deliciously organized 2010 {a few of my favorites!}

In January, a little paper was added to dress up a medicine cabinet:

In February, the 10 habits of Highly Organized People were discussed {I should re-read this!} and a spring makeover in the bedroom:

In March, I finally tried the mercury glass!

 and there was a series on getting organized, including organizing your health

 In April, we had a beautiful Spring her in Boston and I made a skirted table

 In May, we got engaged!

In June, fresh strawberry butta and organic body scrubs were made

In July, the bench got a makeover

makeup brushes got organized...

and lastly, a trip back to California...

In August, we finally made it to Martha's Vineyard

and made a very easy go-to meal

In September, I met some wonderful bloggers

& made a trip to Montreal

In October, I tried making apple crisp and apple pie

In November, the bedroom got a little fall makeover

and in December, I thoroughly enjoyed making these ornaments!

thank you so much for reading in 2010!  it would not be the same without you all!

can't wait to see what 2011 brings~

happy new year!!!!

anyone doing anything fun tonight?!!!

*Striped Storage Boxes were originally purchased white from IKEA and then gray paint was added to create stripes

Week 8: 8 Tips to Stop Procrastinating

Week 8: 8 Tips to Stop Procrastinating

After a lot of thought, I decided this topic would be fitting for the last week of the series.  We all know that when you wait to the last minute to get things done, that's the time when you feel the most unorganized.  

1. Make a List

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I've talked about this before, but making a to do list and putting the hardest task at the top is ideal.

2. Imagine the Outcome

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Having that big project done feels amazing and gives you more time to enjoy yourself.  Imagine that feeling of accomplishment and freedom you get when you're done.  Just don't imagine for too long...

3. Stop thinking about it, and start the process

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So guilty!  Talk about extra worry in your day. The more you think about your task, the more daunting it becomes. All that time you've spent thinking about what needs to be done, your task would have been done.  A two page paper starts to sound like a 40 page paper after a few hours of thinking about it.

4. Set the timer

Sounds ridiculous, I know, but it's some of the best advice I've heard.  If you find there is NOTHING motivating you to get started, set the timer for a mere 10 minutes and tell yourself you'll only work for those 10 minutes.  You'll find that after 10 minutes, you're already so engrossed in with what you're doing that you end up working for much longer.

5. Stop multi-tasking & focus

{from article in Real Simple, author of article: A.J. Jacobs}

I recently did a presentation on multi-tasking and spent hours researching why it's beyond harmful, but it's also surprisingly a form of procrastination.  If you sit down to do a project and you're responding to email, answering phone calls, etc. {while you should be doing your project}, your subconsciously procrastinating. Try to respond to emails and phone calls after you're done with your task. 

6. Take away the fun

{love this image from decor 8 }

If you're already procrastinating, the last thing you need is distracting things around you!  Fun things are defined by everyone differently, but as a student, I find just being at my house can be too distracting. It's a lot harder to procrastinate when I'm sitting in a blank cubicle in the school library.

7. Don't let fear stop you from success

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There are times in life when incredible opportunities come up, and because of fear {of either failure or success}, we pass on them and procrastinate taking the next steps towards our goals.  A lot people say that fear is the number one thing stopping them from moving forward towards accomplishing their goals. Fear of failure can be scary, but try to face your fear and make that next step. 

8. Reward yourself for completing your task

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Sometimes a promise of a reward at the end can give you a bit of an incentive to get going.  This could be something as small as sitting down to read a book, going to a yoga class or maybe purchasing a new pair of shoes {if it's a really big task}.

Wow!  I can't believe it's been 8 weeks since I've started the series and May is approaching us! I've had a lot of fun with the series and have felt motivated to get more organized because of it.  

Here is a recap of the past 8 weeks:

Planning Time {including planning time for health}
Walking away from bargains {including using your bargains}
Purging & Donating {specifically books}
Foresee and Avoid Problems 
Organizing the Office {specifically Function & Files} &
5 Tips to a Streamlined Morning

I really hope that some of you have been inspired, and thanks for sticking it out through these long posts!

p.s. Today I'm over at coco + kelley talking organization too!

Project: Office Organization

I'm so happy to share this office organization project with you all!  And just in time before we wrap up the end of the Deliciously Organized Series! Tiffany recently worked with a very sweet client {who calls this space the nucleus of her home} to create a functional office for an active family.  I really enjoy seeing real life organization projects come together like this one.  Here is a photograph of the before:

love the lined up jars to store ribbon...

Baskets, magazine file folders, and binders help keep everything in its place.

off the office is the mudroom...

now the kids art projects are displayed on the wall, and the basket is used to store art supplies for easy access

I love what they've done with the space! It's not only functional and organized, but it's colorful and fun. I'm sure the family will enjoy their time spent together here! I know I would...

question

This is the last week of the series.  So far we've covered:


Planning Time {including planning time for health}
Walking away from bargains {including using your bargains}
Purging & Donating {specifically books}
Foresee and Avoid Problems 
Organizing the Office {specifically Function & Files} &
5 Tips to a Streamlined Morning

There is so much that could be covered in this series! But, is there something specific you would like to see covered in this last week?  Would love to hear your thoughts!  

Week 7: 5 Tips for a Streamlined Morning

Week 7: 5 Tips for a Streamlined Morning

I don't know about you, but my mornings aren't always this peppy...

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That's why mornings need to be as organized as possible for me, but that doesn't mean that they always are. Let's go over a few basic tips that you can do to help mornings move more smoothly.  

1. Coffee, Tea, Green Juice..{whatever your pick} get it ready for go time

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Having the coffee pot set on an alarm or grinds filled in the filter ready to go, is ideal.  If you're really on top of your game, you can even take out your cup and set it by the machine.  You can do this with breakfast too.  Set out the cereal box next to a bowl and spoon. Every minute counts if you're running late!

2. Pack your lunch the night before

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If you're a person who packs a lunch you can save yourself a lot of time doing this the night before. 

3. Set out your outfit, including accessories the night before

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How many days do you have where you wish you would have done this?  Although daunting, setting your outfit outfit out the night before will do wonders in the morning.  

3. Organize the powder room

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Keep only the items you use the most in your shower

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and cotton swabs, q-tips and brushes within reach

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and makeup, perfume and anything else you use organized for easy access

4. List it up the night before

Make a list the night before of anything that needs to be accomplished in your morning.

5. Create a one stop shop at your front door

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A spot by your front door to keep keys, mail, the netflix that needs to go out, umbrella...etc. saves time so that you don't go searching if you're running late. 

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And don't forget to find a small guilty pleasure before you sprint out the door! Whether that be checking your favorite blogs, using a few squirts of your favorite perfume, or throwing on that new accessory you bought yourself.  You deserve it after all that prepping!