Category Archives: Paper

Photo Organizer Favorites: Forever Permanent Photo Storage Solution

 

ForeveCover

Since May is National Photo Month, I thought it might be useful to highlight a few of my favorite photo organization tools on the blog this month. First up is Forever.

As a certified photo organizer, it’s part of my job to recommend cloud storage solutions for my clients’ digital images. Forever is the place that I’ve chosen to archive my family photo collection, and it’s the solution I recommend most to my clients.

Why Forever?

So many reasons! Today I’ll focus on permanence and privacy.

Permanence

Forever makes a pretty amazing promise to it’s members – a guarantee that their photos will be safeguarded for the members’ lifetime plus 100 years.

They are able to make this guarantee because of their unique business model, which includes a conservatively managed trust that continues to pay for your storage, beyond your lifetime as well as the lifespan of the company. You own your storage space in the cloud, unlike other storage services that allow you to rent storage on a monthly/annual basis. You are able to pass down your digital archive to other family members after you pass away so that your memories continue to live on for the next generation.

Your photos are permanently stored at the resolution level at which they were uploaded. They can be downloaded in high resolution without having to pay a fee (which can’t be said for all photo storage sites).

In 2015, the prevailing image format is a .jpeg file. Given the speed at which technology changes, it’s highly likely that our images may take on a different file format in 50 years. If so, Forever has you covered. Forever will ensure that all of your digital content remains accessible over time by automatically migrating your files to current digital file formats.

Privacy

Unlike many of it’s competitors, Forever puts a premium on your privacy. You maintain legal ownership of your content and are in full control of who can view your images via their comprehensive privacy settings.

Forever account screen shot

In addition, Forever does not mine your data or sell it to advertisers. Read the terms and conditions of the current photo sharing site that you’re using to see if they can make that promise. Not likely (particularly if you are utilizing a free storage solution).

Organization & Editing Tools

Once you’ve uploaded your images onto the Forever platform, the real fun begins! You can easily apply tags to your images, which enables you to quickly corral your photos into albums based on theme, people, events, time frame, or any other category you want. This feature comes in quite handy for creating digital photo books.

Forever Organizing Tagging

Want to crop, resize, or adjust the contrast of a particular image? How about creating a black and white version? No problem. A wide array of basic editing tools is built into the Forever platform. You can choose to edit your original image, or keep the original untouched and create an edited image copy.

Forever Photo Editing

Mobile Access to Your Entire Photo Collection

As a photo organizer, I’m all about bringing my clients’ photos back into their everyday life. When I demonstrate how the Forever app enables you to access your entire photo library on any device to my photo organizing clients, they are ecstatic!

People typically use their camera roll to store digital photos taken with their mobile devices. These high resolution photos take up a ton of storage space, which limits the number of photos you can store on your device (raise your hand if you’ve ever had to delete photos in order to take new ones). With the Forever app, you can use the auto-backup feature to upload images taken via your mobile device to your Forever account. Once they are uploaded, you can delete photos from your camera roll and free up a ton of storage space on your device. Simply use the Forever app to view your photo library on the go!

Forever Mobile

Secure & Private Sharing

In addition to sharing your photos by letting others view them on your mobile device, Forever enables you to share individual photos or albums using their secure and private social features. You are able to share photos via email or social networks using a link that you control. Sharing recipients do not have to have a Forever account in order to view your photos.

You share what you want with whom you want.

Privacy

 

Forever is featured in the Products I Love menu of the Refined Rooms website. You can click through and sign up for a free membership in order to test drive this great product to see how it can make managing your photo collection a breeze!

  Want to learn more about Natalie Gallagher or Refined Rooms?  Visit www.RefinedRoomsLLC.com or connect via: Facebook Pinterest | Twitter | LinkedIn


DISCLOSURE: This post was sponsored by Forever. The opinions expressed are solely my own, based on both my personal experience as well as the experience I have working with photo organizing clients. 

 

In an Organized World, Vertical Prevails over Horizontal Everytime

Stacks and Piles

While perusing through various organizing videos on YouTube yesterday, I came across this really awesome clip by Lorie Marrero, a professional organizer who many of you might know as the creator of The Clutter Diet.  In this video clip, she shared a key organizing tenet when it comes to organizing paper…“Vertical is visible, horizontal is hidden.

