I’m loosely following the home edit method and am slowly making my way through each corner of my house. I’m a pack rat by nature, but I’m ruthlessly purging and it makes such a difference. Everything left is grouped, like with like, and often labeled. The dollar store is a great place to find inexpensive pantry or bathroom storage bins.
I’ve also tried to be much more intentional about purchases. If I don’t buy it, I don’t have to find a place to store it. I didn’t truly need 90% of my Target impulse buys, as cute as the were.
ETA: Taking the Clutterbug quiz might be helpful to narrow down your preferred organizational style. Display vs put away, clear vs non-clear bins, etc.
Ditto everyone who said getting rid of stuff is key. If you have more things that fit in your space, it'll never be organized no matter what configuration you try. Watch the Marie Kondo series on Netflix. It really helped me let go of a lot of stuff. I'm still not a minimalist, but we don't have more than we can store, and it really is life changing.
To organize what we do have, I use a lot of clear and wire bins so everything's somewhat corralled, but I can still see it all. Each bin holds a different category of stuff - in the pantry there's baking stuff, pasta and rice, coffee and tea, etc. And in the linen closet there's first aid, extra soap / shampoo, etc. I tend to overbuy things like pasta and tea if I see something that looks good, so limiting the space to one bin helps me rein that in.
The Container Store's iDesign Linus bins and trays are my absolute favorites. There are tons of size options, and they're super sturdy and crystal clear. And the handle cutout on the bins makes them easy to get down off a high shelf. They cost more than the Target 99 cent shoe boxes lol, but IMO they're well worth it. www.containerstore.com/s?source=form&q=idesign+linus
I don't have Tupperware, but I have Pyrex and smaller glass containers with lids, and also glass and ceramic ramekins. I store larger containers with the lid on, nested where possible, and smaller ones are in a clear bin. If you have a ton of Tupperware, think about how much of it you actually use at once. You can probably get rid of some.
In the coat closet, I have one of these for scarves/hats/gloves, dog leashes and poop bags, and any other small crap is in bins on the shelf above the hanging rod. www.target.com/p/3-drawer-medium-cart-white-room-essentials-8482/-/A-75666886#lnk=sametab And there's a boot tray on the floor for shoes that end up in there. When the tray is full - gotta put some shoes away.
The bathroom vanity is corralled into many many drawer organizers. I have them sorted into makeup, hair accessories, dental stuff, etc. If you have a lot of wasted air space above each bin, look for the trays that are deeper than normal; I've seen them at Target and the Container Store have in the past.
The first step is always to purge. Then purge again.
The thing in my house that friends always comment on and then copy is my spice organization. I use small canning jars and write the spice name on the lid with a sharpie. Then I store them in a drawer. It is 1000x easier to find the spice I need when I can open the drawer and read the names easily.
Do you have a picture you can share of the jar? What do you do about not having the punctured too so that you can just shake it out?
I’m happy to share a photo if someone can tell me how!
I just use a teaspoon and scoop a little to sprinkle.
Do you have a picture you can share of the jar? What do you do about not having the punctured too so that you can just shake it out?
I’m happy to share a photo if someone can tell me how!
I just use a teaspoon and scoop a little to sprinkle.
I recently switched to this, and it is so nice to be able to fit a teaspoon into my spices rather than having to measure in smaller increments. I don't do a lot of sprinkling, so that's not an issue for me/us.
Also, has anyone removed the towel bars from your bathroom (more specifically the kids' bathroom) and replaced with hooks? Pros/cons? I feel like I'm constantly ramming into the double towel bar in our fairly small kids/guest bath and will likely knock it off at some point anyway, ha. Hooks seem like a good solution, but my H is hesitant (no clue why, if/when we sell, I figure the bar would be easy enough to put back).
I’m happy to share a photo if someone can tell me how!
I just use a teaspoon and scoop a little to sprinkle.
I recently switched to this, and it is so nice to be able to fit a teaspoon into my spices rather than having to measure in smaller increments. I don't do a lot of sprinkling, so that's not an issue for me/us.
Also, has anyone removed the towel bars from your bathroom (more specifically the kids' bathroom) and replaced with hooks? Pros/cons? I feel like I'm constantly ramming into the double towel bar in our fairly small kids/guest bath and will likely knock it off at some point anyway, ha. Hooks seem like a good solution, but my H is hesitant (no clue why, if/when we sell, I figure the bar would be easy enough to put back).
