Janice

How to Declutter the Junk Mail

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When I opened my mail box today there was one lonely envelope in there. A sad feeling came over me for a second. Then I remembered this is a good thing! In the past I use to get all kinds of junk mail, catalogs, bills, and lots of magazines. Now it is reduced down to a few pieces of junk mail occasionally, a few bills, and a couple of magazines that actually get read.

I use to love getting a full mailbox because it made me feel like I was important enough for people to send me mail. But most of the mail was just trying to get me to buy their product or service. They weren’t giving me anything, they wanted something from me. Then there was the fact that it took so much time to go through that pile of mail to find the few pieces that really were important.

If you feel this way then it’s time to take the steps necessary to reduce most of the unimportant mail. The sites below will help get your name off the lists that fills your mailbox with mail you don’t want. It can take several months before you see a big difference so now is a good time to start.

To reduce general junk mail:   DMAchoice.org

To reduce unsolicited catalogs:   Catalogchoice.org

To reduce the credit card and insurance offers: Optoutprescreen.com

 

To a lighter load along the way

Janice

P.S. For more support on getting control of your paper clutter, please join the free Facebook group “Controlling Your Paper Clutter Support Group”.

http://facebook.com/CutClutterWithScissors

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

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School Clothes Shopping

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Back to school sales are in full force now. With such great prices it’s tempting to buy enough clothes for your child to last most of the school year. But beware, if your child is still growing this could be a big problem.

There’s nothing more frustrating for a parent to invest in plenty of clothes for their child only to have that child outgrow the clothes before they even have a chance to wear them. This can happen if you buy too many clothes ahead of time. It’s still warm out but the fall and winter clothes are filling the racks in the stores. Even buying too many warm weather clothes now to get school started could mean completely outgrown clothes by next Spring.

Children’s growth spurts are unpredictable. So even if your child has always been fairly regular with their growth in the past doesn’t mean this year will be the same. I remember one year my son (5th or 6th grade) went through 3 sizes of blue jeans during one school year. Since money was tight back then I was glad I only bought him a few pairs to start the school year off. By Thanksgiving they were looking like high water jeans. He wasn’t growing out as much as he was growing up. By March he needed the the next size and longer length. It wasn’t quite warm enough for shorts yet so we had to buy more jeans.

So if your child is still growing just buy enough clothes for the next few months. Sales are always going on so you will be able to take advantage of them later. It’s better to have to do more laundry now then to have to give away unworn clothes that became too small too soon.

The added benefit to having fewer clothes in the closets is being able to keep it more organized and less cluttered.

Janice

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School Sales Tax Holiday 2009

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Many states are having their school sales tax holiday this coming weekend. This can save you a lot of money if you live in or near one of these states especially when buying computers. Each state has different requirements. Check out these two sites to find out more info. You can always Google your state tax department (usually the Dept of Revenue) to find out if your state participates.

http://www.mytwodollars.com/2009/07/01/find-the-2009-sales-tax-holiday-for-your-state/

http://www.bargaineering.com/articles/sales-tax-holiday-schedule.html

Before you go shopping make sure to go through what you already have in school supplies and clothing. There is no reason to buy more than you need even if you are saving a few dollars on taxes.

Here are several blog post from the past that deal with back to school. Check them out for more information.

http://organizebythemonth.com/?p=242

http://organizebythemonth.com/?p=100

http://organizebythemonth.com/?p=101

Janice

https://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

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Cut Clutter With Scissors Newsletter – New Format

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Here is a copy of my new newsletter. It is replacing the other two newsletter I had before. If you are not signed up to receive each week then please do so over on the right sidebar in the blue box. Thanks.

Cut Clutter With Scissors Newsletter – New format
Volume 1, Issue 1
August 3, 2009

Note From Janice I have decided to change my weekly and monthly newsletter to better serve you. I will no longer be writing the monthly “Organize By the Month News” as a separate newsletter. I will incorporate that info into the weekly newsletter.My new newsletter is being called, “Cut Clutter With Scissors Newsletter”. This is what you will see as the title of the email in your inbox. I will still have a decluttering tip each week but also include important dates and websites for upcoming holidays and events. When big holidays are coming I will start including that info several weeks ahead to help you be more organized. I also plan to use my blog for more current information so be sure to check it often. http://organizebythemonth.com
In the near future I will be including a small section called, “Recommendations”. This is where I will write a short review of a book, organizing tool or item, or even a website that I feel can help you declutter and organize your home and life. Most of the time these recommendations will be for things I personally have used and found helpful.
I hope you like the new format of this newsletter. I would love to have your feedback. You can let me know by replying to this newsletter or leaving a comment at my blog, http://organizebythemonth.com.

