August is when many of us are enjoying some time off and life slows down a little. It’s the month to relax and have some fun, but it’s also the perfect opportunity to get ahead and pick off those jobs you never get time to do. Whilst it’s lovely to be out of the usual routine don’t let it catch you out - September and autumn are just around the corner and that’s when life speeds up again. From having a home office sort-out and booking a hair appointment to fix your post-summer tresses to, dare we even say it, putting Christmas planning on the list, here are our top three tips for how to be organised at home in August.
1. Re-organise your home office
The pace of work usually slows down a little in August. With lots of people taking time off decisions are delayed and deadlines extended, meaning you can hopefully get that Inbox down to zero. You may have even booked a couple of weeks off yourself and whilst it might be tempting to shut your home office door and leave it behind, now is the perfect time to give your work area a refresh and reset.
A clean and tidy workspace is not only good for the mind, but also improves productivity. To prevent clutter from building it helps to have some organisational systems in place. See our ideas to give your office a spruce-up ready for when it’s time to get back to work…
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Sort and file your paperwork mountain
No matter how hard we try to stay on top of filing, whether that’s paper, emails or documents online, it’s easy to fall behind. Have a sort-out and create folders to organise your documents. Try and reduce your paper mountain and invest in some smart filing systems. These don’t have to be ugly and office-like - there are lots of stylish cabinets, magazine folders and boxes online that look good, as well as being practical.
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Clear your desk
Keep what’s on your desk to a minimum and clear of clutter. Buy yourself some simple desk accessories that can store what you need in a tidy manner. Somewhere to store pens, a box with a lid or even a separate set of small drawers to have under your desk or to the side to store everything you need. It may even be time to invest in a new desk! If you’re thinking of upgrading, consider a desk with drawers for some handy added storage.
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Organise cables and other tech
There’s no way to sugarcoat it, but cables are ugly. As essential as they are, phone chargers, laptop cables, monitor leads etc, get in the way and make a mess of even the most ordered of spaces. They are even more of an eyesore if your home office or desk is in a shared room in your home! Whilst you can’t rid yourself of them completely, you can cleverly hide and disguise them. From attachments and cable stations on your desk to run the leads through to toggles to tie wires together and cable boxes to hide leads and plugs, there are lots of options to stop their spidery spread.
You can even use a small wash bag or travel make up bag to store small wires. At Victoria Green HQ, we all have a gorgeous little zip up pouch or clear make up bag on our desks to keep it tidy, so we know exactly where our phone charger is when we need it. Keep phone chargers, usb sticks, headphones or other non-tech essentials, such as lip balm and handcream all neatly stored in the bag and on hand whenever you need it.
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Refresh your walls
We don’t mean redecorating, although if you’re never happier than with a paintbrush in your hand, go for it, but here we are at looking at ways to make your workspace more creative as well as tidy. Consider putting up some wall shelves and motivational prints or artwork that keep you focused or calm. Maybe a wall calendar or a corkboard - not only are able to pin reminders on it, you can also add postcards or inspirations and colours to it and update whenever the mood takes you.
2. Book in with your hairdresser
Right now your hair is probably in good shape after you had it prepped and ready for the summer holidays, but by September, there’s a high chance it may be looking dry with your roots on-show and ends splitting. There’s always a rush for the hairdressers come autumn as people return from their holidays, so book your appointment now to avoid disappointment (and embarrassing hair situations!).
Whilst we’re on the subject of hair, this month is a good time to give your hair some extra love, so it doesn’t end up looking like grass in your back garden - patchy and parched! If you’re going abroad, keep a treatment mask in your travel beauty bag and use it two or three times a week for added hydration, or if you’re at home or on staycation, keep a leave-in conditioner handy in one of the pockets of your beauty bag, like our Iris Carry All Wash Bag in Leopard Tan to give your hair a moisture boost whenever it needs it.
3. Check what Christmas tickets are on sale
We’re sorry to mention the C word in August, but when it comes to Christmas, too early is never early enough! With less going on this month, before autumn hits with its falling leaves of jobs and tasks, now is the ideal time to look at what Panto, Father Christmas visits, Christmas lights and other events are on and already on sale. Many of us missed out on our usual Christmas activities last year, but with any luck, this season will see a return to the traditions we love doing as a family, so make sure you don’t miss out because you weren’t organised in time. There’s going to be more demand than ever! Most events are already selling tickets, so snap them up now and give yourself one less job to do before the Christmas rush starts.
However you’re spending your last weeks of summer, we hope these ideas help and motivate you to get organised. If you’re going away, check out our travel wash bags or hanging wash bags and stay organised when travelling. We also have a great blog The Best Travel Wash Bags for Your Trip with advice on what type of bag is best whether that's camping, a staycation or a weekend break. Take a quick read, it's super helpful.
