Simplify for Life is a new business partner with the Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Alexandria. I believe there is a synergy between my company's mission - to help people gain clarity and time through the process of organizing, and the ReStore's mission to support the Habitat for Humanity of Northern Virginia's mission to provide affordable housing to low income families in the area. A significant part of organizing is purging and letting go of items no longer needed and a good way to do so is by donating them to a charity.

This Saturday, April 24th, the ReStore is partnering with the Metro Washington DC Chapter of the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) to host the third annual BIG Sale starting at 9:00 at the ReStore in Alexandria - 7770 Richmond Hwy (behind Gold's Gym). Members of ASID are donating items that will be sold at up to 75% off retail. Items being sold include: wall hangings, fabric, trim, cabinets, blinds, shades, architectural details, countertops, curtain rods, furniture and much more.

I will be there for some of the festivities because, as you are all aware, not only does organizing make us feel good and help us gain clarity and time, but it is also a critical design element.

See you Saturday-

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It is so uplifting to see everyone working on their yards, and to hear the sounds of nature and lawn mowers in our neighborhood. Spring is here finally after our long, hard winter! I feel the need, more strongly this year, to purge things from the inside of our home.  I want the weight of unnecessary things removed from our newly renovated home. I am really trying to push my agenda of simplicity which sometimes is met with resistance from everyone else in my family.

One of my favorite columns to read in the Post is Michelle Singletary's, The Color of Money. She wrote this past Sunday about spring being the season of rebirth and that it is a good time to get busy throwing out the stuff clogging our homes, office, minds and spirits. I was very intrigued that a financial columnist was writing about decluttering and how clutter not only weighs us down, but it can cause us to be late on bills, contribute to debt and impact our finances in a negative way. Her April book she is recommending is Gail Blanke's, Throw Out Fifty Things - Clear the Clutter, Find your Life. The book is divided into four parts:

• Get rid of the unused stuff in your home (connect to my resource list to find out where to donate it)
• Attack your office, both home and work, to get rid of unnecessary items and clutter which may be impacting your ability to be productive
• Get rid of mental cluter
• Once you have gotten rid of 50 things in your home, office and mind, you'll be ready to contemplate what you want in your life

I bought the book and I look forward to reading it. As an organizer I understand and see first hand the power of letting go and when the old goes out, the new comes in as positive change. I have seen personally and through clients how cleaning up and making sense of our physical space, impacts our mental space which then impacts in a positive way our lives.

Let's have this beautiful season of spring help us bring positive change to our homes, minds and lives.

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