Ellen Hankes

Keeping Collected Quilts and Memorabilia

If it isn't practical for you to incorporate the display or use of quilts in your everyday life, consider SafeKeep Storage Box Kits to protect these special textiles. Each kit includes a durable box, acid-free tissue paper, large polyethylene bags and a desiccant. You'll be able to organize the quilts or coverlets and preserve them at the same time.

If you are interested in preserving other textiles, photographic materials, or paper memorabilia, check out the archival supplies at Light Impressions.

Do you have a storage challenge related to collections or memorabilia? We would like to hear from you.

Tips for Keeping Heirloom Quilts in Tip-Top Shape

Like some people, some quilts live interesting lives. They are displayed in a home or museum and viewed by appreciative eyes. Other quilts live a lonely existence in the dark of a closet or drawer. As we work with organizing clients, we often come across the social kind of quilts as well as the lonely quilts.

For quilt owners, here are a couple of recommendations I wanted to pass on to you.

Nancy Kirk, a renown quilt restoration expert, periodically teaches classes on restoring old quilts. Nancy Kirk's Beginning Quilt Restoration Workshop as well as the Advanced version explores the fascinating world of fabric conservation and fabric dating. Several years ago I enrolled in the beginning workshop. It was an experience in honoring those who crafted the quilts as well as an exercise in bringing the time-weary quilts into the reality of the 21st century.

You will find Nancy Kirk's free Quilt Inventory Form to be a valuable tool for recording information about your special quilts. Don't let the story of the quilt disappear over time!

How have you honored the past with quilts or other collectibles? We would like to hear from you!

Rewards for Recycling Dead Electronics

Americans have closets and basements full of dead electronics. Technology has moved on and many consumers still have outdated, unused electronic equipment lurking in their offices and homes.

If someone gave you a free pre-paid shipping label would you move the old computers, LCD monitors, game systems, MP3 players and more out of your valuable space?

A program that reclaims the materials in obsolete and unusable electronic equipment is ecoNEW. Check their website for participating retailers. Currently, Sam's Club is listed as a program participant.

Enter information regarding the type of electronics and specific details about the item. If there is a value to the components, that will be shown. For example, today's value of an iPod Nano is $32.

Have you used a service to recycle your obsolete electronics? We would like to hear about your experience!

The Power of Positive Self-Talk

"I climbed that mountain!"

"I can do this!"

This type of affirmative self-talk is empowering. Telling ourselves the good news we recognize in the life around us reaffirms our strengths and capabilities.

We celebrate other's successes but are sometimes slow to recognize our own. It is time to start talking to yourself and telling the good news,

Often when we say goodbye to an organizing client with who we helped find calm amidst chaos, the client will tell us how much better they feel. You can begin to lift the load off your shoulders with some Positive Self-Talk!

How would you characterize your self-talk? We would like to hear from you!

Overcoming Overcommitment

I picked up a Sunday newspaper to read during the 8 hour car ride as we traveled home after spending time with our family. As usual, the news and views kept me occupied and entertained as the miles sped by.

If you are troubled by overcommitment in your life, check out Mary Steinke's Hearts at Home column Watch Out for That Minivan. Mary tells a haunting story and shares what she learned as she addressed overcommitment in her life.

Have you thought about the word NO as a positive, rather than negative, word? As Mary Steinke puts it, "Saying no allows someone else to say yes."

Do you allow NO to be a positive word in your life? We would like to hear about your experience.

Grief: Getting a Grip on Organization

  "I just can't seem to get organized!" A familiar lament of a grieving person, this is ofen a clue that some extra help is needed during the aftermath of a life change.

A few ways to help a grieving person get a grip on organization include:

Why is Organization a Problem During Grief?

As individuals deal with intense change, they experience a roller coaster of emotions. The mental and emotional processing of the "Why" and "What If" questions require a mega-amount of work and energy. Add that to the disruptions in every day life that accompany major change. Throw in a dose of learning new roles or taking on additional unfamiliar responsibilities. Don't overlook the consequences of lost sleep. And on top of all that, a person is supposed to be organized?

That is a lot to ask of another person. That is a lot to ask of oneself.

Regaining Your Balance Through Grief

Imagine standing with both feet solidly planted on the broad sidewalk. Suddenly a violent unexpected force of some kind--wind, fist, heavy tree limb, something fierce--knocks you to the hard, cold unyielding surface. Whatever the cause of the upset, the loss of your balance starts a chain of events that could affect you in physical, emotional, and behavioral ways.

Change in a person's life can trigger grief. Grief is an individual's way of dealing with the imbalance of change.From a productivity and organization standpoint, grief can manage to substantially affect one's ability to move through life changes.

Manage Mail Delivery While on Vacation

Don't overlook the power of the web when preparing to leave home for a few days. Complete the easy-to-use form for holding mail on the US Postal Service website. Various services are available depending on your zip code. Check the specifications and make the arrangements several days before you leave town.

Generally, I request that my mail be delivered on the day of my return. As long as the accumulated mail fits in my oversize mailbox, it is delivered to my own mailbox if I selected that option on the web form.

No more circling the post office while looking for a parking place. No more having to remember the small piece of paper need to claim my mail at the post office.

What tips do you have for managing the mail after you return! Have a great trip!

Change Along the Way

  Tonight as we drove along the country road we observed the fawn separated from its mother which we could see on the other side of the road. The exquisite baby dappled with white spots was calm and still as we watched each other.

The fawn's white spots were clearly defined on this early August evening. In just weeks the spots will disappear, never to be seen again on this white tail deer. Another sign of change was presented in this graceful creature.

I couldn't help but think about change and the way we humans resist change. When we survey the contents of our homes we may see things that no longer serve our needs or our future lives. Consider the past, present and future. What percentage of your belongings would you assign to the past, present or future for you?

How do you deal with change? We would like to hear about your experience.