The Answer to a Clutter-Free Christmas? Staycations. Here's Why.

Do you find it getting harder and harder to find the right gift for certain people on your list?  Do you find yourself buying a gift just for the sake of giving the gift even though you know the person you are buying for does not need or necessarily want said gift?  I think we have all been in this position. As the world moves toward a less is more mentality, this predicament is becoming even more prevalent.

As a mother, I am embarrassed to admit (on several occasions mind you) to finding unopened gifts my children have received.  The gifts are unwrapped and properly thanked for but beyond that, they are just clutter. This in no way diminishes the feeling of gratitude towards the gift giver; it is just a fact!

WOW, that sounds terribly ungrateful and if you know me you know I am nothing but grateful for the people and gifts in my life!  I cannot stress that enough. However, I have come to know that experiences trump most things, and the gift of an experience outlives that of a trinket or latest gadget.  

This is why my family moved from giving mountains of gifts when the children were young to what we called “the three wise men gifting” (three gifts) as they became teenagers. Now, we do a “staycation.”

What is a stay-cation?  It’s a vacation in your own city or a city nearby.  I will not lie, not buying gifts felt really weird and still does. But when I ask my family what they would like for Christmas, they tell me another staycation.  

Last year’s staycation:

I planned a family dinner at Damien’s Italian Restaurant with a shuttle to the Alley Theatre to see a performance of A Christmas Carol.  If you are in Houston, this is a must!!  Damien’s Restaurant provides a free shuttle to the theatre district.  The minibus drops you off right in front of your theatre and like a magical carriage following the performance it is there to pick you up.  What’s more, they know you are going to the theatre so they pace your meal to accommodate those plans. No need to worry if your entre will be out with perfect scheduling or whether the check will be delivered in adequate time to retrieve the car, drive, park, walk to your seats.  

I wanted to add a little international culture to our itinerary so I planned a dinner at Yauatcha Houston, a dim sum teahouse offering classic and contemporary dim sum, wok dishes, patisserie, and an innovative wine and cocktail list.  I paired this with a performance of Shen Yun, a performing arts group that performs classical Chinese dance, ethnic and folk dance, and story-based dance, with orchestral accompaniment and solo performers.

Continuing with our internationally themed staycation, we also attended a family dinner one night at Peli-Peli, a South African restaurant in Houston.

This year’s staycation:

We’ll kick off our staycation with dinner at La Griglia Italian Restaurant with a performance of Ä Christmas Pageant at Stages Repertory Theatre.

I have also planned a family outing to I-Fly, the latest immersive experience combing VR technology with the real rush of skydiving over some of the world’s most beautiful destinations.  Now everyone can pick a bucket list place to skydive atop! We will then grab an early dinner at a local Mexican restaurant, where we will no doubt recount the excitement.

To continue the experience, I purchased tickets to the Houston Rockets versus Boston Celtics basketball game and thought that might team well with a great barbecue dinner.  

Our house is still decked out with Christmas cheer.  We still do our Secret Santa exchange on Christmas Eve while wearing our matching PJs and Santa still delivers stockings to our family on Christmas Day, but Christmas has become more about our time together and less about the presents.  These staycations have put the meaning of Christmas right back where it should be!

Check out our Instagram for more clutter-free gift ideas!  We have been posting one per day and will continue to do so until Christmas Eve.  

4 Tips for Organizing Your Refrigerator

What is living back there?  Have you ever had this thought?  Many of us will be doing a whole lot more cooking than we normally do from now through the end of the year.  That means our refrigerators will be working overtime. Things might get lost in there if we don’t put some thought into this space.  

Yes, our refrigerators are no different than any other cabinet in our homes!  We should put the same amount of consideration, if not more, into organizing this space so that it works for not against us.  Here are some of our favorite tips to keep your refrigerator in tip-top shape this holiday season:

1. Dividers

I have found dividing my refrigerator space into categories helps tremendously.  When I put items in the same location, I can easily see what needs to be replaced.  I can also easily tell guests wanting to help in the kitchen where to find things.

Containers like these spotlighted below work extremely well.  

I use this one to store my dairy products such as butter, sour cream, and cream cheese.

2.   Lazy Susan Turntables

Using lazy-susans, also known as turntables, in my refrigerator allow me to easily grab items without having to move things around.  Turntables are also wonderful for cutting cleaning time down in your refrigerator.

3.   Shop Around

There are so many new organizational products for organizing your refrigerator.  Oftentimes I use my house as a test kitchen trying out many of these products, so I am confident when recommending products for my clients.  

4.    Use What Works For You

Pro Tip: A refrigerator item not worthy (in my humble opinion) of my hard earned money or yours:  Egg containers! Because knowing the expiration date of an egg seems to be a good idea, and I like seeing that date on the original egg carton!  Just saying!!

Today’s challenge:  Clean out your fridge in honor of “Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day,” and make a list of the items you need to purchase to prepare your holiday meals.  Being prepared will help you take advantage of the holiday specials.

We want to hear from you!

Comment below to share your family’s favorite holiday side dish.  We are always looking for fresh ideas!

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An Antique Store's Craft Room Make Over

We had so much fun organizing a craft area for a client who owns an antiques and gift store.  Our client specializes in making beautiful custom wreaths and floral arrangements.

Here are photos of what the space looked like when we arrived!

BEFORE

We spent the first day of the job purging.  Lots of purging!! We must say, our client was amazing with this process and we estimate she cleared away 40% of her excess inventory.  WOW!! We explained to her why it is important to make the stuff fit the space, not the space fit the stuff. Lucky for us, she totally got the concept, which made our job of getting to the organizing so much quicker.

