Luv Your Luggage

Baggalini Quilted Rolling Tote

Say HELLO to my lovely new piece of luggage!  

I've had my eye on this adorable bag by Baggalini for quite a while, and the moment 

I got notice that it went on sale at The Container Store I ran in there and bought it.  

It was absolutely perfect for my quick trip last weekend to Vegas for a friend's birthday.

I love how it has such large pockets that fit everything including my clothes, a laptop, my toiletry bag and a few pairs of shoes.  It also unzips in the middle to lay flat which is great for packing it up.

The best part about it is that it can fit everything I need and it fits under the seat on the plane.  Seriously!!

Eagle Creek Pack-It Cube

This organized packer always uses these amazing cubes from Eagle Creek to keep my clothes from getting wrinkled.  It also makes packing and unpacking a breeze.  

I was able to fit two (double-sided) cubes in my bag.

I swear that I was skipping through the Vegas airport- I'm sure the other travelers were sure that I had just hit the jackpot, but no one could have guessed that I was just giddy about my luggage.  

Wow, I AM a nerd!

~Leah 

elfa Sale!!!

This is the first year in five years that I have not been designing closets at

The Container Store for their HUGE sale.  

The Container Store

A part of me is having "elfa withdrawal," but at least I still get emails from the store 

with photos of all the amazing organized solutions. 

Have you ever tried elfa in your home?  

They call it the "Potato Chip Product": Once you try it, you keep buying more! 

~Leah

Putting it all back

Is anyone dreading having to pack up all of their holiday decorations?

Let's be honest, it's so much more fun taking everything out and making the house look festive than putting it all back.

To help you make the clean up a bit easier,

here are some of my favorite Holiday Organizing products:

Organize.com

These ornament drawers not only keep things organized, but they make it so much easier to see what you have.  The labels on each drawer and the side handles are great added features!  

The Container Store

This wreath storage box is NEW at the Container Store.  The fact that it stands upright and has a top handle is so great for storing in small spaces.  They can also stack.  

Organize.com

I love this stylish china storage box.  They come in all the sizes you would need and look great stored away.  You can also fold them up when not in use.

So, what are your favorite Holiday Storage items?  Anything you are struggling with?  Tell the truth, how long do you keep your decorations up?  Please don't tell me Valentine's Day!  

~Leah

Hello everyone!  

I just got back from a wonderful trip to Washington DC visiting family and celebrating the holidays.  

It was such a fun trip, and not too chilly.  Yay! 

Festive decorations at the White House

Adorable name cards for our interfaith family

Our stockings stuffed with goodies!

Cozy Wine Glass Slippers

We spent the last five days snuggling with our new nephew, eating delicious food (and lots of sweets!), and exploring the city.  It was a great trip, but I always try to make some notes about what worked and didn't work.  Remember my Thanksgiving Wrap Up?  

Well, here's my Holiday Wrap Up: 

1. When traveling across the country with gifts, try not to buy bulky items that are hard to pack.

2. The gift totes I bought from Michael's worked perfectly for fast and easy wrapping.

3. Uggs are great for traveling to cold weather locations and so easy to slip on and off at security.

4. Make notes about gifts right away so that I don't forget anything when writing my thank you's.

5. Bring more travel space bags for sweatshirts and other bulky items in my suitcase.

Now that the holidays are coming to an end, I have lots of clients who are looking to streamline their gift wrap stash and re-work their decor storage.  I would encourage all of you to evaluate these areas now, so that next year you can spend less time dealing with holiday messes and more time eating holiday cupcakes... I mean spending time with family.  :-)

~Leah 

(photo credit: smswigart)

All Tangled Up

It seems like everyone is talking about holiday decorating right now... 

and joking about how it can be such a tangled mess!  

Even Ellen's mascot for her 12 Days of Giveaways is "Hot Mess," a ball of lights that skips around her studio giving out presents to all the screaming guests.  And last night on Whitney, her friends tried to help untangle their string of lights and completely gave up... they just stuck the whole bunch on the front.  I couldn't stop giggling!  

