This week, we are back with more of your storage room questions, and this round gets into some territory we haven't covered yet. We're talking about a product question that comes up constantly: what to do when the stuff in your storage space belongs to someone else, and how to know when your storage room is actually working for you. If you've been following along with the Year of the Storage Rooms, this one picks right up where we left off.
In this episode, we talk about:
- Whether clear bins are really worth it
- How to navigate organizing when the stuff in your storage space belongs to a partner, parent, or family member
- The signs that your storage system is actually working (because it's not always obvious when you're in the middle of it)
Review full show notes and resources at https://theorganizedflamingo.com/podcast
Review Transcript:
Welcome to Organize and Cherish. I'm Stephanie, your host. And this week, we are revisiting something we've talked about the last couple of weeks, and that is some of the questions that you have been submitting. So back in episode 169, we did part one, which I didn't realize would be part one of the Q&A sessions.
I figured as you all had questions, I would address them, but you have had a really good batch of questions that you've sent me. And so what I decided is that going forward, I will then group them together and then do these special episodes. All right, so for this part two, we are addressing the three common, most common questions that you've been asking lately.
And again, this is a follow-up of the, um, episode a few weeks back, 169. So if you'd like to listen to that and see what other questions I have addressed, that's a good one to start with, but you don't necessarily, don't necessarily have to go in order. You can start here. But if you don't hear me talking about other questions, it's just because maybe I have already addressed it, okay?
All right, but always send me your message, messages, comments, questions, and I will address them either just reply to you on a message and/or might feature them as one of our favorite questions, especially if many of you are asking very similar things.
Welcome to the Organized and Cherish podcast with the Organized Fomingo. I am your host, Stephanie, your compassionate and efficient professional organizer. Whether you are part of the sandwich generation, helping a loved one declutter or just trying to simplify life, this is the place for you. Together, we will tackle those overwhelming piles of stuff, uncover purpose in what we keep, and let go with dignity and care.
Because it's not just about throwing everything away. It's about respecting memories and simplifying life. Sound like a plan? Let's jump in and get organized. I grouped them together, all the questions that you've been asking, and I grabbed one product question and then two additional questions that, um, are pretty, were pretty popular, but not necessarily about aesthetics.
Because I don't want to just focus on the aesthetics of it, although yes, that is very, a very important part of your organizing and decluttering journey. It's what motivates us, it's what gives you us a vision, and it also gives us a system that we can follow visually, right? I mean, if you can see it and other people around you can also make sense of it visually, then it is most likely that they will follow it and continue the habit with you.
So aesthetically pleasing storage rooms are very important. It's just not everything, right? So one product question and then two additionals. Okay. So question number one is, what products do you actually recommend for storage rooms? And specifically, are clear bins worth it? So that was the first question, and then I got variations of that.
So I kind of chose that one as the overarching one, but a few of you asked about clear bins, recommend yes or no, and then what products in general do I recommend? Um, so I love this question because it's, it's one of the most, the most asked questions. It's very practical and because the answer is a little bit more, more nuanced and a simple yes or no.
So I do like to answer this with, well, it depends. And everything pretty much that I always answer when it comes to organizing and decluttering after doing this for over two decades is it depends because it depends on what you are looking for. Again, your mission is going to be the most important thing.
It's figuring out what the whole purpose of the storage room areas are, but I'm going to give you a couple of my, either my truths or my honest opinion in general, okay? But remember, please don't make this a rule. Don't quote me as, like, this has to be the case. This is just in general what would I recommend.
So products are, they should really never be the starting point, especially in your storage area because remember how we talk about that storage rooms are where decisions are left to, you know, to be on hold. So you're not sure what you're going to do with it. Are you going to sell it? Are you going to give it away?
Is this an heirloom that you actually want to keep? You weren't sure to begin with at the, you know, when you first started your declaring journey, so it kind of ended up in your storage room. Very rarely, and sometimes your storage room is very intentional. Hopefully, you know, you, you, that's the goal, that's where we're going.
But if you're listening to this podcast, it probably means that you're not quite there yet, or you haven't established a storage room that fits for you. So eventually we'll get there though. So products shouldn't really be the starting point unless you are making this a multifunctional room, meaning the aesthetic piece of it is important because you are having guest over in there.
