Moving? Five ways to Make it Easier

Moving? Does the thought blow you away? How do you pack it all? Not everyone is able to have professional movers pack them.

Here are 5 steps that can make your packing and moving easier.

1)Sort as you go.
Make sure you have your black and white trash bags handy! (Black for trash,
white for donate)
Make fast decisions. Don't sit an ponder.
Decide if this item will really add value at your new home or is it something
that will just add clutter.
Has it been packed away or used routinely.

2)Keep Like with Like
Only pack together items that belong in the same room at the new house.

3)Label boxes well.
Label what is in the box
Label what room that box belongs in or came out of. Keep it consistent.

4)Wrap and protect your items well to prevent damage
Don't pack your boxes too heavy.
Smaller boxes many times work best.

5)Sort again and declutter some more when you unpack!
You may decide in your new home you don't like the look or feel of something you though
you wanted. Don't hesitate to declutter even more.

If you have time, try to do a little each day. Don't wait until the last minute.

Zwaggle - It's a Free, Green and Great way to Declutter!

Hey All - I think this is a wonderful service!! Kudos for those responsible.
I know that I use Good Will a lot for myself and my clients. I have some clients who will use E-bay. I think this is easier than a garage sale, you can benefit from it by then being able to turn around and purchase things you may need for your kids now - and it is all without money! Cool
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Do you have a bag of donate items you need to get rid of? Zwaggle It
Do you have clothes that do not fit your children anymore? Zwaggle it!
Do you have a nice purse you can't use? Zwaggle it!


Do you need clothes that do fit your children? Find it on Zwaggle!
Looking for a stroller? Find it on Zwaggle!

But guess what????? You don't have to use money for it...you buy and sell your items using Zwaggle Points or zoints (points you earn for joining Zwaggle, "selling" your items, referring friends to Zwaggle).
It cost nothing to join and nothing but zoints to "buy" items. The only money that is used is for shipping the item if it is not local.
This is a great way to be "green" and keep the items that you no longer need out of landfills.
For those of you who have a hard time decluttering, this is new incentive. Not only do you know that your items will go to people who can use them, but you can earn zoints for yourself and then go shopping for items that you truly need.

You can even donate your zoints to charities they have available and help others even more.
Go to the Zwaggle site and watch the video that is at the top of the home page right beside the picture. It explains it very simply.
Be sure to tell them I sent you when you join!!

National Clutter Awareness Week

I just learned that the 4th week of March was National Clutter Awareness Week! (thank you @clutterdiet on twitter for making me aware of it.) The beginning of spring and spring cleaning does make sense for the perfect time to declutter.

The biggest reason for most people to have clutter is because you do not have a place for everything you own. So it gets set down on a table or desk and then just continues to accumulate, and accumulate and accumulate.
You may think.."I don't have clutter". But look around. Are the surfaces of your counters and side tables clear? Can you find the surface of your desk? If you can't..then you too may be guilty. LOL....heck, we all are at some point!
If it is past a point that you can't take 10 minutes and pick it up and put it away...then you may have a clutter problem.
Generally it is because we have more "stuff" than we have room for the "stuff".The solution is simple - decrease the stuff. Simple. Right? No..it usually isn't that simple.
Start small. Set a timer for 15 minutes and pick a small space. A junk drawer maybe, or small desk top. Think fast and don't ponder on one item for more than a few seconds. (you have to "depersonalize" it)
Decide 1) Do I use it?
2) Do I need it?
3) Does it add value to this space?
4) What is the worse thing that will happen if I don't have it?

Then you can decide if you need to keep it, can donate it or throw it away.
Give it a try.
Wouldn't you rather work in an space like this instead of the above? (Yes it is the same space after we sorted, decluttered, painted and moved furniture.)