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Greetings!
My
monthly newsletters aim to help you brainstorm about priorities for
organizing in your home. Try some projects alone or ask for help from
our friendly professional staff.
You will feel more comfortable about the appearance and resources of your home if you see progress each month.
Cheers!
Pierrette Ashcroft |
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TAX PLANNING
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Early Organizing Reduces Stress
 Sorting tax-time details now will avoid much tension near the April deadline.
Also, if you likely are due a refund, it always is wise to file early.
All tax-related statements,
under revised law, must be postmarked by mid-February, so you should
receive them this month. If using a tax preparer, call him or her now
to schedule an appointment for the end of February or early March, giving you a deadline to get focused.
Start piles of receipts and documents.
Begin with general categories: income, expenses, statements and then
create subcategories. Skim last year's return for reminders of
categories: mortgage interest, taxes paid, charitable donations, all
income sources, child care, education, all small-business deductions,
etc.
Separate your statements:
banking (interest earned), investment/brokerage, retirement, credit
cards (for any deductible expenses). Start a filing system that you
like, such as single files, accordion folder or large envelopes.
You can reduce your tax preparation cost if you show the accountant well-organized supporting documents.
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ASK PIERRETTE:
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Question:
 Our
clothing drawers are overfilled and some items often are hard to find.
How could we better organize them and possibly reduce what is in them?
Pierrette:
Empty
the drawers from one dresser at a time. Remove any non-clothing items
and store them in a logical place elsewhere. Begin sorting: a "keep"
pile, "giveaways" for non-fitting, out of style, damaged items or
those not worn in a year and unmatched socks. A "store elsewhere" pile
for out-of-season clothes. Start folded stacks of similar items:
T-shirts, underwear, socks, bras, nylons, pajamas. Choose one drawer
per category, with most-often used items at the most-convenient height.
Buy drawer dividers if you want two or three categories in a drawer. If
you have too many of something for one drawer, give away or store the
extras.
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PHOTO STORAGE
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A System For Finding Memorable Shots
 Most
of us have photos in many formats and never catch up on sorting them
well for quick retrieval and reminiscing when a friend or relative
visits.
To make this project more realistic, start with all your
photos from the last month, the last quarter or the last year,
depending on how often you use a camera.
Whether using digital,
prints or slides, the sorting process is similar. Delete copies that
are too poor in quality to keep. With duplicates of prints or slides,
give them to someone who will appreciate them.
Pick your preferred sorting system: by person, subject, event or date.
For
prints/slides: If you will be storing them in photo boxes, sort them
directly into the box. Tabbed, labeled dividers can define subjects or
groups. Label prints carefully on the back as you go. Store safely in
climate-controlled rooms -- not hot, humid attics or garages or damp
basements. Protect valuable photos in acid-free paper or non-vinyl
albums.
More on digital photo storage in a future newsletter. If
your first organizing project goes well, set a date to work on Phase 2.
Reward yourself by framing and displaying some favorite photos and
rotate in new favorites at times. |
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COMPUTER CLEANING
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Out With The Old,
More Room For The New
 Every
month is a good time to remove clutter from your computer so it
performs well and you can find what you want when you want.
For PCs:
Uninstall
games and programs that are no longer used as well as unneeded Desktop
shortcuts. In Tools/Security, remove cookies and clear your memory
cache and disk cache.
Delete your temp files weekly. Remove
Filecheck files in the C: directory (.chk files), created when the
computer shut down improperly.
Empty your recycle bin manually and start the disk Defragmenting process, which can take an hour or more.
For Macs:
Turn off features you don't use, such as Universal Access, Bluetooth, Internet Sharing, Speech Recognition.
Remove
Widgets not used recently to avoid using unneeded RAM and processor
power. Empty Trash. Remove never-needed fonts, tools and foreign
languages and unused applications and their supporting and preference
files.
For data, sort to
three folders: Active, Archive, Trash. This will speed up your
retrieval of active files and backing up retained data. Archive dated
files you may need some day. Be ruthless in trashing old files.
When you finish your organizing, back up remaining files and schedule your next maintenance work. |
Gift Certificates:
Valentine's
Day Nears
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This
is another option for your special someone: a spouse, parent, close
friend or a favorite relative. What would be more appreciated than a
gift certificate for help from a professional organizer? Also a great
gift for that hard-to-find recipient or a new mom. You decide the
dollar amount and the recipient can decide the services that they want.
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A gift for others... peace of mind
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Pierrette
Ashcroft, founder of getOrganizedDC, has more than 20 years of business
experience organizing events and providing innovative solutions in
homes and offices. In 2007 she was in the first group to receive
credentials as a Certified Professional Organizer, CPOÆ, earning her a
top distinction in the organizing industry.
To learn more, call or write for a free telephone consultation at: 202-537-9705 or pierrette@getorganizeddc.com. Or visit our Web site.
The
hardest part of organizing is developing an attractive plan. We are
happy to help you with challenges large or small. Expect efficient and
reliable service from our staff, who promise to keep your personal
information confidential. Read what our clients are saying about us.
Feel free to forward this newsletter to others who may find the ideas helpful for their homes.
Enjoy your organizing successes this year! |
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