Certainly, most people can easily grasp the concept that it is much easier to retrieve paper when it is oriented vertically, rather than stacked in a pile.

For instance, it’s much easier for me to view my collection of sourcing catalogs and organizing magazines when they are stored in a magazine file:

vertical vs horizonal-in organizing (5)

…rather than simply stored in a pile or stack:

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Of course, the same holds true for paper.  Would you rather search for a specific document this way…

paper piles

…or this way?

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Visibility and therefore “findability” are enhanced, not only by the vertical orientation in this example, but from the use of labels as well.

The Clutter Diet tips video expands upon other ways that you can store paper vertically to avoid the perils of stacking. But what about using this concept in other areas of the home? I can think of two great examples of how simply repositioning objects so that they are stored in a vertical orientation can make accessing those objects infinitely easier.

Going Vertical in the Kitchen

During the course of organizing clients’ kitchens, I often find cupboards full of cookie sheets, muffin tins, cutting boards, serving platters and other large, flat items stacked in piles. For example, the cabinet pictured below initially contained a pull-out drawer that housed all of the client’s cutting boards and cookie sheets all stacked in a pile on the drawer. Her cake pans and cooling racks were nested horizontally in a stack on the cabinet floor below the pull-out drawer.

The client bemoaned the fact that she would often have to remove every item from the cupboard in order to access the one item she needed.  Although it pained me to remove a pull-out drawer (they are a great solution for accessing items in the back of the cupboard), it was warranted in this particular case. We used a vertical bakeware organizer to create a vertical storage solution for her bakeware zone. The height of the items we were storing required the removal of the drawer (you can still see the drawer runners in the photo below…they were eventually removed).

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My client is ecstatic about how making this simple change dramatically has improved her baking and food preparation experience.

Going Vertical in The Bedroom

Ever try to locate your favorite tee shirt amidst piles and piles of horizontally stacked tee shirts in your dresser drawer? Once you’ve taken the time to organize those drawers by neatly stacking the tee shirts, how long does it take for them to become an unruly mess again?  Not long…especially if we are talking about your child’s tee shirt drawer!

Once again, the secret to solving this common organizing challenge is to flip those tee shirts on their side and “file” them in the drawer. Using a set of drawer dividers really helps to keep things under control even better. Now when your son goes to look for his Cleveland Cavaliers tee shirt, he can find it in a few seconds, without having to toss out half the contents of the drawer.

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{How long would it take you to find the Cleveland Cavaliers tee shirt?}

For my readers who aspire to dresser drawer perfection, you can go the extra mile and use Pliio Clothing Filers to make your drawers “Pinterest-worthy”…

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I’m sure I could come up with additional examples of the Magic of Vertical, but this post is bordering on too lengthy already. I’ll leave you with this last organizing mantra:

Stack and piles are the enemy of Organized.

 Want to learn more about Natalie Gallagher or Refined Rooms?  Visit www.RefinedRoomsLLC.com or connect via: Facebook Pinterest | Twitter | LinkedIn

Clutter-Free Options for Displaying Your Holiday Cards

One of the things I most look forward to each Christmas season is the daily arrival of holiday cards from friends and family. As the official household card maker for my own family, I understand firsthand the time, energy, and thought that goes into creating these cards each year. So I do my best to carve out a prominent place in my home to display the cards for everyone to enjoy throughout the holiday season.

Each year, I try to come up with a new and creative way to display holiday cards that doesn’t clutter up any of the flat surfaces in our home and that serves as a festive addition to the holiday decor. This year, I’m hanging them vertically on doors located in our foyer by attaching them to a long piece of ribbon that’s affixed to the door on the reverse side via duct tape (fancy, I know, but it works for me).

Clutter Free Holiday Card Display 2

If you are looking for some creative ways to display your holiday cards in “clutter-free style” this year, I pulled together this collection of great examples from around the web in order to provide you with a little inspiration.