You know, it's, it's kind of like a dual purposed room. So the aesthetic has to be part of the conversation in the priority list because you don't want this to be, you know, like a warehouse and like an ugly warehouse. I, I've seen beautiful warehouses, by the way, aesthetically pleasing warehouses. The general rule is that products shouldn't really be the starting point.
I know that's a, probably a little frustrating to hear, especially if you're standing in the corner, you know, of, of the, like, container aisle or container stores, you know, right now, and that's where you want to start. But I've just been through so many storage rooms to know that behind bins before you know what you have is one of the most common ways that people end up with the storage room full of organized looking clutter.
The bins just become the clutter. And so I don't love starting with this. With that being said, one of the rules that I have for clients is that you do go through it first, so either declutter or at least have a, an intention in mind. Like, what are you using the storage room first? And then we can move on to product.
So if you've at least completed that step, then we can talk about product. The product that I would recommend, some of the products that I would recommend, yes, bins. Do they need to all look alike? Mm, yes and no. If they all will look alike, a good labeling system is going to be game changer because, well, they all look alike, so you won't be able to see inside them very clearly.
Even the super clear bins, you can't s- it's not, like, perfectly transparent. So I would still recommend labeling really well, especially in storage rooms, um, because you don't go in there in those spaces very often, you don't open the doors to those closets very often. So I would recommend a good labeling system regardless of what type of bin do you, you, you will use.
Now, do I recommend the clear versus a different color? Again, it depends. If we're talking about a climate controlled, meaning it's inside your house, like let's say your finished basement, um, finished attic, like it is climate control. Like it, it's not varying from very hot to very cold weather, um, patterns, then the, it does, you know, it, at this point, it's just a, a preference for you.
So because sometimes the clear bins will overwhelm people because then you can really see inside them and it just feels like clutter. Also, if you're storing things that are, or, um, stuff and items that are sensitive to light, then you definitely will want the black bins instead of the clear bins. If there's a lot of light that comes in there, probably a black bin, so the stuff inside them does not get damaged.
But if black bins either don't work well for your decor or, um, you just like the look of transparent bins, then go for it. But regardless, I, I would focus more on making sure you have an intention and that you have a good labeling system. And if they all match, great. I mean, who doesn't like a nice matching or organized area, shelf storage room, right?
I do love that. Um, if they match, it gives you that put together look. So always, yes, aesthetically pleasing and always prefer going that route visually, um, but that doesn't always necessarily … Like it doesn't always solve the problem of being clu- clutter free long term. Okay. So that's the short answer, short-ish answer.
It depends. Um, it's followed by please make sure that you have an intention first. If you have al- if you've not already need, you know, decluttered or gone through stuff, then pick the product. Then if you're, after you've decided what the intention of that space is, which one would I recommend? It depends on what the reason you're using the space and the stuff that are, that's living inside it will be.
Um, black bin's great for garages, anywhere where there's a lot of light coming in so it doesn't damage your stuff, the light or, you know, that doesn't damage your stuff. But then also, um, clear bins, you can see every, you can see a little bit more clear, um, and that's always, you know, kind of, I think for some people, being able to see what's inside helps them stay organized and know where everything else.
So it will depend. I do not have a big personal preference over either or. It will just depend on your goals. One last quick thing about products, I think I'm gonna do an entire episode on different products for different occasions because there are so many out there. Obviously Bince is going to be one of them that's the biggest one that I would, would recommend to answer this question, but I have others that I would recommend, but I wouldn't necessarily say go out and get them right now.
I'm going to talk you through different functionalities and what to look for in a product. So I'll make a, um, an episode about that, okay? Instead of trying to give you my full list, uh, because there's just so many and it depends on what type of storage room you have. Hi, Cherish friends. Live can get overwhelming, especially when you're juggling caregiving clutter and everything in between.
That's why I created the Organized and Cherish Weekly email that goes out every Wednesdays straight to your inbox to help you keep the momentum, inspiration going with tips and reminders of our upcoming events. All you have to do is head on over to organizeandcherish.com and sign up for the email newsletter.
