Archive for February, 2012

« Older Entries

Children’s Arts and Crafts Overhaul – Part 1

Tuesday, February 28th, 2012

By Kristin Leigh; Moving, Storage & Organization Contributor to USstoragesearch.com

I know I’m not the first and only parent to openly admit that I do my very best to keep everything my kids draw, paint, glue, write, cut, glitter, and sticker ever since they held their first crayon.  We treasure all of our children’s’ artwork and want to cherish all of their crafts forever.

It started off when I saved my first born’s first scribble on a piece of paper, and then his first letter that he wrote, and then again when he made his first stick person.  I put it all in a folder to be saved until the end of time.  If you think I’m joking, I’m not and believe me when I tell you how painful it was to every so often throw out a piece of my child geniuses’ art.

Of course, I have only myself to blame now that I have finally admitted to myself that my child is a hoarder.  He loves art, drawing, cutting and creating things which in turn only end up cluttering my kitchen table, 2 kitchen drawers, and 1/3 of my pantry. (See pictures below)

Since I have slowly over the process of time, been training myself to throw out most things he makes and keep a slight few, it gets tricky.  Just as I am beginning to recover from my child’s art addiction, it seems my child is the one now with the problem.  He finds things that I have thrown away and literally takes it out of the trash and posts them on the fridge.  In order for me to make some headway in clearing out and organizing all of his crafts and projects I’ve found that I have to do it when he’s sleeping.  It sounds a little sneaky, but I also try to teach him that we can’t keep everything and only the things that we really love.  Still the areas that have quickly succumbed to his projects are in complete disarray.

I can’t complain that I have no storage space for his stuff because the truth is we have plenty of space, but it’s been hard trying to figure out how to best store it all.  This is one of my current projects I’ve been working on lately and it’s definitely not going to happen overnight, however I do have somewhat of a plan.  If you are wanting to organize your child’s arts and crafts but aren’t sure where to start here are a few organizing tips;

  • Have 1 or 2 designated spots where the crafts will go.  I have a couple drawers in the kitchen and a pantry that I am able to use for storing.  Once they are full, throw away some items instead of having the overflow carried over to yet another space.
  • Have the art supplies like coloring books and crayons in areas that are easily accessible to your child, but keep things like glue, scissors, paint and other messy craft supplies up high where you have to get them down for them.
  • Use what you have in the house first before buying any extra storage bins or holders so you can save money.  For example, I found a multiple storage bin drawer holder (see pic below) that I had in college that now houses all of my childrens’ crafts.
  • Instead of keeping every bit of artwork your child makes, take a picture of your child holding it and then store all those photos in a photo album with a description of the age your child was when he/she made it so you never have to forget anything they have ever made.
  • I also love the idea of getting a three ring binder with plastic sleeves to store and organize artwork that you want to keep.  This way it is stored safely and neatly in a book that is less clutter than a whole lot of crafts just hanging around.

 

Pic 1

These are the current drawers that are filled to the top with coloring books and work book, crayons and some stickers.

 

Drawers full of kids art & craft supplies

Pic 2 & 3

Our pantry is large, so it is nice that I can hide the majority of the art supplies in the here and out of view to everyone else.  However, the crafts have not only spilled out of the wheelie storage bin cart to the top of it, but also to the shelf directly next to it as well.

 

As I pour myself a glass of wine and mentally prepare myself to get started on this huge project of mine, stay tuned for my next blog entry to find out the outcome of this craft mess overhaul…

Kristin Leigh describes herself as a “Moving, Storage & Organization Nut. Mom of 2 (3 if you count my hubby)”.  Kristin is a regular contributor to to the USstoragesearch.com and its Self Storage Network.   Follow Kristen Leigh on Twitter @leigh_kristinand add Kristin Leigh to your Google Plus Circles. Follow USstoragesearch.com, the largest online storage directory too at: Twitter – @USstoragesearch, Google+https://plus.google.com/108829939994366779256

Tags: , , , , , , ,
Posted in Children & Pets, Home Organization, Storage & Organizing, Storage Tips, USstoragesearch.com | No Comments »

Stay Organized – Maximum Shelf Life For Household Items

Monday, February 27th, 2012

By Laura Gee, www.USstoragesearch.com Storage and Organization Contributor

“If it doesn’t have a purpose, it doesn’t have a place in this house,” is a direct quote from a fellow military wife told me not too long ago. She has been the wife of a Marine for a lot longer than I have and has moved many, many times because of the Marine Corps. Once, she even had to move three houses down the street while living on base because they wanted to renovate the place she was currently living. When I told her that we were just at our first duty station, she spent a solid 15 minutes at a book club meeting expressing to me the importance of being ready to move and how I need to get my house free from “stuff” and learn to just “let it go.” Two things that I’m not good at for sure, but she gave me some great advice.

