organize to minimize

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Better iving

Themore rganizedour pace,hemore tuffi twil l ccommodateByGeorgie inks

to make sure everythingwill fit intoyour ne% smallerspace.Onceyou'vemoved, however,you realize o yourhorror that it's still not al l going to fit.What to do?\7e'vecontactedorganizingprofessionalsoast-to-coast, nd

ou'vespentweeksgoing hroughyour belongings,declutteringrooms,and holding garage alesthey'vecome up with a burrchofsolutions o help you squeeze verybitof living space ut of your new, morecompacthome.$tiutr..l'1,+riIt's important when you tackle eachroom to look at the big picture-whichreally is the new, smaller picture.Maybe you were used o having three

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kids running around in the kitchen andneededa lot of spacebefore.Orperhapsyou were addicted o acooking channeland bought everygadgetyou could find. Now's the timeto take a look ar your kitchenappliancesand gadgetsand seewhatworks best or you."You can do a ton of fabulouscooking with nothing much more thana coupleofgood knivesand a basicse t9f good, quality cookware," saysFayePlant of Edmonton. "I havea lot of 'friends with unusedbreadmachines.

Kim Eagles f Kaos Solut ions nMoncton, NB, suggestsha t youhgure olrt what you Lrseegularly andput anythingyou don't use n astoragearea, maybe an extra closet.That way valuablekitchen space sn'twasted.Hire a carpenter o increaseshelving n cupboardswhere there'smore space; his can often double the

amount of room you have.Us e heinsideof cupboarddoors or racks ohold everything from spices o fcrodwrap.Space-saving adgets an erlsomake a lot of room for:you. There zrrealso under-the-cabinet adio/CD orTV/DVD combinations ha r allow youto havehonreentertainment n thekitchen withour losing valuablecounter space.Kitchen gadgetsranging from toaster ovensand coffeemakers o microwavesan d ca n

openers an also be mountedunderneathkitchen cabinets.If that still doesn'tgive you enoughroom and you have he budget,considerbiggerchanges.When CherylGreen of Vancouver moved from alargehouse o a smallercondo. sheboughtsmaller ppl iances:"I went with a smallercooktopbecause nevercook with more than twoburnersat a rime. It alsohas a smalleroven,but I can still cook a turkey n it ormake threetraysof cookiesat a tim.. A,well,I boughta smaller ridge hattintegrated nto the cabinetsso t createsmore spacen thekitchen."Ever:ything elowrhecountershouldbe pull our, aboveshouldbe cupboards.

If you don't havedrawersbelowthecounter,JanisNylund of OrderlyConceptsand Solutionsn Surrey,BC,suggests uying plastic sroragedrawersto placeunder the counter. It,s easier oseewhirr's hereand to get at it.Having a smallerkitchen doesn,rMany kitchengadgetsanbemountedunderspace.mean yolr can't still buy in bulk. Tr vshopping with a neighbour and spliiyour haul.

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Beffer Living i organizeoMinimizetiF inrnq kl*n:Ask yourselfhow your newdownsized ife will affect yoursocial ife. Will you be hostingbig dinnersor just inviting friendsfor cocktails and headingout fordinner?"Doing this can potentiallyeliminate a lot of dishesandglasswarer"saysNatashaSolvasonof Home FreeOrganizingSolutions nSaskatoon. Large serving raysand bowls as well as fine chinacan be passed n to childrenorgrandchildrenwho have he spaceto entertain arge groups ofpeople."

Then take a look at yourfurniture. Bulky hutches, zrbles,and chairscan make a room feelmore cluttered.Try to findsmaller,more streanlined tems.Taller,slimmer urniture can

says. You don'tneed wo sets."make a room feel biggerand giveyoumore space.Considerbenches, hichcan also accc-rmmodate ore peoplethan chairs.Karen Shinn of Toronto'sDownsizing Diva says, f you're gettingrid of the buffet, don't forget what's

inside t. You may have o declutterevenmore or usewhat's n theredifferently. For instance,shesays,"Usethe good dishes.You don't need wosets.The samegoes or the silver andthe crystal."As well, Shirrnsuggests singfurniture that hasstorage pace. Ifyou have he choice of a table or a chestof drawersthat take up the sameamount of space, se he chestofdrawers."Sh ealso suggests ouble-dutyfurniture. Cheryl Greensays, I go tnew bar stools hat will actually godown far enough hat I can use hem atthe dining room table when we haveguests."48 Good Times I The Retirement Livine Guide 2011