But you don't have to deal with your own hot mess at home.  Your lights can be easily organized and stored with these organizers:  

Wing-lid Light Storage Box

 The cord wrap organizer keeps those lights from getting into a big, messy ball.  It also makes it much easier to decorate your tree and home.  To keep the lights protected during the rest of the year, store them in this hinged, wing-lid bin.  All from The Container Store.

This year, let's leave the hot messes to the sitcoms!

~Leah

Confession

Just when I thought that my addiction to The Container Store was subsiding.... 

This arrived in the mail.  Jeesh!

Stocking Stuffer Catalog!

How am I supposed to resist that place when there are adorable and fun organizing products like this, just beckoning me to drive over there and buy them all?!

Ninja Flash Drives

I mean, seriously?  Are these for real?? 

Page Pockets

So perfect for my new notebook!

Phone Bunjee

I MUST have this!  I can't be the only person who loses her phone in her big purse, right?  

So, should I give in to temptation and go back to that lovely and amazing store?  Or should I just sit at home and pine over all the incredible things that I'm trying to resist??  

Bah!  I'm already out the door...

~Leah

My Organized Friends- Day 4

LINDSAY:

Mom-extraordinaire and seriously one of the most organized people I know; 

my dearest cousin is like my big sister.

To keep her adorable daughter's toys in order, Lindsay uses canvas bins from The Container Store.  The various sizes are perfect for small toys, books, and stuffed animals.  She swapped out the labels for a fun color that matched her living room decor.  And now my little baby cuz is learning to put her own toys away!  Organizing skills starting early... I'm so proud!  

And just for fun, here we are during a fun celebration for our grandparents' anniversary (circa 1991??).  I'm lovin' the HUGE glasses and the scrunchie.  Sorry, Linds, I had to do it.  Love ya!

~Leah

My Organized Friends!

Today kicks off a full week featuring my organized friends! 

I'm so excited to share some of their photos with you.  

Each one has their own style and loves feeling organized, just as much as I do. 

RYAN: 

My fun-loving, adorable friend who is always up for a trip to West Elm or to World Market.

Multi-purpose bins and baskets

Look at how amazing his hall closet looks when all of his miscellaneous household items are contained in these clear bins!  The handles make it easy to pull out the baskets and the clear containers are great for visibility.  All from The Container Store. 

elfa drawer units

Here is his organized pantry where he uses elfa drawer units (again, the Container Store) to keep his yummy snacks and ingredients in place.  The drawers are great for those deep cabinets!  

elfa decor closet

And last but not least, his incredible closet!  Seriously, his closet is a part of his home tour when new people come over.  He even took the doors off!!  And I can bet you that it looks this amazing any time of the day.  Inspiring or what?!  

Thank you, Ryan, for letting us into your beautiful home.  By the way, did you see the new West Elm catalog??  SWOON!

~Leah

Confession

Okay, this one was a little embarrassing for me,

but I have vowed to be honest with my readers... 

I am a receipt hoarder!!!

It's true.  I decided to go through my stuff from working at the Container Store.

 I kept my notes from closet design training, my old name tags, cute notes from coworkers (my fiance included!), and all of my reviews.  

But then I found my receipts!  EVERY SINGLE ONE from the last five years of obsessive shopping for organizing products.  This enormous pile not only proves that I am a receipt hoarder, but that I have purchased way too many things from that store!  

Well, it only took 20 minutes to go through that pile of stuff and now it is all reorganized in a smaller folder.  I also tossed out all of the receipts.  Go me!

So, friends, if you see me driving up to the store (and you truly care about me) turn me away! 

Unless I am shopping for my clients.  They give me a great excuse to go to my favorite place.  

~Leah

End of an Era

Tomorrow is a big day for me... 

It's my last day working for The Container Store.  

After over five years of running around in my cute blue apron and helping 

hundreds of customers get organized, it is time for me to move on.  

I am taking a big leap, one that I have been extremely fearful of in the past;

but with a little bit of planning and a lot of support from family and friends, 

I am just going to take this chance.

That means that I will have even more time to help my clients organize their homes!  

Thank you to everyone who has helped me get to this point.  

I am forever grateful to you.  

Oh, and if you want to learn more about the Container Store and what they are all about, 

check out their cool blog here.

