What Do Rotten Produce and School Shopping Have in Common?

I'm sure you've seen that Staples commercial with the joyous parents, leaping around the store to the tune of "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year", haven't you?  Summer is nice and all, but getting back to our regularly scheduled programs is a huge relief.

But, with the end of summer comes back-to-school shopping (THE HORROR!).  Well, no need to freak out.  If you've been trying to live more frugally (like I have), just think of this like grocery shopping:

• It's okay to buy necessities now.  Some schools are on top of it and send home school supply lists along with end of year grades, but many wait until school starts.  Either way, you know certain things like backpacks and lunchboxes are essential.  So, don't wait until they're picked over or cleared out on the first day of school. 
  
  (FYI: Thirty-One Gifts is having a great 15% off everything sale until the end of August.  It would be a great time to buy one of the cute new backpacks, lunch totes, pencil pouches, or organizing products to get students, parents, and teachers ready for the new year!)

  

  Save 15% off All Items (Sale ends August 31st)

• Stock up on staples while they're on sale.  They won't go bad.  Every week leading up to the start of school, different stores will have crazy sales on some items. 
• Don't drive yourself bonkers trying to go to every store, and don't fall for the trap of going in for the sale and then paying full price for the other items on your list.  Just pick 1 or 2 stores and load up on their weekly deal items. If notebook paper is 25 cents a pack, stock up so you won't find yourself paying full-price mid-year. 
• Many stores (like Staples, Office Max, and Office Depot) have price-matching policies, so if there's a sale on a name-brand item, bring your circular and save money, time, and gas.
• If you get a few items each week for the next 3 weeks, you'll find your list complete in no time!
• Don't buy your kid's whole fall wardrobe now.  In most areas of the country, your child won't need that wool skirt or those sweater vests for at least another month.  Buy a few transitions pieces to layer over their summer clothes, then pick up those cute fall outfits when they go on sale at the end of September.

For more great tips, pick up the August 26th issue of All You magazine or check out their website.

Two Birds with One Stone

Some might call me lazy, but I prefer to think of myself as conserving energy. Why do more than is absolutely necessary, right?  That's called working smarter, not harder!  Well, when it comes to accessorizing, I want items that are multipurpose.  Why have 5 purses for work, 4 for the weekend, and 3 more for evenings?

Enter one of my best sellers since starting my Thirty-One business: The Fitted Skirt Purse.  This is one time that having multiple personalities is an asset!  One purse plus multiple skirts solves all kinds of problems:

• It saves time from not having to transfer everything from one bag to another.
• It saves headaches from not remembering which purse contains an important item that was left inside the last time you used the bag.
• It rewards you with multiple looks without the high cost.  Plus you don't need as much space for storage since the skirts store flat.
• The skirts are easy to personalize to create your own unique look.

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This is a great time to by The Fitted Skirt Purse, additional skirts, or any of Thirty-One's great handbags.  As I mentioned last week, March's customer special is for every $31 you spend, you can buy any purse (or skirt) for 50% off!  That means if you buy:

• A Coin Purse Wallet for $35, you can get a Fitted Skirt Purse for only $21! 
• Or, a Mini Zipper Pouch for $10 plus $6 for embroidery, a Mirror Compact for $10, and a Wristlet Key Fob for $5 to get your Fitted Skirt Purse for only $21! 

There are just so many ways to take advantage of this month's great deal!

Encouraging Others, Rewarding Yourself

Thirty-One is all about Celebrating, Encouraging and Rewarding Women. The special for March is for every $31 you spend, you get one purse for 1/2 off!  This month's special on purses makes it a great time to freshen up your purse wardrobe with great Spring colors and patterns. And why not let your good fortune benefit others too?

This month I'd like to encourage disadvantaged ladies by donating gently used professional-looking purses, totes, attachés, briefcases, and scarves to Dress for Success (http://www.dressforsuccess.org/).  The mission of Dress for Success is to promote the economic independence of disadvantaged women by providing professional attire, a network of support and the career development tools to help women thrive in work and in life.

For each item donated, you'll receive an entry into a drawing on March 31st.  If you don't see me on a regular basis, feel free to call me (301-919-1787) or email me (KimSells31@gmail.com), and I'd be happy to arrange a day and time to pick up your donations.

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No Need to Fear: Organizing for Tax Season

Tax season has arrived.  If that statement has you breaking into a cold sweat, you’re not alone.  People dread taxes for many reasons: not having the money to pay what they owe, fear of being audited, hatred of math, and disorganization.  If you’re an adult, I probably won’t have much luck convincing you that math is fun (of course as a former math teacher, I may be a bit biased).  That said, getting organized can prevent you for paying more than you really owe and it will ensure you maintain the documentation you need in case of an audit.

If you have an overflowing pile of mail that you are loathe to tackle, where do you start? As with most things organization-related, the keys are:

1. Convenience (If there are too many steps or everything is not within easy reach, you're not likely to follow through.)
2. Routine (If you wait until the last minute, you WILL be overwhelmed.  Doing a little at a time makes a huge difference without requiring a huge amount of effort.)

My first suggestion is to do the paperwork filing as it comes in.  Dumping everything in one bottomless box until tax time is not the way to go.  Keep separate files for:

• banking
• retirement/investment accounts
• loans
• education expenses
• dependent (child/elder) care
• medical expenses
• business expenses
• work expenses
• charitable donations
• miscellaneous (anything else that you may need to track)

My second tip is to keep your files right next to where you handle your mail (your mail table, desk, etc.)  If you have to take it to another room to file, you're likely to do what I've done in the past: put aside for later (which usually doesn't come until you need to clean for guests or until tax time). 

Hint: try the Organizing Utility Tote for keeping your tax files tidy and convenient.  It's cute, can easily be toted to your home office or your accountant, and it stows neatly under or next to your mail table/desk.

 


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You’ve Got to Start Somewhere

It’s a new year (funny how that seems to sneak up on me every 12 months), and my resolution is to be willing to step out and try new things.  One of those is my new business venture as an Independent Consultant for Thirty-One Gifts.  Another is my desire to help others (like myself) who may be struggling to bring order and beauty to their disorganized lives. 

As a woman with Adult ADD, if my surroundings are cluttered, so is my mind.  I just can’t function to the best of my abilities when my surroundings are disorganized.  Of course getting things together is easier said than done (especially with a husband, 5 year-old daughter, 8 month-old son, and a mutt who takes pride in shedding her black fur wherever she goes).

With months (or years) of clutter, it can be extremely overwhelming to figure out where to dive in.  My advice?

• Start small.  (Yes, it all needs to be tackled, but not all at once.  Break a big project into smaller, more manageable pieces.)
• Be consistent.  (If you devote 5-10 minutes every day, you’d be surprised how much of an improvement you’ll see.)
• KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid.  Don’t try to put everything where it belongs all at once.  As you go through each room separate things into 3 sections: keep, donate/sell, and trash.  As you move from room to room, unload the things that belong in that room, and put out of place items in the keep pile.  Hint: the Thirty-One Large Utility Tote can make carrying your keep pile from room to room easy.  Another one for your donation pile makes collection a snap.  Plus, they collapse easily for storage when not in use.)




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• Reward yourself!  (After you've completed your brief cleaning/organizing session, treat yourself to a cup of tea, a bubble bath, or that TV program you've been looking forward to all day.)