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Better LiVing , 0rsanizeoMinimize!On the other hand, maybeyou're readyto chuck the diningroom. If you havea nice enougheating space n the kitchen, youcan always ust dressup yourtablewith fancy placesettings

and candleswhen guests rrive.Then repurpose he dining roominto an office, sitting room, orlibrary.Livir':g l(clor:'rOn e problema lot of people uninto when they downsize s fittinglarger furniture from their oldspace nto a smaller area,andthat'sespeciallyrue of livingroom furniture. Eagles ays,"You want less urniture but abiggerpieceof it. lnsteadofhaving a couch, a love seat,and abunch of chairs,one bi g sectionalworks really well and makes heroom look bigger.You wouldn'tthink it, but it streamlineshe space."Custom-madestorageareassuchasbookshelves r wall units can alsohandlemuch of the overflow.AnneMoon of Victoria recalls,"My bestideawas to get a custom-madewallunit, which moves rom apartment toapartmentand contains shelves,drawers, glasscurio displayshelves,evena drop-down flap for mixingdr inks."Multi-use furniture is also a greatway to createspace. f you're buying acouch, why not buy a sofa bed forwhen guestsarrive? There are alsocoffee ables hesedays hat convertinto dining room or work stationtables.Chaise ounges an be usedas asinglebed.

Natasha Solvasonsays he bestdouble-durty ieceof furniture forliving roorns s an ottoman that candoubleas a storage nit. "They'reperfect for grandchildren's oys,blankets,an d games.Thesecome nvarioussizes nd styles.Fabric-coveredpaddedottomanscan also be usedasadditionalseating."Sh ealso suggeststransformir-rg n old chest nto a coffeetable by adding legs,which providesgreat places o storegamesandblankets.Instead f an errrer tainmentnit , :you can savespaceby placing the 2televisionon the top of a dresser, 5sideboard, r cabinetand using he iinside o store TV-related equipment, 3movies, photo albums, and CDs. A F

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Bettef LiVing I organizeoMinimizelflat-screen V hungon the wall alsoprovidesmorespace.BedrosmWhen you decidehow to furnish yourbedroom, everything from smallerormore versatile urniture to built-ins andgreat storagewill all giveyou more

downsized from a home to a smallercondo, says,"\(/e went with a Murphybed with bookcaseso maxi mize asmall spacewhile havinga guestbed."Good storagespace s essential nthe bedroom.Closetspace an beincreased y installingorganizingsystems hat give you two levels of

room. Again considerdownsizingfurniture in the bedroom.Eagles aysthat, as n the dining room, tall,slimmer furniture for the bedroomprovidesmore space.Building shelvingon eachside of the bed and across hetop will give you extra storagespacefo r booksand knick-knacks.Of course, he ultimate n space-saving urniture is a bed that folds upagainst he wall when nor in useandtheseare manufactured by severaldifferent companies.They're especiallypopular for accommodatingguests.Catherine Daw of Toronto. who

hangingclosetspace.H,aglesays,"From my experience, rawers us tdon't work. They're okay for socksandunderwear, but for t-shirts andsweaters hey d


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Shinnsuggestshat,with the newhigh ceilingsn some ondos, pacehigherup in closetss an unusedgoldmine, ometimesrovidingasmuchasan extrametreor so (threeofour feet).She ointsout that youdon'tneedto create second edroom or theoccasional uest f yo u livein a condo or retirementhome becausemany offerguestsultes.

BatirroornsThere neverseems o beenough space n thebathroom, so anotherdecluttering sessionmight bein order. Catherine Dawsays, I got rid of everyextra, partly used bottle ofanything and only buy morewhen needed."Eaglessaysbath towelsare another problem. "How manytowels do you really need?Storeonlythings you need and use on a daily orweekly basis n the bathroom."Shesaysa nifty way to store owels sby usingwine racks that attach to walls.Pedestal inks are out in a smallspace-sinks with cabinetsare muchbetter because hey provide storage.Solvason ays, I like to purchasebaskets or each member of the homefor the bathroom so they can easilygrab the basketwhen they're preparingfor the day and everything they need sall in one place.They can be stored ndrawers, cabinets,or linen closets."Fnomt {alfiwayIf you have a closet,make sure here

aremultiple evels f hanging pace.Hooks can alsowork well to hold moreitems.Keeponlywhatyouareusingatthemoment,Eagles ays.Cubbies regreat or shoes.KarenShinnswears y smallcubesstacked neon top of theother n herfront hall cupboard.

LaundnyDouble stacking washersand dryersare aIl the rage hesedays,The latestgadget n spacesaving s a combinationwasher and dryer that takes up onlythe spaceof one appliance.$torage rclun'lMost condos have a storage oom, andthesedays t's not uncommon forpeople o purchasestorageareas or al ltheir extra belongings. f you'reworried you'll forget where things arestored (andthat's easy o do), storeyour belongings n clear, abelledboxes,Shinn suggests. s well, make alist of everything you're putting instorageso that you don't go out andreplacestuff you already own. I

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organize to minimize

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