February 2013 Challenge: Office & Closets {Office Space Refresh}

Yesterday I spent the morning cleaning and reorganizing my office space.

I know my space doesn't appear to be super messy - it's mostly just piles of stuff that needs to be put away. My whole focus in refreshing this space was to make it feel less busy and get rid of the junk that doesn't belong.

These are the "before" pictures...

Under my table I have a 3-drawer bin that holds my office supplies and electronics accessories. These drawers were beginning to feel like they were just collecting things I wasn't using on a regular basis, or at all anymore. I went through the drawers and sorted everything out, only keeping the items I need at my desk.

The top drawer holds my office supplies. I wasn't getting a ton of use out of this drawer because I had a bunch of stuff in there that I wasn't using, and it was just taking up space. I only kept the essentials.

before

contents

after

 The middle drawer is for electronics accessories, such as USB drives, camera cables, etc.

before

after

The bottom drawer was holding craft supplies, but being that I haven't even touched any of this stuff in months, it was time to find a new home for it.

before

contents

This drawer now holds new ink cartridges and those that I need to take to Staples to recycle.

after

 Nothing new here - just added the February calendar.

I cleaned out my pencil/pen cup and decided to take some to school. So many colorful writing utensils! =]

I printed a new to-do list to keep on my desk. You can download this same list for free here.

Overall, there isn't a huge difference in my space, but I noticed that I was able to work better today. I have more space for my planning materials for school. I have more space for blogging. It just feels more simplistic without all of the junk surrounding me.

Have you worked on your office space in the last week? If so, share what you changed about your space.

February 2013 Challenge: Office & Closets {Inspiration}

In getting ready to revamp my office space and closets, I've been searching for inspiration. Where better to look other than Pinterest?

In an effort to not have others' images repinned from my blog post, I'm not going to post any pictures in this post. Many will just pin an image without seeing that there is another owner to the image, linked through Pinterest. I, personally, will only pin an image if I know I'm pinning it directly from the original owner of the image because I think they deserve all credit.

Here are my pin boards, which you can view, with or without a Pinterest account...

Home: Offices

Home: Craft Rooms

Home: Closets

DIY: Organize

DIY: Paper Clutter Solved

If you have a Pinterest account, which you've used to pin inspiration, please share below! =]

Happy Valentine's Day!

Wonderful Words for Wednesday {Just Let It Go...}

credit: Sweet Blessings

I need this as a constant reminder and currently have it as my PC wallpaper.

Have a great Wednesday!

February 2013 Challenge: Office & Closets {Identify Purpose}

I read your comments in last week's intro post and it sounds like most of us struggle with the same basic issue - your office {room or space} and your closets have become catch-alls. Paper clutter, holiday decorations, "extras" of items, etc. - nothing has a real "home". I can totally relate. In our one bedroom apartment, we have a small coat closet, a small bedroom closet {which Chris uses} and a hallway walk-in closet {which I use for my clothes and storage}. My "office" is a kitchen table I've transformed into my workspace - for blogging, bill paying {and all other paper management}, running my small businesses, planning for school, etc. Since it's located right inside our front door, it catches everything that comes in - mail, school materials, purchases, receipts, etc.

I mentioned above all of the ways I use my office space, so I definitely have a lot going on in this area. I have a lot of unneeded items on my desk and in the drawers underneath - something that needs to be repurposed. I need to only keep those things I need for my office at my desk. Everything else needs to go or be housed elsewhere.

The coat closet kind of accumulates random stuff we purchase and needs a thorough cleaning. My closet is fine on the clothes side, but the shelves are an absolute mess and also accumulate random things that don't have a home. Part of my whole New Years goal was to simplify. I think it's time to purge and donate!

I have Monday off for President's Day, so I plan on working on my office space and closets this weekend. I will be sure to take before, process, and after photos and share next week.

Your challenge this week is to look at your office and/or closets that need help and identify the purpose for these spaces. For your office - what tasks do you manage in this area and what needs to stay? For your closets - what items will you store in each closet? What can you donate?

Windows 8 & Microsoft Love #WindowsChampions

I have been using my Microsoft Surface for a few months now and absolutely love it. The Surface runs Windows RT {which is a mobile version of Windows 8}.

To log in to my Surface, I need a Microsoft account. This account syncs across all of my Windows/Microsoft products and devices. I have a Zune music subscription and I can access my subscription on both my laptop through the software and on the Surface through the music app. It's pretty awesome.

The picture above is my Start screen - which is the "home" screen I view when I log in. The Surface has a touch screen, so everything is easy to navigate with the new Windows 8 app menu. Honestly, I'm not sure that I'd be crazy about Windows 8 without the touch capabilities. Being able to navigate the Start screen on a Windows 8 PC via touch is just so incredibly user friendly.

Windows 8 definitely takes some time to get use to. Knowing some tips ahead of time definitely helps...

• Windows lets you personalize your content. The lock screen acts as your entry into the OS.
• Picture password allows you to personalize your story and you can touch on various areas of the photo to unlock your screen.
• The Start screen allows you to organize apps and content by category. You can create your own unique personalized experience through the lock screen, picture password and the start screen. 
• Search: You can easily search Windows via the Search charm. 
• Apps/Windows Store: Pepperplate app is a really easy way to stay organized in the kitchen and create your own cookbook. When you purchase an app, you can use that app on up to 5 devices. The AllRecipes app is also a great cooking app. 
• Snap: Snap lets you multitask on your Windows 8 device. You can get more done when you snap a second app to the left or right side of your screen.
• SkyDrive: You can store you music, photos, video etc.

Last week Office 2013 was released. I use Microsoft PowerPoint to create all of my files - for my classroom, Etsy, etc. - so I was quick to purchase the new version. So far I am absolutely loving it. More on that in a later post. View all of the free templates available for Microsoft Office.

If you’re a college or University student, check out this awesome deal on Windows 8.

• College and university students with a valid email address can upgrade to Windows 8 Pro online for just $69.99 USD via the Microsoft Store. For more information, check out Microsoft News Center or the Windows blog.

For more Windows 8 info from Microsoft, check out the Windows Experience Blog.

I am a Windows Champions blogger and I received loan of a laptop and may receive other equipment from Microsoft to assist me in evaluating Microsoft products and services for my blogging activity. 

February 2013 Challenge: Office & Closets

The February challenge will be office and closets. This month's challenge won't have daily posts during the week, but 2 posts a week instead.

What are the areas you're having trouble organizing in your home office/desk area? What about closets? Comment below to let me know!