Clutter Free Holiday Card Display

1.  Use garland and ribbon to create a hanging card display across a window or above a door, like the pom pom garland display featured on Bob Vila’s blog.

2.   Repurpose an old shutter to create a cardholder by tucking your cards in between the slats, as demonstrated by Courtney from A Diamond in the Stuff. Not only is this option fantastic for holiday cards — you can use it year-round to organize bills, coupons, invitations etc.

3.  Create a card wreath (or several!), using a wreath form covered in decorative fabric. Use clothespins to attach cards to the wreath form.  Genius!

4.  Use cards as Christmas tree ornaments! This is what I call “killing two birds with one stone”. See the simple tutorial at Better Homes and Gardens for how to pull this off.

5.  Don’t have a Christmas tree? Create a Greetings Tree, Martha Stewart-Style, using some dried winter branches, a bucket, and some ribbon.

6.  Hang cards vertically on doors and cupboards using pretty holiday ribbon like this example found on the Greener Grass blog  (great minds think alike!)

7.  Create a Card Garland on your stairway banister ala Martha Stewart.

8.  Create a Washi Tape Card Tree like the folks at the Thyme is Honey blog did. A conversation-piece indeed!

Now it’s your turn to share…got a creative way to celebrate those holiday cards? Let us in on it in the comments section below.

 Want to learn more about Natalie Gallagher or Refined Rooms?  Visit www.RefinedRoomsLLC.com or connect via: Facebook Pinterest | Twitter | LinkedIn

Is Paper Clutter a Problem? Start by Reducing What Comes In

Tips for Reducing Paper Clutter 1

Image © Depositphotos.com /djarvik

With the advent of the digital age, many people assumed that we would naturally evolve into a paperless world. Nothing could be farther from the truth!

As a professional organizer, I can attest to the fact that paper clutter is a universal problem in our homes. Almost every organizing client I have worked with struggles with how to manage the constant influx of paper within their home and/or office. It comes at us from all angles…the mailbox, our kids’ backpacks, our shopping bags, and even our desktop printer. Paper clutter creates stress because it represents a plethora of unmade decisions and incomplete tasks that require our time and attention to process.

So what what’s a stressed-out paper clutter sufferer to do?

Begin by turning off the faucet.

Imagine trying to drink water out of a fire hydrant…pretty overwhelming, right?

powerful water flow coming out with impetus from a street red hydrant

Image © Depositphotos.com / FedeCandoniPhoto

In order to effectively take a drink out of the faucet, you first need to reduce the water flow to something that’s manageable:

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Image © Depositphotos.com / andrey1000

 The same holds true for paper! The first step in effectively managing your household papers is to reduce what’s coming into your home. The less paper that comes into your home, the less time required to organize and maintain your paper, and the more likely you will be to stay on top of your paper management system.

10 tips for reducing the paper “gush” to a manageable “drip”:

  1. Cancel subscriptions for newspapers/magazines/newsletters that you never read (research whether these periodicals are available online)
  2. Politely decline flyers and handouts offered by vendors/sales people (tell them your family is “going paperless”!)
  3. Avoid printing documents that can be accessed online
  4. Sign up to receive paperless bills/financial statements and take advantage of online bill pay services whenever possible
  5. Call your credit card companies and ask that your name and address not be sold to other companies
  6. Contact magazines/catalogs that you subscribe to and ask that your name and address not be sold to other companies
  7. When you donate money to a charity or order a product/service, ask that your name and address not be sold to other companies
  8. Don’t fill out warranty cards – they are a way to collect addresses for mailing lists. Your warranty is valid without submitting your information
  9. Avoid entering sweepstakes or contests. They are a way to collect addresses for mailing lists
  10. Take advantage of “Unsubscribe” resources devoted to reducing junk mail, including:

DMAchoice.org – Remove your name from the Direct Marketing Association’s marketing lists (represents approximately 80% of total U.S. marketing mailings)

CatalogChoice.org – Selectively choose the catalogs that you want to receive, as well as your preference for how frequently you receive catalogs

OptOutPrescreen.com – Opt out of credit card and insurance offers

Paper Karma app – Use this app to take a photo of unwanted mail and the app automatically contacts the sender and requests to them to remove you from their distribution list

paper karma

Systematically implementing each of these “unsubscribe” processes will require a bit of time and effort up front, but doing so will result in significantly less paper (and less stress) in your life!