I bought a new construction home, so I never had anything. I installed hooks for my towels and really do not have any issues with using them. They are pretty easy to use.
I’m happy to share a photo if someone can tell me how!
I just use a teaspoon and scoop a little to sprinkle.
I recently switched to this, and it is so nice to be able to fit a teaspoon into my spices rather than having to measure in smaller increments. I don't do a lot of sprinkling, so that's not an issue for me/us.
Also, has anyone removed the towel bars from your bathroom (more specifically the kids' bathroom) and replaced with hooks? Pros/cons? I feel like I'm constantly ramming into the double towel bar in our fairly small kids/guest bath and will likely knock it off at some point anyway, ha. Hooks seem like a good solution, but my H is hesitant (no clue why, if/when we sell, I figure the bar would be easy enough to put back).
we have all hooks in all bathrooms. I hate towel bars - I feel like it’s way more of a pain to try and fold/hang towels in a neat way. Hooks are super easy, don’t take up much room, and you never need to straighten anything
Do you have summer and winter clothes? Twice a year I swap out my seasonal clothes and shoes so there's more room in my closet. I use vacuum seal bags for the clothes I'm not using and stack them in my closet or in shallow under-bed bins. I also use the vacuum bags for sheets, blankets and pillows.
I used to do that, but last year I seriously paired down my clothing and keep all of my clothing in my closet so I don’t have to switch out based on season. I do keep shorts and some summer things in a drawer under our bed, but no more switching based on the season is a huge time saver for me.
I’m happy to share a photo if someone can tell me how!
I just use a teaspoon and scoop a little to sprinkle.
I recently switched to this, and it is so nice to be able to fit a teaspoon into my spices rather than having to measure in smaller increments. I don't do a lot of sprinkling, so that's not an issue for me/us.
Also, has anyone removed the towel bars from your bathroom (more specifically the kids' bathroom) and replaced with hooks? Pros/cons? I feel like I'm constantly ramming into the double towel bar in our fairly small kids/guest bath and will likely knock it off at some point anyway, ha. Hooks seem like a good solution, but my H is hesitant (no clue why, if/when we sell, I figure the bar would be easy enough to put back).
Yes, there are hooks in our kids’ bathroom. I bought a hook for ours too, just haven’t put it up yet. I find hooks more convenient and it seems like stuff stays hung up better than with a towel bar.
I also have hooks in our front closet. It stays more organized and coats stay hung up better than when we had a bar with hangers.
My general rule is something in, something out. Donate it, throw it away, give it away, whatever. I've been bad about this with quarantine & health issues last year. I purge each closet once/year including looking at every single thing in it before putting it back or throwing it in the donate bin. Bins and baskets are my friends. I try to keep everything in a closet in a basket. The exception is the linen closet. I have a few big bins, but I like seeing the towels folded neatly on a shelf.
I allow clutter only in 2 rooms-my office & the main bedroom.
I’m happy to share a photo if someone can tell me how!
I just use a teaspoon and scoop a little to sprinkle.
I recently switched to this, and it is so nice to be able to fit a teaspoon into my spices rather than having to measure in smaller increments. I don't do a lot of sprinkling, so that's not an issue for me/us.
Also, has anyone removed the towel bars from your bathroom (more specifically the kids' bathroom) and replaced with hooks? Pros/cons? I feel like I'm constantly ramming into the double towel bar in our fairly small kids/guest bath and will likely knock it off at some point anyway, ha. Hooks seem like a good solution, but my H is hesitant (no clue why, if/when we sell, I figure the bar would be easy enough to put back).
We have hooks in the master bathroom and I love it. So much easier. I don’t understand why hooks aren’t more standard.
Actually we have hooks in the kids bathroom too but it’s just an over door hook thing. When we redo the bathroom eventually we will probably make it permanent.
Baskets. Lots of baskets. That way I feel like everything has a “home”. In the kitchen I have a basket for mail/papers, one for our daily meds and vitamins, one for bread and the like, one for the kids snacks so they have easy access to them. Before all of these things would just be randomly stacked on the counter somewhere and it drove me crazy. I did the same with my bathroom, everything in a basket. It also helps when cleaning and wiping counters down. Instead of having to move a bunch of crap around, now I just need to move a basket.
I’m happy to share a photo if someone can tell me how!
I just use a teaspoon and scoop a little to sprinkle.
I recently switched to this, and it is so nice to be able to fit a teaspoon into my spices rather than having to measure in smaller increments. I don't do a lot of sprinkling, so that's not an issue for me/us.