It's free, and you can upsubscribe whenever you'd like. It's my way of helping you simplify your life and respecting memories along the way. Now back to our show. Second question is all about the stuff, uh, that does not belong to you. So what do I do when the stuff is not mine? This one comes up all the time.
I actually will get hired sometimes and people will ask me to come in and take a look at their storage areas or whatever, garages and stuff. It, somewhere in the conversation, it'll come up that the stuff is not even theirs. And so I do may have a hard rule that the person that owns this stuff is the one that has to be present or at least give me permission to work with them.
Um, of course, if the person is unavailable for whatever reason, um, whether they passed or whether they're just not able, um, then we, you know, we take one, those scenarios on a case by case. But because sometimes people want to, they want to fix other people and they want to fix other people's stuff and you want to declutter and throw everything away or fix it for them in thinking that that will, you know, fix everything, and that's not always the case.
So I have a really hard rule about that. Okay. With that being said, this is a very good question because, you know, you live there too, and so you want to, you know, find a happy medium. First of all, I see you. Okay. I, the situation is genuinely hard because it is not just an organizing problem, it's also a relationship dynamic sitting on top of that organizing problem.
And no amount of clear bins is going to solve it. I can tell you that right now. Um, I have been in situations where I didn't realize I was organizing someone else's stuff, and we got it all nice and set up and pretty, and I've done this multiple times, you know, especially at the beginning of my career, and it either would go right back to where it was, it would damage the relationship, uh, it was not, it was just not a healthy option.
So of course I have learned since then and I will ask people if the stuff is theirs and they own it and et cetera, but I just kind of want to give you a heads up that I see you and I know that that's really hard. So let me say the thing that I think most people need to hear first is that you can't organize someone else's stuff without their involvement.
I know that might feel like I'm pulling the rug out from under you, but I just have to be honest, it just doesn't really end well. When you make decisions about what someone else should keep or let go, even with the best intentions, you risk damaging trust and you risk throwing away something that had meaning you didn't even know about, and you often create conflict that makes the whole thing harder to revisit later.
So what you can do is start a conversation, okay? So not a confrontation, but more of a, of a confirmation type. And the tone of that conversation matters so much. I u- I actually used to, um, put together conversation cards for people. If you still need those, I have them available. Um, we're just revamping kind of our giveaways and our, um, PDFs and our notebooks and everything like that.
One of the things that I, I would, I, I wrote on there was if you come in with an agenda, we, people will feel it. Um, if you come in with curiosity, then that opens the door. All right. So that's, that's kind of my quick, very quick answer about kind of like giving you a heads up that this might be the case.
With that being said, if the other person did give you permission, so let's move on into that, and/or you feel confident enough that if you start the process, the person that, that stuff belongs to might get encouraged, might get inspired, they won't mind, okay? This is like a, like if they gave you permission and/or you feel very confident, you have that type of relationship, let's move on to some of my tips.
If the stuff that you are organizing is not yours, my biggest takeaway is do not throw stuff away until they give you permission, okay? So with that in mind, and if you're thinking, okay, this stuff is quote unquote obviously trash, it might be trash to you, might not be trash to them. So what I would recommend is clear bags.
Clear trash bags so they can see everything that you intend or you think is trash. They might agree with you and they might even give you the biggest hug ever and say, “Thank you so much for taking this on. ” But you don't know that until, you know, you're faced with it. So go ahead and put stuff in clear containers, clear bins, and put the stuff that you think should be on its way out.
So what you're going to do is kind of be the professional organizer for the day. You're going to arrange your storage area according to what you feel should, you can keep, you can donate, you can sell, or you have suggestions about. So pick maybe your four categories of suggested next steps is my biggest takeaway.
Um, if you want to kind of clear the floor, clear everything out, one of the best responses that I've gotten is that, is when people get stuff out of the floor. Um, so what happens is people, meaning your loved one, when they come in, they will immediately see the potential. I've seen the floor again. I've seen it all clear, all, all of the counters, like whatever area you're working in your storage room.
