A Friend Stopped By | 12/03/2008 5:00 am

3 Steps to Living Well in a Dismal Economy, by Julie Morgenstern

By Julie Morgenstern

Editor’s Note: Julie Morgenstern is a New York Times best-selling author and professional organizer. Her fifth book, When Organizing Isn’t Enough: SHED Your Stuff, Change Your Life arrived in bookstores in June.

When the world around us is chaotic, the one thing we can still control is our space and time. Nothing feels better than a home that nurtures you, a safe haven where you can relax and recharge. And a well-managed schedule puts you in the position to capitalize on every opportunity that comes your way. Getting a grip on your space, time and finances will equip you to navigate the unpredictable environment outside your door.

To start, I recommend organizing three key spots in your home — which will help you save money by eliminating unnecessary spending, reducing stress and freeing up the time and energy to tackle the more formidable areas of finance and schedule.

1. Clothes: You may be tempted to drown your worries about the economy by shopping for a winter wardrobe. A little retail therapy. Fine. Go find something fabulous that fuels your soul. But first, shop your own closet. Spend three to four hours pulling everything out of the closet. Unearth clothes you forgot you owned. Try new combinations of outfits, for the upcoming season. Have a friend keep you company to provide a second opinion and fresh look at your wardrobe and its possibilities. Boldly rid yourself of anything that doesn’t fit, doesn’t flatter or isn’t you, so your closet remains filled only with what you use and love.

What to do with the stuff that doesn’t work? A few fun options:

CASH IN. Sell clothing and accessories you bought, never wore and never will by taking them to a consignment shop, or posting them with photos and well-worded descriptions on eBay (www.ebay.com). You won’t get near-full value, but it might make you feel better to recoup some cash. Alternatively, see what might make for good gifts for the people on your holiday list — that’s as good as cash in your pocket too.
GIVE AWAY new or gently used items to a charity of your choice. Or bag up for a friend who shares your taste and wears your (old) size.
HOST A CLOTHING EXCHANGE. Invite five to ten friends to a brunch or evening gathering and ask every guest to bring at least one bag of clothes in good condition to exchange. Serve up wine and snacks, dump everything on the floor and start the fashion show (a few strategically placed mirrors can set the mood). Everyone wins in the swap and you can cart leftovers to a women’s shelter.

2. Toiletries and Makeup: OK, we’re all guilty of frequently giving in to the most tempting of impulse purchases: products which held forth the promise of perfect skin, hair and beauty. Our bathrooms, bedside tables and makeup bags overflow with hundreds to thousands of dollars worth of half-used (or never used) face creams, body butters, hand lotions, shampoos, hair masks, cosmetics, etc. It’s time to forgive your transgressions: Clean up, clear out and get back to the essentials.

Tackle one storage area at a time (medicine chest, linen closet, bedside table, shower area) and remove everything that you don’t CURRENTLY use, and divide the “goods” into two piles:

Partially used, abandoned products.
Brand new, never used.

First, eyeball the partially used, abandoned pile:

Do a rough guesstimate of the total dollars the discards represent. Unpleasant? Yes. Incentive to maintain a better organizing system for the future? You bet.
Now, toss all of it to clear your space — and mind — of the clutter. Empty the contents of glass and plastic bottles down the drain, and place the empties in the recycling bin.
If you discover a couple of long-lost favorites that you will begin using tomorrow, return them to the cabinet with the other products you currently use.

30 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

Thanx Josie! A simple solution to that list would be to give a prepaid VISA CARD. Then the gift could be used anywhere visa is accepted, which is everywhere! You’ve still revealed the simple truth about the current economy! WOW!!!!

By immoddesta godessa on 12/04/2008 12:38 pm

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I just learned about that when Carol posted about Commerce bank which we have here. But, it does say a lot that the companies are using this time to “Bankruptcy Manage”…at the expense of their customers at Christmas.

By Josie Sullivan on 12/04/2008 1:24 pm

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Sam, I don’t put my clothes in the dryer and they do last for years. When I became ill about 3 years ago I went on disability and didn’t have to buy a thing and still don’t (although a new sweater or blouse now and again is a treat). Of course, I know how to use an iron if the occasional wrinkle doesn’t go away and I wonder how many of the younger generation even own an iron.

