The best way to fold a shirt?

There are a bunch of videos online demonstrating how to fold a t-shirt in the Japanese style, that should take about two seconds once you get the hang of it. It's fun to watch the short Japanese version of the videos, but kind of hard to figure out what to do.



I was skeptical of a video titled How to Fold a T Shirt in 2 Seconds that's two and half minutes long, but it actually is the one you want to watch if you want to be able to do this nifty folding trick yourself.

23 1/2 Hours

Someone in my pre-natal water fitness class mentioned this video to me, and I found it very well done and compelling. It certainly puts into perspective the amount of time in a day, and how much positive impact spending just one half hour a day on something as simple as walking can have. 

Christmas box revisited

Here's a video I made last year showing off my ultra-organized Christmas box. I can still fit everything I need for Christmas decorating in this single container. For my little apartment, anything else would be overkill. I strongly encourage you to take a look at your holiday decorations and make sure you're using everything, or almost everything, that you store 11 months of the year.

I can help you get your decorations manageable.

Call Lelah at 818.269.6671

or email lelah@lelahwithanh.com

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A year ago: videos galore

Last July I posted to this blog 16 (!) times. I'm not going to recap them all for you (you can use the archives navigation in the right sidebar to access them all, if you want), because that sounds exhausting, but I will draw your attention to a few of my early video blogs, because they are fun. Enjoy!

Corner Clutter
Entryway Organization
Recipe Binders
Really Useful Boxes

What I use to create my genius video blogs!

Creative Commons photo posted to Flickr by Mac Users Guide

Lelah Baker-Rabe is a Los Angeles-based professional organizer. To discuss your organizing needs, call her at 818.269.6671 or email lelah@lelahwithanh.com. Sign up for Lelah's News, a once-monthly newsletter.

A year ago: Aprons, dining halls and a book review

My blog posts from the last half of May 2010 covered a lot of ground. I posted my first video blog about the simple genius of using a Command hook to hang up my apron. I recapped a bunch of 2009 blog posts in two separate posts. I shared my techniques for preparing for my college reunion and after returning, shared some memories of the now-destroyed dining hall. Lastly, I reviewed Linda Samuels' book The Other Side of Organized. I still really recommend this book for people who want gentle organizing guidance through a life change. Organizing is a powerful way to regain control over the physical stuff in our lives, and it can empower us to reshape our lives in other areas as well.

Lelah Baker-Rabe is a Los Angeles-based professional organizer. To discuss your organizing needs, call her at 818.269.6671 or email lelah@lelahwithanh.com. Sign up for Lelah's News, a once-monthly newsletter.

A year ago: Common clutter, calendaring and Martha

Last March I published one of my favorite posts. It's about what to do with three common kinds of clutter. They are electronic clutter (still one of the most common issues I see in my clients' offices), plastic shopping bags (please get in the habit of bringing your own reusable bags!), and used ink cartridges. Staples now offers just $2 in credit per cartridge, but you can recycle up to 10 a month, which adds up.

Last year's "mark your calendar" post is a bit out of date now, but still be aware that Daylight Saving Time starts this Sunday, March 13, and we will be moving our clocks forward an hour.

Martha Stewart is amazing, but sometimes the things she recommends can be overkill. In this post, I analyzed her video about closet organization. What do you think?

Creative Commons ink cartridge photo posted to Flickr by kennymatic
Lelah Baker-Rabe is a Los Angeles-based professional organizer. To discuss your organizing needs, call her at 818.269.6671 or email lelah@lelahwithanh.com 

Video: Lelah at the 2011 LA Organizing Awards

I attended the 2011 Los Angeles Organizing Awards at the end of January, and recorded this little video about my business while I was there. What do you think?



Thanks to Lisa Suchesk for her help recording it!

 Lelah Baker-Rabe is a Los Angeles-based professional organizer. To discuss your organizing needs, call her at 818.269.6671 or email lelah@lelahwithanh.com

The Christmas box

I have a simple method for keeping myself organized around Christmas. I store everything Christmas related, from wrapping paper to books in a single plastic storage box. Check it out:



This method works for any holiday you really get into celebrating. Keeping decorations limited to what you can fit in a box makes it easy to put up, take down, put away and store them year after year.

