Worked the morning hours on organizing the staged item in the downstairs family room.  Placed items in bins and/or shelves in the storage, furnace, or outside storage closet.

Continued to work on de-cluttering the 2nd bedroom, taking shoe and bags to the Closet Room and hanging the clothes on staged racks.

Delivered 92 items to Dress for Success.

Purchased vacuum sealed bags to store pillows and pet beds in.  The pillows worked great.  The pet beds, okay; just okay but good enough.

Dress for Success Delivery

Today was a day of back breaking work…. opening up mail and sorting mail for hours!  Yes, many of my clients allow their mail to pile up.  This is a very common problem.  With this client, I am opening mail, sorting, and organizing into folders, 14 years of mail.  This is an on going effort that I’ll spend my best working hours (first thing in the morning) doing, over the next few weeks, to accomplish this task.

Later in the afternoon I de-cluttered a large linen closet.  This opened up space for many of the linens that were being stored in the storage room, to be placed.  With an extreme home transformation process, items are staged and moved frequently until the perfect place is determined.  Remember, there is a place for everything and everything has it’s place!

Late in the afternoon I started working the 2nd bedroom.  Over 100 boxes of shoes were taken to the Closet Room and clothes were being staged on clothing racks for review by the client.  This room may take a few days.

Before Photo 2nd Bedroom

Before Photo 2nd Bedroom

Today was a day of assembly.  I assembled a stainless steel top cabinet for the kitchen, two side tables, and a computer desk for the office.  These items were in the clients home but never assembled.  Organized items in staging areas and placed them in their new storage spaces.  Lots of sorting and placing of staged items to go!

Stainless Steel Top Cabinet

Computer Desk Assembled

After Office

Today installed a Rubbermaid FastTrack system to hang more bags in the Closet Room.  In addition, installed a closet rod to the wall to store extra hangers.

Hung wicker basket and other items from the rafters in the storage room.  Real estate space is a shortage so starting to use ‘S’ hooks to hang things and ceiling rafters.  ‘Always look up’ I suggest to my clients when we run out of room to store things!

Organized 59 book boxes from the POD to the basement hallway.  Later, we’ll sort through books to determine which ones are donated to the local hospital.

Shelving was added to store boxed shoes in the Closet Room

Over the Door Hooks were placed to store more bags

Different Shoe Racks (used what client had already purchased)

Installed Closet Rod on Wall - high

Using Rafter Space

Using Rafter Space

FastTrack Hangs Bags

Today it’s time to bring in the items staged in the POD into the home.  Pillows, which an abundance of them, can take up room so they were packed into clear storage bins are are being stored in the office closet.  Organized the Closet Room and set up acrylic shoe bins, a shoe rack, and assembled a plastic shelf to store boxed shoes.

Time was spent cleaning out an outside storage room.  The storage area was cleaned and sprayed with Bano to remove the mold.  The storage area will store garden tools and coolers.

After Storage Shed

After Office Closet Pillow Storage

Today the back deck that contains the baggsters filled with empty cardboard boxes is being dismantled and the tarps put away.  The client is fine with using clear bins for storage and displaying most items on shelves.  What I find is people control their clutter and their spending when they have access to see everything they own!  This includes clothing.  Personally, only a few dresser drawers for panties, bras, and bathings suits are needed. My rule, everything else is hung and displayed!

Card board boxes were taken to recycle bins.  Made another delivery to the consignment store, shoes were taken to Dress for Success in Atlanta, and many items were dropped out at the Salvation Army Donation Center.

Cardboard Box Collection

Cardboard boxes torn down

Today was spent de-cluttering the office and sorting through the items that are staged in the basement.  Sorted mostly through watches, necklaces, earrings, pins, bracelets, and other misc jewelry, storing them in clear bins that are labeled.

Before Office Photo

After Office Photo

The sorting, organizing, and placement effort begins.  As bags and boxes of items were removed from many rooms, it’s time to sort through and organize.  Like items were sorted and group, such as pet toys, pet collars, pet leashes, office supplies, and more.  The family room has started to be de-cluttered.

One thing many people forget to utilize is ceiling and wall space.  Today, Kathy placed hooks in the ceiling rafters and hung baskets along with using S hooks to hang items from the shelving.

