OrganizingLA Blog

How to Organize Your Photos - Start by NOT Tossing the Negatives?

Are you into photography?

We're about to take a big trip, and always remind ourselves about the value of photographic memories.

When we're working with organizing clients who are professionals - or novices - we're really careful about tossing unwanted negatives or photos.  We know these items can never be replaced, but we also know how some disregard proper storage.  So it's a careful process, with lots of questions so they keep exactly what they need.

The Analog Photography Users Group (APUG) has a super discussion thread going on.  It seems a member saw a television design show where the unsuspecting clients were coached into tossing their photo negatives.  Here's how one member responded:

"Good god, I can't imagine what's going through these people's heads to tell people to throw away their negatives!! If they spent a day just putting them in printfile sheets and then putting them in a binder, they'd have a lot more space, I'm sure there's other crap that they need to throw out more!"

So we ask you, what's your common practice when you come back from the lab?  Do you treasure or trash your negatives?  When surfing around this subject, we also found an Antiques Roadshow article on the value of negatives.  That piece is worth reading too.

• Check out some archival supplies for your negatives.
• Read the discussion thread on APUG.

Katonah, New York Residents Not Happy Martha Stewart Trying to Trademark Their Town's Name

Martha Stewart is attempting to trademark the name of the town she loves and lives in:  Katonah, New York.

The residents (just 10,000) aren't happy.  Is the move just branding?  Is it legal?  Does it prohibit the residents from using the name on their own turf?   What does the local hardware store do now that they may share the name with Martha?

• Let's see what their town blog says about this one (from last January).
• CBS News told the story.  Click here to check the video out.
• Popwink, a popular branding blog has their point of view worth checking out, posted this week.

Overall, branding experts don't like it and think it's in bad taste.  But check out the comments on the town blog, a trademark name doesn't necessarily mean the residents can't use it.

Goo Gone - Our Organizing Product of the Week

Life, liberty and the persuit of annoying adhesive removal.

Part of our in-house (or in-office) arsenal of organizing supplies includes the most amazing product:  Goo Gone.

We use Goo Gone primarily for removal of nasty adhesive stickers attached to containers, ginger jars, photo boxes, memorabilia albums, cd and dvd covers, individually-marked wooden hangers, and especially, ready-to-assemble (RTA) furniture.  Even high-end supplies have the occasional adhesive on them and this stuff is safe enough to shock the sticky.

Goo Gone is scientific technology in a bottle, designed with a light citrus component, to safely remove gum, tar, crayon, fresh paint, tree sap, oil and grease, blood, ink, asphalt, makeup, lipstick and mascara, kitchen grease, shoe polish, soap scum and bumper stickers.

We've used Goo Gone for:

• scuff marks
• tape and tape residue
• adhesives
• candle wax
• duct tape

The company claims the product is safe for the environment and can be poured on most surfaces including carpets, tile, appliances, vinyl, wood, draperies, boats, fiberglass, and clothing.  We recommend reading all directions and testing in an inconspicuous area before proceeding to the trouble spot.  Material safety data sheets are available here.

We know for a fact that certain manufacturers, like Sterilite, have responded to consumer feedback and changed the way they label containers.  They now use truly removable labels and not truly permanent ones.  We assume that most of these products are produced in places far away, and they're not necessarily focused on the end-user scratching the labels off with their fingernail, or a butter knife, therefore damaging the product .

For those companies that haven't yet caught on to removable labels, we recommend Goo Gone.

No Sex Please, We're Organizing

Mother Jones Magazine thinks that people who are not organized, have more frequent and better sex.

In a cheeky article this month, Mother Jones cited lots of sources on the current organization trend and America's obsession with shopping.  Here's few notable quotes that seemed amusing:

The self-storage industry is only 35 years old. It took 25 years for the first billion square feet of storage space to be built. The second billion square feet was built in just 8 years.

For her 1,000 pairs of shoes, Mariah Carey installed a revolving, climate-controlled, glass display case. "Closets are a big part of my life," she told Hello! magazine.

Men who don't organize their sock drawer have sex 3 times more a month than men who do.

1 in 3 Ikea customers say they get more satisfaction from cleaning out their closets than from having sex.

