On this week’s podcast, I kick start the 3-week Kid’s Organization Series! It’s for kids between the ages of 7 and 21 – so whether you’re still in school or preparing to graduate from college – this series is for you!
I tried something a little different this week and recorded my podcast on video, too. If you would prefer to watch this episode, hit play below:
Organizing Your School Art & Memories
But before we get started, I want to reach out to all the kids out there who are bored out of their minds this summer. If you can relate, I’ve got your back! One of the things you could do is go through all of your old artwork and school papers and sort out the things that you love and want to save to look back on in years to come. Sort everything into two piles – a keep pile and a recycle pile.
Once you have gathered all of the papers and artwork you want to keep, you can store it all in a plastic tub and keep it in your closet, or you can put everything inside a binder using sheet protectors. You can create your own binder OR you can ask your parents (as nicely as possible) to let you order the Organize 365 Kids School Memory Binder where you can safely store and protect all of your papers and artwork so that they will last a lifetime.
Organizing your artwork is something you could do while you’re in the process of redesigning your bedroom, which is something that I did A LOT when I was a kid because I loved switching things around and making my room feel “brand new” again.
So, if you want to redesign your bedroom this summer and change things up for yourself (without spending a fortune), follow these easy redesign tips!
Planning On Graph Paper
I don’t know about you, but I find it easier to envision a redesign when I’ve drawn up a quick plan on paper first. Measure your bedroom and notice where the windows, doors and outlets are.
In my case, I’m redesigning my son’s bedroom which measures 10′ x 10′. So, I’ve drawn out my plan on the graph paper to fit 30 squares across and 30 squares from top to bottom.
[So, three squares of the paper is equal to one foot and one square of the paper is equal to four inches.]
Marking Doors, Windows & Outlets
Before we can get to the fun part of moving furniture around and getting creative with your bedroom, there are a few things you will want to mark on your plans such as doors, windows, electrical outlets, and vents.
Leave enough space for any door openings in your room, whether it’s the main door to your bedroom, a closet door, or the door to a bathroom, etc. Figure out how much space you need to leave free and mark this on your graph paper as a semi-circle. You can watch how I do this in this week’s video… here.
Also mark the placement of all of the windows in your bedroom. I also like to label each of the electrical outlets and the vent to allow heat and air conditioning to enter the room without any obstruction.
Using Post-It Notes As Furniture
Now that you have all the boring stuff marked on your plan, you can start redesigning your bedroom with Post-It Notes.
Create a Post-It Note for each piece of movable furniture in your room. Many of you will have a desk, a dresser, or a bedside table. Measure it and cut a Post-It Note in the same shape and size that corresponds with your plan.
Remember, three squares on the graph paper is equal to one foot. So if your bed measures 6′ x 3′, you’ll need to convert that measurement to fit the dimensions of the squares of your plan. You can liven things up by using multi-colored Post-Its and labeling each one as you go.
When I was a kid, I would do this ALL THE TIME. I would plan my new bedroom design over and over again. And when I was done with that, I made a plan for future homes – I just loved it. What can I say? Some kids played sports and some kids planned their future homes in excruciating detail and precision!
Moving Big Pieces Of Furniture
When it comes to redesigning your room and moving big pieces of furniture around, you need to think of the process as a huge jigsaw puzzle. Make sure you leave enough space in your room to move things around in the most efficient way possible and try not to limit your own walking space. You’ve got to be able to walk around your room without climbing over furniture to get to the other side!
In this week’s video, I show you (using my Post-It Note furniture) how to move your bed and desk and not get stuck in the room!… here.
If you have too many things that can’t fit in your bedroom or your college dorm room, I suggest renting an outside storage unit. This is especially useful if you’ve recently moved back home with your parents and there’s not enough space to keep all of the things you accumulated throughout college. Just put it all in a storage facility – out of sight, out of mind!
The Kids Organization Series
I hope you enjoyed this first episode of the Kids Organization Series and found some useful tips and ideas for organizing and redesigning your own bedroom or apartment. In this series, I’m going to be focusing on all the things that you don’t have time for during the school year that you could finally do in the summer.
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