When it takes 10 minutes to find your phone in your purse, or if you refer to your handbag as “the back hole”, then it’s probably time for you to do some purging and organize your purse. It may seem impossible to whittle down the number of items you have in your purse, but it’s possible! Here are a few great tips on how to have an organized purse.
- First off, decide on the best purse size for you. Don’t choose a small one when you KNOW that you plan on putting all your life belongings in it. Underestimating the size you need will create a crammed mess, and overestimating will make it hard to find where your things are.
- If possible, buy a purse with lots of pockets and compartments. This will allow you to physically separate your items so that they’re not all thrown into one big purse. Decide where things will go and then stick to that pattern.
- If you purse doesn’t have built-in compartments, then get small bags to keep in your purse. Have one for your phone and it’s accessories, another for your makeup and brushes, and another for pencil and notes. If they’re color-coded bags, then it will be easy for you to identify where everything is.
- For items that you use and pull out frequently, keep them in easy to access pockets like on the outside of the purse. Don’t cram them down to the bottom of your bag, just to have to empty the whole thing when you need your sunglasses in 10 minutes.
- When possible, use technology to save space. Don’t shove four different paper books into your purse if you can get them on your tablet or Kindle. This saves space, money, and keeps your books from getting ruined (and going unread).
- Another simple tipis to clean out the junk from your purse at the end of every day. Take five or ten minutes to throw away any old notes, receipts you don’t need, or similar items. This will stop you from stockpiling trash and, instead, keep things clean and organized.
- Resist the urge to take all the free samples you can or store things like ketchup packets in your purse. While small, these things come together to form a large amount of junk that you don’t need and probably won’t use.
- There’s no need to carry an entire first-aid kit in your purse. Instead, having little “kits” in your car or at work that have the essentials you may need. This way, you aren’t carrying these things around with you all the time but still have them available as needed.
I use a totally different method which does require a medium size purse. I have 3 small plastic mesh zip bags in different colors. In one I keep my wallet, phone and keys. In another I keep a pen, paper, store coupons, receipts and extra business cards. Finally, I put my lipsticks, lotion, Kleenex, a small comb and mirror, and a small pill case in the third bag. My sunglasses travel in their own case. I can easily switch purses this way, or just grab the wallet, phone and key bag if I am traveling really light. This method obviously doesn’t work for someone who carries loads of things, but I like to keep it simple.
I also use small zipper-topped “pouches” for different types of items — keeps smaller/similar items together so you always have them with you in an organized fashion – makes it easier to transfer bags/purses when you want to change them out, and to find them when you need them.