I don't know about you, but i love big bags. But, the down side to having a big bag is not being able to find anything. Well i say the it's time to organized.Here are a few step that i found useful from About.com:
STEP 1: Go through your bag and take everything out. You'll likely be looking at a lot of "junk" or items you just don't' know what to with. Toss the junk and put the not-sure-what-to-do-with-these aside for now.
STEP 2: Think about the bag you're using for everyday use.
- Wallet
- Cell Phone
- Keys
- Writing utensil and small notebook
- Small pack of tissues
- Neosporin
- Lip balm
- Ask yourself: Is it big enough? Is it too big? Do you like the way it looks? Are the straps digging into your shoulder uncomfortably?
STEP 3: Now, take those items you're not sure about and decide to keep or toss them. Separate the remaining items into an "All The Time" pile (read: the items you need to have in your bag daily) and a"Sometimes" for the items you use less often.
STEP 4: Create a Launch Pad in your entry way to cut down on the amount you have to carry everywhere. This was originally suggested to me by Lisa Zaslow of Gotham Organizers. A launch pad is a home for the items you need to carry sometimes but not all the time. All-the-time items can stay in your bag, but sometimes items need a place to sit while they're not in use.
TIP: My launch pad is a storage box near my front door full of lip glosses, tissue packets, my gym lock, digital camera and spare keys. A launch pad is a great place to store keys, cell phones, mail, umbrellas and newspapers. I use several different bags a week, so I dump everything out into my storage box when I walk in, this means:
- Handbag essentials are always in the same place.
- I can customize what I want to carry on my way out the door depending on what I'm doing.
STEP 5: Edit and clean your bag frequently. You want to carry as little as possible to spare your back and make things in your bag easier to find. If you repeatedly find you need an item on-the-go (your coupon folder, or your cell-phone charger) then by all means make room for those items you need all the time. On the other hand, do you need to carry your gym lock with you everyday? Probably not. Store that in your launch pad.Go through your bag weekly to clean it out.
TIP: Look for a bag with separate pockets for your cell phone and keys so you're not rooting around for your phone mid-ring in the middle of quiet movie theater or locked out of your home with a bag full of perishable groceries. It's important to always put your keys and cell phone in the same spots! This may seem like a no-brainer, but you'd be amazed at the amount of people I know who habitually can't find these items in their bags.