 

The first bit of advice was to let everything in the house have a six month maximum shelf life. If you have not used it, looked at it, or thought about it in six months, it has got to go. I literally gasped at this notion, but she said to trust her and to try to keep my sentimental values down. Having a six month shelf life on items means you have to donate the thing, no matter what it is, if it isn’t serving a purpose in your life right now and if it hasn’t been active in six months, then it obviously doesn’t serve a purpose. This all makes sense. This is how she is able to move all of the time and able to stay relatively calm when they tell her to pack it all up because you are moving down the street. Because of her de-cluttered lifestyle, she packing and unpacking is nearly a simple weekend project.

The second thing she told me to take note of was to purchase functional things. I stared at her like a deer in the headlights on this one until she explained that we should only purchase items of good quality that would sustain a move, purchase furniture that had built in storage, and get things for our house that were not specific to living in that house (like buying a giant dining room table because your next house might not even have a dining room, let alone a giant one). She said that cheap furniture is a nice temporary solution, but you’ll just have to re-buy it every time you move and that it was a waste in the long run. My favorite part of this was the idea of buying storage ready furniture. She told me her bed has storage drawers and she is a huge fan of purchasing decorative trunks because they can hold so much stuff. All coffee tables, night stands, and end tables should have drawer space in them so you can keep your things confined.

 

A lot of what she told me is still sinking. I like to keep my things and have sentimental attachment to everything. I did however take a serious look around my house and did find a lot of things to donate. We are trying to do the six month max rule, but I have a feeling that it might be a one year rule for me. She has great points on de-cluttering a home and great ideas for practical living. I will most certainly take her advice whenever we purchase something for any place we are living and will strive to be as move ready as she is some day.

Follow USstoragesearch.com, the online leader for self storage, on twitter @USstoragesearch and Laura on twitter @LGJones523

Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in Home Organization, Storage & Organizing, Storage Tips, USstoragesearch.com | No Comments »

Adjusting to the Moving-All-The-Time Lifestyle

Friday, February 24th, 2012

By Laura Gee, www.USstoragesearch.com Storage and Organization Contributor

For the past 6 years, I’ve moved at least once a year—usually twice. Because of college moving and being in a military family, moving has become a natural part of life. There are many, many things that I’ve done to adapt my life to the moving-all-the-time lifestyle. One theme that has permeated my lifestyle is mobility and storage convenience.   One thing that I’ve done is to keep my clothing incredibly organized and ready to go at a moment’s notice. In college, I kept most of my clothing stored in two ways: hung or in plastic storage containers. I didn’t rely on using the drawers in my dorm rooms for clothes because it was too inefficient of an option. Keeping my clothing hung meant that every day I could see what I had easily and kept my stuff from getting wrinkled. When it was time to move, I simply cut a small slit in the bottom of a large trash bag and put 10-15 items (still on hangers) in the trash bags with the hooks coming out of the slit and tied off the bottom. Doing this, I could have my entire closet packed in under ten minutes and when I got to my next destination, I was able to unpack just as quickly. For things that couldn’t be hung, I kept them in plastic bins. These plastic bins were easy to transport and were usable when I got to my next living situation. I never had to use boxes or buy anything more than trash bags when I was moving.

For other items like food, books, and shoes I used plastic egg crates and plastic bins. Plastic egg crates are great for storage because they can be stacked, hold a lot of stuff, and are cheap. These crates come in a ton of colors so I could match them to my dorm room color schemes. Also, these crates were perfect for moving because they were easy to carry. To keep small things from falling out of the bottom of these crates, I would simply put in a piece of newspaper to act as a bottom lining – very easy and cheap.

In my house, I have adapted to actually using dresser drawers for clothes instead of books and food, but I still keep my stuff ready to go. We have an arsenal of boxes ready to filled in our garage. My friends and parents and whoever else helped me move were always thankful that moving me was so easy. My stuff was always ready to go in bins and containers and using things like bags made it easy to fill every nook and cranny in the trunk of a car. See what you can do to make your daily organization more move-in/move-out friendly.

Follow USstoragesearch.com, the online leader for self storage, on twitter @USstoragesearch and Laura on twitter @LGJones523

Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in Home Organization, Moving, Organization, Storage & Organizing | No Comments »

How to Hit Your Target Market w Social Media – Weekly Video Blog

Thursday, February 23rd, 2012

This week’s video is about how to hit a specific part of your audience–target market. I talk about how car salesmen can teach us a lot about being better writers for social media.