By Judy K. on 12/03/2008 8:26 am

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It the paper clutter that has been growing in my apartment. And even after hours of organizing, it looks like nothing was done. I have things that need to be thrown out, things that need to be filed and things that need to go through the shredder. It is not an easy task. This all started after my mother passed away. I just didn’t care about the pieces of mail I received. I put it off for so many years because I would come home from work too tired. Last night Lily of the Valley put it into perspective when she told me that this work was not fun. It isn’t fun!! And the more I work on it, the worse it looks. Yesterday I finally removed papers I would hide in my dresser drawers when company came. Now the drawers are cleared, but the papers are still all over the place! There has to be a better way. I have tried putting things into piles—financial, medical, etc. but those subsets are just as daunting. Any organization tips on this matter would be appeciated.

By Brooklyn Gal on 12/03/2008 10:24 am

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Brooklyn Gal, I think there are two basic steps. And it sounds like you are already doing the first one. I think Identifying what you have is the first step. (If you were going to arrange the clothes in your closet, the first think you would do is to remove everything from the closet, and sort them by type,right? Pants, shirts, dresses, etc. Do the same thing, here.) Literally put the papers in identified stacks. Medical, Financial, etc. Then see what you have. Then, I think the second step is determining how you want to sort them. And even before that, determining whether you want the hard paper copies, or whether you want to scan them into the computer, and store them in PaperPort, for example, which gives you a pdf image through Adobe. You can print things from PaperPort whenever you want to. PaperPort stores your papers in a file. So, for now, I would do just what you are doing. Sorting and Identifying what you have. How much of the paperwork is Medical in nature, how much is Financial in nature, etc. How can you determine how to store the documents, if you don’t know how much quantity of something you have? So keep sorting and identifying. After you have done that, and see what you have, things will become more clear. You may end up with a hideous amount of one category, and very little of another. And you may see a way to combine the two, or sort them by month. But it will become more clear. Try not to get overwhelmed for now. Keep going, a little each day. And if you stick to it, one day you will be done with the sorting. Then you can move on to deciding how to save the documents. Then make a plan for that, and keep at it. Just break this huge task into little pieces. Have a plan, and tell yourself you will do so much sorting each day. Set a kitchen timer if you want. PUt on some music. Have a glass of wine or a nice cup of tea while you do it. Just do it! Good for you! You will feel so much better, so free, when you are done. Hope this helps. Julie Morgenstern has books out on this. You can look through them at the library or book store. I’m sure some of her tips will help you, more than my suggestions here. Or check online. Just key in “paper organizational tips” or some such search. I’m sure there are tons of tips online. Best,

By N P on 12/03/2008 4:48 pm

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Or better yet…HIRE YOU!! :) Honestly, I could not look at them today. I play good at avoidance. But since there is nothing on TV tonight, I will put on some Christmas music and try to get going. I do agree that I will probably feel better and less stressed once this is all finished.

By Brooklyn Gal on 12/03/2008 4:59 pm

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I would love some help getting my finances under contreol. But, you started from a much higher bracket then I fit in. I have 1 pair of jeans 1 sweat shirt and 4 t-shirts. My granddaughter is wearing clothes that are too small for her. I do not buy makeup and the only toiletries are soap, toothpaste and shampoo that has to last 3-4 months for mygranddaughjter and me combined. The brakes on my car just gave out and every peice of furniture I have is at best dilapidated, at worst down right dangerous (like my bed that is braced against the wall at one end and trunks at the other end to keep it from swaying and collapsing. There are no agenies or programs where I live to help me with any of these things. I am already on SSI because I am disabled and Welfare for mygranddaughter. I get $183.00 a month food stamps (which breaks down to approximately $6.00 a day for the two of us combined). So I am at the full gambit of State/ Government programs. So now what can I do to help myself. Any useable advice is greatly appreciated.

By Christine Cline on 12/03/2008 2:25 pm

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Christine, Have you thought of joining Freecycle. It’s a Yahoo group, with “branches” in many towns and cities (just google it). You can post what you are most in need of and maybe someone will be able to hand it on to you. I’ve given away all kinds of stuff, most recently a set (I kid you not) of bongo drums. Someone wanted them for a kid’s project; I had them and my kids are grown. Eureka! Also, people advertise free stuff on Craig’s list. Try that too. Good luck.

