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CLOSET
An overcrowded closet just needs to be pruned and reshuffled.
▪ The best way to increase closet space is to decrease the amount of clothes you store there
▪ Gather five large boxes and label them: “throw away,” “give away,” “keep,” “store,” and “mend.”
▪ Set aside an afternoon and pull everything out of the closet.
▪ Be ruthless about clothes you haven’t worn in two years or that will fit you as soon as you lose 10 pounds or that you never had a good time in.
▪ As you sort, put clothes in the appropriate boxes.
▪ Return what’s left to your closet, and arrange by category: put jackets together, dresses, pants, skirts, sweater, pairs of shoes, etc.
▪ Make a list of wardrobe gaps and shop for these items.
HOME OFFICE
Put yourself on paper patrol with these efficient organizing techniques. ▪ In-box—Designate a box, basket, bin, or drawer for incoming mail. Keep everything in one spot until you’re ready to deal with it. Toss junk mail as soon as it arrives.
▪ Accordion file—Set up a 13-pocket accordion file with tabs for each month and the last for your tax return. As you pay monthly bills, file them accordingly. Add bank statements and credit-card receipts. Drop in tax returns at the end of the year and store the entire file.
▪ Permanent file—Set up a tabbed filing system for papers you need to keep long term, such as car, life, and homeowner’s insurance, medical insurance and claims, warranties and owner’s manuals.
▪ Invitations—Enter information for events you want to attend in a date book or PDA, and throw out the invitation.
▪ Coupons and special offers—File them in an envelope or pouch and carry them in your handbag.
▪ Magazines and catalogs—Contain them in two small bins or baskets next to a couch or bedside. Store upright, not flat, so you can always see what you have. As new issues come in, discard the old ones.
KITCHEN
The key is to make sure your kitchen’s three main work stations—countertop, stove, and sink—are well-equipped and well-ordered.
▪ Keep kitchen equipment near the place it will normally be used (pots
and pans close to the stove, knives by work surface).
▪ When organizing cupboards, position heavy things below counters
and lighter things above them.
▪ Store like items together (bowls in one cabinet, baking pans in another).
▪ If your countertop resembles a small-appliance showroom, it’s time to
put everything away except the toaster and coffeemaker.
▪ Dedicate the largest expanse of countertop to food preparation, and
keep it clear.
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