 

By Laura Gee, www.USstoragesearch.com Storage and Organization Contributor

Follow USstoragesearch.com, the online leader for self storage, on twitter @USstoragesearch and Laura on twitter @LGJones523

Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in Advertising, Social Media, Storage Vlog, USstoragesearch.com | No Comments »

When Stuffed Animals Take Over – Storage Tips

Wednesday, February 22nd, 2012

By Laura Gee, www.USstoragesearch.com Storage and Organization Contributor

Stuffed animals are cute, harmless little things that kids adore—until those fuzzy little friends take over your house one room at a time. Stuffed animal collections start out simple with a little bear or giraffe here and there and then turn into a fluffy zoo that any animal enthusiast would be impressed by. If you aren’t careful, those big-eyed little friends will be sitting over top of your flat screen judging you while you polish off another hour of DVR clearing. There are ways to deal with these animals and their pesky ways of ruining your organized rooms.

 

One thing that we did was to go up with stuffed animal storage. One solution is the stuffed animal hammock. There are a couple of ways to this. The one we chose was a corner one. It was a reinforced net that was triangular in shape so that it mounted nicely in the corner of the room. Stuffed animals were easily tossed in here and were still accessible. The little friends that weren’t as loved and weren’t quite favorite got tossed onto the net first leaving way for the favorites (and cuter ones) to be on top of the pile. We were able to fit nearly 75 animals in this corner net. If your space is big enough, you can also purchase child size hammocks and toss all of the toys in them that way.

Another way to wrangle those critters is to place a shelf that goes all the way around a kid’s room that is about a foot or a foot and a half from the ceiling. This way animal friends can be displayed, but they are out of the way. Kids can keep the favorite animals on top of their beds, keep it under five, and the rest need to be up on the shelf. Make a rule that only the animals that fit on the shelf or on the bed can stay so you have an excuse to purge some animals every now and then to make room for new ones.

Some of you might think that I am exaggerating about the power of stuffed animals, but I am not. It always starts out so innocently and then turns into a full-on infestation if you aren’t careful. Figure out storage solutions for your kids and their stuffed animals collections. If your kid is more of a collector and doesn’t actively play with them, go the shelves route. If your kid does throw tea parties and small rock concerts with animals in attendance, use a toy box or a net for a storage solution. No matter what you choose, be sure to keep the animals confined to one room. Trust me, or else they will be everywhere before you know it.

Follow USstoragesearch.com, the online leader for self storage, on twitter @USstoragesearch and Laura on twitter @LGJones523

Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in Children & Pets, Home Organization, Organization, Storage & Organizing, USstoragesearch.com | No Comments »

Co-Existing With a Gamer – Storage Tips for Video Game Accessories

Tuesday, February 21st, 2012

By Laura Gee, www.USstoragesearch.com Storage and Organization Contributor

Video games have progressed technologically by leaps and bounds throughout the last thirty years or so. With all of this advancement has come a lot of stuff. Controllers, game consoles, accessories, game cartridges, CD’s, and ton of other things part of this hobby that so many people enjoy all over the world. It doesn’t take long for all of this stuff to take over an area. There is hope! There is a way for gamers and non-gamers to co-exist—as long as compromises are made on both sides.

 

First of all, save any and all shoe boxes you come across. Shoe boxes are perfect for storage of video game accessories because they are cheap and easy to recover in order to match the look and feel of any room. Video games store nicely in these small boxes. You can have a nice, neat stack of shoes boxes that are filled with video games, but are covered in old maps, floral fabrics, sports themed wrapping paper, or whatever it is that you want to decorate them with. Controllers and other accessories tuck away nicely into boot boxes and other larger boxes. For an upgraded look, you can even purchase faux leather and thumb tacks to give a simple little shoe box a chic facelift. Nobody will ever be the wiser that a bunch of gaming stuff is hidden away right in plain sight.

Next, you can invest in relatively cheap pieces of furniture that will hide those gaming systems. There are many cheap options for entertainment centers with doors that can be shut when the system is not in use. If your entertainment system or shelving unit is deep enough, you can place picture frames, books, or even DVD’s in front of the gaming system to try to conceal it a bit. Putting games, controllers, and accessories in decorative storage ottomans is also a creative way to accommodate all of the stuff associated with playing video games.