(image courtesy of the magazine)

Read:

• Mother Jones Magazine, No Sex Please, We're Organizing (by Elizabeth Gettelman)

Related Post:

• Makeup artist to Mariah Carey films documentary about the things we throw away

Container Store is Purchased by Los Angeles-based Private Equity Firm

It's done: a deal worthy of July 4th fireworks.  The Container Store has been sold.

Ending months of speculation, the mecca of home and organization products has sold a majority stake to a private investment firm.  West Los Angeles-based Leonard Green & Partner, L.P holds investments in 42 other companies, including a majority stake in David's Bridal and Petco.

So what do you need to know?

• The management structure will stay the same.
• A new board of directors has been formed, including current staff.
• Prices and service will most likely stay the same say industry analysts.
• An infusion of capital will most likely result in additional stores opening.

The Container Store put itself up for sale in February and made a series of moves that caught our attention.  Last October, the Container Store opened its first store in Los Angeles at the Westfield Century City shopping center – less than a mile from Leonard Green's offices.

The CS currently enjoys 39 stores.  Stores planned this year include a second location in Denver and its first in Philadelphia (at Cherry Hill Mall in New Jersey).

Read more:

• USA Today
• Dallas News
• Dallas Business Journal

Related Posts:

• The Container Store up for sale (2/07)
• The Container Store shutting down North American Elfa wholesale (2/07)
• Sex in the City Star gets organized at Century City Container Store (6/07)

Trash to Treasure Forcing a New Trend - Private Rubbish Collection

It's an unspoken procedure more secret than a tummy tuck.  From Monrovia to Malibu, people in Los Angeles are utilizing private, residential trash collection and forgetting about their local public works departments.  What?  Why?

When we first heard about it, we couldn't believe it.  Celebrity stalkers are lurking around LA City Department of Public Works trash collection bins hoping and waiting for trash day.

Some of the "stalkers" have common reasons to steal the trash (snagging cans and bottles for recycling) but others have more mischievous reasons, like resale and stupid auctions where your dis-organized discards are being sold to the highest bidder.  People toss their unwanteds in the trash, and because the bins are sitting on public property (aka, the street) everyone and anyone has a "right" to go through it.  We see it every week on our street.

But the interesting thing is that you may not be a celebrity and have your trash gone through.  At our client's homes we discover pretty quickly who has a concern, and who doesn't.  If you live in a home or apartment where a famous Hollywood tragedy occurred, public divorce, or the old homeowner won one or more Oscars, you (as the new happy homeowner) inherit those trash-stealing dramas, even though you have nothing to do with the original Hollywood happening.

So it's really disgusting (and no surprise) that the pros are scouring through Paris Hilton's trash in West Hollywood.  TMZ is reporting HollywoodStarTrash.com acquired personal items and has/is auctioning them off, via eBay and their own personal website.  The site has already sold an empty can of dog food for $305; a used toothbrush for $305; two used envelopes sent to Paris while she was in jail for $510; and a Coke can for $51 bucks.  How does HollywoodStarTrash.com know this junk belongs to Paris for sure?

Private trash collection in Los Angeles seems to be big business.  Your trash stays behind closed doors, or gates.  A unmarked truck pulls up and takes the contents of your cans away no questions asked--- and no problems created.  It's like Brinks, but for your trash.  Looks like this new trash trend may be here to stay.  We wonder if Paris knows about these services?

Here's a sampling from over 150 items found in Paris Hilton's trash.  What are you throwing out?

• Black Chanel cloth baggie
• Ripped envelope addressed to Paris Hilton Century Regional Detention Facility
• 14 Business cards
• 3 Scripts from Endeavor Talent Agency: "Surfer Dude," "Be Kind Rewind" and Ruby Coopersmith and Her Totally Embarassing family"
• Receipt for $6,106.17 for Lisa Kline
• Cigarette Butt
• Birth control packet - Empty

You've spent time organizing, and getting rid of the things you don't need anymore.  Now you have reason to worry about who's going through your trash.  Comments?

Related Posts:

• In Beverly Hills, even the trash can be pricey (2/06)
• One persons trash, becomes another's treasure (11/06)
• Lost Judy Garland recordings found in trash (12/06)