Also, has anyone removed the towel bars from your bathroom (more specifically the kids' bathroom) and replaced with hooks? Pros/cons? I feel like I'm constantly ramming into the double towel bar in our fairly small kids/guest bath and will likely knock it off at some point anyway, ha. Hooks seem like a good solution, but my H is hesitant (no clue why, if/when we sell, I figure the bar would be easy enough to put back).
We have hooks for all of our bathrooms and I love it. It’s much easier for the kids to hang a towel back up on a hook than trying to find the right balance of having a towel on a bar.
I recently switched to this, and it is so nice to be able to fit a teaspoon into my spices rather than having to measure in smaller increments. I don't do a lot of sprinkling, so that's not an issue for me/us.
Also, has anyone removed the towel bars from your bathroom (more specifically the kids' bathroom) and replaced with hooks? Pros/cons? I feel like I'm constantly ramming into the double towel bar in our fairly small kids/guest bath and will likely knock it off at some point anyway, ha. Hooks seem like a good solution, but my H is hesitant (no clue why, if/when we sell, I figure the bar would be easy enough to put back).
We have hooks for all of our bathrooms and I love it. It’s much easier for the kids to hang a towel back up on a hook than trying to find the right balance of having a towel on a bar.
That's what I was thinking. Towel bars just don't make sense to me, but since it seems I never see hooks, I wanted to make sure there wasn't something I was missing or doing wrong, ha. Washcloths either dry over the side of the tub or go straight in the wash, and I don't do "decorative" towels, so.
One of my pet peeves in loose/uneven dishtowels. I bought snaps on amazon and added snaps to two corners of all my dish towels. I fold them over the oven handle, snap the ends together around the long part, and voila. They stay put and always look nice. (hoping this pic shows up)
I would love the idea of hooks instead of towel bars. That would be amazing! I'm adding it to my list of things to change/add in my house. Baskets/bins go under bathroom sinks & in drawers to organize. Cleaning products, feminine products, lotions/face wash, bandaids/first aid stuff etc etc. They all get one. I want to get bins/baskets for the towels in my linen closet next.
Since I moved twice in 5 months I'm on my third purge in 7-8 months. I have a giant box in my garage and go through the remaining packed boxes in the garage. Anything I haven't missed in 7-8 months goes in the giant box to be donated instead of into the house. It's so cathartic!
We have hooks for all of our bathrooms and I love it. It’s much easier for the kids to hang a towel back up on a hook than trying to find the right balance of having a towel on a bar.
That's what I was thinking. Towel bars just don't make sense to me, but since it seems I never see hooks, I wanted to make sure there wasn't something I was missing or doing wrong, ha. Washcloths either dry over the side of the tub or go straight in the wash, and I don't do "decorative" towels, so.
If you live in a hot/humid or cold place and don’t have good ventilation or an old hvac system, they might not dry all the way and can become musty. If your bathroom already gets a little musty it’s probably not a great idea. I put a board with 5 larger hooks in our last bathroom and it was fine.
Post by ellipses84 on Jan 24, 2021 14:57:08 GMT -5
I like the Marie Kondo methods so watching her show helped, more so than Home Edit for me, although I know people who like their methods and end result better. I listen to podcasts like a Slob Comes Clean while I clean and organize. Also other long, entertaining podcasts because I’ll want to finish the episode and keep going. I did a purge of everything last spring, but knowing what I were moving soon I didn’t get rid of everything because I wanted to see if it could be used in the new place. Now I’m still unpacking/organizing the new place and feel like it’s time for another purge.
I like the mid size clear bins with the latches (around 20-32 quarts, I have sterilite) Rubbermaid and some target brand). They fit perfectly on the top closet shelf and can hang off the edge so you can fit even more. I have plastic shelves in half of our closets we don’t fully use and can use the same size clear bins there. You can see everything and they aren’t too heavy so they work for lots of different types of items, like out of season clothes or toys with small parts.
Post by chickadee77 on Jan 24, 2021 16:35:58 GMT -5
Oh! I keep a bin in my older daughter's closet shelf, so if something is too small, it goes in for the younger to grow into. I also keep a bag for donations in the laundry room, so when the little one outgrows something, it goes in straight out of the clean clothes. This keeps their clothing under control and I rarely have to do a large purge of their clothing.
Oh! I keep a bin in my older daughter's closet shelf, so if something is too small, it goes in for the younger to grow into. I also keep a bag for donations in the laundry room, so when the little one outgrows something, it goes in straight out of the clean clothes. This keeps their clothing under control and I rarely have to do a large purge of their clothing.
