The leaves are turning and falling quickly and the air is cool and crisp, which can only mean one thing. Halloween is once again upon us. Are you prepared for all the pirates, witches, ghosts and princesses who will soon be knocking on your door looking for treats? The following are 10 tips to ensure you and your family enjoy a fun and safe Halloween. Activities: The Halloween season is always filled with local family events which include pumpkin picking, trick-or-treating activities and special TV programs like cartoons for both young and old alike. Gather your family and ask them what they …

Are you tired of you asking your child to "please clean up your toys" for the thousandth time or tripping over their toys left scattered around their bedroom?  In today’s material world, many kids are in “toy overload” and, without a system to keep these items in order, it's not that they don't want to clean up after themselves, it’s that they just don't know how. The key to teaching our children valuable organizing skills is to create simple solutions that they can easily understand, which in turn will make cleaning their room seem more of a game than a chore.  The following are the …

This week we've enjoyed an early taste of fall in New England, thanks to a cold front brought down by our neighboring country, Canada. Although it's a little early, I bet many were tempted to dig through the jumbled piles of towels, sheets, pillowcases and tablecloths in the linen closet in search of the flannel sheets to keep warm during this cold snap.  Taking the time now to downsize and reorganize your linen closet will ensure you have everything readily available to make the transition from the warm summer months to the cold winter winds an easy one. Here are a few tips to downsize and …

Other than the kitchen, the family bathroom is one of the most used yet smallest and hardest-to-maintain rooms in the house. Between storing makeup, towels, medicines, hair supplies and cleaning supplies in such a confined space, it's no wonder this room can become the biggest challenge to keep organized. The biggest reward for creating an organized bathroom is that it will help to eliminate stress by streamlining the family morning routine. You will also save money by not purchasing duplicate items and be able to breeze through scheduled cleanings. The first step of transforming your …

How many can relate to this scenario: My day began with the best intentions for working on a project for my organizing company which has been in the works since April.  Instead, I checked my emails, played a bit on Facebook, paid a few bills ahead of time, watched the news, went out shopping and to dinner with my daughter. At the end of the day, I was left feeling stressed with guilt and disapproval of myself for not working on my project. Quite simply, I once again let procrastination hinder my goals and dreams.  Napoleon Hill, famous american author of the book "Think and Grow Rich," had …

The lazy days of summer will soon turn into a warm distant memory as families across the country begin to settle into another hectic school year. The school year presents many challenges, such as keeping up with events, projects, sports and meetings, but one of the biggest frustrations that families face today is the dreaded morning rush. The morning is the most stressful — yet most important — part of any day because it will set the mood, good or bad, for the rest of the day.  The following are the Organizing Genie's top five time management strategies to help elevate the stress and …

As the lazy days of summer begin to wind down, what memories do you long to hold onto the most?  Maybe it's the warm gentle breezes, the smell of freshly cut grass, the songs of seasonal birds, the time spent with loved ones on vacations or days in the park. In reality, it's a good thing that I am unable to hold on to these memories in a physical form, because my genie's lamp would become too cramped with yesterday's memories, leaving no room to enjoy my upcoming favorite season, fall.  I believe the summer season can teach us an important lesson about clutter. For example, do you find it …

Do you believe in the idiom "One man's trash is another's man's treasure?" I do.  Today, most households are filled with a variety of unused items which can easily be donated and reused to make a positive impact in someone else's life tomorrow. As a professional organizer, I've heard every excuse in the book as to why one has trouble eliminating clutter from their home. "I don't have time to de-clutter," "I spent too much money on that item," "I might need it again," "my aunt gave me this item as a gift” and so on. There are as many excuses as there are items that are useless to you.  What if…

On those dark and dreary rainy or snowy days, there's nothing better than curling up on the couch with a great book that transports us away to exciting and magical places.    Isn't it ironic that over time these same novels turn against us and become daunting towers of clutter from which we wish we could escape? What if I told you that you were allowed to only keep enough books to fill up one bookcase comfortably, and the rest would have to go? Which books would you choose? After laughing or yelling at me, ask yourself, "Seriously, how many books do I really need?"  New York Times bestselling…

Although we may dream of climbing the Himalayas or trekking through the deepest Amazon jungles in search of long-lost treasure, my belief is that, if you know what to look for, you can easily discover treasure hidden right in your own home. So if you have a hard time distinguishing between trash and treasure, this week I would like to share a true story about a piece of treasure that one of my clients unearthed during one of our de-cluttering expeditions. This discovery allowed her to finally break through the clutter cycle that had held her hostage for years. Dawn’s goal was to clear out …

