Quick Organizing Tips

Poor Jan. Her life is a mess. Just a mess. And the mess seems to be "organized" in four categories:

-Penny's School Stuff (menus, calendars, works in progress like those annoying boxtops)
-Incoming Mail
-Decorating ideas
-Recipes

While Marcia uses an electronic filing system developed by the CIA, Jan doesn't have time to scan, print, and ar chive her files. And she doesn't have a professional organizer on retainer.

Thanks to our fellow bloggers, we've got a few simple ideas to get you organized quickly and affordably.

1. Check out Jill's $9.99 filing system from Target. We like this because it is simple and straightforward. Click on her "after" photo to see her great categories (shred, coupons, act now, etc). Sort your mail EVERY DAY. Put the junk in the recycling bin in the garage before you walk through the door. And pick up Jill's cool box at Target (available in stores only). If you already have a box and want to up your game, we love these white hanging folders from Target (6 for $10.99).

2. Accordian files are soooo 1998. Get rid of them. Your secret weapon is the three-ring binder.

We rely on three ring binders for most household organization. Great for kid's stuff, decorating ideas, and recipes. We all like our pretty magazines in tact, but it's too cumbersome to go through them looking for that perfect picture. Tear them out when you see them and file them in any three ring binder with protective sheets. If you want to add tabs--go for it. But it's not necessary.The picture below shows a great system from blogger Wendi http://www.myheartisalwayshome.blogspot.com/



3. Three ring binders work perfectly for recipes too. Make sure you choose a wipeable binder because it will get sticky and icky. For online recipes, create a file in your Outlook box for them. But print them out and keep them in your binder. Perfect for magazine recipes too. A helpful tip: buy a pretty photo album and replace the photo inserts with 8.5 x 11 protective sheets. Cindy makes notes on every recipe after she tries it. She gives each a "Star" rating so she can easily see her favorites months later.

4. Last but not least, how do you organize boxtops? Jan sighs heavily whenever Penny excitedly points one out. Marcia velcros a sandwich-sized Ziploc bag to the inside of her pantry door to collect box tops. An envelope would work as well. When it's full, zip it or seal it and send it off in the bottomless backpack.

Jan's calendar is wide open (well, duh!) and she's hoving in and tackling some of these projects.

As for Marcia...well, she'll be over to inspect soon. Very soon.