Chicago Wedding & Party Resource 2017 Spring / Summer

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Time To Organize

Don’t let leftover wedding clutter takeover your home.

Act now to create order

By Lindsey Romain, CTW Features

The big day may be over, but there’s still all that stuff!

Programs, favors, gifts, cards, the dress – while your

wedding day was wonderful, you don’t want to relive it via

all the extra items in your home. In lieu of getting buried in

leftover wedding, learn to cut ties with frivolous items from

the onset.

The key is to only keep things that will be important and

memorable after the wedding. If someone gave a card at the

wedding or reception that only had a signature on it, there’s

really nothing terribly special about it.

Here are some tips for keeping on top of post-wedding

organization:

QUESTION YOURSELF

Ask yourself a few important questions before starting the

organization process: Is this something I will use again? Is

this something that I love? Is this something that enhances

my life or makes me happy?

Remember that you can donate items to those less

fortunate. For unwanted clothing items and accessories,

like dresses or purses, sites like Donate My Dress or

NewlyMaid let you donate a used bridesmaid dress to

obtain special pricing on a new “little black dress.”

STORE PROPERLY

If the dress stays in the picture, be sure it’s stored in acid

free paper before going into a box. Most reputable dry

cleaners that offer bridal gown services will place the dress

in this already. Make sure the dress is cased in plastic or a

garbage bag.

BE CAREFUL WITH PAPER

The temptation to keep extra decorations might be present,

but only keep the things that will be used for sure and that

are meaningful to you. These items can go into a memory

bin or be preserved in a photo album or scrapbook. The

only papers from wedding preparation that should be kept

are ones that will be referenced later, like a guest list, which

can serve as a checklist for thank-you letters.

USE YOUR GIFTS … NOW!

Wedding gifts don’t have to pile on even more stress if

they’re dealt with right away. For excess items that need

to be returned, get it all done at once.

Depending on your schedule, it might be easier to tackle

one store a day, or get it all done in one longer day. Better to

get unwanted items out of the house as soon as you’re able.

If the gifts can’t be returned, donate them or pass them

along to a friend or family member as a gift.

KEEP GOOD COMPANY

The bride may want to recruit some help in these tasks –

especially the groom. Ask the wedding party and family

members to help with collecting memories, returning new

items and purging old ones. Sometimes company makes the

whole process a lot more enjoyable!