Purge!!

I am all about spring cleaning, and love love love to have things organized. That way, everything has it's place, and, when you go hunting for something, you know where things are, and you don't need to go through 10 things you're never going to use, just to get there.

But if there's one thing a woman needs to have organized in her life, it's her purse. Most of us lug this thing everywhere, and throw everything we, our kids, or our guys, happen to think might, maybe, possibly be worth keeping.

So last night, when a good friend showed me hers and complained at how she couldn't possibly fit anything more in there, we decided it was time to make her life a little less hectic.

We emptied everything from her whole purse and wallet, and laid it all out on the table and started sorting garbage from keepers, and barely used items from everyday necessities.

If your purse doesn't have a pocket on the inside, you need to either get a purse that does, or get a bag to put inside your purse that will take on the job of housing everything that that pocket should.

What goes in this pocket you ask? Well, I like to call this pocket (or bag within your bag), your 'bathroom', the place where, tampons, lip gloss, Tylenol, and anything else you might normally find in your bathroom at home, go. All nicely hidden away in a private, out of the way location. This will prevent that Tampax Compact from overflowing onto the counter while you dig for your bank card, ever again.

If you are a coupon junkie, like me, get an envelope and keep any coupons you know you will use in there. If you only have a few, put them with your important receipts and into the little pocket most bags have on the outside (if it zips). Any longterm receipts that include a warranty don't need to be cluttering up your purse and should be filed away in a safe place at home.

Wallets. Wallets are where most things go, but yet never return from. We cut down from about 30 cards to about 10. Some where thrown out (always cut them first), and some were stored elsewhere in her home, like her daughter's library card for example. You really only need your own when your child is still young.

The left card slots held her day to day necessities, like bank or credit cards, her air miles card, and other frequently used items. In the middle we put all her IDs and vehicle related cards, and finally to the far left we put her movie card, Medicare, and other occasionally used, but still regularly needed things.

If you still carry your SIN card try and memorize your number off by heart and remove it from your purse all together and store it somewhere secure. Because if you ever lose your wallet you definitely don't want that falling into the wrong hands, not to mention the hassle of replacing it.

She also had a few personal notes and phone numbers she wanted to keep in her wallet. Most wallets have a little spot to slip things into, on either side, behind your cards. Notes went on one side, and phone numbers on the other.

So, after throwing out a grocery bag of papers, 2 year old receipts, and doing a complete makeover of her whole world-- I mean bag-- we made her life a whole lot easier. She now has about 7 large daily items in the main part of her purse, her bathroom, with only things she needs, and a wallet she can navigate. Not to mention, she went from carrying 11 to 6 lip glosses, and though I had to pry them from her clutches, still, pretty impressive.