Yes, I always keep a separate box running for each kid, and whenever they say something doesn't fit, I put it right in the box.
Post by gerberdaisy on Jan 25, 2021 12:44:40 GMT -5
Moving really has made me realize how much stuff I tend to keep. I like things put away, but tend to keep as long as it has a spot.
Key example, my last house had a huge pantry, so I naturally bought more food to keep it. In this house we have a tiny/nonexistent pantry and I'm liking having less space to keep extra item.
I'm definitely a basket person. So in the bathroom, every area has a basket, dental, hair...in the baskets isn't very organized, but it looks neater that way.
Marie Kondo folding is amazing, 4 years and never looking back. same with doing the full closet purge (all clothing items I own on the bed and going through all of them), there have been VERY few items I'm missed after purging them.
I keep all my Tupperware lids on the item when storing and getting rid of unneeded items (would keep cracked ones, or too many mason jars). Also been slowly starting to replace with the collapsible containers since our new kitchen is really small.
Hooks in the entry. Everyone has a bin for winter items, a bin for dry shoes, hook for clean masks, and a hook for their main coat. Other coats are on hangers. Wet shoes are on mats then transferred to bins when try.
Loving everyone's tips! Learned a lot here over the year and always nice reminders. Plus makes me want to go and purge a closet
isabel , I think you're the person upthread who mentioned having hooks instead of a rod in the coat closet. Do you have a row of upper and lower? Do you have large hooks or small? This has been on my list for quite some time. Below is a photo I saved off pinterest quite awhile back. I guess I would need to mount a board into the studs, and even with a studfinder I'm terrible at that, which is partly why this hasn't happened.
I put this on the inside of my closet door and hang all my jeans by a beltloop. I've only ever hung my jeans like this for years; at prior homes and apartments I put used temporary over-the-door hooks.
Does anyone have tips or products useful for organizing a tall, narrow freezer?
Ultimately I know we just need to either eat or toss a lot of the stuff in there, but in the meantime I’d like to figure out a better way to store everything so I don’t have to rummage every time I want something (and then have a frozen bag of chicken cutlets fall out and land on my foot).
Does anyone have tips or products useful for organizing a tall, narrow freezer?
Ultimately I know we just need to either eat or toss a lot of the stuff in there, but in the meantime I’d like to figure out a better way to store everything so I don’t have to rummage every time I want something (and then have a frozen bag of chicken cutlets fall out and land on my foot).
Do you mean it’s an upright freezer? Or its just part of a fridge/freezer combo? If the former I can post some pics of what we’ve done
Does anyone have tips or products useful for organizing a tall, narrow freezer?
Ultimately I know we just need to either eat or toss a lot of the stuff in there, but in the meantime I’d like to figure out a better way to store everything so I don’t have to rummage every time I want something (and then have a frozen bag of chicken cutlets fall out and land on my foot).
Do you mean it’s an upright freezer? Or its just part of a fridge/freezer combo? If the former I can post some pics of what we’ve done
isabel , I think you're the person upthread who mentioned having hooks instead of a rod in the coat closet. Do you have a row of upper and lower? Do you have large hooks or small? This has been on my list for quite some time. Below is a photo I saved off pinterest quite awhile back. I guess I would need to mount a board into the studs, and even with a studfinder I'm terrible at that, which is partly why this hasn't happened.
This is my closet. The wood that the hooks are screwed into was already there (you can see where we took the hanging bar off between the grey and olive coats). Each hook has two hooks, kind of like the top row in your pic. That lets us hang a couple of things on them. My side is the right, DH is the left, and the kids share the back wall (each kid has one hook and their snow pants and heavy coats are on the third).
The shoe rack below is from ikea (I had to partially assemble it inside the closet, but it fits perfectly). We put the kids’ backpacks on it when they’re home and shoes below, obviously.
The navy baskets in the shelf above have random stuff in one, hats in another, and gloves in the third.
Post by Ashley&Scott on Jan 26, 2021 11:35:08 GMT -5
I've been on the hunt for the perfect kitchen drawer organizers but haven't found anything I liked. I think I will try to make my own like this: www.kevinandamanda.com/kitchen-drawer-organizer/
I've been on the hunt for the perfect kitchen drawer organizers but haven't found anything I liked. I think I will try to make my own like this: www.kevinandamanda.com/kitchen-drawer-organizer/