 

Video game playing is a topic that gets many people passionate. Even those who love it living with those who hate it can co-exist. There are many ways to conceal or downplay the presence of a gaming system in any given room. Games, gaming systems, and controllers are easy to hide. As for the gaming chairs, well, I’ll leave that battle for you.

Follow USstoragesearch.com, the online leader for self storage, on twitter @USstoragesearch and Laura on twitter @LGJones523

Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in Children & Pets, Cleaning, Home Organization, Storage & Organizing, Storage Tips, USstoragesearch.com | No Comments »

The Moving Blues

Monday, February 20th, 2012

By Kristin Leigh; Moving, Storage & Organization Contributor to USstoragesearch.com

Well, it finally happened, just as our newly expanded family of four was busting at the seams in our previous house, we were finally, after almost a year able to sell our beautiful first home that we had worked so hard on to remodel over the last 6 years.

It sounded so simple to us in the early stages of putting our house on the market.  Make the house look like a home to any buyer that may come. The trick to that was that we had to make it look like a home for the buyers and not like our home (even though we were currently living there).  That was a very difficult feat.  With two kids, a dog and zero garage space (yes, I said no garage space), our 1,400 sq. foot house was in dire need of some deep cleaning and storage make over.

Luckily for us, we had a storage unit that we used to store all our extra baggage that we had acquired over a lifetime (literally).  Besides storing our extra belongings in a storage-unit, we also made some clean-up changes to appease future buyers.  We always made sure that the outside of the house was in tip top shape.  First impressions are lasting impressions and we wanted our curb appeal to be at its best.  For instance, in the summertime, we mowed our very well fertilized and watered lawn once a week.  We made sure to have a couple of potted plants on the stoop for an extra pop of color in front of the house.  Since we didn’t have a garage, we stored all the kids’ outside toys in an outdoor storage bin to keep out of the view of potential buyers.

The fall was difficult for us.  With three very large overgrown trees we acquired quite the amount of leaves so we had to rake a lot.  For the inside of the house we also made some changes for selling.  I will say that using a storage unit was one of the best ideas we ever had.  We went room by room and de-cluttered and re-organized everything so that each space was used efficiently, and the prospective buyers could see how they could use each space.  Whatever we weren’t using at the time and knew we wouldn’t be needing any time soon, we just packed it all up in boxes, labeled each box clearly, and then drove it down to our storage unit.

In our old house we had previously ripped out all of the very old, non-functional closet doors, assuming we would get new doors someday.  Well, seeing that it was an old house, the only way to get new doors was to have them custom made (which was outlandishly expensive).  In a way to divert the buyers’ eyes from seeing the negative view of not having closet doors, we instead made each closet a clean, tidy, organized space that was useful to the room.   In a linen closet for instance, we did this by storing stuff in canvas bins.  For example, all of our travel sized soaps and lotions were in one bin, and all of our medications, band aids, etc. went in another.   Our towels were folded nicely and sorted by color on the shelves and we made sure not to overcrowd the space.

These are just a few of our storage solutions that we used for the goal of getting our house sold.  Don’t get me wrong, my house was far from clean every time we got the call that somebody wanted to see the house last minute.  It usually it happened during naptime and on laundry day.  On those days I just packed up all the laundry in numerous laundry baskets (yes, I said numerous), clean or not and packed it all in the car, along with kids and dog.   God forbid, I forgot snacks and drinks for our hour of sitting in the car and driving around the neighborhood 10 times. Yes, moving is not easy, but we did our very best to make the process easier on us.  Using a self-storage unit takes a lot of the stress of trying to make a tiny house seem larger by clearing out unnecessary belongings when buyers come in.  Hopefully I gave you a few ideas for making your house quickly sellable.

Kristin Leigh describes herself as a “Moving, Storage & Organization Nut. Mom of 2 (3 if you count my hubby)”.  Kristin is a regular contributor to to the USstoragesearch.com and its Self Storage Network.   Follow Kristen Leigh on Twitter @leigh_kristin and add Kristin Leigh to your Google Plus Circles. Follow USstoragesearch.com too: Twitter – @USstoragesearch, Google+ https://plus.google.com/108829939994366779256

Tags: , , , , , , ,
Posted in Children & Pets, Cleaning, Home Organization, Moving, Storage, Storage & Organizing, Storage Unit, USstoragesearch.com | No Comments »

How to Get Attention in Blogs & Social Media Vlog

Friday, February 17th, 2012

Has Laura lost it?  Check out her latest video blog on how to get attention online in your social media efforts and other forms of communication with your customers.

