Clear away the clutter

The holidays are over, parties are a memory, and all the precious gifts have been put away. Or have they?

Oh no! Not only do you have a number of new treasures in your possession, but that messy pile in the corner of your room grew over the holidays because you simply had no time. So, you open the door to your guest room, only to find that you cannot cram another thing in there.

In short, your whole house is a mess and you need to do something about it; and it's so bad you don't know where to start.

The new year is a reckoning time for a lot of things, including getting one's living space organized. In fact, January is Get Organized Month, sponsored by the National Association of Professional Organizers. Chances are you have tried to organize your home or apartment before, rushed out to buy drawer dividers, storage bins and systems, and met with varying degrees of success. Yet the mess keeps on reappearing or is even getting worse.

"Once a client makes a commitment to tackle clutter, the simplest solution is often to develop a complex plan," said Jackie Tiani, owner of Organizing Systems in Glendale Heights and author of "Organizing for a Living." "When you have the right system in place, clutter will take care of itself, but it often involves a lot of trial and error at first."

What works for your friend or your neighbor, however, may not necessarily work for you. That's why professional organizers take the time to analyze your situation to determine what needs to be done and how to fit organization into your lifestyle.

"It's all about stuff," said Jane Carroo, owner of Clutter Coach in Palatine. "It's very helpful to walk around the house with a clipboard and write down the things that you want to change. Then you just have to follow the organization process room by room."

Many individuals turn to professional organizers because they feel overwhelmed by clutter that has seemingly taken over their lives. Just as clutter plans are individually tailored, so does the amount of help vary from person to person.

"Some people need someone with them every time they work on an area," said Julie Brown of In Balance Organizing Services in Bartlett. "Others just need a one-time, hands-on session to get them motivated and then they can work by themselves."

If you decide to work with a professional organizer, don't run to the store to buy more organizing gadgets.

"A professional has a trained eye to see what works," Carroo said. "People need to think outside of the box, so you don't always need to go out to buy something. Even a piece of luggage that you don't use can be repurposed as storage."

Brown noted that when she works with clients, she usually utilizes what they already have.

"I have yet to see someone come up with a gadget that organizes better than something you already have. You need to get to the simplify stage before you determine if you need to buy more," Brown said.

That's not to say that you should completely discount purchasing organizing products or systems. The trick is to find something that is appropriate within the plan you develop. To that end, franchisees who work with Shelf Genie - a company that makes custom organizational installations primarily for kitchens, bathrooms and pantries - are often professional organizers, interior designers or handymen.

"One of the reasons Shelf Genie wanted to partner with other businesses is that they're into finding solutions," said Fran Piekarski, Midwest design manager for Shelf Genie.

Such a partnership helps not only the client, but also the business owner. Piekarski, who is also a professional organizer, discovers what brings a client to Shelf Genie as well as determining an appropriate organizational plan.

"An organizer or a product or a solution can't help bad habits," Piekarski said. "Sometimes people have to be open to suggestions."

Bad habits combined with a lack of time due to today's lifestyle are major factors causing home clutter. Another factor that often occurs is that people don't adapt to a change in lifestyle, such as a child moving out of the house, death in the family, etc., and put off dealing with changing the living space or ignoring the extra items that come into your possession. What happens is a specific area, or sometimes even the whole house, becomes a "dumping ground." This area varies for each individual.

"Any extra room - and that can be a basement or a garage - that does not require daily use becomes the messiest because people don't have to deal with it," Tiani said. "Many of our clients have junk rooms because you can close off the door and no one sees it. It's the same with master bedrooms. Even if the rest of the house is perfect, the bedrooms can be messy because all you have to do is close the door and no one needs to see it."

Other typical dumping grounds are entryways (such as foyers or mudrooms), kitchens (where recycling items often linger) and dining room tables. In other words, you dump wherever it is convenient and you have the ability to leave things such as mail, packages, clothing and the like.

However, some areas of the home pose more problems than others. These include bedroom closets along with dresser drawers. The main problem here is often overstuffing.

"Never fill a space more than two-thirds full," Tiani said. "It's going to be more fun to put things away if it's easier to do. As the space becomes fuller, you have to be more vigilant about what you really need."

Carroo echoed these sentiments, noting that items are easier to find when one organizes by category.

"You want to have easy access and we really only use about 20 percent of what we own on a regular basis," she said. "It piles up and then you can't find the things that you really love."

Another area that poses big problems is the home office. For some individuals, just trying to carve out an area in the home is a concern, so some rooms or niches do double duty. Again, ease of access is the name of the game. Carroo recommends clients set up their office to include specific areas for phone, work space, action and archive files, reference and supplies. Household and business files should have separate file drawers.

Labeling files and storage bins is not only helpful in the home office, it makes a difference in other areas of the house, too.

"For some people who are very visual, just a list on the door saying what is in a closet is very helpful," Brown added.

Yet the biggest problem regarding home offices is what to do with all of that paper. Tiani always tells clients to read mail outside of the office and make decisions to either file paper or throw it away before it enters the work area.

Organizing your home doesn't necessarily mean you will have to pay the proverbial body part to get the job done. Most professional organizers will work with you according to your needs, whether your requirements are merely a one-time tune up, or an ongoing process.

In addition, many offer seminars and courses where you can get ideas on how to get and stay organized. Carroo, for example, offers a multilevel program called SimpleSizing where you can learn how to free yourself from the burden of all the stuff that gets in your way. Prices start at $19 for the 11-page DIY SimpleSizing plan.

Check your local park district or even your school district's Parent University offerings for one-time low-cost seminars. Some organizers, like Brown, even offer suggestions on how to get kids organized. Don't forget to check out organizer Web sites. Many offer articles and newsletters on organization. You can find a local professional organizer through the NAPO's Web site, napo.net.

One thing to remember is that while organizing takes time upfront, you'll end up saving time in the long run. The average individual wastes an hour per day looking for things. Now what are you going to do with all of that extra time?