The process of sorting and organizing will continue for days but enjoy some photos of the progress.

Before Photo of Family Room

Before Photo of Family Room

Before Photo of Family Room

Making Progress in the Family Room

Making Progress in the Family Room

Making progress storage room

Making progress storage room

Making progress storage room

Making progress storage room

Sorting, Organizing, Storing

Sorting, Organizing, Storing

Many of the areas of the home have been de-cluttered and re-used as staging areas.  Kathy went through the home and perfected the common areas by storing items in the designated storage rooms.  As a result, the foyer, living room, dining room, and library are ready for visitors!

Many pet beds were placed in the Ziploc Big Bags and stored with the luggage and the pet carriers in the luggage closet.

Pet Bed Storage

Pet Bed, Pet Carrier, & Luggage Closet

Pet Bed, Pet Carrier, & Luggage Closet

After Photo of Library

After Photo of Library

After Photo of Library

After Photo of Living Room

After Photo of Living Room

Living Room is still staging area for pet beds

Today started off by de-cluttering and cleaning the outside entrance of the home.  All plastic items were washed and scrubbed (tables, chairs, storage bins, etc) and items of value were moved to the basement for sorting.

A field trip was made at noon to take pet products and accessories to the local animal shelter.  The folks at the shelter showed much gratitude towards my client for her extreme generosity, not only today, but over the years.  It was a beautiful experience to see how much love was shared with the cats who are awaiting adoption.

Once the front of the home was clean efforts were focused in the basement storage room where a new shelving unit was put together.  Items were organized and sorted, a process that will continue for the next couple of weeks.

Before Photo of Front Entrance

After Photo Front Entrance

Progress continues back in the house.  Today the Foyer was tackled.  Items were sorted through and aged catalogs were placed in the recycle bins; cardboard from shipping boxes were broken down and ready for recycle pickup; trash was removed; purchased items were placed in the basement and/or POD.  In addition, Kathy worked on the Library again, removing all personal papers to a new staging area in the basement and washing all the bookshelves with Murphy’s Oil Soap!  A fresh scent was left in the room.  All books that are not being stored in boxes, that have been retrieved to date, were placed on the book shelves.  Music was organized in a turn style CD organizer; DVD and VHS movies were placed on the shelves until the family room is ready for them.

The client eventually would like the books, CDs, and movies organized alphabetically.  This work will be done when the house has been completely de-cluttered.

Before Photo of Foyer

After Photo of Foyer

After Photo of Foyer

After Photo of Foyer

After Photo of Foyer

Before Photo of Foyer

Today work was done on the screened in porch.  All items were pulled off the porch and those items found in shopping bags or shipping boxes were placed in the POD or basement.  Items were identified for Consignment, Donation, and/or keep.  Most of the plastic items (pet crates, pet products, laundry baskets, bins, patio furniture, etc.) were washed.  The porch floor was washed and all items returned.  It was a hot long day but the porch is ready for a it’s soon to get new screening!

After De-Cluttering & Cleaning Screened Porch

After De-Cluttering & Cleaning Screened Porch

After De-Cluttering & Cleaning Screened Porch

After De-Cluttering & Cleaning Screened Porch

Items were identified and taken to Consignment.  Kathy began sorting like items in the house and placed things in bins for storage, identifying what is in the bins by using labels.

Kathy services her clients by removing trash, recyclables, delivering donations to many non-profit organizations, and taking things to consignment.  The goal in her de-cluttering effort is to remove from the house the items the client has detached from so Light Energy Transformation can begin.

All items for donations and consignment are thoroughly documented and the client is left with a manifest of all items, including the IRS fair market value of such items.

Staging Consignment Items

Heading to Consignment

Car is loaded for Consignment Shop Delivery

Car is loaded for Consignment Shop Delivery

Car is loaded for Consignment Shop Delivery

Today the dining room was de-cluttered.  In the before photos, the dining room isn’t assessable.  In the before photo, it’s the room on the other side of the wide entry way.

Before Living Room with Dining Room in the background

Before Living Room with Dining Room in the background

After Photo of Dining Room

After Photo of Dining Room

After Photo of Dining Room

Today the Living room was de-cluttered.