 Want to learn more about Natalie Gallagher or Refined Rooms?  Visit www.RefinedRoomsLLC.com or connect via: Facebook Pinterest | Twitter | LinkedIn

Redundancy and Automation are Key for Your Digital Photo Backup System

September is National Disaster Preparedness Month, and it’s that time of year when photo organizers everywhere are posing questions such as…
Digital Photo Backup
Did you know that September 27th is Save Your Photos Day? As a member of the Save Your Photos Alliance, I feel that I have a mission to educate folks about the importance of having a system in place to protect your digital photos/videos in the event of a catastrophic data loss. A catastrophic data loss can take on many forms, including the accidental loss/theft of your computer, the destruction of your computer as the consequence of a natural disaster, hard drive crashes, or even an epic computer hack.
Save Your Photos Day small
Creating a backup system for your digital photo and video collection does not have to be complicated or time-consuming.  When creating your system, you should  keep in mind the two key features of an effective backup:  redundancy and automation.

Your collection needs to be backed up in multiple places

There’s a saying in the industry that your data should not be considered backed up until it exists in at least three places. Redundancy is your insurance against Murphy’s Law and just plain bad luck. Hard drives go bad, devices fail, and cloud services go out of business. If one, or even two of these things happen to you simultaneously, you’ll still have a copy of your precious memories in back up #3.

Keep in mind that your backup copies also need to exist in at least two physical locations so that the offsite copy can serve as insurance in the event that your house burns to the ground or is leveled by a tornado.

The back up process needs to be automated

The more you can create a backup system that doesn’t require any manual processing on your part, the less opportunity there is for human error to enter into the equation. We are busy, overwhelmed, and (let’s face it) lazy at times. So using backup methods that work in the background without any effort on our part sets us up for success!

My 4-pronged approach for safeguarding your photo/digital collection

1.  EXTERNAL HARD DRIVE WITH BACKUP SOFTWARE

Purchase an external hard drive that includes pre-bundled automatic backup software. Your hard drive should remain continuously connected to your computer so that it maintains a consistent, real-time backup of your files (your digital photos/videos, as well as all of the other files that live on your computer’s hard drive). A typical 1 terabyte hard drive will cost approximately $100.
Hard Drive

2.  ONLINE “ALL PURPOSE” CLOUD SERVICE

There are many online data backup services to choose from, including Carbonite, Backblaze, and Mozy. I’ve used Carbonite for years and have been very satisfied with it.  I’ve experienced two catastrophic hard drive crashes in the past few years, and was able to retrieve my data seamlessly from the Carbonite cloud service both times. Take some time to research the options; just be certain that the one you choose backs up your files automatically.

3.  ONLINE DEDICATED PHOTO STORAGE SERVICE

I know what you’re thinking…a second cloud service? The all-purpose cloud services are great for a nuts and bolts backup, but if you have any desire to edit, organize, and share your photos, then I highly recommend uploading your photos and videos to a dedicated photo storage and sharing site as well. The only disadvantage is that for most of these sites, you’ll have to manually upload your files (but you’ve got an automatic backup in 2 additional locations, so it’s all good!). When choosing a service, here are a few important questions you may want to ask:

  • What is the cost involved for the size of my digital collection?
  • Are there any file size limitations?
  • Can I download my images in full resolution?
  • Can I control the privacy settings for my collection?
  • Do I retain ownership of my images?
  • What organizing and editing features are available?
  • Can I create photo gifts, products, and prints directly from the service?

Some of my favorite photo storage services include Forever and SmugMug.

4.  PRINT COPIES

Creating printed copies of digital photos counts as a back up method…believe it or not! Remember that a print photo can be scanned to create a digital photo in the future.

printed photos

Some might consider my backup method “overkill”, but when it comes to my family’s memories and our legacy, I feel like there is no such thing as being too cautious. If this 4-pronged approach feels like too much to take on, or if you are not the type who spends a lot of energy fussing over your photos, just complete #1 and #2 and consider your back up system complete.

