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Being Green Doesn’t Cost Extra

It doesn’t cost extra to be nice and at Joy In Your Space, it doesn’t cost (you) extra.

The only thing it costs is time…our time — and we give it up for Mother Nature:
• We don’t charge extra for finding homes for your broken plates.
• We don’t charge for supporting local art centers.
• We don’t charge for donating office supplies to city schools.

How we’ve recycled and repurposed some client donations:

Collections

Stamps and coins usually turn up in any household ready to downsize…or “right-size” as is now the term.
• Did you know that Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts can earn a merit badge for a stamp or coin collection?
— When the monetary return of one of your collections is not worth the “cash-in value” you can do good by allowing a scout to earn a badge.

Broken items

While some broken things have little value once they are busted, we get creative…especially when what’s broken, or obsolete, has multiple or interesting parts.
• last summer we donated 70+ metal clips from dismantled floppy disks so campers could make cool jewelry from our client’s “trash”
Any time you break a plate or chip a tea-cup, call us! We love to fill the “mosaic” bin at the Main Line Art Center.
• Keeping artists happy and well “fed” with supplies makes us happy.
— We’ve even donated whole sets of chipped dishes from basements, attics and garages.
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We Are Environmentally Green

Whether you celebrate Earth Day or not, it’s a daily practice for us.

Every day at Joy In Your Space is “Earth Day.” We are always considering how your “clutter” can be repurposed, reused, recycled or resold.

Green Drop

Items benefit others and steer clear of landfills.

Cradles to Crayons

Children’s books, school supplies, clothing, and toys are always on their wish list…especially new items to restore dignity to people living below the poverty line.

Camp Ramah

Many clients enjoy donating odd skeins of yarn, half used sketchbooks, and craft materials of all types knowing their items will benefit the artistic explorations of campers. We make 3 donations a summer and store items (for free) knowing your discards will become treasured supplies in June, July and August.

Ebay and Auction:

Lots of items around your house still have life left in them, even if they no longer fit your life. We collect things suitable for resale every month and issue checks to clients as their items sell.

What do you think of this statistic?…

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What “should” and “stress” share

Should and Stress both:
    • begin with S
    • are 6 letter words

The not-so-obvious similarity is,
when should and stress are in your life, so is:
•  feeling overwhelmed
•  losing sight of the big picture
•  spending time on other’s agendas 

Replace should and stress with want and will.

    • Want is positive and productive.
    • Will is future-thinking in motion.

Both want and will are conditions we internally generate rather than an external imposition. “Want” and “Will” get us excited to express our independence. How do YOU express yourself? How do you show JOY?

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Step into Spring in Style

With Joy’s 4 Fashion Do’s
Joy is a master at working with all ages to determine and teach what is the best LOOK and FIT for you. She has a great eye, she’s sensitive to fabric, color, and pattern, and she pays attention to details.

  1. Do: Love everything you own
  2. Do: Invest in foundation pieces
  3. Do: Use seasonal accessories
  4. Do: Admit when it’s time to shift sizes up or down

With Joy’s 4 Fashion Do’s

  1. Don’t stress over what to wear this Spring 
  2. Don’t compromise on fit or comfort
  3. Don’t wear anything that doesn’t make you feel good 
  4. Don’t dwell on bad purchases

Joy will teach you how to welcome Spring into your wardrobe. 

While Joy is naturally stylish…she is also a teacher at heart. She knows how to show you what’s best ON YOU. Her experience making her own clothes (and young Kelly’s) and her study of design have sharpened her eye to the “architecture” of silhouettes.

Foundation pieces in neutrals are the basis for your wardrobe. Joy puts folded clothes on the top shelf of her closet.

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All Papers are NOT Created Equal

As any accountant will tell you…it’s Tax Season…
Time to deal with piles, receipts, and filing — pun intended!

Kelly's taxes at the Post Office ready to be mailed

While paper comes in different shapes and sizes, 3 things are universal:

1. You can have less paper but you’re not likely to go paperless
2. Papers need a place to live

3. They are either active or reference

1. If you dream of going paperless, start with one category of paper that enters your life:
• Input contacts into electronic format to eliminate lots of little scraps
and torn envelope corners or post-its with phone numbers.
• Scan recipes from magazines and newspaper clippings
to electronically store ideas for meal time.

2. Give papers a place to live where you’re likely to use them:
• Store bills near your checkbook.
• Keep recipe clippings close to your cookbooks.
• Put sports schedules near your computer til you input them electronically or on the bulletin board where your family can see them.

