The Posh Blog

  It’s Spring time and the change in the temperature means that it’s time to transition from long sleeves to short.  This is even true with infant and children’s clothes.  For adult clothing we typically switch out the Winter wardrobe for Spring and Summer styles, but for children, who out grow clothing on a seasonal basis things are a little different.   

I saved most of the clothing from my first daughter just in case I had another girl and low and behold I did.  Since baby clothing is sized every 3 months and my daughters were born at different times of the year, the clothing doesn’t always correspond to the appropriate season.  I have a box of baby clothes for each stage, 0-3 months, 3-6 months, 6-9 months and up.  So as my second daughter grows, I just go to the closet and pull down the appropriate box and start going through it.  I pull out all the outfits that are in season and put them in dresser drawers and anything that will not work gets transferred to a shopping bag to be donated.  I do have one small box of clothing that I am saving, but not many items go in there. 

 Now that I have emptied a box out, I use that box to add my older daughters out of season Winter clothing to.  I remove the label and add a new one.  Since the change is seasons is gradual and we still may need some long sleeved Spring clothing I keep this box on a lower shelf that I can reach and easily add more clothing to.   

This rotating system has worked really well for me.  If you only have one child and you want to save the clothing for your next child, like I did, let me give you a word of advice.  Purchase several boxes in advance and get them labeled now.  With my first daughter I didn’t always have the boxes at hand when I needed them and that resulted in “pile ups” until I could get a storage box.  This is a disaster!  You will quickly learn that children love to play with stacks of folded clothes that soon become piles of more work for you.   

Organizing is all about finding the right systems that work for you and support you.  My new system for dealing with my children’s clothing is working SOOOO much better than my first system did.  Oh yes, I love using the Deep Sweater Boxes from Container Store.  They fit perfectly on most shelves and are perfectly sized to hold just the right amount.

 Enjoy the good life,

Angela   

Copyright (C) 2008 Angela Ploetz, POSH Space  www.theposhspace.com. 

I just learned about this and thought in the spirit of Earth Day and clutter clearing I thought I would share this with my Austin readers.  Help make a young girls day by cleaning out your closet and donating a dress.  Read below and have a great day!

  The Specially for Children section of the Dell Children’s Hospital is seeking your help!
 
The First Annual Hungry Bunch Prom will be Saturday, May 10, 6-9pm at the Dell Auditorium at Dell Children’s Medical Center of Central Texas.  They are currently seeking donations of fancy dresses to be able to provide a shopping party for the girls to come and pick out a free dress (being on treatment for cancer or a chronic blood illness can be a huge financial stressor for families so they didn’t want to add an additional, unnecessary expense for them).  
 
Dresses are encouraged to be donated by Friday, April 25. Dresses of all sizes are needed, as the program is open to patients 12 years and older.
 
Cynthia Fitchpatrick who is a childlife specialist and is helping to coordinate the event says, “One of the biggest reasons we are sponsoring a prom for these teens is very often these patients do not have the opportunity to go to their school proms because they are sick or may not feel comfortable attending if they are dealing with visible side effects of treatment (one of the biggest ones being hair loss).  Or they don’t live long enough to their junior and senior years when they are able to go to their proms.  It’s the first time we are doing it so we don’t have a very big prom budget so are going to rely on lots of donations.  Any assistance you could provide to help us get more prom dresses to be able to provide more choices to the girls would be greatly appreciated. Thanks again for your interest!”
 
If you are interested in donating a dress, bring it to the Austin Film Festival office at 1145 W. 5th Street, Suite 210, Austin, TX 78703 (Monday – Friday, 10am-6pm, 512-478-4795) by Friday, April 25 at noon.  You can also contact Cynthia Fitchpatrick at 512-671-0016  to get directions to bring them to the outpatient Children’s Blood and Cancer Clinic. (Beside the Dell Children’s Medical Center).

  Last week I had the opportunity to attend the National Association of Professional Organizers Annual Conference in Reno, Nevada.  It was a fantastic event!   The ever so dynamic Peter Walsh, seen regularly on The Oprah Show and TLC’s Clean Sweep, delivered a stellar Keynote speech that inspired and motivated the hundreds of attendees.   

So what did Peter talk about that was so earth shattering?  One thing he talked about that really struck me was about how as a Professional Organizer my job is to help my clients realize their relationship with their stuff AND that I need to help people reassess their material goods.  This being something I do already, I was thrilled that I was on the right track, but it is always reaffirming to hear this from someone with such influence and impact.   