Lelah Baker-Rabe is a Los Angeles-based professional organizer. To discuss your organizing needs, call her at 818.269.6671 or email lelah@lelahwithanh.com

How to fold a fitted sheet

One of the most clutter-heavy and messy parts of many people's homes is their linen closet. I avoid this clutter-trap in my own home by only having one set of sheets for each bed. You really need no more than two, so if you have more than that, consider donating some. You can save room by folding your sheets neatly and if you have no linen closet, you can store them between the mattress and box spring, just put your fitted sheet on one side and your top sheet and pillow cases on the other. I could never understand how to fold fitted sheets until I saw a demonstration of it. Here's a really good video that shows you how.



Lelah Baker-Rabe is a Los Angeles-based professional organizer. To discuss your organizing needs, call her at 818.269.6671 or email lelah@lelahwithanh.com

My egg-breaking moment

My friend Susan Baker, aka The Escape Hatcher, has a wonderful series on her website where she profiles local business people and asks them to share either an "egg breaking" or "lemonade making" moment from their business lives, so others can learn from the tough decisions that they had to make. I shared one of my early egg breaking moments with Susan last summer, but never posted the video here, so here it is.



Lelah Baker-Rabe is a Los Angeles-based professional organizer. To discuss your organizing needs, call her at 818.269.6671 or email lelah@lelahwithanh.com

Video review: Slimline hangers

I recently purchased a set of Real Simple slimline hangers in the color stone. Here's my video review:



Have you used another brand? What do you think?

Lelah Baker-Rabe is a Los Angeles-based professional organizer. To discuss your organizing needs, call her at 818.269.6671 or email lelah@lelahwithanh.com

Video: Really Useful Boxes

I'm not devoted to very many organizing products. In general, I think organizing products are overrated and overpriced. But I do love Really Useful Boxes. Watch the video to find out why!



P.S. I've never been paid or asked to do a review of Really Useful Boxes by anyone!

Lelah Baker-Rabe is a Los Angeles-based professional organizer. To discuss your organizing needs, call her at 818.269.6671 or email lelah@lelahwithanh.com

Video: Recipe binders

Recently I changed the way I organize my loose recipes from a file folder system to three-ring binders. Binders are great for lots of organizing projects, and the following video shows how I put together ones to contain all my loose recipes.

You may also be interested in my three part series on how to organize recipes: cookbooks, individual loose recipes and digital recipes.



Lelah Baker-Rabe is a Los Angeles-based professional organizer. To discuss your organizing needs, call her at 818.269.6671 or email lelah@lelahwithanh.com

Video: Entryway organization

Here's another quick video I made to show off my entryway table and how I keep myself organized there. Please note - all the corner clutter has gone!



Lelah Baker-Rabe is a Los Angeles-based professional organizer. To discuss your organizing needs, call her at 818.269.6671 or email lelah@lelahwithanh.com

Videos: My corner clutter

Even professional organizers have stuff they don't need in their homes. I went through my bookshelves a while back and have been steadily adding to a pile near the door other items that are no longer useful to me. Unfortunately, the pile is still there after several weeks.



Solution: Today, I'm taking the books to my local used bookstore and turning them in for credit. Any that they don't want, I will take to my nearest Goodwill drop of location along with the clothes and household items. I'll be sure to get a receipt that I can use if I decide to deduct to my donations on my taxes next year. That's it - two stops and I'll have my corner back, some books credit and a tax write-off. If I can do it, you can, too!

Lelah Baker-Rabe is a Los Angeles-based professional organizer. To discuss your organizing needs, call her at 818.269.6671 or email lelah@lelahwithanh.com 

Videos: My new apron hook

Here's my first attempt at a video blog post. What do you think? It's only about 20 seconds long - take a look!

Lelah Baker-Rabe is a Los Angeles-based professional organizer. To discuss your organizing needs, call her at 818.269.6671 or email lelah@lelahwithanh.com 

Organizing overkill: a case study

I love Martha Stewart. I love her plummy speaking voice and her way of making the most complicated domestic task seem like it should be as easy as eating an apple. I love the soft palatte that she favors, even though I always go for colors that are bolder. I think she’s great, but there’s no question that she tends toward overdoing it from time to time (check out these children’s Halloween costumes).

