 Pick It Up may receive a commission for purchases made through a referral link for Keepy at the end of this article. If you have kids, you know they love to create! From stick-figure family portraits to clay animals, they love to make, make, make. And you, of course, are the recipient of these amazing artistic gifts. But, you may ask, what do I do with all of these masterpieces? The artwork is covering the refrigerator, piled on their desk and pouring out of drawers. As this recent Atlantic Monthly article shows, it's definitely something parents struggle with! There is no single best way to handle all of your kids' art, but after trial and error, here are a few strategies I have developed to help parents to appreciate, honor, share, and maybe even let go of some of it.  Strategy 1: Show & Go This strategy focuses on making it easy to display, swap out and store your kid's art. First, create a temporary holder for the incoming artwork. I like using a woven storage bin or large document case for this purpose. Regularly purge through the pile, saving only the very best pieces. Next, set up a little gallery with some twine and clothespins. Swapping the art out is so easy that even the artist themselves can do it! Once an exhibition comes down, keep items for long-term storage in a handled portfolio labeled with each child's name.  Strategy 2: Display & File This strategy is all about displaying and appreciating your kid's artwork. As with the first strategy, make a temporary storage area for the constant influx of art and regularly purge through the contents. Next, display the best pieces with style in Dynamic Frames. These look like traditional frames, but the glass front hinges open to make changing the artwork easy. At the end of the school year, whittle down the artwork to a manageable amount and permanently store it in a legal size expanding wallet labeled with the school year.  Strategy 3: Archive & Share This strategy is for those that love sharing and technology. As with the other strategies, make a temporary storage area for the constant influx of art and regularly purge through the contents. Next, snap photos of the best pieces and share them with an app like Keepy. Keepy makes it easy to digitally organize and save artwork, schoolwork, and mementos. Since it is a digital platform, you can easily share your kids' artwork, videos and audio clips with friends and family and they can share their thoughts back as well. Keepy is about more than archiving your kids' art, it's a community platform with so many fun uses. Keepy also makes it easy to print photo books of your kids' art. If you do, be sure to use the code PICKITUPSF20 at checkout to get 20% off! By using this referral code, Pick It Up does receive a commission. Of course, you can create your own individual strategy for managing your kids' artwork using any combination of the above ideas. The most important thing is to have a plan, or the art and school work can easily take over! If your little artist needs a dedicated studio space, take a look at my Kid Art Area Pinterest board for some ideas on making creative spaces. Alternately, feel free to book a session to help tackle the art spaces and artwork together! If you enjoyed this post check out Creative Spaces for Kids! 
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 Now that we are back in the swing of school, many of us are helping our kids build healthy and independent routines. Recently, I discovered The Trip Clip. It's a website where you can design personalized charts, lists, and routines for your kids. When finished, the chart is saved as a PDF that you can print yourself. You can also go in and edit the chart as your child's routine changes. The Trip Clip offers morning, bedtime and after-school routines, lunch and packing lists, and chore charts, just to name a few. What's really cool is that you get to choose the icons and the wording for each list you create. The Trip Clip also has tons of printable activities for kids like coloring pages, mazes, math games, bingo, and crossword puzzles. There is a multitude of options for each game and activity. And, it's extremely reasonable as well, at $14.95 for access to all activities on the site. Print a bunch and be ready for that next road trip! The Trip Clip www.thetripclip.com If you enjoyed this post check out Organize Your way Back to School.  Donation Spotlight for September!
Animal Care and Control is the city-run animal shelter in San Francisco. It's also where my husband and I adopted our beloved Chow Rocco many years ago! Their website states: "San Francisco Animal Care & Control keeps our community safe and protects all animals from abuse, neglect, and cruelty. SFACC is the City’s only open admission shelter; we accept all animals regardless of temperament, medical condition, or species. We rehabilitate and reunite animals with their owners, rehome the orphans, and assist wildlife." The shelter has many donation needs! Items may be dropped off at SFACC during normal operating hours. Things they are in need of are:
SAN FRANCISCO ANIMAL CARE AND CONTROL 1200 15th Street San Francisco, CA 415-554-6364 www.sfanimalcare.org If you enjoyed this post check out Where can I Donate this? SCRAP!  Donation Spotlight for August!
Project Night Night is a national nonprofit that donates Night Night Packages each year to homeless children in our country. Last year they donated over 25,000 packages to homeless children. Their website states: "Each Night Night Package contains a new security blanket, an age-appropriate children’s book, and a stuffed animal — all nestled inside of a new canvas tote bag. By providing objects of reliable comfort, Project Night Night reduces trauma and advances the emotional and cognitive well-being of the children we serve." The next time you are shopping for kids books, consider purchasing some for Project Night Night. Also, if you love to knit or crochet this would be a wonderful place to direct your energy and skills towards! In San Francisco, items can be dropped off every day at Hotel del Sol (3100 Webster Street ) from 8AM-7PM. Items they accept for Night Night Packages are:
PROJECT NIGHT NIGHT 415-310-0360 projectnightnight.org If you enjoyed this post check out What to do with 100 Beanie Babies!  I am thrilled that Pick It Up was named runner-up Best Organizer by San Francisco Magazine in the 2018 Best of San Francisco issue! Thanks SF Magazine! You can find a link to the Best of San Francisco 2018 issue here.  Donation Spotlight for June!
