Excessive congestion poses health and safety risks within the home, and when it is reported as a health hazard to any of the various the municipal departments, calls would go out to professionals who deal with resolving hoarding situations.

Before the pandemic, I would work with clients living in such situations, along with their family members, social workers, health professionals, cleaning specialists, organizational teams, and city or municipal representatives. What is of prime importance to remember is that the person-who-hoards needs to be the one to understand that there is a problem and that the home needs to be put in a better order. The person-who-hoards is the one to make the decision on whether or not to accept assistance, and agree to bring a professional in to help resolve the physical consequences of hoarding.

More often than not, the people with hoarding issues that I worked for would only agree to professional services once there was a deadline imposed and a real threat of eviction. And only when the client was willing, and it was a collaborative effort, would I prepare a detailed contract to lead the process to get a person’s home back into a healthy and safe living environment and consequently avoid an eviction.

People who hoard often do so for the following reasons:

• Comfort and security, as the over-accumulation often provides them with a connection;
• Everything they value is of equal measure, and they have a fear of being wasteful;
• They feel like a rescuer, and collect and save things that are abandoned or in the trash;
• Anxiety, as they can be fearful of others getting hold of their private information;
• Cognitive issues, age, or physical limitations that affect their ability to maintain order;
• As a chronic reaction to one or a series of stressful events they’ve experienced.

If you want to learn more, I recommend you review The Clutter–Hoarding Scale®. It is an assessment measurement tool, developed by the Institute for Challenging Disorganization® (ICD®) to give professional organizers and related professionals definitive parameters related to health and safety.

You can access The ICD® Clutter–Hoarding Scale® document here from the ICD website: https://www.challengingdisorganization.org/clutter-hoarding-scale-

If you or someone you are helping wants to explore what services are available, I recommend reaching out to fully-insured organizing professionals in your area who have experience working with and for people who hoard. I am aware of two professional associations of professional organizers where one could start their search:

• Professional Organizers in Canada, https://www.organizersincanada.com
• Institute of Challenging Disorganization, https://www.challengingdisorganization.org

I work with teams for the clearing and cleaning of client’s homes. And am available to consult online to offer guidance to people-who-hoard, their representatives, and their families on the coordination of resources and effective ways to minimize risk and danger in the home.

Be sure to sign up for your Monthly Organizing Tips & Updates from me at Organizing Options.

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As my mother tells it, our grandmother, born in Edinburgh Scotland, could do everything. She knit dresses, coats, and sweaters; sewed doll clothes, winter coats with fur trim, and more. She even sewed my mother’s wedding dress! It helped that she was frugal, a wise and an accomplished needlewoman, especially during the days of the depression. Our grandmother would always have my grandfather looking his best, no matter the circumstances. Quite apt at the sewing machine, she’d extend the life of my grandfather’s shirts by reversing their cuffs and collars. Famous in her household for mixing colours into her own paint, our grandmother even did the interior painting. Curing her children’s colds was easy, with a smile and a mug of hot water and blackberry jam. Heck, she even created a rockery in her Toronto Don Valley garden with her son, my Uncle Fred. 

We loved our family Christmas. Our grandmother and grandfather would arrive on Christmas Eve. They’d be laden with knitted items, baking, and gifts from our Christmas wish lists. Hand-sewn doll clothes, stuffed animals, and shortbread were our favourites.

Her baking was extraordinary. I think she may even have invented shortbread, it tasted so good. She introduced me to butterballs, and I don’t mean the turkeys. You make Candy Butterballs with a small scoop of butter rolled in brown sugar. What a treat!

I think of my grandmother when I sew. And I believe that my cousin does when she knits, and my sister and mother do as they bake. This year at Christmas, like the ones gone by, we will remember my grandmother for her love and her traditions. The memories of our family Christmas held long ago will come back with the smell of baking from the kitchen. And when I find a loose stand of wool or thread at the foot of the Christmas tree.

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Following the recommendations of top Montreal Real Estate Agents, Home Stagers, and Move Coordinators….consider packing your personal items and family pictures along with your “overflow” to get your house ready for a good showing.
By boxing your personal display items, such as multiple knick knacks, assorted photo frames, and such, you will start to de-personalize the feel of your home. This is great, as the ideal scenario is to have the “potential buyer” able to picture themselves living in the house…. with their-own-personal-stuff, not yours. They will believe what is presented to them.

Keeping personal items like schedules taped on the fridge, school papers on counters, and clothes busting though the closet doors…..will have any potential buyer feel that they are intruding into someone’s personal space….and as a result…they may not even enter certain rooms.

If you will work without a home stager, try this. Go to any furniture showroom and see how the rooms are set up. You may feel comfortable and wish it was yours, like it could be your new dining room, living room, or bedroom…because it looks good and shows well. Then go home, and do a room-by-room walkthrough in your own house. Does it look the same, with a neutral yet pleasant decor? Or do you need to de-personalize the rooms…so the potential buyer will have the same experience as you did in the showrooms?

To learn more about the Home Staging services I offer with my team, you’re invited to send me an email to share your needs and deadline with me.

The post Combo-Packing: Moving and Staging appeared first on Organizing Options.

