut.
Ongoing organization goals for 2014: Warning, pictures of my messy townhouse coming up!
1. Try the hanger trick in my closet and consign or donate the items I no longer wear. Have you heard about this trick? I took about ten minutes this week to turn all of the hangers in my closet the "wrong" way. When I wear an item, I'll put it back the "right" way. By summer, I'll be able to easily see which items I don't wear and get rid of them with no regrets. It doesn't hurt that one of my friends recently opened a consignment shop right here in town, so I no longer have the "consignment stores are all the way in the 'Noke" excuse.
2. Make re-organizing jewelry part of my Sunday routine. I recently took a few minutes to collect all of the pieces of jewelry that had accumulated on my dresser and in my bathroom and put them back on their designated hooks and in my jewelry box. All of those stud earrings I thought were missing? Had just gotten separated. If I could just take the time every week to put everything back in it's place I would have a lot more jewelry in my regular rotation.
3. Organize the large, cluttered area under our kitchen and bathroom sinks and the bottom kitchen cabinets. Other bloggers have written such great tutorials and shared such helpful tips, there's no excuse for these spaces not being efficient. I have a bad habit where if storage isn't as eye level I just throw things in without paying attention to where they're going.
4. Streamline food storage - organize our pantry, my baking supplies and the condiments in our refrigerator. Again, there are so many tutorials and tips out there that I'm sure I'll be able to find something that's a good fit for me.
6. Find a better way to store seasonal/holiday decor items - Only our Christmas decorations have a specific home right now - we keep them in Mr. Q's parents' basement during the year in a clear tub and an ornament organizer. We recently purchased a gift wrap organizer that's going to live in our pantry. But blogger and crafter that I am, I also have spring/Easter decorations, summer/Fourth of July decorations, and fall/Halloween decorations and right now they're scattered around our townhouse creating clutter.
7. Make our guest room more functional - Being a guest room/office/exercise bike room has turned that space into a catch-all junk room and that is 90% my fault.
8. Start a 403 (b) account - Basically, it's a 401 (k) for teachers. I am not sure why I haven't been more proactive about this (probably because, having grown up poor, money in general is intimidating to me). I need to be saving for retirement because what the state provides will not really be enough to live the way I want on.
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Love the ideas, Heather! I definitely need to organize my closet better, it's annoying, and don't let me start on my under-sink cabinets. There's much to do around here organizing-wise!
ReplyDeleteThanks Stephanie! Having the closet somewhat organized has made me feel a lot more optimistic that I'll be able to tackle my other projects this year.
DeleteGetting organized is at the top of my list for 2014! Good luck with your goals & thank you for sharing with us at the Weekend Block Party. We hope to see you back this week!
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