Will 2004 be the year you finally dejunk your junk drawer? Heloise, America’s household hints diva, is ready to cheer you on.
The widely syndicated columnist, who practices what she preaches in her own home in San Antonio, Texas, has a five-point plan to deal with the bloated homes many of us are left with now that the holidays have zoomed past.
As you gaze around the house at the overflowing shopping bags, jammed fridge and crammed closets, it’s time to dig out and regain control.
Many of us mark New Year’s Day by vowing to eat less, buy less and get rid of more, and Heloise has a new book to inspire us without scolding.
"Get Organized With Heloise" ($10) published earlier this month, is a no-nonsense guide to putting your house in order, then setting up systems for storage, shopping and home record keeping. She even includes great tips for organizing a purse, a notorious jumble where many women waste time every day rummaging for pens and parking-lot tickets.
Heloise, whose practical advice column is carried in about 500 newspapers, learned her organizing skills from her mother, the original Heloise, who died in 1977.
"My mom taught me how to pack a suitcase and organize a pantry," Heloise said. "But like any creative person, she had her own stacks of things around that only she knew what was in them."
Over the years, Heloise has written books dealing with cleaning, spills and stains, kitchen tips and entertaining. In this, her 11th book, and the first devoted strictly to organizing, Heloise takes you room by room and tells you what to keep and what to toss. Dried-out nail polish, old directories and frozen food that has become antique are on the toss list.
The book offers practical hints for setting up a home office and clearing out a basement.
There are even tips for keeping a pet organized, like consistently use a specially colored marker to note vet and grooming appointments on your calendar.
One of the most useful concepts is her five-point plan.
"I have been writing about this for several years now," Heloise said, "and so many people have told me it’s worked for them."
Basically each day, you focus on one organizing task for either five minutes or you cull five things. She mentions tasks such as bundling newspapers and magazines, rearranging a single bookshelf, putting away countertop clutter or sorting through a drawer.
Personally, I began using Heloise’s five-point program on Jan. 1, 2003, and felt very proud of myself for reordering and tossing a drawer’s or shelf’s worth of stuff every day before heading to work. Good intentions, however, began to wane around March, and guess what: The clutter has reappeared.
But today, I’m going to begin again. I have been reinspired by this book to clean out the cupboard under my kitchen sink, where lots of old cleaning products and grungy sponges end up. Heloise suggests using plastic trays to corral bottles and spray cans there and protect the cabinet.
As you read this, I’ll be scrubbing this unsavory area. It’s a start.
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