To a lighter load along the way.
Janice Scissors

In This Issue
1. Note from Janice
2. Decluttering Tip
3. Important Dates and Website links
4. Stay Connected


Decluttering Tip – Back to School With back to school gearing up it’s time to go through all of last year’s clothes and school supplies before you head out to the stores. Although most schools don’t start for several weeks, if you start now with planning and organizing you will be able to take advantage of the “back to school” sales.
Here are some easy suggestions to get you started.
1. School supplies. Dig out all the left-over supplies from last year and take inventory. Once you know what you already have it will be easier to buy only what you need.
a. Grade school age: Go through the left-overs with your child. It will help them learn how to get rid of clutter. Give away any usable/new but outgrown supplies. This could be last year’s fashion notebooks, backpacks, lunch boxes, etc. If your child will reuse them, great! If not, it’s not worth fighting over if you budget allows. If you budget is tight then use this as a lesson for buying neutral items that won’t be outdated one year from now. If your school gives out a supply list be sure to check it against your at home supplies.
b. Older Grades: check your basic supplies such as pens, pencils, notebook paper, spiral notebooks, folders.

2. Clothes: Get rid of any that are too small, torn/stained, or your child won’t wear because it’s out of fashion. Fitting in with the “right” clothes is important to most children’s self-esteem. That doesn’t mean they should have designer brands. Many of the discount stores carry knock-offs of current styles.

Important Dates and Website Links There is not much going on in the way of holidays during the month of August. That’s probably a good thing because most people are getting in their late summer vacations and/or dealing with the mad rush of preparing for back to school.
National Night Out is Tuesday August 4. If you haven’t already heard about it from your trustees (subdivisions/complexes) then you can call your local police department to find out if they know who is setting up an event in your area. Here is the main website that can help you find out a little more information about it.
http://www.nationalnightout.org/nno/

Back to School Information. Above I talked about decluttering last year’s school supplies and clothes in preparation for buying this year’s supplies. Here are several sites with more info to help you with these projects.

Clothes Shopping:
http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=1296

http://www.dressingwell.com/backrel.htm

http://kidsfashion.about.com/b/2008/07/15/tips-for-back-to-school-shopping-on-a-budget.htm

School Supplies:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26044914/

Stay Connected
https://cutclutterwithscissors.com (website)
http://organizebythemonth.com (blog)
http://twitter.com/jlscissors
janice@cutclutterwithscissors.com (email)

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How To Make Room in Your File Drawer

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This week I went through several files in my file drawer. Here is the pile of papers I decluttered from the draw and put in the recycling bin. It measured over 3 inches. There’s a lot more room in the drawer now!

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Below is this weeks’ newsletter on how I went about decluttering the files that contained warranties, instruction manuals, and other papers on products I own. This project is easy to do while watching TV. Doing a little each night will make a big difference before you know it.

Decluttering Tip Newsletter – Paper Clutter (stuffed file drawers)
Volume 2, Issue 28
July 28, 2009

I’ve been working on my ebook on paper clutter. It should be ready for purchase mid to late August. While doing the research I come across many ideas to help control the paper clutter. One of the main questions that keeps coming up is how to declutter all the papers we store in our file drawers or boxes. If your storage drawers are anything like mine then they may be stuffed to the gills. It is time to declutter them.

I figure I have to walk the walk to be able to help you with the best tips. I decided to start with the file folders containing all the warranties, instructions manuals, and other papers for all the products I own. With separate files for kitchen appliances, outdoor/lawn equipment, small household appliances, toys/game instructions, TV & stereo equipment, and small personal appliances, it took a few days to get through all of them.

I now have a pile of papers almost 3 inches thick to go into the recycling bin. That has opened up a lot of room in my file draw.

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So how did I do it? It’s easy. I worked on the decluttering while watching TV in the evening. These kinds of papers don’t take a lot of concentration or big decision making. If you have been in the habit of filing all the papers that come with a product then you probably have a lot of papers you don’t need to keep.

Follow these steps to a less stuffed file drawer.

1. Tools you will need: scissors, stapler, and a staple puller is helpful if you have one.

2. Take one file folder that contains warranties and instruction manuals for products you own.

3. Pull out all the warranty cards that have never been filled out. I fill out warranties online for major purchases. Your original receipt with date of purchase is usually the only paper your need.

4. Pull out all papers for products you no longer own. If you haven’t gone through your files for a while you will probably find a few. I know I did.

5. Look at each instruction/owners manual. Most are in several languages, one part English, another part Spanish, and possibly more languages. Tear or cut out the languages you don’t use. This is were a staple puller comes in handy along with the scissors. Once you have separated the papers then staple the ones in the language you are keeping and recycle to rest.

6. If you want to eliminate even more papers you could just keep the information on the model you have and contact information. Most manuals can be found on the product’s website. Check first before you get rid of the information on how to use the product and the trouble shooting page. These are the main pages you may need at some point.

If you have any other ideas on how to declutter these kinds of papers please leave a comment.

Please feel free to forward this entire blog post to friends and family that may benefit from this tip.

Also, if you are going on vacation soon and are traveling by car with children you will want to check out my blog post : http://organizebythemonth.com/?p=236
I have a lot of websites listed for car travel games. Plan ahead to keep boredom from ruining your trip.

To a lighter load along the way.

Janice Scissors
https://cutclutterwithscissors.com
http://twitter.com/jlscissors

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