How to get attention in social media and blogs – Laura Jones www.USstoragesearch.com

Follow USstoragesearch.com, the online leader for self storage, on twitter @USstoragesearch and Laura on twitter @LGJones523

Tags: , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Advertising, Social Media, Storage, Storage Vlog, USstoragesearch.com | No Comments »

Keeping All Those Cords Organized

Thursday, February 16th, 2012

By Laura Gee, www.USstoragesearch.com Storage and Organization Contributor

 

Technology is one of the hardest things to organize and keep clean. There are millions of cords falling around all over the place. Each device has a power cord or a charger or a USB cable or something that needs to be plugged in that just wants to get tangled. There are a few things you can do to keep this nightmare under control.

 

The first thing you need to do is label each charger or cord near the part that plugs into the wall. I suggest taping a small piece of paper with the item name on the end of the cord. For example, using a bright pink piece of paper, you could tape “computer power cord” so you don’t have to tug on the wire to figure out what it is connected to on the other end. Labeling the end of the cord helps you when you are trying to plug things into that outlet. You might be able to unplug your camera charger from the wall, but you’re not going to want to unplug your desktop computer most likely. Also, label all chargers in the same fashion. Put specific labels like “video camera charger” instead of just “camera charger” since many households have more than one form of camera. Labels are a great way to save time and stay organized.

 

Next, use zip ties to keep cords organized once you have everything in a given area set up like you like it. For example, behind any given television these days you will find between two and ten cords because so many gadgets are needed for a home entertainment area. Once you have everything plugged in and connected making sure you have untangled all of the cords, put two or three close by cords and zip tie them together. Do this for all of the cords back there to keep them becoming a jumbled mess. For longer cords, coil them nicely so the coil can rest on a shelf or on the floor and zip-tie the coil together. Zip ties are great because they can be undone at anytime and won’t leave a sticky residue like tape sometimes can. This process can be done in an office, behind a stereo system or anywhere that has a lot of cords.

 

There are a million more things to do with your technology, but starting with organizing that endless string of cords and wires is a great first step. Labels will keep you from playing the guessing game with chargers. Zip ties will keep cords from becoming intertwined and causing an eye sore.

 

Follow the USstoragesearch.com self storage blog and follow us on twitter @USstoragesearch for more storage tips, deals and info.  Follow Laura on twitter @LGJones523

Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in Home Organization, Organization, Storage & Organizing, USstoragesearch.com | No Comments »

Keeping the Papers You Must Save Organized

Wednesday, February 15th, 2012

By www.USstoragesearch.com Storage Contributor Tom Lewis

Even though the world is trying to go paper less, it is important that you still keep tangible copies of some things and keep those things well organized. Each and every day we bring more and more paper into our homes whether we like it or not. Many documents like bills and receipts are necessary to hang on to for a multitude of reasons. Don’t be that guy who takes in a trash bag full of receipts to and audit—organize all of your important papers. Whether it be for tax purposes or proof for potential discrepancies, it is important to keep a current, and organized, filing system. There are many ways to organize your papers, so we’ll just share a few of our favorite tips with you.

First, consider using hanging files in a drawer or cabinet. Hanging files are incredibly convenient. It takes a matter of minutes to label the tops of folders.  Create folders for things like important government documents like birth certificates, marriage licenses, and even passports. Make a folder for each monthly bill you pay so you can store your statement. A folder for each family member should be set up to house important papers and documents. We even encourage you to make a folder for each pet that you have to keep their records straight.

If you don’t have the space for hanging files, consider using an accordion folder. Accordion folders also have labeled tabs to help you organize your papers. You can find folders with a variety of pocket numbers. There are ones with as few as five tabs to keep things stored under broad topics or you can have as many as twenty to even more intricately sort your documents.

You can also consider purchasing a specialized container for your documents. You can get something cheap and simple like a plastic storage container just to keep your things together and to prevent damage. Also, you could invest in a safe or a fire resistant box for added protection for your most important items. When using containers instead of hanging files in a desk or large filing cabinet, you get the bonus of mobility out of your storage solution.

Even though you have many things stored electronically, it is still advisable to keep a hard copy of your important things. Technology can be unpredictable. With that in mind, we suggest you print out important documents and statements and store them in a safe place. You never know when there might be an audit on your finances or you might have a discrepancy in a payment. Having a well organized filing system for your paperwork will make those tough moments in life a little bit easier.

Follow USstoragesearch.com, the largest online self storage directory, on Twitter @USstoragesearch

Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in Advertising, Business Storage, Organization, Storage & Organizing, Storage Tips, USstoragesearch.com | No Comments »

« Older Entries