If you’d like hands-on assistance with implementing your photo backup system, schedule a free phone consultation to learn how I can be of assistance to you.

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Want to learn more about Natalie Gallagher or Refined Rooms?  Visit www.RefinedRoomsLLC.com or connect via: Facebook Pinterest | Twitter | LinkedIn

Organizing Kids’ Art

Organizing Kids Art1

Now that the school year is in full swing, it’s the ideal time to set up systems for processing the various types of paper that you’ll begin to find in your child’s backpack on a regular basis. In a previous post, I proposed a system for handling school memorabilia.  Today, we’ll tackle the vexing problem of what do with all of that artwork .

Create an Art Gallery Wall

Find a place in your home where you can prominently display your child’s best pieces of art. Your kids spend a great deal of time and effort producing these gems; creating formal displays that go beyond the front of the fridge demonstrate to them that you value their hard work and creativity! Switch out the pieces on a regular basis as new art comes in.

Organizing Kids Art1
In addition to using traditional frames to create a kids’ art gallery in your home, you can get creative!  One of my favorite methods for displaying art is to use a simple wire and clip system on a long wall. I also love the Lil’ Davinci Art Cabinet, which provides another hassle-free way to frequently change out your art display.

 Designate a Temporary Holding Container

For artwork that isn’t quite “gallery-worthy”, designate a container for each child that will serve as a temporary place for all incoming art to be stored until the end of the school year. Make sure that the container is sufficiently large to accommodate oversized paintings and 3-dimensional pieces. I like to use under-bed storage boxes, since that’s where the holding containers live at our house.

Organizing Kids art 3

Review Your Collection at Year’s End

At the conclusion of the school year, take some time to sort through the holding bin with your child and determine whether the collection needs to be culled down prior to “archiving” it. As you review the collection, you and your child will likely identify pieces that are not significant to either one of you (e.g., coloring pages, etc.).

Give yourself permission to discard these and keep only the pieces that reflect your child’s talent, creativity, and interests. I recommend conducting this end-of-year review with your child; that way, you won’t be tossing any piece that is important to her (even if you don’t attribute any significance to it).

Archive and Share Each Year’s Collection

Once you’ve culled your collection, you may choose to keep the original art and store it in an archival quality container. Alternatively, you can archive the collection by creating digital images of each piece of art. I am a huge fan of this method.  Not only does it eliminate the necessity of devoting space in your home for storing tons of artwork, it opens up so many possibilities for sharing your child’s precious creations!

Artsonia

Artsonia enables you to upload your digital images to create an online art gallery to share with friends and family. It also serves as a “virtual museum”, in which your child can display their artwork publicly on the web. This service is available to parents, as well as school teachers!

Organizing Kids Art 4

Artkive

The Artkive app is another option for creating an online art gallery that can be shared with family and friends. Artkive is a free app that boasts some great organizing features, including the ability to categorize your art by school grade, child, and child’s age. You can even name each piece of art. In addition, you have the ability to produce a photo book of your child’s art collection with a few clicks of a button.

Organizing Kids Art 7

Photo Books

Creating digital images of your child’s art work enables you to take advantage of the dizzying array of online resources for creating digital photo books. Sites such as Shutterfly, MyPublisher, Snapfish, and Mixbook make it easy for anyone to create a photo book these days.

Organizing Kids  Art 6

You can create a digital photo book for each school year, or create larger books that curate art across several school years. I’ve created photo books for my children’s artwork using Artkive, Shutterfly and MyPublisher. These books can get pricey, so I suggest searching Groupon for current deals when you are ready to create your books.

Organizing Kids Art 7

Photo books are a terrific way to enjoy your child’s artwork for years to come…

Organizing Kids Art 8

 Want to learn more about Natalie Gallagher or Refined Rooms?  Visit www.RefinedRoomsLLC.com or connect via: Facebook Pinterest | Twitter | LinkedIn

Organizing School Memorabilia

Organizing School Memorabilia cover

School memorabilia and art are common clutter culprits across many of my client’s homes. If you are a parent, you know how easy it is to become overwhelmed by the sheer volume of keepsake papers, awards, drawings and progress reports that enter our homes each week. As the new school year begins, I highly recommend setting up a system to process and manage these papers NOW before the deluge reaches full force!

