We'll continue our furniture refinishing and painting journey together next week, because this week I have a special guest who is going to share some great tips about organization. After all, what good is a beautiful piece of furniture that you painted yourself if it's buried under clutter? Donna is covering lighting this week in her series on photography, so make sure you visit her blog after you read this post.
When I "met" Stephanie from Somewhat Simple, I knew we were two peas in a pod. We share the same love of running an organized household. I used to clean our entire house when I was a teenager. Sick, I know. I would also eat an entire artichoke by myself when I was ten. Weird-o. Enough about my quirks and onto Stephanie's advice on organization!
Hi! I'm Stephanie from Somewhat Simple!
I am so excited to be here with Miss Mustard Seed to showcase a favorite hobby and healthy addiction of mine- ORGANIZATION!!!
Ever since I can remember, I have loved all things organized! I remember in 4th grade, my friend's mom told me I was welcome to come play anytime because her daughter's room always looked so much cleaner after I left! My poor friend wanted to play Barbies and dress up, I wanted to organize her bookshelves! What can I say, I love a big "Black Hole" and I welcome the challenge to tidy up any space!
Today I thought I would keep it simple and give 5 tips on organization and how to tackle the growing black hole(s) in your home. Let's Get Started!
Tip #1: Only pull out what you can finish within an hour.
Too often we get ambitious and decide to tackle an all-day project when we really don't have all day to finish it. This leads to frustration, discouragement and an even bigger mess! How often have you had the good intentions of cleaning and organizing an area only to be distracted or needed in another area of the house? Your good intentions are now covered up by a mess that is perhaps even messier looking than when you started- am I right? (You know I am right!) Take my craft area for example:
This is how I like my craft desk and craft closet to look:
But before it got this way, it was pretty bare and lacked any sort of organization system. Here is a before picture of the bare closet:
It wasn't at all messy- just not a whole lot of anything going on it there. So what did I do? I pulled out every crafty thing I could find in all areas of my house and piled them next to my desk with the good intentions of organizing it all. right. then. that. day.
And here is what it looked like for days when I got distracted and had to stop:
And when an area is already a mess, it's easier to just keep tossing things on top of the chaos! SUCH A DISASTER!!! So again, keep your task small and keep it simple. 1 hour at a time is all you need to plan for. If you have more time (and energy) when your hour is up, work for another hour!
Tip #2: Sort Everything! (again and again and again)
1. Start very basic by making piles or using empty boxes to sort your area into 3 categories: Things to Keep, Things to Giveaway/Donate to Charity & Things to Trash. Take your trash directly to the outside trash and put your charity items directly into your car so you can drop them off the next time you are out. (This way you will be less likely to rescue items or talk yourself into keeping them.)
2. Once you are left with only the things you want to keep, start sorting those items into sub categories, and depending on what you are organizing will depend on what those are. For example you might want to sort items in an office by Bills, Schoolwork, and Important Documents.
3. Make subcategories of your subcategories. Work on one pile at a time and organize it completely to your liking. For example, take the "Schoolwork" pile and now sort it by dedicating a pile for each of your children's papers.
4. Find a home for all sorted items. Don't leave them in the piles that you sorted them into- find a permanent home for everything, or it will all end up unsorted again in no time! When I sorted my kids school papers, I had these crates already waiting to be filled by their school papers:
Just a basic storage crate with hanging file folders- 1 folder for each grade from preschool to high school. These crates are stacked nicely in a closet and easily accessible and kept current.
Tip #3: Use Labels.
Before I had my vinyl machine, I used my DYMO. Before my DYMO I used a Sharpie, scotch tape and some printer paper. You don't need to get super fancy- you need to use what you have on hand. May I suggest making the labels look as nice and orderly and UNIFORMED as you can so that you smile when you see them? Make them match, please. (Just as a favor to me!)
Here are some things that are labeled in my home that make my life a whole lot easier!
Canisters in my pantry:
My preschool area
My daughter's book shelf. (My 4th grade friend's shelf could've looked this good too!)
Tip #4:Use Baskets, containers, bins and boxes... and even think outside the box.
I am a sucker for baskets and fun containers. Watch for good deals and then stock up! The bins used in my daughter's bookshelf were found at Lowes on clearance for a buck each! Baskets can be pricey, but are ALWAYS on sale somewhere- I've scored some great deals at Michaels.
One of the first conversations I had with Miss Mustard Seed on organization is one I am still looking to duplicate: She told me her diapers and wipes are stored in her kitchen in an old bread box! No one knows that behind the stylish exterior is a stack of Pampers!
I love this idea! Tara, one of my readers picked up a few $1 trash cans from Ikea and used these to organize her daughter's closet:
It doesn't have to cost a lot of money to look good. And that brings me to my last tip...
Tip #5: Make it pretty
The whole point in organizing is to make your area look clean, tidy and pretty. Clean and tidy have a universal definition, but "pretty" does not. "Pretty" is such a personal opinion. What one may think is pretty, another thinks is hideous. We all have different styles and tastes, so it is only suitable for each of us to match our homes and areas to our tastes. You should be able to see your completed organization project and smile- that is the whole point- to make life easier and make life happier! I love this tip from Martha Stewart (it was probably her craft department's idea, but all credit is always given to Martha!) They take random containers and mismatched baskets, add some paint and make them uniform. I personally like the color they chose, but you can make them pretty to your liking!
You don't have to spend a lot to be organized, and a neat and tidy place can make such a difference- don't 'ya think?
If you would like to hear more from me, I'd love to have you stop by Somewhat Simple! I update my site everyday with tutorials, recipes, craft ideas and more. I am in the process of launching another site called "Crazy Domestic" where I will feature items and tips specifically aimed at bringing out the best of our Domestic selves! Thanks for having me today Marian! Bye everyone!Don't you just want to be her friend? I'd love to have her over to hang out and get some of my troubled areas sorted out. Her blog is a great resource for anyone who runs a household, so make sure you pay her a visit! Thanks again, Steph!
So, Donna, you've showed us all how to organize our workshops. Do you have any organizational tips for inside the home?
One other hot tip of the day from me is to keep a spiral notepad by each telephone. I label the book in which room it belongs (as they tend to travel!) , then on each page I use, I date it. All phone notes and lists are jotted down making them a breeze to find again, and after I've delt with the task, I draw a line through it so I know it's taken care of. BIG benefit over fly in the wind post it notes! Grocery lists are simply ripped out and carried with me."
So, now that your head is packed full of ideas...get off the blogs and go get organized!
