I did it! I finished my own home office makeover, and I’m LOVIN it!

My office used to be a tidy, but unappealing space. Walls were pale, windows didn’t quite do it for me, floors were masking bacteria hidden in old, plush carpet, and furniture was placed in tight spaces making the room smaller than it is.

The room needed a face lift and I needed a space that made me feel good.

With bright painted walls that included a darker accent wall, new hardwood flooring, and a little romantic drapes on the windows, my room was transformed into my little retreat. Situating the furniture differently made a HUGE difference because it provided a lot more space to the room.

The hardwood floor makeover of my home has been moving forward, slowly but surely. As a do-it-yourself project, I’ve learned a great deal about installing hardwood – more than I wanted to know.

With three rooms down and two large room areas remaining to be done, the project schedule looks like we’ll have it done within two more weekends (since it’s an every-other-weekend project!). Interesting though, when we first had the flooring delivered, it sat in the garage for one month before we decided to tackle the project. The main reason for this was lack of know-how, and the other reason was confronting the massive project. Of course, the confront improved as we learned how to do it ourselves.

The bottom line however, was in setting a target date to start and then sticking to the commitment. I say this because most projects of any nature can not get started and carried through without a plan and targets.

Online Interactive Tools

I want to share a great online site that provides an interactive space planner and home decor organizer. It’s at Pure Contemporary – www.purecontemporary.com. Scroll down the right-hand column to find these tools and start planning your own rooms!

You’ll need to register and sign in, but it’s quick and easy. Have fun!

Seminar on Designing an Organized Home

On August 5th, I delivered a 90-minute seminar to 78 interior designers at the San Francisco Mart. What a great place to check out new trends and great styles of furniture and home furnishings, I’ll tell you! There were rooms and rooms and rooms of showroom furniture from many different manufacturers — a wonderful decorator’s playground.

I walked out of there with a handful of brochures and catalog sheets, giving me another way to shop for that perfect item when decorating a room.

Did I mention how nice it was to stroll around San Francisco’s Market Street and look at all the wonderful architecture around there? Quite enjoyable, indeed.

Keeping up with that “To-do” list

I try to post regularly on my blogs, however there are “those days” when certain things must be delayed. And although I consider writing in my blogs a high priority, when it is weighed against other higher priorities that consume the day, that’s when I have to tell myself it has to wait.

Today is another busy day with a full schedule of activities to tend to. But, I decided to force myself to sit down and take a moment to write something — anything would do, I told myself. I know I’m not alone here. Many of us lead busy lives and have to put things off. I guess the thing to do in this case is to try and force ourselves to find time to squeeze in those things we find valuable. And, I find my readers valuable.

Arranging a Gathering

I never really gave it much thought when planning to meet friends somewhere, like a movie, but when I watched someone else arrange it (which was very nice, by the way), I witnessed all the elements come into play. And, it played out like a well planned event.

The organizer of this movie-gathering called everyone in advance about the movie selection and the date, and had us all mark our calendars. Reminder calls and emails followed, along with further details involving the time and meeting place. Ticket purchases for everyone was assigned to one person who would get them early that day. Brillant, as the movie was on opening weekend and predicted to be sold out. Two other people were assigned to arrive early and get in line.

It all came together so smoothly and flawlessly. This says a lot for what a little planning can do and having someone in charge of an activity. The movie was good, too.

Clean ups offer rewards

Once again, I found money while clearing clutter from a room. It’s not that it happens once in a while, or with one out of five clients — it happens all the time, and that’s five out of five clients!

Sometimes it is only coins that total a few bucks, and sometimes it is bills or checks amounting from $20 to $500 or more. The other day, it was $52 in cash found here and there among piles of stuff. The best to date was when I found a check that the client lost (and still cashable!) that paid for my services. They were very pleased.

Guess it pays to clear clutter away, wouldn’t you say?

A little education

There are so many books on the subject of organizing that it can be too overwhelming to choose from.

Some of the newest additions to the world of organizing books that I recommend are (click to buy or read details):

As for me … I’m checking out lots of books on interior decorating, and am currently reading:

And, I can’t neglect to mention that you’ll find a very comprehensive list of organizing books at
www.organized-living.com/bookstore.html.

Nationwide Day to Toss

Motivational speaker Martha J. Ross-Rodgers is recognized by Chase’s Calendar of Events for “Toss Away the Could Haves and Should Haves Day, celebrated nationwide on July 16, 2005.

Although her motivation was to encourage people to get rid of their could haves and should haves relating to moving forward in life instead of wallowing in the past on all the things we should have and could have acted upon, I believe we can celebrate this in another way … a physical way.

Letting go of regrets is one thing, however letting go of stuff is another thing, and equally beneficial. I don’t believe we need a national event to do either, although whatever motivates people to do something positive, I’m all for it.

Similar to letting go of regrets, we can let go of stuff in a parallel fashion.

1. The past is past. It’s the present that matters, so decisions can be made based on the value of things in the now. Let go of old attachments and keep only what you need now.
2. View things as an opportunity to grow. When we detach ourselves from stuff, we can streamline our lifestyle and live more simply.
3. Move forward to the present. We often keep more than we need, and/or keep things that are no longer useful or used. Take a look at what you need now, and let go of everything else.

Hope I’ve motivated someone!