Professional organiser shows peninsula parents how to sort out a home

BUSY mums pressed for time are turning to professional organisers to do the household jobs they can’t get around to.

BUSY mums are turning to professional organisers to do the jobs around the house they can never find time for.

Deanne Sharp, 44, from Belrose, realised there was a gap in the market for a professional organiser on Sydney’s northern beaches when she found herself helping friends complete their to-do lists.

“I used to volunteer to help friends when they had jobs to do and they would say I should turn my organising skills into a career, so I thought why not?”

“Before having children I was a property manager, so I’ve a good eye for detail,” said the mother-of-three, who works during school hours because like other mums her afternoons are hectic.

“I’m running around all afternoon taking children to their activities, maths tutoring, sports, which is typical of any mum. Somehow we have to fit in homework too.”

Since setting up her business Free Time 4 Me Time a year ago she has had a lot of interest.

She even sees one client monthly in order to keep on top of the family’s clutter.

and after.

Before....

Mrs Sharp, who said she wasn’t a cleaner, also revealed she had several clients who don’t tell their husbands they get her in to organise their homes.

“I have strict confidentiality, so husbands don’t need to know, which happens in some cases,” she said.

She said job satisfaction was high.

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“I meet the nicest people. I walk away knowing I’ve made mums very happy. I often get a big hug at the end.”

Mrs Sharp said she doesn’t like it when she gets more than four days of work a week as that leaves her struggling to keep on top of her own household. However, it helped that her husband was also tidy like her and her boys, aged 6, 9 and 11 have strict routines.

“My motto is there a place for everything,” said Mrs Sharp.

Go to freetime4metime.com.au

Manly Daily Journalist Julie Cross has hired a de clutterer Deanne Sharp to work on her home. Picture: Braden Fastier.

CASE STUDY

Everyone has one. That drawer or cupboard where you put the things you don’t know where to put.

Ours is nicknamed the “Cupboard of Everything” and when it starts spilling out onto the floor we know it is time for a clear-out.

Not surprisingly, no-one in our house was keen to volunteer for the challenge.

And then this writer spotted professional organiser Deanne Sharp’s advert.

Not only is organising other peoples’ cupboards her profession, she loves it.

I was relieved to see she didn’t seem fazed by the inappropriate mix of office paperwork, arts and crafts, photos, cables and a random hammer that we found during the clearing out process and had been lost for some time.

Working solidly for three hours she sorted items into piles, the biggest one was things to be thrown.

Most of her clients are mums who take themselves off for a couple of hours for “me time”, before returning to beautiful cupboards and to sign off on anything that she suggests should be thrown.

A couple of times Mrs Sharp had to convince me I really didn’t need that crumpled wrapping paper, or those picture rail hooks, which I was still clinging onto even though I now live in a house without picture rails.

Three bin bags of rubbish later and a cupboard with shelves clearly designated for different items and some new storage boxes, it was all done.

It was a relief to have that job off the to-do list. Now what about the rest of the house …

● Ziplock bags and multipurpose baskets are your friends. Use them for anything small that you need to keep separate such as cables and wires.

● Keep one small basket for knick-knacks and if you have to put something in, throw something away.

● Instead of collecting years’ worth of children’s artwork and certificates, make them into annual photo books — so you can then dispose of their little creations without guilt.

● Archive school paperwork, awards, school photos and reports by child and per academic year.