The Proverbial Junk Drawer

Almost everyone has one of these in their homes. It's the place where we seem to keep the "I don't know where to put this" or " I don't what to do with this" stuff so I'll just put it in here for now.  For now, ends up being months later and before you know it, you can barely open the drawer.  Why do we call it the junk drawer anyway?  Even though it gets crammed full of stuff, is the stuff really junk?  Or is the junk drawer just a safe haven for those things that we don't want to throw out because we think might need it someday.  We've all used that line one time or another.

Today I decided to tackle the junk drawer in my kitchen.  It's the one and only junk drawer I have in my apartment.  Although, truth be told, I'd probably have another one around the place if it wasn't for the fact that I can't afford to devote any other prime real estate to "junk".   When you live in a one bedroom apartment without a storage locker, every inch counts!

When I pulled it out to sort it, I was surprised at how much stuff had amassed in it.  I found some mystery cables (I have no clue what they're), phone extension cords, regular extension cords (the cheap ones that are only good for two pronged cords so they're not even worthwhile).  I also found a number of packets of flower food.  You know, the ones that you get whenever you buy a bouquet of flowers.  Quite clearly, it's been a while since I've had fresh flowers since some of the packets have hardened! I even found these little rubber balls that I had used probably only once to put in the dryer with my down coat to help it dry evenly.  They say to use tennis balls but since I didn't have any, I found the next best thing!  I bought them at the dollar store and I actually think they are cat toys!

Anyhow, after some ruthless editing, I proud to say that my junk drawer only contains some hooks for hanging purses, the cords (although, I think those will be going in the very near future) and a little glass dish which holds the good flower food and the spare key for my bike lock)  Oh, I also have a few 3M stickers to hang pictures.  If you've never used them, you need to give them a try.  No more holes in the walls!  Surprisingly it didn't even take that long which makes me wonder why I didn't do it sooner.

So the lesson here folks,  try to limit yourself to one junk drawer for those odds and ends and go through it regularly.  Once a month, if you can. You can buy drawer inserts with compartments to keep things organized but the goal is to not let it get out of control.

If you have an organizing question, send me an email.

info@theurbanorganizer.ca


Cheers!

Marie

Some of My Air Travel and Packing Tips

Last week, after taking a client shopping for clothes with my designer friend Manny Machado, I helped her select her wardrobe for an upcoming trip to Europe.  I was very conscious of the amount of items that would go into her suitcase and did my best to give her great options.  

This wasn't the first time I have picked and packed clothes for friends.  I'm known to travel light and my philosophy is, if I don't wear everything that I brought, I over packed.  

More on my clothing selection thought process later but for now, here are a few tips that have helped me along the way.

Packing:

1. Put your shoes in plastic bags (you can use produce bags, if  you have any) and place them at the end of the suitcase where the wheels are.
2. Roll your clothes and "stack" them tightly next to your shoes and keep working your way to the top of the suitcase ( this is to prevent your clothes from shifting when you stand your suitcase up)
3. If you're bringing a beach towel, lay it on top of your clothes, tuck in the side and fasten the straps.  This is another way to keep your clothes in place.
4. ALWAYS keep your toiletry bag stocked and ready to go with travel sizes of the products you use.  Pack this in your carry on and keep it in your suitcase when you return.
5. Take a plastic bag for dirty laundry
6. Separate jewelry by type and pack in ziploc bags and place in any evening bags your bring.

Travel:

1. Photocopy the id page in your passport and pack it separately in your suitcase
2. Email your itinerary to a friend (just in case)
3. If you're flying business class, you won't have to worry about snacks but avoid drinking alcohol as this will dehydrate you. Drink plenty of water instead!
4. If you are not flying business class, bring munchies such as dried fruit and unsalted nuts, granola bars etc.
5. Avoid wearing foundation as this too can dehydrate your skin. Apply a good moisturizer and lip balm.  If you can't bare to go au natural, just do your eyes and lips.
6. I always try to avoid jetlag by getting into the time zone of my destination asap.  Calculate what your destination time zone is when you depart and act accordingly.  i.e. if it's in the middle of the night in the U.K. when you're leaving Toronto, you'll want to try and sleep.

Hopefully these tips will make your travels much easier.

If you have any tips you'd like to share, please do!

Happy Travel!

My Secret To Streak Free Windows!

I'd been procrastinating cleaning my living room windows for weeks because I hadn't found a method that really works and is easy! I face west which means tons of afternoon sunshine so I knew I'd have to confront my fears or resolve to looking at the spotty mess my windows have become from the torrential down pours we've had this year.

I have tried washing them with a vinegar and water solution and drying them with paper towels because this was supposed alleviate the streaks and lint. All I ended up with was shredded newspaper! Then there was the soapy water and squeegee. Honestly, I don't know how those window washers do it. Clearly the squeegee I used was not of the same caliber because it didn't even make complete contact with the window leaving wet spots.
One night recently, I was flipping through a magazine or watching the tube when I saw an ad for new Windex product. It looked just like a Swiffer so I guess you don't have to ask what I did next. Yep, you guessed it. I grabbed a wet Swiffer from under my kitchen sink and rigged up that bad boy and headed out onto the balcony. My upright mop was working like a charm, lifting the dirt off of my window until I realized something. What in the world was I going to use to dry them. Before the windows had time to dry and ran back to the kitchen and grabbed a dry Swiffer but that was a bad idea. It wasn't absorbing a darn thing! My next thought was a paper towel...put that on and ended up with a shredded mess though it did absorb some of the water. Next, I thought, how about 2 paper towels so I doubled up to no avail. Hmmm...then it came to me! I always dry my wine glasses with a microfiber cloth and also use them to clean the glass surfaces and mirrors in my home. Yes, people, that's right... I put the microfiber cloth onto the Swiffer pole ( no , not stripper pole) and proceeded to dry my windows to a streak free finish!

Though it sounds like a long drawn out process, I was done in a matter of minutes!
So long squeegee! I got streak free windows with a wet Swiffer and a microfiber cloth!


If you have a window cleaning method that works like a charm, I wanna hear about it!

Cheers!

Marie