3. Think “active vs. reference” as requires action now versus
you’ll need this later:
• Active papers relate to your to-do’s and sometimes need to be out and visible to be acted upon.
• Reference pages are anything from contact info to tax documents and computer short-cut tips.
• The idea behind both categories is to figure out WHERE you need access and HOW frequently. A guide that you reference once a week will need greater access than something you only check annually.

 

Remember, no management system functions without a system to maintain order; schedule time to take action, deal with filing and make decisions about whether you still need a particular paper or category of papers.

When it comes to electronic files, the same rules apply to documents as to papers. 

Do you have a tax filing success story to share? Let us know.

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Recommit to Your Goals

When February 14 rolls around, we are no longer “feelin’ the love” for the
• healthier
• more productive
• more organized self we envisioned six weeks ago.

Recommit to your goals:
 •  rekindle a flame with your favorite space
•  stop hating your junk drawer
•  start swooning over your pantry shelves.

Instead of goal say “area of focus” — Change your language to achieve greater success. 

Set concrete steps — Have a clear picture of the next SMALL actions to take, so you celebrate each step along the way.

Reward your efforts — Gift yourself the rare treat of acknowledgement; a pat on the back is calorie-free, costs nothing, and mentally fuels you to stay focused.

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Create and Maintain Order

 

1. A place for everything and everything in its place
Regularly return items from your household’s “hot spots” to their rightful homes: especially items on kitchen countertops, piled in deep windowsills, and on staircases.

2.  In one — out one, or two or three
Catch up to calm by removing older items for each new item in. Apply this rule to newspapers, magazines, and books first; they pile up the quickest.

3. Give away and donate often
Every household member should have a spot for outgrown/unwanted clothes or other give-aways: a cubby in the mudroom, a crate in the garage, a hook on the door to the basement…you get the idea. Donate when the container is full.

4. Develop “clean-out” habits
Maintain order by adding clean-out activities to existing routines.
Areas that could use a weekly “sweep” are:
• wallets bursting with old receipts
• backpacks filled with with spoiled food
• briefcases holding old projects
• sports bags carrying dirty clothes

5. Create activity zones
First define the activity. It could be:
• packing out lunches
• loading weekly medications
• recycling paper and plastics
• or caring for a pet
Next, gather all of the tools necessary and store them within reach.

6. Snapshot to save
Maintain memories digitally to gain physical space; a photo of a bulky craft project, favorite jacket from college, or beloved stuffed animal often allows you to let go of the object. You may even regain emotional space!

7. Limit treasures
Most people have too many reminders of the same era or cherished person. You don’t have to keep all of Grandma Helen’s stuff on display…one unique conversation piece is enough to spark her spirit and keep her top-of-mind.

8. Invite company and often!
DO NOT sweep everything into a bag and hide it in the closet. To actually get the decluttering done, set a timer for 20 minutes and really put things away — working against the clock makes everything go faster.

Share one of your family’s routines that adds JOY In Your Space

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Where Should Your Stuff Live?

 In real estate, location is everything. True too in organizing.
Location, Location, Location

 

Prime real estate is your next level of valuable space: You need access to these items on a weekly basis so if you have to stack, put primary use items on top. Make sure you can easily see, grab, use these books, tools and clothes. Think:
• eye-level shelving
• top desk drawers
• easy-to-reach sections of your closet

Out of sight or remote locations may require effort. These categories are less frequently or even rarely accessed and might include previous years’ taxes in basement file cabinets and off-season clothing in attic bins or guest room closets. Camp duffles and holiday decorations fit this category.

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Put That Back

We don’t mean that second cookie…we mean anything out of place:

       The blow-up bed: Store it where it belongs. 
       Your wrapping supplies: Now that the holidays are over. 

 

 

 

 

Clutter can build and get in your way it:
• destroys your focus
• acts like a magnet, attracting more items
• leads to a state of overwhelm. 

What can you put back today? Pick one room, one surface, one item and return your belongings:
• onto its shelf
• returned to its original owner
• or returned to the store

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Permission Granted to Let Go

Some new clients ask: “Are you going to make me get rid of everything?” 

a still life of beautiful vintage items with the slogan "I just needed permission to let go!"We don’t MAKE anyone get rid of anything. That said — if you want to reduce clutter in your living spaces, closet, or office — we are a creative resource for the objects, clothes and supplies that don’t fit (your life) anymore and experts on the best way to store it.

Our targeted questions will help you decide if you want to keep something in your life OR if you’ve been waiting for permission to let go.

The decision is always yours: keep or let go.

With the start of a new year still fresh in our minds, consider what YOU want to take into 2017: More Stuff or More Freedom?

Read our Most Frequently Asked Questions to start 2017 with a pro.