Out of the Closet is a nationwide organization of non-profit thrift stores that directly help those living with HIV. Through the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, they are able to provide medical care to those with HIV, regardless of an individuals ability to pay. Their website states: "Decidedly the world's most fabulous thrift store. Ninety-six cents of every dollar goes to HIV/AIDS services provided by AIDS Healthcare Foundation’s Healthcare Centers." Items they accept are:
OUT OF THE CLOSET - FOLSOM 1295 Folsom St. San Francisco, CA (415) 558-7176 OUT OF THE CLOSET - POLK 1498 Polk St. San Francisco, CA (415) 771-1503 outofthecloset.org  Photograph by Erik Auerbach Donation Spotlight for May! I have long been a fan of First Exposures, a youth-mentoring program centered around photography. Their website states: "First Exposures is a San Francisco-based, nationally recognized youth mentoring program that strives to make a major long-term difference in the lives of high-need, underserved San Francisco Bay Area youth by providing a venue for them to enhance their self-confidence, develop their creativity, and gain a passion for learning." If you have a camera, film or photo paper that you no longer need, consider donating them to this great organization! Email First Exposures at info@firstexposures.org with your donations or questions. Below is a list of items they could use.
FIRST EXPOSURES located at RayKo Photo Center 428 3rd St, San Francisco, CA 94107 415.716.8651 firstexposures.org  For many people, the constant onslaught of paper is a challenge that never seems to end. I often hear: "What should I do with this?" "I have a file cabinet, but I have no idea what's in there." "Do really I need this?" The answer, of course, depends on the paper and the person. I have found the trick to managing household papers is to have a system in place that reliably catches all that paper and helps you decide what do with each item. Think of this as your paper flow. In the Pick It Up Quick-Guide to Paper Flow, I discuss the three steps to creating an effective paper flow. Papers should land in the same location each day. They should be processed with regularity, and a system is needed for both short and long-term retention. For additional tips on creating your flow, subscribe to the Create Your Home quarterly newsletter and get the Quick-Guide to Paper Flow as a free download. An area where many people get hung up is reference files. Most of us have a filing cabinet, but for many people, it is full of old files and is often in an inaccessible location. By following the below steps, you can bring your filing cabinet back to life! 1) PURGE. Dust off that cabinet and purge it like crazy! The older the files, the greater the chance they can be tossed or shredded. Ask yourself if you really need the papers for reference? Are these documents accessible online? Tax documents only need to be kept for seven years. Ask your CPA if you have any specific tax-related questions or check out the IRS retention guidelines. Always shred any documents with personal information like your social security number or account numbers. 2) STRUCTURE. Now that your file cabinet has been whittled down to current files, start giving it some structure. Do your remaining files fall into natural categories? Common categories would be Auto, Finances, Home and Health. Create a broad category and nest appropriate files under this heading. Here is an example: AUTO (the broad category) Auto Insurance DMV Registration Maintenance I find it is visually helpful to keep the broad category tab on the far left and the sub-folder tabs to the right. If you like to alphabetize, go for it! 3) MAINTAIN. Now that you have an easy-to-use filing system all you have to do is maintain it. Easier said than done, I know! File your papers right away, to avoid a huge pile of documents that need to be filed. Purge your filing cabinet a few times a year to keep it current. Filing may seem tedious, but with a little time and work, it can become a routine that helps keep your life running smoothly.  Donation Spotlight for April!
I recently came across a great nonprofit organization called Bike Kitchen. Their website states: "The Bike Kitchen teaches people of all ages and backgrounds how to repair bicycles. The Bike Kitchen promotes personal development and provides leadership opportunities. Operating as a cooperative shop, we provide affordable ways to acquire and maintain a bike, encourage re-use and recycling, and work with community groups to get more people on bicycles." How great! If you have some bikes or bike parts that you no longer need, consider donating them to this great organization! BIKE KITCHEN 650H Florida Street, San Francisco, CA bikekitchen.org  If you love discovering strange places, let me introduce you to Building Resources.
Building Resources is San Francisco's only salvage yard and a great source for reusable building and landscaping materials. With rows of old doors, windows, furniture, tumbled glass and tile, you can find things both strange and wonderful! I recently picked up a stained glass window I couldn't live without. Building Resources is also a great place to donate old house parts or garden art, furniture that has seen better days or scrap metal and wood. Stop by and get inspired! Building Resources 701 Amador Street, San Francisco, CA 415-285-7814 https://buildingresources.wordpress.com/ |
AuthorErin Becker is the owner of PICK IT UP, a 
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415-828-9429 erin@pickitupsf.com