Don’t have a system? Here’s the one I recommend…

First, head down to your local office supply store and purchase a portable file box for each child (the 12-gallon Flip Top File Box from Staples is the perfect size), a box of hanging files/tabs, and some shipping labels (I recommend Avery 3 1/3×4″ labels).  You’ll need 14 folders/tabs/labels per child.

organizing school memorabilia4

Designate a file folder for each school year (including preschool and kindergarten) using the clear file folder tabs to label each folder (this is where a label maker comes in handy!). In addition, affix a label to the front of each folder that provides a bit more detail regarding each school year. For example, I chose to include the year(s), school, and teacher(s) for that particular grade. I also like to affix a school picture to the front of each folder…cute, eh?

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If you use Avery shipping labels, there’s a handy dandy online tool for creating custom labels. I recommend creating and printing all 14 labels at one time, even if your little cutie is only a preschooler this year. That way, you’ll have consistent labels across the folders and won’t have to worry about trying to recreate the labels if your digital file somehow gets misplaced in future years. As you can see below, my label sheets for future grades are all ready to go for my 3rd grader.

Organizing School Memorabilia2

Below, I’ve shared some examples of the types of things that can live in the memorabilia folders.  For example, my daughter’s 4th grade folder contains key projects for that grade, papers that represent proud accomplishments (e.g., passing the timed test for division!), programs for school-related events, and assignments that reflect her current thinking and interests.

organizing school memorabilia

You can choose to include other non-school memorabilia items accumulated during the year as well, which is what I’ve chosen to do. For example, my daughter’s swim team ribbons and Girl Scout memorabilia are contained in these folders as well. Depending on how selective you are when it comes to retaining your child’s art work, you can choose to include a few key pieces of art in the folders as well. I generally recommend a separate method for organizing and storing art, which I will outline in a forthcoming blog post.

The beauty of this system is that it puts a limit on what you can keep.

This process serves as a great example of using what we call in the organizing biz a “limiting container”. By choosing this container, I’ve set a limit on what is an acceptable amount of “real estate” for school memorabilia to occupy in my home. This volume is what feels comfortable for me; of course, you may be willing to accept a much larger real estate footprint in your home if you have great difficulty parting with sentimental items OR you have a significantly larger home.

organizing school memorabilia5

  Want to learn more about Natalie Gallagher or Refined Rooms?  Visit www.RefinedRoomsLLC.com or connect via: Facebook Pinterest | Twitter | LinkedIn

Hot Organizing Tools Featured at the NAPO Organizing Expo: Part 2

napo 2014 part 2

In my previous blog post, I presented some great tools for organizing clothing, gift wrap supplies, and vital documents that I came across while attending the 2014 annual conference of the National Association of Professional Organizers. Picking up where I left off in the in the NAPO Conference debriefing process, today’s post will highlight some of the impressive tools I came across at conference for organizing and reducing paper, as well as managing time.

4.  Organize Your Paper with Smead Flexi Folder

Anyone whose worked with file folders has experienced the aggravation of having to replace their folders because of a) wear and tear,  b) the need to re-label the tab, or c) the tab placement no longer conforms with the current file organizing scheme. The folks at Smead have come up with an innovative new file folder that eradicates all of these file folder frustrations. Here at the Smead booth, Jim Riesterer demonstrates some of the great features of the Flexi Folder, including the heavy duty card stock and the ERASABLE file tab that can be positioned anywhere along the top of the folder!

Smead NAPO 2014

I’m not the only organizer who was jazzed about this office product…the Smead Flexi Folder was voted the Best Solution for Organizing at Work as part of the 2014 Organizers’ Choice Awards. Take a look at this video below to see the erasable/repositionable tabs in action:

 5.  Reduce Paper and Organize Digital Files with NeatConnect

For those of you who have a keen interest in moving toward a “paperless” household, you will definitely want to investigate the NeatConnect, the latest addition to the Neat Company’s arsenal of scanning/digital organizing products. Unlike its predecessors (the NeatReceipts and NeatDesk scanners), the NeatConnect is a cloud-based scanner and digital filing system that requires no connection to a computer.

