Category: Clean & Organize

Tips to clean and organize your house, and keep it that way.

An Organized Entry

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As soon as winter sets in, I get more annoyed with our small entry.  Recently, I shared my plan for minimizing clutter and maximize space, which included a set of storage ottomans.  Well, thanks to reader Erin, we picked up this set of ottomans over the weekend, completing one step of our plan.  

I tried ordering online, but the ottomans were sold out.  So, I called up our local Kohl’s and they had one left in stock.  I put it on hold and we picked it up the next day.  I searched for a printable coupon and found one for 20% off, taking $20.00 off the $99.99 price tag.  I had a $15.00 return credit, too.  I used my credit and got a set of three ottomans with a cover for only $65.00!  Wahoo!  The smaller cubes are not for storage, so they are in the basement, awaiting their fate.  So, I’m sure you’d like to see the new ottoman in place, right?  Here it is, in all it’s storage, space-saving glory.

Looking down at it.

Here’s the view from the front door.

What’s inside?  Check it out.

Some extra shoes, a large purse that doubles as a diaper bag, and an extra storage box.  We haven’t filled it to the full capacity, but that’s good.  Oh, for those extremely OCD observant readers, I still have to pull the staples out of the ribbon packaging.  That’s what the tan things are in the bottom outside and the insides…  Hopefully we’ll finish our storage in our closet and hang some hooks.  Until then, have you been working on organizing?  One of my resolutions is to get more organized, including repurposing, selling, donating or throwing away tons of stuff.

Wishing and Hoping

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I’ve said before that I think I have some form of seasonal depression.  I really hope I’m not the only one who gets stressed out and annoyed by the clutter winter brings.  Seriously, four people, three of which accumulate tons of winter garb (you’re not looking at one) and one small entry closet does not equal love.  To thwart winter’s takeover of our entry closet, I have concocted a plan of attack.  Notice I said plan; I haven’t even begun the process.

The plan includes a sofa table with a drawer or two, a few storage cubes and some cute hooks.  Ideally, Ben would build a modern style sofa table similar to this. 

I would prefer a dark wooden top and deeper drawers, but overall, I really like the style.  The drawers would be great for keys, mail, stamps and any pocket change.

Two storage cubes like these would be great below, though I would really like to have a faux leather one.  One for each of the boys.

The World Market deer head hooks would be the perfect spot for guests to hang their coats.

I plan to hang one under each picture frame behind our door, so long as the hooks are shallow enough to not bang into the door.

I love the deer hooks, but I would really love bird hooks, mounted in the same fashion with equal detail.  Something similar, but more realistic than these.  Creating functional, space-saving storage in our entry closet is key, too. 

I had a chance to plan my attack when Jen from IHeart Organizing and I met up at IKEA, stay tuned for those details soon!

What is your greatest organization challenge?  Have you found any reasonably priced great solutions?  Any tips for my entry?  I’m still on the hunt for affordable storage ottomans.  What is on your organizational wish list?

In the Kitchen: Baby & Toddler

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Our readers out there with children know all too well that kids have a ton of stuff.  Toys, strollers, clothes, shoes, diapers, and movies.  Well, kid clutter extends into the kitchen, too.  Why can’t manufacturers make more collapsible, easily stored, square items?  I don’t know, but personally, I find it annoying.  Anyway, I’m here to share a few tips on storing bottles, formula, sippy cups, plates, bowls.

Tip number 1:  Keep plates, bowls and silverware at toddler height.  This limits the “No, I don’t want that one” argument Vincent and I often had.  Instead, he can pick out his own bowl/plate/spoon/fork without arguement and he can help empty the dishwasher by putting his items away.  We also keep cloth napinks his drawer for easy, eco-friendly cleanup. 

Tip number 2:  Keep one small cabinet of cups, bottles, formula, and other random kitchen items.  Using a small cabinet limits the amount of accumulation, while keeping the ugly out of sight, but close at hand.  Store the most often used items on the lower shelves and less often used on the higher shelves. 

Tip number 3:  Invest in a few “cleaning faces and hands” only rags.  I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t want to have my face wiped with the same rag used to clean the chicken parmesan mess.  Just sayin’.

Mission: Organization

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Project: Pantry

Technically, our pantry never was unorganized.  If you know me, most things are organized.  That’s not to say things can never be more organized.  Ever since I saw a fantastic pantry redesign on House of Smith’s, I’ve been itching to change things up with our pantry.  Over the weekend, I got a metaphorical bug up my butt and started changing things up. 

Here is the before:

Yeah, not super great.  Most of our grocery shopping is done at Costco, so everything is in bulk and a little tricky to store.  I will admit, we are lower on some of our supplies shown in the after photos. 

Ben and I started by throwing out everything that was past its prime or giving it away.  I grouped like items together and made a shelf for each grouping. 

The bottom shelf has cookbooks and potatoes, leaving room for larger items to be stored after a Costco trip.  All canned, boxed and bagged dry food items are on the same shelf along with baby food and formula.  Then we have a baking shelf, including flour, sugar, and chocolate chips.  Cereals and soda joined the baking party.  Finally, the top shelf has alcohols, large serving platters, straws, paper plates and coffee supplies.

Lucky for me, Ben got in one of his deep clean moods after this!  I love when this happens.  Ben becomes a cleaning machine.  He removed all the screens and windows (our window panels can be removed to leave a huge opening) and cleaned every piece.  Then, he took everything out of our refrigerator and scrubbed down every surface.  It’s like we have a brand new fridge. 

As if cleaning windows and refrigerators wasn’t enough fun, Ben also removed everything from both bathroom drawers, vacuumed and scrubbed the insides.  Yes, I am one lucky girl.  Then I went through all the contents.  I threw some things away, donated others, and organized the rest. 

And our drawers are clean, too!

So, that was our fun-filled weekend of cleaning.  Have you deep-cleaned or organized anything recently?

How To: Store Toys

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We have two boys under the age of three with grandparents, aunts and uncles that spoil them rotten.  That means we have a ton of toys.  Fortunately for us, we have created custom built in cabinets to hide most of their toys, books and diapers.

I’m still searching for the right size, cheap but durable storage bins to house V’s toys in this cabinet, but for now, it’s okay.

This red metal bin holds up to V’s abuse and it contains most of his stuffed animals.  After all, three-foot tall Mickey and Minnie cannot fit in a small bin. 

We don’t keep all the toys in one area, as they are hauled all around the house anyway.  We have some toys stored in the Man Cave entertainment center.  Once the doors are finished, the mess will be hidden away, similar to our living room built-in.

V has some larger Tonka trucks, which are stored under Ev’s crib, hidden by the crib skirt. 

Basically, we don’t have a lot of baby/toy clutter because I refuse to keep large baby items like swings, bouncer seats, and exersaucers in the house.  I also go through the toys somewhat regularly and throw out or donate broken or unused toys.  It also helps to send noisy, annoying toys to grandma. 

One major tip I can offer is to use closets and space under the bed.  Keep items in bins labeled by size to organize items such as children’s out grown or too big clothes.