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Simplify Your Holidays – Tip #7

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Has someone told you not to buy them any gifts? They don’t “need” anything. They tell you they have way too many things in their home already. You still want to get them a gift but now you have no idea what to buy them. It’s time to consider “clutter free” gifts that can be used up without adding to their “things”.

Here is a list of clutter free or almost clutter free gifts.

1. Gift certificates: restaurants, movie theaters, live theater season tickets, sporting events, a day of pampering at a local day spa.

2. Donation made in their honor to their favorite charity.

3. Membership to a Public TV station or their favorite subscription website.

4. Buy items for a needy family in their honor. (check local charities for info) They may want to help with picking out the items.

5. Give certificates for services you provide: Babysitting, car washing, sweeping out the basement or garage, painting a room, etc. These are good for older children to give to their parents and grandparents and they don’t cost any money.

6. Favorite food items: cookies, cakes, gourmet coffee or tea, candy, etc. Make sure that the container you give the items in won’t add to the recipient’s clutter.

7. Gifts for pampering themselves: lotions, shower gels, perfume, candles, etc. Like above, make sure there aren’t containers that will add to their clutter such as baskets or other fancy gift containers.

If you have any suggestions for clutter free gifts then please share them in the comment section.

Janice

https://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

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Simplify Your Holidays – Tip #4

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This is the time of year with lots of parties. Sometimes you know way ahead of time when the party is and sometimes it seems like it’s last minute. If you like to bring a gift to the host or hostess you will want to have a few simple gifts on the shelf to grab before you head out the door.

Here are some easy food gifts that can be bought ahead of time.

1. Speciality preserves or jellies.

2. Gourmet teas or coffees.

3. Cans or jars of fancy nuts.

Buy only a few gifts and ones that you like. If you don’t use them all as gifts you can treat yourself later.

You will also want to have some kind of easy form of wrapping ready to go.

1. Buy a few small gift bags at the dollar store along with some tissue paper.

2. Wrap the gifts in fancy tissue paper and use ribbon to tie it up.

3. Have pre-made bows ready to be put on top or ribbon to tie around the jars.

If you have any tips to share please write them in the comment section.

Thanks,

Janice

https://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

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Holiday Planning “To-Do List”

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Are you having Thanksgiving dinner at your house? What about Christmas or Hanukkah? Are you traveling out of town to visit relatives or are they coming to visit you?

If you answered “yes” to any of the above questions now is the time to start planning your “to-do list” so everything runs smooth and on time.

Turkey Rolls

Holiday Meal Planner

Gather up a pad of paper or spiral notebook, a calendar, and a pen. If you are planning a holiday meal decide what the whole menu will be and write it down on one piece of paper. Do this at least several weeks before the date.

If guests and/or family members bring different dishes, write their name next to it on the menu. Make sure they know what they are expected to bring and how many guests will be at the table.

Once you know what dishes your will be making then write down all the ingredients needed. Make a shopping list and take advantage of the sales on the non-perishables ahead of time.

 

Holiday Home Cleaning Planner

Creating a planner to prepare your home for the holiday meal is similar the plan for the meal. It can be set up in the same notebook. Make a list of everything that needs to be done starting with the day of the party and work your way backwards. If you work outside the home and don’t have a full couple of days ahead to clean, then list a few tasks for each day starting 3 or 4 days to a week ahead of time.

List the day and date and then fill in what you want to get done on those days. If you don’t complete the task on the designated day then transfer it to the next day. It will make more work for you the next day but also give you a greater sense of urgency if you keep procrastinating. Enlist help from family members. Write their name next to the task and let them mark it off when they have completed it. This will help them know what is expected from them each day.

 

Travel Planner

If you’re traveling to visit relatives, make a Travel Planner to keep you organized.

 

Please let me know how you plan your holiday meals or trips by leaving a comment.

Thanks,

Janice

https://www.facebook.com/CutClutterWithScissors/

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

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The Biggest Clutter Maker

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You have a lot to do everyday. Many times you feel overwhelmed. So when your are finished using something, does it go back in it’s home? Or do you put it on the counter or table to put it away later?

The biggest clutter maker isn’t an item, it’s the habit of “putting it here for now”. You’re too busy to put it away immediately or you’re not sure where it should go so you establish a convenient area to put it until you have more time or can figure out where it’s home should be. You have good intentions to take care of it later but that doesn’t usually happen, at least not until it’s become a mountain of clutter.

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The “putting it here for now” habit is partly caused by the misguided notion that it takes too long to put the items in their home. Our concept of time gets distorted when we always feel rushed and overwhelmed. To break this habit you have to catch yourself doing the “for now” thing and stop it in it’s track. Take the 30 seconds to put the purchases from the discount store away. Take the 10 seconds to put the tape, scissors, markers, etc. that you needed to cut out coupons and make your grocery list. Take the 15 seconds to put the groceries in the pantry instead of leaving them on the counter. Take the 5 seconds to put the dog brush away or the hats in the closet. IMGP1726_edited-1

Sometimes they pile up anyway, but before a mountain of clutter builds too large set a timer for 5 minutes and clean it up.

Most of the time we overestimate the time it takes to put something away. Of course it is vital that the item has a place to go. The other reason the habit “putting it here for now” gets established is because we bring items into the house without having a place to store them. We put them in the pile for later (decisions postponed) because it takes too much time (at least in our minds) to figure out where to store the items.

The best way to break this cause of the habit is to think about where you are going to store that item before you purchase it. If you don’t know where you’re going to put it then you probably should not purchase it yet.

If we become more conscious of why we are doing something then it becomes easier to break the bad habits and create new and better habits.

Janice

https://cutclutterwithscissors.com

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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