With nothing on the work surface, I automatically have a sense of calm when I walk into the office. I’m not caused to panic… there is no, “OMG I have to handle that file, call that person, or pay that bill”. Because I don’t have piles of paper or files on my desk acting as reminders, there is none of the “visual noise” that a cluttered office can cause. What I learned works best for me is to divide my days and weeks into categories or blocks of time for when I do a variety of tasks. This way I have control over when and how I spend my time. It causes me to be more pro-active in my planning, and less reactive in responding to visual cues such as files on my desk to inform me of an urgency. I use my agenda for my reminders. And I plan to transition to a more digital calendar approach…in time.

I’ve been through various shredding routines too. I recently placed my shredder with two small bins under my desk, one for shredding items and one for regular recycling. Now I shred as I go or when the small bin is full.

The filing cabinets are orderly, and the categories and sub categories are clearly identified with easy-to-read labels in plastic tabs. This is where I store my projects, and routine documentation. And at the end of the day, my desk looks like this on account of my having created a place for everything. Everything has a home in a drawer or on a shelf. Everything has its own home….

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They are an ideal solution for folks with limited kitchen cupboard space, and floor space. Why not go vertical? I’ll explain.
Armoires and breakfronts are often part of a larger dining room suite that can be found at a sale. If pieces of the set can be sold separately, you might want to nab yourself one to hold your glasses and dishes. Or you could line the inside glass with fabric to “hide” what is behind the doors. I’ve seen them used to hold children’s toys, books, art supplies, home decorations, seasonal dinnerware….the list goes on…

So whether you are seeking to improve your kitchen space and organization and hunting for such an item at a sale, or rethinking at an inherited piece from your family…consider your need for space and organization. And bonus, acquiring an armoire or breakfront is less costly than getting a kitchen renovation!

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These items were made by myself and my mom for my daughter. My mom did the knitted outfit, and I did the design and sewing of the other pieces. With the exception of the “My 1st Christmas” piece which is a treasure that she received as a Christmas gift.

I’m following the model of careful storage for these treasured pieces to ensure that they stay in good shape for the long term.

The prime guiding principle is to make sure that all clothing is properly cleaned and aired before storing. Any dirt left on clothing before storage can destroy it over time.

If you want to take an extra step, you can remove metal buttons from clothing to avoid the risk of staining, and store the buttons in an acid-free envelope to be sewn back on later. I’ll do that for this little jacket, my daughter’s first suit.

Ideally, use acid-free paper and an acid-free box for storage. The box should be large enough to allow for air circulation. The acid-free paper can be used to hold the shape of sleeves and such, and prevent creases that can affect the garment over time.

The best place to store the box is in a dark closet way from any drafts or window walls. As humidity is something to avoid in the care of fabrics and clothing.

And about once a year, take out your items to inspect for damage, then repackage them and return to the box. When well cared for, your treasured pieces can serve as fond reminders of days gone by. These items will for me.

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I know what a comfort it can be to be live with your well-loved possessions that surround you in your home. A collection of knick knacks, a well-used set of mixing bowls, the display cabinets… you name it! In each room, a quick glance will highlight our favorite things…..and trigger the stories behind them…..not to mention the relationships.
Often it is this emotional tug of our “stuff” that can holds seniors back on moving to the next step, the new location.

Good news, the stories are still there, with or without the “stuff”, and those favoured relationships and the memories of them will not disappear once you pare down your household contents.

To start winning this tug-of-war between your “stuff” and a senior move…try picturing-the-positive. I’ve seen with my clients that it is helpful to view ourselves in the future. And when thinking about downsizing to a smaller home or senior residence, consider what may be some positive features:

No hassle of preparing the 3-meals-a-day-routine
No more major repairs and house maintenance to do yourself, or try to get done
Less day-to-day hassles to handle on your own…
Yes to visiting guests in the senior residence dining room, and no dishes!
Yes to a staff in place to “serve your needs”; the prospect of new friends
Yes to feeling safe and secure, for you and your adult children…
Yes to a new kind of freedom….
If you’re ready for a senior move, or just starting to think of one ……please contact me for a no-obligation, 100% confidential consultation….I await your call and/or email. Looking forward to taking the “ouch” out of your upcoming move! For you and those who care about you…

The post Downsizing and Moving for Seniors….a Daunting Prospect? appeared first on Organizing Options.

Yes this crap, I mean… old treasured items from long ago….once belonged to me and I had to empty my stuff out of the basement.
For me, I took some time to look at each item to revisit old times, and then let the stuff go. I stared at the posters of David Bowie (my favorite) and Miss. Piggy and reminisced about the seventies… And along with these posters threw out the others.

The old doll and the rest were given away for donation. But the sewing table….it wasn’t immediate….and it was tough to give away. Why? Because it was made especially for me and it was a reminder of my schooling and career in the fashion industry. But within 24 hours and taking the time to reflect on those key memories, I had it taken apart and out the door.

I learnt from my own experience that sometimes we need to factor in a bit of extra time in the decluttering process to review our “stuff” and take the time to “ remember” what connected us to it….and then we’re ready to let it go out the door. We can always keep the memories!

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