New Yorkers know all about clutter. We ought to. Space is at a premium here (see The Real NY? Fuhgeddaboudit!, in this issue). After all, not everyone in this town is lucky enough to live in a sprawling pre-war apartment. And most people don’t own those duplexes you see in the movies. In fact, one-bedroom apartments here aren’t much bigger than studios. And we all know that most NY studios are about the size of a good walk-in closet out in any of the ‘burbs.
But, hey, that’s one of the things that makes this place so special. NY space is so pricey pretty much everyone has to learn how to make their space work harder.
Enter the Professional Organizer. Jackie Indelicato, is the founder of In-Place Organizers (www.inplace.biz), and one of the best professional organizers in NY. She’s more than an organizer; she’s practically a Life Coach. According to her, there are many things you can do to “Make Space for Life” as she puts it.
A few of her pointers.
8 Great Tips for Getting Organized:
1. Put Like with Like
Store your sheets under the bed (sheets-bed, get it?) and towels near the bathroom. Simply group items together that are similar.
2. Date Yourself
Can’t remember to send in that rebate? Mark a simple keyword in your calendar on the date before it is due to remind yourself to get it done.
3. Double Your Space
Buy a double-decker Lazy Susan; it instantly creates easy access and doubles your space for cleaning supplies/toiletries/under the sink. (You DO clean, don’t you?)
4. Avoid Magazine Condos
If your magazines are piling up and creating a structure all their own, it might be time to cancel the subscription(s) altogether.
5. Arrange and Store Your Clothes by Type, Length, Season and Color
This will reduce stress when you dress. Remember to use decent and matching hangers, so clothes hang neatly.
6. Purge and Donate
Still have the tags on clothes you haven’t worn in years? Donate unworn clothes to a local charity and get the tax write-off instead.
7. Store Items in Easy-to-Get-to/Find Places
One of Jackie’s clients confessed to using his oven to store a basketball and the Yellow Pages. If you use an item often, put it where you will always find it. (That hidden oven trick isn’t such a bad idea after all.)
8. Spare Change= Vacation!
With one visit to Coin Star (you’ll find their change counting machines in supermarkets around town) a young couple uncluttered their canisters of change and were $450 richer. Better yet, look for Commerce Bank locations. They have FREE machines. Dump your coins in and get a receipt (along with your old subway tokens and Canadian quarters) you can cash in at a teller’s window.
It all sounds so easy. But putting it into practice may prove difficult. Not to worry. That’s where Jackie’s Life Coaching skills come in.
She not only works with her clients to evaluate their organizational challenges and de-clutter their homes and offices, she helps them make those excruciatingly painful decisions about what to keep, recycle, donate and, yes, even heave out into that dumpster out front, or put on the curb (for other equally hapless souls to gleefully cart away, no doubt).
Jackie is quick to admit, “I’m not just some glorified cleaning person. People come to me when they honestly realize that they have a problem. They just can’t let go of things. I hear it over and over again. They hold onto things ‘just in case’. Or they say to themselves, ‘I don’t know when I’ll need it.’
“I once worked with a client who had a ton of SCUBA gear cluttering their apartment. All I did was ask a simple question. ‘Okay, when is your next diving trip?’”
Helping someone get organized has to be done tenderly though. Jackie once worked with someone who had boxes of bobble-head dolls. She told her client “If these are important to you, honor them. Put them on a shelf. Display them as a collection. Enjoy them.” They became an instant focal point that guests and friends could also talk about and enjoy.”
So what is the most common clutter problem? “People make piles,” she offered. “So before you start a pile, ask yourself if you really need it. Take magazines. If you want to save one for a travel article, try saving just the article. I try to leave every client with a system that works for them.”
Where do New Yorkers stash most of their stuff? “The linen closet. It’s NY’s equivalent of the suburban garage,” Jackie noted.
What’s the most underutilized space in NYC? “Corners,” she says. “Today I’m finding many great storage units just for corners. In fact, there are all kinds of storage units that you won’t find in those container stores—even things for the office, where I do a lot of corporate space planning, working with clients and interior designers to make spaces work better. At upwards of $25 a square foot, offices don’t need clutter either.”
