I’m pleased to announce that our recent closet clean-out event, “Clothing Swap & Cocktails”, was a swapping success!  Innovatively Organized hosted over 25 guests who brought their gently loved clothing items to exchange with others. There was a variety of garments and accessories, ranging from jackets and shoes to purses and dresses and jewelry. I was so impressed with the enthusiasm expressed by the participants that I’m planning to make this a regular Innovatively Organized event!

Remember, the main goal of this is to help you create more effective use of your space and to eliminate items that clutter your closets, shelves and dresser drawers. By the looks of the inventory available at the clothes swap, I’d say that everyone did a wonderful job of purging their homes of unwanted and unused things! The best part is that we donated all of the left over pieces to Goodwill.

I had a great time and really enjoyed providing an entertaining forum for a typically unpleasant task. Cleaning out your closets can definitely be fun! Each attendee also received a goodie bag with coupons for organizing, make-up and fitness. Don’t miss it next time!

Laundry adds up quickly these days with the various activities that require multiple outfit changes – work, exercise, gardening, date night, etc. so I thought I’d provide a few tips to help conquer the clothes piles.

1. Multi-compartment hampers – if you have a lot of clothes or a lot of family members, sorting laundry as you go is a huge time-saver! Assign a type of clothing item to each compartment, such as whites, darks, cold or hot wash only, and drop your items into the appropriate section so they are already categorized come laundry day.
2. Dry-clean only hamper – by hanging a bag dedicated to dry-clean only items on the back of the bathroom or closet door, you can grab the bag and go when you’re headed to work or out to run errands.
3. Carry-all for detergent and softeners – for those of you who need to travel to the community laundry room or laundromat, it’s a good idea to have a tote or bin for all your detergents, bleach, sprays and dryer sheets. The recycled bags sold at grocery stores with a flat bottom are great for this purpose. Keep everything together in the bag and then just throw it over your shoulder and grab the laundry basket and go!
4. Write it on your calendar – schedule set laundry days and stick to them. It truly helps to have an appointed day each week to get this chore out of the way.
5. Reunite those socks – place a small basket in the sock drawer for all those socks who have lost their mate during the transition from foot to hamper to washing machine. It will turn up eventually and you won’t have to go hunting for the missing mate!