Here’s a video of her with Martha Stewart Living’s editorial director of design, Kevin Sharkey, talking about closet organizing essentials. Some of the suggestions are normal, such as using the right kind of hanger for different kinds of clothes and using thinner hangers for shirts so you can fit more in your closet.

However, how many of us really want to use cedar shoe trees for every pair of shoes in our closets? It strikes me as a bit unnecessary and not the best use of time (pulling and pushing the shoe trees in and out every day) and money; cedar shoe trees are not cheap.

It would be lovely to have every sweater in your closet folded like it is at the Gap, but I can’t imagine it being a priority for most of us. Perhaps if you pay someone to do your laundry you could have them watch this video and ask them to do it that way.

I do like the idea of having a mending kit and sewing kit stashed near your clothes and shoes. Unless you wouldn’t know how to sew a button back on even if you have all the materials, in which case you should learn or toss gear you’ll never make use of.

Lelah Baker-Rabe is a Los Angeles-based professional organizer. To discuss your organizing needs, call her at 818.269.6671 or email lelah@lelahwithanh.com

Lelah with an h: learning every day!

Maintaining this blog helps me explore my own philosophy of organizing, helps me stay in touch with colleagues and friends who are not local, and serves to illustrate my expertise for potential clients. I have less time to write when I have more client work, which I suppose is a good thing, but I wanted to share some of the non-blog things I have been up to.

Networking
I belong to a few local networking groups. One is called NOHOpreneurs and is based in North Hollywood, California. This group is aimed at local entrepreneurs and giving us a resource for talking about and getting feedback on successes and challenges that our businesses are facing. It's run by the terrific Susan Baker, whose own business, The Escape Hatcher, helps people transition from their day jobs to their dream jobs, which is often a transition to entrepreneurship or starting a business on the side. If you own a business or are even thinking about entrepreneurship and are in the NoHo area, check out the group at meetup.com.

The second group that I'm involved with is called Biznik. It's a free site for entrepreneurs and I like the free events that members host. It's a good way to meet other local entrepreneurs, pass out business cards and practice your spiel. Everyone who comes to Biznik functions is really nice and interesting. I'm starting a monthly mixer in the San Fernando Valley area in order to keep the Biznik momentum going. Again, sign up if you're local and want to meet some great people.

Lastly, when I'm able to get there I love to attend the monthly Ojai Women's Business Social. I grew up in Ojai and it is a beautiful place to visit, even for a few hours. It's definitely worth the drive to meet and talk with so many wonderful businesswomen. Jodi Womack, the founder, has grown it into a really special event with a fantastic turnout.

Professional growth
I'm constantly learning new things about organizing strategies and the organizing industry by reading, attending workshops and teleseminars. This week I attended two amazing teleseminars that were part of the Organizing Telesummit put on by The Professional Organizer Allison Carter, who also runs Organizer U, a business for fledgling professional organizers. One of the classes (taught by Elizabeth Hagen) was on developing speaking as part of my professional organizing business, which was really inspiring and has me itching to put on my own series of free workshops. The second was on Getting Unstuck, with Ariane Benefit, which was mainly about how to approach organizing, and really, life, when you have ADD and/or are highly intelligent and creative and don't interact with life the way most people do. I learned a tremendous amount from both classes and they served to reinvigorate my love for my chosen profession.

Video blogging
I've wanted to create a video of myself illustrating organizing tips for a while now, and it hasn't ever moved to the top of the to do list, but I'm going to hold myself accountable for actually doing this by putting it on my blog. Hopefully, one of the next blog posts you see on here will be in video format. Exciting!

Client work
I have had a busy January working with fabulous new clients. I learn something new from them every day. The hands-on organizing I do really makes me feel like I'm helping people live better lives and makes me grateful for realizing that this business is what I really want to do when I get out of bed every morning. So thank you!

Creative Commons video/computer photo posted to Flickr by Jakob Montrasio

Lelah Baker-Rabe is a Los Angeles-based professional organizer. To discuss your organizing needs, call her at 818.269.6671 or email lelah@lelahwithanh.com