Neat NAPO 2014

The functionality of NeatConnect impressed the heck out of me when I viewed the demonstration at Conference. Like it’s predecessor, the NeatDesk, NeatConnect can scan a mix of receipts, business cards, and regular-sized documents (at a speed of 24 pages per minute). The really cool part happens after your papers are digitized. NeatConnect sends your digital documents to the cloud, at which point, you can access them anywhere. The icing on the cake has to be the seamless integration with 3rd party applications such as Quickbooks and Evernote.

Watch the company’s demo video to see NeatConnect in action.

6.  Manage Your Time with The Time Timer

I was first introduced to the Time Timer by my son’s preschool teacher, who used it in her classroom to facilitate transitions. Who knew that several years later, I would be recommending this tool to my clients and actually using it during my organizing sessions! This tool is simple, yet genius. The Time Timer provides a visual representation of the passage of time via the use of a red disk that disappears as time elapses.

TimeTimer

While I was familiar with the original Time Timer tool, I was excited to learn at Conference about all of the other Time Timer products, which include watches, desktop and mobile apps, and several useful accessories that can be used to customize the Time Timer for classroom schedules and home routines. I routinely recommend the Time Timer as a valuable tool for clients who have difficulty with procrastination and staying focused (particularly during decluttering sessions). This tool is especially useful for families with young children…you’ll never have to answer the question, “How much longer?”

A favorite among professional organizers, the Time Timer won Best Solution for Personal Productivity as part of the Organizer’s Choice Awards at this year’s NAPO Conference. Click here to see the Time Timer in action.

That concludes my review of cool organizing tools from the NAPO 2014 Organizing Expo! I hope that at least one of these products peaked your interest.  If you decide to try out any of the organizing solutions highlighted in this blog series, please return and tell us about your experience with it.

Want to learn more about Natalie Gallagher or Refined Rooms?  Visit www.RefinedRoomsLLC.com or connect via: Facebook Pinterest | Twitter | LinkedIn

Hot Organizing Tools Featured at the NAPO Organizing Expo – Part 1

napo 2014 banner

I just returned from Scottsdale, Arizona, where I attended the NAPO (National Association of Professional Organizers) conference, along with 500+ professional organizers from all around the world. The NAPO conference provides continuing education regarding best practices in the organizing industry, as well as a wonderful opportunity to learn about the dizzying array of organizing products/tools and storage solutions that exist in order to assist clients with their particular organizing challenges.

As part of the conference “debriefing” process, I wanted to highlight some of the products I came across at the Organizing Expo.  In today’s blog post, I’ll present some great tools for organizing clothing, gift wrapping supplies, and vital documents.

 1.  Organize Your Clothes with Pliio 

One of the first products I discovered on my foray into the Organizing Expo Hall was the Pliio Clothing Filer. This product totally plays into my OCD tendencies. Do you struggle with maintaining order within your dresser drawers or closet shelves?  The Pliio Clothing Filer is a tool which makes it easy to fold your clothes and store them in perfectly uniform piles or stacks. This enables you to easily see all of the garments that you own. The structure makes putting away and retrieving clothes effortless.  L-O-V-E it!

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Here’s professional organizer and Pliio co-creator Clare Kumar demonstrating how to use Pliio at the conference:

Pliio
Not only does the Pliio system reign in clutter at home, it is also a useful tool for keeping the clothing in your suitcase uber-organized while traveling. Pliio comes in several sizes to accommodate various types of garments, including children’s clothing. You can purchase them at Bed, Bath, & Beyond  or The Shopping Channel.

