Pretty Neat Review & Giveaway ($250+ in Prizes)!

~~The giveaway is now closed. Congrats to winner Allison!~~

It is my wish to keep my home spotlessly clean and meticulously organized, but it's been quite a challenge to keep everything well in place with a toddler playing around. It made me feel frustrated at times about not being able to achieve what I wish. I'm so glad to have read this enlightening new book called Pretty Neat: The Buttoned-Up Way to Get Organized & Let Go of Perfection, which shows me how to increase efficiency and be happy with being imperfectly organized. The book is coauthored by Alicia Rockmore and Sarah Welch, the creators of buttoned up organizational products.

Written in an easy-to-read, conversational style, Pretty Neat offers tons of practical tips for tackling common organizational challenges that busy moms have to face on a daily basis: clutter at home, toy tsunamis, inbox overload, meal preparation and more. It includes interviews of real moms who have developed their own systems of organization to save time and sanity while having to juggle between work, family, and the hustle and bustle of life. The tips or tricks presented in the book are easy to follow and can help you keep clutter under control without being stressed out.

My favorite part of the book is Chapter 11: Tame Your Inboxes. It provides three simple and feasible steps to help me deal with the problem of inbox overload. I have multiple email and social media accounts that I need to check every day. There were times when I dreaded opening my inboxes because of the volume of messages that awaited attention. I also receive dozens of letters and packages by conventional mail. Processing mails and emails take up a considerable amount of my time. The fear of missing an important mail or message has been a constant source of organizational stress for me.

After reading Pretty Neat, I feel better knowing that I'm not alone on this issue. I've started trying some of the strategies suggested in the book with regard to filing, labeling and prioritizing emails and they have proven quite effective in reducing clutter in my inboxes. I don't want to give away too much in detail here because I hope you'll benefit directly from reading the book yourself.

You can get your own copy of Pretty Neat at Buttoned Up for only $14.95. It's a great value considering the time and trouble it will save you through getting better organized. It's a book you may refer to often for ideas and inspiration.

The Giveaway

Alicia and Sarah have generously offered to give one of my lucky readers a copy of their new book Pretty Neat! But that's not all. The winner of my giveaway will also be automatically entered into an additional drawing of a Grand Prize including a $200 gift card (same as cash such as Visa or AmEx) plus a selection of Buttoned Up products valued at $50! Her chance of winning is 1 in 150.

Required Entry: Leave a comment telling me an area in your life or home that has been the biggest organizational challenge for you. (Please leave a valid email address in your comment or make sure one is visible in your blogger profile).

Extra Entries (optional): please make sure you do the required entry first! Please leave a separate comment for each extra entry, i.e. 1 comment=1 entry.

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RT @luckytoddler #Win a copy of Pretty Neat & a chance to win $250 in prizes! http://bit.ly/pneat #giveaway #contest #sweepstakes

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Giveaway ends at 11:59 pm Central Time on 3/20/11
Open to US Residents Only

Winner will be chosen using random.org and will have 72 hours to respond before a new winner is chosen.

Thanks for entering and good luck!

Disclosure:I received a free copy of the book for review through Global Influence. No monetary compensation was provided. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.