Um, when it's just clear, it just gives them this visual and this immediate sigh of relief that, of what could be. So if you're trying to give that emotion, get everything off of the floor, put it in clear bags, like clear trash bags, clear bins, and arrange them in categories of next steps, i- if this stuff does not belong to you.
Okay, so that's my, my biggest, um, tip to get you started. Question number three is, how do I know if my storage system is actually working? Okay, well, I love this one, of course, because it's a question that does not get asked enough either. Okay, let me, let me say that again. It either gets, gets asked all the time, but in the wrong order.
So they'll say nothing. Like it'll be a statement. It won't be a question. It'll be, “Okay, nothing that I've done in my storage area or within my storage system is actually working. What can I do? ” Okay, so by then, you've already ran out of ideas, you're frustrated, and now you're asking for help, you're kind of desperate for help, okay?
So I love the question of, how do I know? It's almost like a check-in point. Like you are not done, but you're checking in to see if this is working. So I love this question. I don't feel, I feel like it doesn't get asked enough. Doing check-ins ever so often is in your storage rooms are going to be really, uh, is going to be really important because nothing, no system is perfect for forevermore.
Your life changes, you change, the stuff changes, the system has to work with you and has to change with you. So because most organizing content focuses on how to start or how to fix it, and this question's a little bit different, I will address it then with the eyes in, if, if, if I were to come in and do a check-in with you, okay?
So we're not trying to fix anything per se unless we know that it's not working. So here's some of my, my suggestions and my markers. The first one is you can find things. If you can find things, there's actually like a, a sentence that I'll always use for the definition of organized. So when people will say like, you know, “How do I know if my stuff's organized or whatever?”
I'll say, “When you can find the stuff you need when you need it as fast and efficiently as possible.” It doesn't mean you're finding it immediately right away, I say efficiently and as easily as possible, but that you can find things, that you can find the stuff when you need them as soon and as efficiently as possible.
You know where to go to find it. You can locate it when you need that thing without pulling everything out. That is a working system, so that's one marker, one way to tell. Another marker is things go back, so they have a home for everything. So not perfectly, doesn't always have to be immediately. I mean, life happens and we're living it as we go along, sometimes we're dropping stuff off on the counter in, in the closet floor, you know, but there is an ultimate place where the stuff will go to when you're ready to clean it up.
And they do generally end up there at some point. I actually have an entire episode where, where I talk about, is it organized? Are you organized or are you just, do you need cleaning? Two very different actions. But if you're organized, it's usually you know where to put it back. If you notice yourself returning things to the same spot consistently, then your system is holding up.
Another marker is the space has some breathing room. Uh, we talk about white space breathing room in many of our episodes, and it's still true here. If you can move around in your storage space, if there is a margin, even a shelf or a corner like where things can go almost like that Tetris game, that is a sign that the space is not being asked to do more than it can hold, that it's breathing and it's breathing with you and that way you can move stuff around as needed.
That is another marker that it's working for you. There's a kind of a softer marker, um, that I think is, uh, is a good one to mention is that you feel okay walking in there. Um, this one's more of a, a feeling, right? Not necessarily, um, that you're like so excited to be in there all the time, but you, that you feel okay.
You're not dreading it. Uh, that is another good sign and marker that it's working for you. Okay, so those are our questions for the week. If you have a couple more, send them my way and then we will make another episode like this one and address a few of them. If you have, if you want me to go super specific, like if you have your story to tell, I will then address it very specifically if you're not, if you're open to that.
Um, sometimes I, I stay away from the Q&A just because I, it can be so broad and I don't know your situation. So if you give me exact details, like the dynamic of your storage room, who shares a storage room with you, what is exactly bothering you, then I can answer that question specifically instead of trying to, um, you know, be vague.
But hopefully this at least helps you and guides you to, to the right direction and inspires you to take action. All right. Until next week, happy organizing. Thank you for listening to the Organized and Cherish Podcast with the Organized Flamingo. If you enjoy today's episode, I'd be so grateful if you left a rating and review on your favorite podcast player.
It helps others discover our show. For full show notes, resources and more organizing inspiration, visit
www.theorganizedflamingo.com/podcast. Until next time, happy organizing.