2.  Organize Your Gift Wrap Supplies with Wrap iT

Raise your hand if you have struggled with keeping all of those gift wrap rolls and supplies corralled and organized. I have.  In fact, I wrote a blog post on it not too long ago. For those of you with your hands raised, I’m happy to introduce you to Wrap iT, the all-in-one solution for organizing all of your gift wrap and wrapping supplies. Wrap iT is available in both a regular and a deluxe size. Both options hold up to 26 (yes, 26) rolls of wrapping paper, but the deluxe version can accommodate oversize rolls. There are a number of storage compartments designed to hold gift bags, tissue paper, ribbons/bows, tape and scissors…everything you need to create a gorgeously packaged gift.

As creator Adam Levine demonstrated at conference, the Wrap iT includes a unique system for storing wrapping paper rolls to prevent those annoying frayed/damaged edges that can often occur when rolls are stuffed willy nilly inside the closet or under the bed.

Wrap It NAPO 2014

The best part about Wrap iT is that it stores so much in so little space! When hung in the closet, Wrap iT takes up about as much space as a suit jacket. If you don’t want to hang it in the closet, its slim profile enables you to simply tuck it away underneath a bed. I love this product so much that I plan to become an affiliate and sell it in the Recommended Products page of my website! Until then, you can purchase it directly from the Wrap iT website.

 3.  Organize Your Vital Documents with LifeinCase

I spend a great deal of time working with clients to organize their “paper life”. One of the overriding goals we strive to achieve together is to create systems for easily retrieving important documents (for them or for their loved ones) in the event of an emergency.  Whether the situation takes the form of a medical emergency, a sudden death, or a natural disaster, it is crucial for everyone to have a way to quickly find the important documents.

The makers of LifeinCase recognized this need and created a ready-made system that makes it quite easy for anyone to gather their essential documents and have them ready to “grab and go” in the event of any emergency.

Life In Case - NAPO 2014

LifeinCase is an organizational tool that’s comprised of:

  • 5 Plastic Folders: To hold Personal, Medical, Financial, Estate, and Property records
  • Checklists:  Summarizing the 50 essential documents that should be stored in each of the 5 folders
  • Grab-and-Go Tote:  500 sheet capacity that’s small enough to be portable, yet larger enough to hold all essential documents

LifeinCase comes in multiple patterns and colors and is available on their website.
Stay tuned for the next post, where I’ll be describing cool time management and productivity tools from the NAPO 2014 conference!

Want to learn more about Natalie Gallagher or Refined Rooms?  Visit www.RefinedRoomsLLC.com or connect via: Facebook | Pinterest | Twitter | LinkedIn

Introducing Freedom Filer: The Solution for All of Your File System Woes

Freedom Filer 1

Image courtesy of John Kasawa / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

We are nearing the end of Organize Your Files week…

Does the task of organizing your files sound about as appealing as getting a root canal?

Perhaps you dread the task of filing papers into your current filing system because the filing cabinet is overstuffed and hasn’t been purged in years. Maybe that dread prevents you from filing altogether, and you have resorted to piling your papers in stacks throughout your home instead.

freedom filer 3

Image courtesy of  Nutta Kit /FreeDigitalPhotos.net

If any of this resonates with you, first understand that you are not alone!  As I’ve discussed in prior blog posts, paper clutter is a common challenge for most of my clients – so much so, that I offer an organizing service specifically devoted to assisting clients with managing the paper that comes into their home.
One of my absolute favorite tools for managing household papers is the Freedom Filer system.

Freedom Filer 5

I use Freedom Filer for organizing my own reference files, as well as my clients’ files.  My clients love it as much as I do.  Here’s why:

    • It’s a self-purging system in which files are categorized as Permanent, Replaceable, or Rotating…so you will never have to clean out your files again once the system is set up (take a few moments and let that sink in);
    • Following some simple rules, all of your files will rotate out after their useful life has ended;
    • Color coding enables users to quickly retrieve documents;
    • You will not have to waste any time creating labels or determining appropriate file categories/names…it’s all been done for you;
    • You can completely customize the system to fit your specific filing needs.

Click here to link to the Freedom Filer site, where you can learn more about this highly recommended product.  After you purchase your Freedom Filer, contact me to schedule a session during which we can set up your customized filing system and end those paper piles once and for all!

To learn more about Natalie Gallagher and Refined Rooms, visit RefinedRoomsLLC.com.