Organizing Household Paperwork and Buttoned Up Giveaway Winners

Tackling household paperwork is certainly a chore. Even in this electronic age, most of our paperwork is generated from snail mail. If you buried in mail and need simple tips on managing and reducing the amount household mail, you may want to take a look at a previous Simplified Bee post - Snail Mail Organization With Style.

For those of you that need a jump-start in organizing household paperwork and don't want to bother with labeling, the File.starter set from Buttoned Up is for you. It comes with ten labeled, color-coded, file folders grouped into three simple categories; Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise. Also included are two blank files for you to fill in with whatever suits your needs. The modern, brightly colored files are easy to find in hanging files and will help get your desk under control for the New Year.

I am also thrilled to announce the winners of the Buttoned Up giveaway. The winner of the Buttoned Up.coupons are Jayme (comment 9) and Carla (comment 23). Congratulations!

The winner of the trio of organizing products by Buttoned Up - Pet Care Package, Fitness.doc and Collision.doc is Kellie (lucky comment 13 picked by random.org). I have a feeling she is going to love the Pet Care Package for sure - the darling Cavalier King Charles Spaniel above is Kellie's Lily. She writes about Lily and more on her lovely blog, Ada & Darcy.

In addition, Buttoned Up is offering all Simplified Bee readers 25% off $20 or more at Buttoned Up. Please enter promotional code 25OFF at checkout - expires 12/26/09. Their products would make great stocking stuffers! Have you started your holiday shopping?

Lilly Pulitzer Housewares and Office Supplies

Lilly Pulitzer is best known for her colorful beachy shift dresses. But did you know Lilly also has a line of stationary and housewares in her vivid Palm Beach-inspired prints and patterns? Below are some of her stylish products, perfect to brighten up your home.

1. Patchtastic Lilly Pad, 2. Juice Bar Message Board, 3. Havana Coaster Set, 4. Animal Crackers File Folders, 5. Via Mizner Pen, 6. Taboo Guest Towel - All available at finestationery.com.

Lilly Pulitzer's new Fall clothing line is really beautiful too. Here are some of my favorites.

* images from Lilly Pulitzer

The Art of Labeling

Even in this digital world of computers and the Internet, a household's paperwork can get out of control. When this happens, bills, receipts and statements can get easily misplaced, misfiled or worse-lost. Recently I've been helping a client streamline her household paperwork. She actually has a really good filing system, but gets frustrated in the stacks of "to dos" and ends up procrastinating.


To help her stay on target, I created an Action Plan that breaks up her paperwork project into small more manageable tasks. So far so good! My client is more motivated than ever to tackle those piles of paper and has already completed several of the tasks. Yippee!

To make filing fun and creative, I often suggest a stylish label. Having files labeled is a must and saves loads of time when trying to retrieve paperwork at a later date. Paper Source has a great selection of beautiful labels that can be used for lableing just about anything - gifts, books/notebooks, shelves and storage boxes.

At See Jane Work, I found handy reusable Clip-On Label Holders. These spring lock clips easily attach to binders, notebooks and file boxes. I will be purchasing some of these beauties! In addition, the online store has self-adhesive label sets that include 52 assorted labels in four different designs - all packaged in a re-sealable vinyl zip pouch. Love the cute dot pattern - above right.

Label makers rock! I've had a Brother P-Touch label maker for years and love it. One of my good friend's used to tease me about it, until she got one for herself. It's incredibly easy-to-use and great for labeling just about anything. I have used it to label items such as cameras, mobile phones and kid's water bottles.

There are many label makers out there and they can get a bit pricey. I like this PT-1280 home & office label maker by Brother because it is a very affordable at $39 and feature-packed. It can print laminated labels up to ½” wide and up to two lines. In addition, this hand-held device has six auto formats, five framing options and nine type styles. It also has three type sizes which automatically adjust the text size according to the tape width. A fabulous features is the “Favorite Keys,” which allow you to save and print your favorite labels in seconds. The PT-1280 also uses the new “super narrow” (3.5mm) black on white non-laminated tape for labeling CD spines. It can be purchased at most office supply stores or online at Image Supply.

Tacking household paperwork may not be fun, but it can be done in style!

*images from See Jane Work, Paper Source and Image Supply

Snail Mail Organization With Style

Clutter is visually exhausting. The biggest clutter issue for many of my clients is paper. Piles and piles of paper create a negative atmosphere in any space and can become overwhelming.

Be Eco-Friendly and Reduce Your Mail
Want to reduce the amount of mail you receive? Save paper, time and postage by paying bills online. It also will help you keep track of the bills. It’s easy, it’s efficient, and it’s earth-friendly.

I hate junk mail. There are several great resources available to help you reduce unwanted junk mail. Save a tree and check out, Catalog Choice, Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, or TreeHugger.

Tackling the Mail - Simple Tips & Getting Stylishly Organized
Set-up a “one-stop-sorting” workstation for all incoming mail. Make sure you have a surface you can work on. The kitchen counter works for me! The station should include a small file holder or box, a letter-opener, pair of scissors and— a must— recycling bin, shredder or waste basket close at hand.

Here are some stylish file holders or boxes that caught my eye and would dress up any workspace…

This vintage wire tray is simply charming. Found at See Jane Run.

Love this aqua, brown and red mail sorter. So practical, yet fashionable.

 

This folder box by Semikolon has a classic European design and bold color palette making it a perfect choice for brightening up your workstation.

This sweet chartreuse file folder holder found at Paper Source is beautifully constructed in an elegant blossom linen bookcloth and includes six coordinating file folders. Love the butterfly folder!

Use your designated sorting station daily to tackle incoming mail. First and right away, recycle or toss all junk mail, catalogs, or unwanted promotions. Shred any mail that might contain personal information (SS#, phone #s, medical record #s, etc.). Second, file all mail you need to save. Here are some suggested categories:

• To Pay – bills to be paid

• To Act – rsvp to an event, make a call, etc.

• To File – papers to be filed in your main home filing system (i.e. bank or insurance statements, etc.)• To Read – magazine or catalog

And of course, you need to store all that paper in some pretty little file folders. Here are some of my favorites:

Thomas Paul delivers again… Love these fun file folders in yummy colors and vintage prints.

These Simple Pink folders by Papaya feature soft hues and a sweet bird on a cherry blossom branch and can be purchased at Paper Source.

These chic file folders feature a Rajasthani Paisley pattern found in Indian art. I also love the playful color combinations of chartreuse, curry, papaya and red.

Now go tackle that pile of mail with a sense of style.

Cute and quirky gifts for the home

If you like to give gifts that get lots of giggles, look no further than Fred Flare! I hadn't even heard of the store before, but I used to live in their neck of the woods and might stop by to pick up some Christmas gifts for my sisters. They also have mens' and womens' clothing along with home accessories.


Pinecone candles! - would look super cute lined up in a row

Salt-and-pepper shaker sparrows


Jonathon Adler Christmas ornament set






Cupcake stand! Even comes with a fake cupcake until you bake 'em

Flowers in a can - for the windowsill gardener



Love this photo calendar idea!


Ice cube tray makes your cubes into fun "jewels"



Pretty Jill Bliss mini journal set!



Gorgeous file folders might make organizing the bills not so bad


For the unorganized ones in your life

For the possessive bibliophile


Girly I know, but I love their jewelry collection!

Go to Fred Flare for more.