Has Anyone Ever Used a Professional Organizer?

I found a book at the library. Can't remember the name but it was about "Messies". It was helpful. Also visit messies.com - little steps to help conquer the problem. My hubby's starting med school this year, so I am going on a crusade to train my hubby and 6 year old to help with this. Messies.com has a daily e-mail with helpful bits. I liked it, and it helped me feel better about not being perfect.

The organizer would be a waste if the family is not on board because they will not keep up with the process. Now, if you have an organizer that can help with the family "training", that might be worth it.

Good luck!

I've wondered about this myself.
I think if I could throw out or donate about 2/3's the contents of our house, we'd be a whole lot happier and the house would be a lot easier to clean.
It seems too big to deal with.
I try to clean up one little area at a time and try to make regular donations to a few local charities.
I think I need to get into the backs of closets where the stuff has not been touched for years - if I get rid of that stuff - no one will remember or care - and then I'll have closet space to store the stuff we do use that I don't want to look at every day.
I just have to keep chipping away at it.

Yes, I have used a few home organizers.

Each person has their own pace and feel and approach and I would recommend you chat with a few before hiring one.

The first gal I hired worked waaaaay too fast for me and I was exhausted and even upset by the end of her help.

The last gal I absolutely adore, and I found her at church oddly by sitting next to her in the pew. Her going rate was only $30/hr but her style and calm, relaxing approach to organizing has stuck with me. For instance, I have a huge wall/book unit in our formal LR and she went through all of my art/glass type pieces and placed 1 piece per shelf. It's stunning to see when I walk in the house now. And I receive many compliments on it when we entertain. I would have never thought of that simple approach. I would have added books and family pictures, etc and ended up with too much on it.

I always have 3 piles going on my house: 1 for Goodwill, one to pass on as hand me downs, and if you have clothes/shoes that are nice enough for resale then start up that bag as well.

Remember, a place for everything and everything in it's place. Only keep things you absolutely love. Otherwise, re-gift or give away for someone else to enjoy.

Take pictures of your kids artwork and keep only a few items from each year unless you truly have a Monet in the making.

Start a tub in each kids closet with baby keepsakes that you want to keep for them.

You have to invest in organizing your home like you would in any hobby or interest. Work on one area at a time and don't stop to clean the bathroom when you walk into return something, and realize it needs a quick wipe down...stay focused on that one area. Even if it takes you all week to complete just the entry way, you'll feel great when it's super tidy and how you like it. Then announce to the family that it staying that way only if they help.

GL!

I have not hired anyone, but I have used Fly Lady! Here's the link: http://www.flylady.net/d/getting-started/

She will give you daily suggestions for getting your clutter under control, and her process is very manageable (I promise!). Baby steps, and little by little, you will have an organized home. Just knowing that you're taking steps to confront the issue will help you feel less overwhelmed. Good luck - you can do it!

I learned quite a bit but it was very expensive and I am still cluttered! We got the main parts of the house organized but my problem was all the little things at the end of cleaning that didn't have a home. It's hard to get everyone on board. Good luck!

I wish I could afford one!!!

I did check out the messies.com site that Patricia G. recommended though (gotta love naptime breaks for mom!) and it was very helpful! I might keep referring to it!

I think you need to get hubby on board. I would like to say my husband is a big part of the problem too, but truth is, I am just as much of a pack rat as he is and I am home all day to make more mess (and apparently more time to clean it up?!).

My hubby and I keep talking that we need to start doing better because we don't want our son following in our bad habit footsteps...

Good luck!!

Borrow a copy of the book Organizing from the Inside Out. It inspired me and I've got a lot less clutter now, although with Mom's passing two years ago it built up again because SHE didn't read the book (even though it was her copy I took to read). By the way, make sure you borrow it. Books are a huge source of clutter.

Nope, they are expensive.

However, in the last two years, I've been slowly reorganizing my house. I give myself a yearly budget, and I buy organizer containers, etc. I feel like I am almost there. I just moved my son into my daughters room and it is more spacious! All their clothes are in containers, one for undies, socks, etc. so they can't stray and create a giant mess in the drawers or in the closet. It looks amazing, and is easy for them...Hang it up or put it away in its container. As soon as I can, I'm doing this to my closet. I did recently put organizers in my dresser. Amazing.

I do 10-15 minutes a day cleaning out stuff. I even got rid of a bunch of furniture, my goal was to reduce belongings by 30%.

Just pick one room, and spend 10 minutes a day on it. Get three bags, one for the garbage, one for donations, and one for stuff to keep. If you haven't used it in the last 6 months, get rid of it.

i always focus on one room a day. clean it.I am a big chucker. i hate clutter, and love to donate clothes, especially kids. they grow so fast so we get rid of alot. i get rid and go through the kids room on every break.it works out great. clean out the back pack papers in there binders. they dont need septs notes.

A woman whose crew was cleaning my house offered a free pantry organization. She took tools we use to the garage and put other things we use so high up. I hated how she did it.
I had very little clutter, mainly Christmas decorations in the storage area.

I would ask a friend to do it for you if you have one. I am great at decluttering and would do it for free.

We hired an organizer when we first moved into our current house. My husband gave it to me as a gift. It was great, but it still required blocks of my time for 4 hours while the organizer worked with me on one zone or another. She pretty much held my hand while I decided what I could part with and what I wanted to keep. She helped with the pantry and our bathroom closet that holds our linens and medicine and extra toiletries. It was nice to have someone motivating us and helping label things and decide what containers would work for what, but nothing I couldn't have done myself with a lot more time on my hands. That is what I struggle with the most. The clutter in our case is due to not being able to keep things picked up when we fly from one activity or fun family moment to another. If I could find 2 more hours in my day I'd have a very organized, lovely place all the time. When you work full-time and have a family, it's tough to make it all happen. Last week I bought some new mesh drawers from Bed, Bath and Beyond to help reorganize my kids bathroom cupboards. It looks fabulous and feels great to get another project done. I have come to the realization that I have to book a date with myself to organize. I even put it in the calendar. Weird, but it works for me. Then the flylady routine works wonders to keep it up.

I haven't used be really bad about clutter; my husband is the opposite. Over the years I've become A LOT more like him, and I have to say -- It's really worth the work and the constant effort to be clutter free.

Your home is your castle. You should feel peaceful in it. It is your retreat from the rest of the chaotic world. Clutter creates a sense of chaos and a feeling of never-ending work to be done (there MAY BE never-ending work, but you don't want to be reminded of that everywhere you look in your own home, LOL!).

I haven't hired anyone, but I have spent time watching TV shows like Clean Sweep, Hoarders, and even decorating and real estate selling shows. You'll get lots of great tips from those sources, in addition to the books and websites listed below.

Start with one drawer or cabinet that you use often . You'll get a great feeling and may decide to tackle another, and then another. I just did our front closet with coats, shoes, boots, etc. Makes every departure and arrival SO much smoother. It makes a difference in our every day life.

You can do this. You have to change how you look at and feel about THINGS and decide what's really important to you and why. Then you have to make it a habit that coats go IN THE CLOSET when you get home, not dumped on the nearby chair, etc.

And you'll feel great when you donate all the stuff that you no longer need in your simplified life. Good luck!

I think it's worth it, especially if you can find a GOOD one. I had an OK one once, and like you, I just couldn't take a week alone in the house to do it all myself so years went by.....my complaint with the one I had was that she kept asking me "So what do you want to do with this? And where do you want to keep these?" When I wanted HER to help me set up a system since I had no idea......but having her there helped me clear out all major trouble areas in just a few days, and they have never filled in again so it was still well worth it.