If you have heard me speak or keep up with my newsletter or blog you know that talking about reducing clutter and letting go is one of my favorite subjects.  It is something I that I understand.  I know what it feels like to want to keep so much stuff, I understand how it feels to be suffocated by the stuff, and I also understand how it feels when the switch goes off and you realize you don’t have to keep so much stuff.  It’s an incredibly freeing and joyous feeling.   

Not only is my job to help people reduce the clutter and feel good about it but also to coach my clients on getting into the habit of only buying what they need and love.  This is such a pertinent topic right now with an uncertain economy and it being so close to Earth Day (April 22^nd).  Most people are probably really making conscious choices right now about their purchases.  They are carefully considering where they spend their money and what they buy and bring into their homes.  This is a great habit to continue even after the economy recovers.  Think of how much money you would save if you never bought anything you didn’t need or want?  Think of how much less stuff you would have to manage in your home?  Of course, if everyone did this that would put me out of a job, and that would be fine by me.    

Enjoy the good life,

Angela   

Copyright (C) 2008 Angela Ploetz, POSH Space  www.theposhspace.com.  

This week I am at an organizing conference in Reno, Nevada. As an excited traveler I was preparing by getting all my items packed. My carry-on was packed with the essential items: toothpaste, underwear, make-up, and plenty of reading material. My suitcase was very lightly packed with plenty of room to spare. I actually thought that I may be able to get everything in two carry on bags, but quickly discounted that idea so I would have space to bring conference material back home.

Fortunately, my organizing efforts paid off, but unfortunately my flight was canceled three times and rescheduled four!!! “The Airline” as we will call it, canceled 500 flights that day throughout the U.S. Needless to say, I was stuck in DFW for the night. I was one of the lucky ones who actually got a hotel room.

Lessons Learned:
Lesson 1: Pack your PJ’s. Although I had my essential make-up and toiletries I had not packed my pajamas or a second set of clothing. Not a problem if you’re traveling alone, but I had an organizing buddy who I was sharing a room with. So we got creative and got bought some lovely leprechaun t-shirts at Bennigan’s where we had dinner. Now we had pajamas!

Lesson 2: Pack some munchies. I had packed all my snacks, except for a package of gum, in my suitcase. After being at the airport for 7 and a half hours there comes a time when you want a small snack and you are tired of paying for the usual overpriced food and snacks at the airport. So next time I will pack a few of my own snacks on my carry on.

Lesson 3: Find out the location of your hotel.

After waiting in line to rebook our second canceled flight and to try to get a hotel voucher our booking agent was able to work some magic and find us a room for the night! Thank goodness!! The problem was that she called the hotel, held the room for us, and then told us which courtesy van to look for. We were too mentally drained to ask what the location of the hotel was and when we tried to get on the courtesy van he asked “which location are you going to?” We looked at each other dumbfounded. In the end we made it to the right hotel after calling them both and waiting another hour.

Lesson 4: Have a good attitude.
What struck me the most about this unpleasant experience was the attitude of everyone from the ticket agents to the people in line. Most people were handling the whole thing with patience and a little humor.

So, next time you are set to travel learn from my travels woes and be prepared for all the possibilities.

Enjoy the good life.

Angela Ploetz

I had a rare opportunity to catch a few minutes of The Oprah Show the other day and I think I must have caught the most relevant part of the show to what I do.  Oprah had guest Suze Orman on and they were answering people’s financial questions.   

The guest they were interviewing was a woman named Aimee who had been living a lavish life and in light of the Nations financial instability her family’s finances have suffered.  She had been buying anything and everything she wanted “WITHOUT even looking at the price tags” she told Oprah and Suze.  After much discussion with Oprah and Suze Aimee realized that her possessions had been ruling her happiness.  I believe Suze said “Your car is not an extension of you”.  “It’s transportation” said Oprah.  “I became my possessions” said Aimee.   

This was a turn around moment for Aimee.  When she realized that she already had everything she needed.  She had a home, family, food, and her husband still had a job.  But she realized that all the stuff she thought she needed really was not that important.   

Sometimes it’s hard to make these decisions and sometimes life throws a situation at you that forces you to make these decisions.  We are NOT our possessions.  This is an important thing to remember as we are trying to make decisions on reducing our possessions and clutter in our own home and lives.  I know it can be difficult to do, but the FREEDOM and joy you can experience from this can transform your life.   

I hope this inspires and moves you to take action in your own space.  Even if it’s just taking out a bag of stuff a day, just start the process. 

Enjoy the good life,

Angela   

Copyright (C) 2008 Angela Ploetz, POSH Space  www.theposhspace.com.