The store is laid out with an open shopping area and then two additional areas where our client stores her inventory and does her crafting.  Once we cleared the excess in the storage/work area, we designated one area (“room”) for inventory and the other “room” for a workspace.

We created a beautiful floral wall with her artificial flowers, also known as plants we cannot kill - our favorite kind of plants - using trash cans she inherited as bins!  Now she can easily select the flowers she wishes to use in her arrangements and wreaths because everything is in view and very accessible. This also creates an area for her clients to peruse when deciding what items they want in their wreaths. We oftentimes speak of win-win situations, and this certainly qualifies! It checks the box of being an organized space that is both functional and beautiful.

In the inventory “room” we lined the walls with shelving units the client already owned.  We zoned these units into sections for tools not used on a daily basis, vases, cleaning supplies and excess inventory to be sold in the store.  The client owned two inexpensive countertop height shelving units. We positioned these in the middle of the inventory “room” to serve as a staging area as she is taking out needed items.  

AFTER

We hope some of the ideas we incorporated into this design serve as a creative spark for your project.  As always, give us a call if you need our help in finding the perfect organizing solution.

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Cleaning Out The Closet on National Gaudy Day

Is your closet a study in wardrobe history? Are you holding on to that sweater you were wearing when you met your partner? Or are you holding on to that skirt you regretfully bought, the one with the price tag still attached?

So many of the items we have in our homes are only there because we feel too guilty to get rid of them. However, by letting go of these items you are letting go of the negative emotions hanging around your space. There is actually a therapy element to cleaning out your closet.

Statistically speaking...

“The average American woman owns 30 outfits—one for every day of the month. In 1930, that figure was nine (Forbes).”

The average American family spends $1,700 on clothes annually (Forbes).

While the average American throws away 65 pounds of clothing per year (Huffington Post).

...and we regularly hear that only 20 percent of the clothes in the average person’s closet are worn on a regular basis.

4 Easy Tips To Clean Out Your Closet

ASK WHY

So the real question to ask yourself is WHY? Why haven’t you worn the item? Most of the time it is because there is a similar item we like better. So why own both if you only wear one? Other times it’s because we plan to lose weight so it will fit again. While this can be an arguable point, we find most people actually enjoy shopping for new clothes when they reach their goal weight. Here’s a big one. You really don’t want to see the pile of clothes that still have a price tag attached.

REMOVE THE UNWORN

Today is “Wear Something Gaudy Day” - and it is the perfect day to pillage through your closet and remove the gaudy stuff. Start by removing the items you haven’t worn in the last year. Feeling really frisky? Remove items you haven’t worn in the last six months.

DONATE

Make a donation bag, fill it, and immediately put it in your vehicle to drop off.

SORT WHAT REMAINS

Once you have removed the clutter from your closet, sort your clothes by type (dresses, long, short and sleeveless tops, pants, etc.). Store them together by type. Then sort each type by color using the ROYGBIV guide. Simple steps will make your house both functional and beautiful.

Pro tip: Turn your hangers around for the items you simply cannot make a decision about. If you haven’t worn it in the next 6 months then its out!

It is important to understand that this is a difficult process to do on your own. That’s why our teams are here to help. We understand how emotional and physical clutter work hand in hand, and the sooner you remove the things that no longer serve you the quicker you can get to what does.

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How To Organize the Handbags, Totes, & Clutches

Did you know there was a National Handbag Day?  Seriously, an entire day dedicated to handbags! I’ve never loved clothing like some women… but a pretty handbag? Why yes, thank you!

Because I’m not one to hang onto things, it’s a one-in, one-out rule for most things in my closet.  But handbags are different. They can make (or break) an outfit. (Ok, so maybe not my Chaos t-shirt and leggings look but ANY other outfit!) I tend to hang onto them probably longer than I should because I like classic styles. The few trendier, less expensive styles stay through a season or two.  I have a patent leather clutch that was my Grandmothers. It’s definitely one of my favorite items in my closet that will never leave.

To start organizing your handbags, be sure to have an honest talk with yourself.  Let’s be real, no matter how much you paid for that handbag, if you keep skipping over it, you know it needs to go. Stop obsessing about what you paid for it and keep moving forward.

Pro Tip: Donating handbags is great for your local community, but there are plenty of thrift stores that would love to buy your gently used designer bags.  Be sure to look into both options. The extra money could come in handy for that next bag you love.

How does one keep the handbags organized?  Well, let’s take a look at some options!

If you have a large closet with ampules of closet hanging space, and frequently change handbags, hanging them could be a great option.  It’s tidy, easy to use and keeps the handbags from having that nasty crease mark when they flop over. These hooks are from The Container Store and you can find them here.

If you have less closet space, an acrylic organizer might be a good fit like this one from The Container Store.  Here is a great example. The clutches and small purses can fit below while the larger satchels can live next to or on top of the organizer.  It would help keep the dust off the clutches as well. The openings could be labeled so that each clutch has its own space.

The way I store my handbags is with a shelf divider like this one from Target.

I stuff the larger, more flimsy handbags with tissue so they stand up and contain them between the shelf dividers.  My clutches are lined up in a small basket.

There is also the @Bed, Bath and Beyond “Park a Purse” Clutch and Purse divider that looks interesting.   Being able to stack the bags would be helpful in a small closet. I haven’t used one yet, but it has great reviews! You can find it here.

And lastly, if you are still struggling with storage, you can always look for ideas at your local boutiques.

This idea came from Edit by LBP in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

So you see, there are as many handbag organizing options as there are handbags themselves. I hope one of these ideas gets you inspired to evaluate and organize your handbag collection.  If you get stuck or need assistance, give us a call!

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