Monday 31 December 2018

storage and organizing solutions

When Christmas is over, and the New Year rolls around, I feel the need to organize and declutter everything in our home. 

I have come up with some of my favorite storage and organizing solutions that I hope will be helpful to you as well!

An organized home is a happy home. 
It is proven that decluttering is contagious, so if you start in the main living areas of your home, your kids may follow suit in their own rooms! 


DECLUTTERING

You don't need to declutter all in one day. Start day 1 with the kitchen, day 2 with bathrooms, day 3 with the office, and so on and so on. 

I like to set up bins or boxes in each room. I label them, attic, donate, sell, and garbage.

I keep all my sentimental items like kids items up in the attic. I also keep our holiday decor there. 

Donate heavily! Get rid of items you haven't worn in over a year, something that you have multiples of, or things you've been holding onto for that rainy day that never came. It feels so good to purge and give items to ones in need. 
Once that box is full, immediately put it in your car or take it to donate. Don't leave it laying around where you could pull items back out.

I hold a pop up sale once a year at my house where I will save items that are worth something but no longer of use to me. These also go up in my attic until the sale.

Garbage, a big one. Go through piles of paper and recycle. File folders will be your new best friend. Throw anything away that has a hole in it, is bent, is old, is no longer functional.

I am the queen of having a few holiday decor stragglers laying around. I make it a point to get them put away in their appropriate bins in the attic, so the next time I take them out it is a breeze.

ORGANIZING

This is the fun part. Once you have donated, thrown away, or put away out of reach, get your organizational hat on and get to work.

Here are some items I love and have used for years for organizing our own home, which I think you will like. Some are pretty practical, some are more outside the box. 

This little desk is home to 2 "junk drawers" and a file cabinet on the bottom.
It is a piece I made from this, and a remnant of marble to match the rest of the kitchen.
The bottom drawer is a large file cabinet where I keep paperwork so it doesn't clutter the counter. 
I have files for everyone in the family as well as, receipts, recipes, Dr., orthodontist, pets, manuals, etc. etc. I even have them alphabetized which makes finding things super easy. I have used my label maker on them for a cohesive look. A label maker is a must have in my book, so many uses for it. I literally label everything.


Under bed storage is another thing I love to have. 

I prefer the ones with wheels and handles for easy access. 

I use them for seasonal items like boots, scarves, and gloves in the winter, and in the summer, sandals, bathing suits, snorkel gear, etc. 

And of course, I label them with my label maker. 

Baskets galore. I have so many baskets, I can't even tell you. They come in handy for everything. They can be decorative as well as functional, making them an ideal storage item.

I use baskets for a variety of things. Extra socks, gloves, hats, chargers and cords, pet supplies, etc.
I usually get my baskets at Ikea or here. I also like to use vintage locker baskets for this sort of thing. 

Outside the home, in the garage or sheds, we use big clear heavyweight bins for things like extension cords, tools, nails and screws, etc. We like these ones that stack and have no lid, for easy access. 
We also use these in our basement for sports gear. 
Both are stacked neatly on these industrial shelves. And of course, everything is labeled. Labeling bins not only makes it handy when looking for something, but also when returning items to the right place. 

If you are looking for more organization ideas, check out my pantry organization post here, as well as our tiny laundry room here. I have maximized the most I could out of small spaces. The laundry room holds one of my all time favorite things on the back of the door. Total game changer, let me tell you! 

Now go get to organizing, decluttering, and purging. Turn on some of your favorite music, grab your favorite beverage, and get to work. 

You'll be so glad you did!

xoxo






from
http://www.mysweetsavannahblog.com/2018/12/storage-and-organizing-solutions.html

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