Round vs. square

Whenever you have the option, choose square or rectangular containers over round ones. Round containers waste space in cabinets, drawers and the refrig. Square or rectangular containers stack well and you can fit more of them on a shelf.

Tablecloths

Last week I was asked to visit a home going on the market to check on the staging which the homeowner had done themselves. The house looked quite nice until we got to the dining room. The large dining table was covered with a solid white lace table cloth and a small vase with flowers sat on top. I suggested that either the tablecloth be removed or the table be completely set. When a table is covered in a solid cloth it forces you to focus directly on it and completely stops the flow of the room.




The homeowner did not want to remove the cloth, which she had kept on that table for years, so we went about setting a very elegant table. It made a huge difference in the way the room looked and felt.

If given a choice, I would prefer a table runner to a full table cloth for everyday use. Table cloths work best for specific occasions, dinner parties and outdoor dining tables.

Put a label on it

Label it, label it, label it! Organizers swear by labeling for a good reason - it works. Everyone in the house knows where things go or can be found when containers, shelves, drawers, etc. are labeled. We learned this lesson when we went off to school and mom sewed our names on our jacket or marked our undies for camp.

I use a Brother P-Touch labeler from Office Depot.

Am I my stuff?

Like many of you, I am reading Eckhart Tolle's book "A New Earth". Of course, the passages that get the most attention from me are about the ego and its identification with "stuff". "The unconscious compulsion to enhance one's identity through association with an object is built into the very structure of the egoic mind." This explains how we have become the most consumer driven society that has ever existed. The questions I will now add to my client questionnaire are: How do you identify with your "stuff"? Will it diminish you to let go of your stuff?

A rose by any other name

Who says you can't have silk flowers in your house that look real? I know that Nate Berkus doesn't like fake flowers, but I do.

As I've said before, I can't have real flowers and plants in my house because of the cats. But I like the look of greenery and flowers in a home, so the next best thing has been to use the fakes. I am careful to choose the most attractive silks and paper that I can find. The good ones are somewhat expensive, but when you compare them to the real thing, which you will not get to use year after year, then it's definitely worth the investment.

My week in Santa Rosa

I just returned from a week in Santa Rosa. I was invited to speak at 4 senior moving seminars given by the new senior community at Fountaingrove called Varenna. They are almost finished and ready for the first move ins. I spoke about the joys of downsizing and the moving process.

But no matter how much we talk about downsizing, it seems that everyone wants to bring more than their new apartments will hold. The hottest discussion at all four sessions revolved around renting extra garages to store stuff in.