Put those Holiday Cards to creative use!

I remember growing up, there was one wall designated for Christmas card display every year.  It never wavered, never varied.  Like most of my childhood home's decor, it was predictable and never changed!

I think on a few occasions I might have tinkered with the idea of revamping the Christmas card wall, but nothing else ever seemed quite right.  Some solutions are best left untouched, but other times things get stale and boring. 

Here are some clever and creative ways to display those Holiday cards that are anything but predictable.  Have fun and Happy Holidays to you!

A unique approach to organizing in the new year

January is National Get Organized Month according to NAPO: the National Association of Professional Organizers.

Really?  Who has time to organize in the midst of post-holiday bliss (or blues, depending on your situation.)  I understand that finally getting organized tops the charts of New Year's Resolutions every year, but then again, so do weight loss goals ... and quite frankly, how long do those last?

Now, I certainly don't mean to sound like a Debbie Downer, in fact, I consider myself an eternal optimist.  I'm also a realist (yes seriously, optimist and realist - it is possible, I'm living proof!)

I had even considered launching my Organize for IDEAS coaching program in accordance with National Get Organized Month, but luckily this whole new year's resolution thing had me think twice.  Frankly, I'm relieved and I think my program participants will be too.

I'm glad I don't have to think about heading into the new year at full throttle, wondering when I'll get a chance to relax after the holidays.  And you know exactly what I  mean - the need for a vacation after the vacation!

Thankfully my program will have a unique advantage (and it's already quite unique to begin with) by starting at a time when resolution highs have worn off and real goals set it.  I haven't decided yet, but I'm thinking late February or early March ... maybe I can dub March "National Get Real Month" or "National Resolution Rehab Month."  Okay, so neither of those have a nice ring.

Now that I have all this "extra" time before my program begins, I wonder what I'll do with my January?  Oh fine, I admit it!  I too will be making my exercise goals and obsessively clearing out all the "bad" foods from my kitchen.  *sigh*  Ah well, perhaps the new year's resolution cycle is in our DNA forever.

Do New Year's Resolutions Work? - ThatsFit.com
Top Ten New Year's Resolutions - GoalsGuy.com
How to Keep New Year's Resolutions - Martha Beck via Oprah.com

A powerful weekend

I just finished an immensely powerful weekend staffing a Torch Training Program at the Cesar Chavez School in LA.  It has nothing to do with Organizing or Design, but I felt like sharing anyway.

If you would have told me six months ago that I would be mentoring a group of troubled teens in Compton, California -- I would have given you a "yeah, right" look and laughed the ridiculousness of that notion.  I really couldn't stand kids, especially teenagers, especially from "high-risk" parts of town.  I thought they were lazy, rude, obnoxious, stupid, and just plain bad.  I was also pretty sure they had some choice thoughts of me as well.

Obviously, a lot changed in the past six months through my own personal growth and development work and so the opportunity to volunteer in this program arose.  I decided to quiet the judgemental voices in my head and just commit to it 100%.

It turned out to be one of the most difficult, painful, exhausting experiences of my life.  And yet somehow it also managed to be one of the most healing, happy, rewarding experiences of my life too.  Let's face it, sometimes it just hurts to care about something or someone so deeply that we avoid it altogether.  Yes, we avoid the pain, but we also never get the joy.

Many times this weekend, I struggled to keep my emotions together -- to keep myself from breaking down, to stay focused on being strong for these kids.  The things that they have seen, done, and had done to them are not things that anyone should ever have to experience.  And yet at only 16 or 17 years old, they have already lived a lifetime of pain and suffering.

All I wanted was for them to get the love, healing and compassion they so desperately needed and I still can't stop thinking, "did they get it?  did I do enough?  did we get through to them?  did I make a difference?"

I know in my heart that the answer is "yes."  I learned such a valuable lesson through this too -- that sometimes we avoid things in our life, in our world, because it just hurts too much to care.  But, the only way to make a difference is to open our hearts and and let the pain flow through, and trust that pain will not last forever and that joy will fill it's place.

What to do with all that junk?

I get a lot of questions when I'm de-cluttering with a client about what we're going to do with all the junk we're purging from the space! What exactly do you do with old batteries and electronics? And is it safe to throw away old medications?

Thankfully, Yahoo! Green has a great article to answer some of the toughest recycling and throw away questions: http://green.yahoo.com/blog/the_conscious_consumer/151/10-toughest-things-to-get-rid-of.html

So don't get swallowed up by all that stuff! Now you know what to do to get out of your junk jam :)

Incredibly creative!

I just love brilliant little DIY projects so I had to share this one with you! I'd been looking for a way to neatly and creatively hold and display my business cards and I ran across this awesome idea on www.evilmadscientist.com
It's very simple instructions to follow with a template to print out and everything. I think I'm going to alter the pattern slightly and maybe use fabric instead of paper for the decorative element. I can't wait to make one asap!

Dwell Color Inspiration Contest

"Modern Masculine with a Flair for the Eccentric." I think that pretty well describes this color concept project based on the muse image (menswear thumbnail in upper right corner) provided by Dwell Magazine and Glidden for their newest online contest. I had a lot of fun doing it and going outrageous with the colors.

Did you know that clients can order a personalized Color Concept board like this from me? Digital or hard copy versions can be produced to your specifications to help you understand the Color and Style concept of your next project. Its very inspirational to refer to throughout your redesign!

My guest blog post at CRAVE!

http://thecravecompany.com/blog/