By Sam Mirando on 12/03/2008 5:53 pm

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Thank You so much Sam. I had never heard of either one of them. I will look them up today. I too pass on what I can to others in need. I pass my granddaughter’s clothes on to a littles girl and her sister upstairs. Everything else I give to Care and Share who gives everything away free. I have been there before when I could not afford Salvation Army or Goodwill who absolutely will not give anything away free no matter the need. Again thank you. This was advice I could work with.

By Christine Cline on 12/04/2008 7:40 am

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I love the idea of an ‘“in-home shopping” area. Julie suggests this for toiletries - I actually do this for clothing. I have a small “dressing area” off of my bathroom that any new clothing or accessory goes in. That way, they are visible and I choose from this area first. After a few wears, once it is in my brain that I own it, it goes in my closet. This way I avoid finding new clothes with tags wedged into my closet a year after purchasing them that I had forgot about because they weren’t visible to me. And - going along with Julie’s ideas about clothing, if something new with tags is still hanging in that dressing area six months or a year later I realize maybe I don’t quite need it and can either sell on ebay or give to a friend. Worn clothes I go through about twice a year and donate. I used to have a hard time parting with any of it, but I just think, “are there people in the world who could use this shirt that I haven’t worn in three years?” The answer is always yes, and it makes it pretty easy to give it away when you think like that. For new clothes, if you can’t/don’t want to sell them, just give them to a good friend who would like it. Certainly they deserve it. You’ll brighten their day and, in turn, yours as well. This is the perfect time of year to start making some of these changes!

By Jennifer C on 12/04/2008 12:12 pm

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Fabulous idea for the clothing exchange! A group of 8 friends brought several bags of clothing each (mostly work related or great ‘going out’ pieces) to someone’s apartment last weekend. Over some wine and stories, we made incredible swaps, gave fashion advise and what was left was donated. Each felt like we had gone shopping but did not have to spend a dime. We decided we will get together again, each bringing another friend or two. A few had to use a tailor to make some alterations, but the cost savings is amazing, much less than buying a new outfit! Thanks for the great idea, Julie.

By Barbara Peters on 12/04/2008 12:55 pm

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Great article chocked full of great ideas.

By Belinda Joy on 12/05/2008 12:41 pm

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I like all the suggestions except giving my “clutter” as gifts. A bad economy is no excuse to condone re-gifted clutter. lol.

By Rain in Minneapolis on 12/05/2008 8:26 pm

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I agree, if my clutter is really clutter. Sometimes what may be clutter to me may be a blessing to someone else. In that case I definately donate it. But sometimes I think people really do give their garbage to others and somehow feel good about it. I will never forget being almost nine months pregnant in a very dangerous neighborhood and my house was on a steep hill making getting garbage to the curb difficult. I was donated four packed full large garbage sacks of clothes. There was not one single useable item in those bags. Everything was stained, ripped, out dated by decades and not even close to our sizes. It was a lot of hard work hauling those clothes to the curb for garbage pickup. There was not even anything that I could redonate to someone else of a different size. I will never know if the people that donated those clothes really thought they were doing something nice or if that was their passive agressive way of punishing my family for being poor. I always make sure that anything I give away is in impecable condition. When I lived in a house instead of an apartment I sometimes garage saled outgrown clothes. I always marked anything that was ripped but repairable so someone could choose the item knowing that it needed fixing. I do not sew and I have bought clothes only to get home and find them ripped and unusable. Re-gifting or gifting, whatever should be done with the nobelest of hearts not to pass of garbage.

By Christine Cline on 12/06/2008 2:47 pm

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We were going to forgo hosting our annual holiday open house, instead I included a letter to our friends and family suggesting that in lieu of bringing us a ($65.) scented candle or a ($50.) bottle of wine, would they please consider sending a contribution to Family-to-Family Project Newport, that supports the poorest of the poor. Instead of decorating with blooming amaryllis and paperwhites, mantlepiece decorations, and centerpieces, mistletoe will be hanging from every doorway. When greeting each guest, I will warn him or her with a kiss, or hug, to beware of the mistletoe.

By Didi Lorillard on 12/07/2008 6:15 pm