Before Photo of Living Room

Before Photo of Living Room

Before Photo of Living Room

After Photo of Living Room

Today Kathy collected all the luggage and organized them outside for the client to review and determine which luggage will be donated.  All donated luggage was taken to The Foster Care Support Foundation of Georgia (www.donateluggage.com/how-to-help-in-your-state/georgia/)  The organization was thrilled to receive this donation and many children in the Foster Care program will benefit from receiving a new piece of luggage.  ‘This is a wonderful change for them as many are moving from place to place with their belongings in paper bags”, quoted one of the volunteers at the center.

The furnace room was de-cluttered today making space for another staging area.  The process of de-cluttering a home requires a room to be de-cluttered but to also get cluttered again as it will be used as a staging area.  It’s all a work-in-progress but the final effort will be spectacular!

Before Photo of Furnace Room

After Photo of Furnace Room

Today was spent organizing the purses, clutches, and pocketbooks in a room that we refer to as the Closet Room. This room will be organized to contain purses, pocketbooks, clutches, wallets, tote bags, off season clothing, and shoes.  This is a work-in-progress and the final organization won’t occur for a few weeks.

Most every day Kathy works on organizing personal papers.  This is a tedious and time consuming project but her work is thorough to assure her clients that all personal papers are not throw away and organized by year for tax purposes.  There is a staging process, associated with this organization that Kathy works through but the final product will include using organization binders.  During the process Kathy discovers a few checks that need to be cashed, in addition, to many personal photos that will later be organized too.

Kathy used the clients storage units and furniture to arrange the Closet Room for organization the items.  Re-use is great!!  More photos later when the room is complete!

Clothing Racks in Closet Room

Clothing Racks in Closet Room

Before Photo of Pocket Books

After Photos Pocketbooks in Closet Room

After Photos Pocketbooks in Closet Room

More clothes were identified to be donated to the Dress for Success organization and loaded into car for delivery that evening.  In total, 350 pieces of clothing have been donated to Dress for Success (www.DressForSuccess.)  On day two, Kathy received a message from the Dress for Success Operations Director who stated:  “Some very grateful ladies, one who just got a job, went home with some of her things today.  It’s awesome!  We thank your client.”

Aged catalogs were removed from the house and taken to the recycle bins; cardboard boxes were staged in the bagsters for later use and/or recycling; de-clutter efforts were made to the guest bathroom and bedroom; de-clutter efforts for the library started.

Dress for Success Atlanta

Donations all in Dry Cleaner Bags for Dress for Success

Recycle Bin

Recycle Bin

Car loaded with aged catalogs

Car loaded with aged catalogs

Before Photo of Guest Bath

Before Photo Guest Bedroom

After Photo Guest Bath

After Photo Guest Bedroom

Before Photo Library

Before Photo Library

A client contacted Clutter FREE Yourself and Kathy showed up. The client wants to de-clutter her home and bring it back to a pristine living order. The client had collected many items that she purchased over the years, as gifts for others, but these gifts have now taken over her home. Shopping for others brings Joy to the client but because she shops all year round, she ends up with more gifts than she needed; those items have taken up space in her home. It’s time now for Clutter FREE Yourself to bring it’s motto: Less Is So Much More! to this living space. Enjoy the daily efforts of Kathy and her magical transformation process!!

On Day 1, Kathy sets up Bagsters (www.thebagster.com) to store cardboard boxes and the POD (www.pods.com) was delivered. The POD will be used as a staging area. On Day 1, the client went through clothing and selected items to be donated to Dress for Success (www.DressForSuccess.org.) Audio books were selected for donation to the local library.

Dress for Success Atlanta

Donated Clothing

Clothes loaded into car for Dress for Success

Delivered to Dress for Success

Car loaded with donations

Bagsters and Tarp Setup

A couple, who is expecting their first baby, (a girl they have named Madison,) called Clutter FREE Yourself to rescue them from the clutter in their home, in order to provide space for the new baby.  Kathy de-cluttered the garage, installed shelving, de-cluttered the guest bedroom and created an empty room for Madision’s new furniture to arrive this summer.  The garage is now organized and the baby room is ready for Madison!  www.ClutterFREEyourself.com for more case history stories!

Shelving in Garage

Garage

Yard Tools

New Shelving

Organized Shelving