You can't miss it. Every retail establishment you enter is having a big "Back To School Sale." A statistic from the National Retail Federation stated that, "in summer 2010, parents spent over $20 billion on back to school items — and a further $33 billion on back to college gear!" It's no wonder that retail establishments are pushing their "Back to School" sales early each year to cash in on this goldmine! With such great sales abound, here is a quick guide to help you create an organized plan of action to ensure your child has everything they need to start their new school year in style: …

As a professional organizer, one of the most common questions I'm asked is, "How can I create more storage space in my home?"  I love that question simply because I have an eye for turning "dead space" into prime storage goldmines. I always advise clients that, by thinking outside the box, there are many creative ways that they too can turn their homes' dead spaces into clever storage zones. For example, in the corner of the back room of our basement there was a section of bricks that the original owners had started to stack up while trying to build a fireplace.  It must have been built for …

Last week, I shared some of my favorite ways to organize your home and life before and after any upcoming vacations.  Once these crucial steps have been addressed, it's time to dust off our suitcases and begin packing for your upcoming journey.  Here's my 10 favorite strategies my family uses to pack our suitcases in an orderly fashion, maximizing every allotted available space. So grab those items from your "need this" basket, and let's get packing!   Plan ahead for lost luggage — If you're traveling with family members, pack a few of your outfits in their suitcase and vice-versa. If you're …

Now that summer is officially here and children are out of school, our thoughts turn from packing school lunches and backpacks to packing suitcases to escape to our favorite summer vacation destinations.  While you may be anxious to drag out the suitcases, wait! There is so much more to vacations than suitcases and itineraries. There are many important steps you can take to organize your home and life for your upcoming trip which are just as pertinent as dusting off those suitcases. Here's 10 simple pre-vacation planning steps that the Organizing Genie uses to ensure my family enjoys a …

It all began with the gift catalog you innocently requested for Christmas last year while looking for the perfect gift for Uncle Buck. Six months later, you notice a steady increase in junk mail, credit card offers, and catalogs filling up your mail box day after day.  To make matters worse, some of your monthly bills were scattered in the pile of junk mail which you inadvertently recycled.  This action can later come back to haunt you, causing late fees on those bills you didn't pay.   Did you know that the average household receives over 677 pieces of junk mail per year? Over 100 million …

It's hard to believe that soon our great nation will be celebrating its 235th birthday. There's nothing better than celebrating our nation’s independence than with family and friends while attending parades, concerts, family barbecues and watching dazzling fireworks light up our night skies. If this year's festivities will commence at your home, never fear, the Organizing Genie is here with a Ten Step Guide to create a memorable stress-free Fourth of July celebration! 1. Send out written invitations, e-vites or Facebook invites this week. Ask guests to bring along a dish — they will be more …

This week's column is in honor of my mother, Doris Murray, who passed away sixyears ago this week, and one thing she always loved, was super model Fabio. Ok, so you might be asking yourself, “What does Fabio have to do with organizing?” Absolutely Everything!   It all began when Fabio graced the many covers of the romantic novels that my mother read.  In 1993 when his first novel "Pirate" was released, my mother asked me if I would go to the bookstore and purchase it for her (she didn't drive).  This became part of an annual tradition where I would purchase his latest book or calendar to her …

Happy Memorial Day.  Even though summer does not officially arrive until June 21st, Memorial Day is considered the unofficial kickoff to the season.  We will be looking forward to a three-day reprieve from work, swimming pools will be uncovered, grills will be fired up, families will gather for parties and barbecues, students will begin counting the day left for school and we all begin to plan our family summer vacations. What, though, is the true meaning behind Memorial Day? Sadly, a Gallup poll indicated that only 28 percent of Americans realize the true meaning of the national holiday. …

The Genie would like to begin by reminiscing back to a simpler time when the family would gather around the television to watch such classics as "Happy Days," "The Partridge Family," "I dream of Jeannie" and my dad's favorite, "Adam-12." During that time, we had a handful of channels to choose from and — here's the shocker — we had to physically get up and change the channel!  Fast forward to the 20th century and — I'll be the first to admit — I've become quite accustomed to living in this fast-paced world of technology. The downside is that every new gadget, gaming system, TV and DVD player …