 

~Leah

My Travel Essentials

Okay, folks, here are the items I couldn't have lived without during our recent trip to Europe.  

The Pacsafe Metrosafe Bag

This bag was so amazing- after getting my wallet stolen out of a backpack in Greece, I knew that I needed some extra security.  Not only does this shoulder bag have security features such as a "slashproof" strap and "smart zipper" lock, but it held everything we needed for the day.  There were spots for my maps and travel books, secure pockets for my money and passport, and just enough extra space for my umbrella and water bottle.  Loved it!  

Passport and Currency Organizer

This little gem was a big surprise.  We were lucky to only have to deal with two other types of currency (Pounds and Euros), but it was so helpful to have this currency organizer.  There are two zippers on the front, two on the back, and one on top.  I was able to keep all of the different bills and coins separated and placed my receipts in the top.  It was so thin and took up a tiny amount of space in my bag.  Just perfect!

Fine Wash Packs

Okay, this may be obvious, but having these small wash packs were so handy!  Despite always doing your best to pack the right amount of clothes, sometimes you just need to wash a few things out in the sink.  And we were very thankful to have thrown them into our suitcases.  

There will be more tips to come... but I would love to hear about some of your favorite travel essentials and what you would recommend.  There is always room for improvement!

~Leah

Feeling grateful

Tonight I am feeling two things, quite sleepy and incredibly grateful. 

I have been working some long days these past few months and even though I am pretty exhausted by the end of the day, I am beyond thrilled to be doing what I love.

Take today: I started at 5am running around the Container Store helping to merchandise all of the fun products that are VERY hard for me to resist.  Then I headed over to a client and spent 5.5 hours helping her organize her kitchen.  We cleaned out cabinets, found things she had been looking for, got rid of stuff she never used all while chatting and laughing.  It was such a joy! 

So now I am home, another evening with heavy eyelids and aching muscles... but I can't imagine doing anything else.  I am a lucky gal.

~Leah
(photo credit: Lockette)

Confession

In six days, we are jumping on a plane and heading to our European vacation!!

Two weeks of fun, adventure and definitely some delicious food.  

But all I can think of is PACKING.... ugh. 

Classic Checklist

I have my packing checklist (above), my Eagle Creek clothing organizers, and my multi-sectioned folder with all the paperwork for each country.  So, why am I so nervous?  I truly believe it's just excitement, because I know that I am too organized to be unprepared!  But getting ready for a big trip can really be stressful.  

Do you have any tips for packing and getting ready?  Any favorite travel products? 

~Leah

Keep it fresh

Do you have a favorite food storage container?  

It's amazing how many different types of storage canisters there are out there.  It can actually be kind of overwhelming to decide what is the best option.  Let's face it, all we really want is for our food to stay fresh so that when we have a craving for Fritos they aren't stale!  Right?!

Well, here are a few of my favorites:

Jars by Bodum

OXO Pop Canisters

Glass and Brushed Aluminum Canisters

~Leah

Open up those cabinets

They may have doors that keep your "secrets of disorganization" completely out of view, but those kitchen cabinets need some attention.  

For UPPER cabinets, divide the space vertically to maximize the height and to make it easier to grab dishes and bowls in stacks. 

Cupboard Shelves: The Container Store

For the LOWER cabinets, pull out drawers make it easier to access items low and in the back.  

Roll-Out Cabinet Drawer: Organize.com

Custom pull-out drawers: Shelf Genie

But, before you run out and grab these cool products you MUST sort through your kitchen gadgets and make sure that everything in those cabinets are used and loved.  And be honest with yourself: if you hate to bake, get rid of all those baking pans!

~Leah

Baskets over Plastic

Recently, I had the pleasure of assisting a new client unpack and organize her new home.  

She had great taste and preferred organizing products in natural materials instead of plastic.  

She introduced me to these cool bins from Target.  

They are from the Smith and Hawken Line and have a cool chalkboard label. 

Round Seagrass Basket

Here are some other natural faves that I have found:

Oversize Seagrass Basket

Water Hyacinth Bins

 I love having these new options for storage in the closet, toy room, living room, and even the pantry.  Being inspired by my clients is one of the best parts of my job!  

~Leah