Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Better late than never!

Yep, I'm late as usual. I may have a teensy problem with that, but such is life. Sarah at Thrifty Decor Chick is hosting a "Declutter and Organize" party. I have been looking forward to this since she posted about it several months ago. I LOVE to declutter. In fact, frequently I get in trouble around here for getting rid of stuff (crap) we don't need. I've learned to be creative in my throwing away of happy meal toys and chuck e. cheese paraphernalia. And as for hubby's stuff...I just steer clear of it...I learned the hard way. My family does not share my affinity for decluttering. The picture above shows some of my favorite containers. They came in a set of three for about $10 from Ikea. I think I have 3 sets...I love them. This is above my computer desk and holds all related stuff. I am all about hiding the clutter in pretty boxes or containers!


This is probably one of the best things I've done to keep clutter under control. Having a family of six is great, but it also lends itself to quite a bit of clutter if not kept in check. This is our shoe basket. It sits right by the front door, in plain sight....no excuses to leave your shoes laying around. And believe you me...we have lots of shoes. I used to worry that having it right out in the open wasn't very pretty, but it is so worth it. In fact, I actually like looking at that basket full of shoes. For some reason it warms my heart to see all those shoes piled up. Maybe it's because they remind me of the people I love the very most in the whole wide world!

This is my girls' room. Whoa...we have alot of toys and a lot of pink! (btw, the other lamp is out in Dad's shop for repairs) These canvas storage cubes rock my world. They are cute and functional and hold a TON of stuff. And they come in all kinds of fun colors and patterns (Target & Lowes have the best selection). The shelving unit with the plastic bins is not my favorite thing, but it definitely does the job of corralling all those toys.

My dear sweet sister made this bookshelf for us many years ago. She saw one in the Pottery Barn kids catalog and thought, hey I can make that. And she did. She has a shop full of power tools and she is definitely not afraid to use them! You can't really tell in the picture, but the back is made of beadboard...so cute! Not only is it cute, it is extremely functional. It holds lots and lots of books, of which we have many. Plus, I am sure it cost her next to nothing to make and the one in PB kids is about $250 and it's not even that big. Whooty-whoot-whoo!

Oh dear! Can I tell you how much I despise stuffed animals? ALOT. And what have we here? Oodles of stuffed crap that my daughter just can't live without. So, what do you do? I am highly opposed to pet nets. They only make the ugliness of it all...more ugly. What's a girl to do? I'll tell ya. Get yourself to Target and look for something super cute to house them all in.
Above is the before, and here is the after :

Aaahhhhh.....so much better! Thank you Target, thank you.

Uh oh, I think I am passing on my shoe addiction to my daughters (age 1 and 3). Can I tell you how much I HEART these over the door organizers??? I have one on just about every door in my house. They are very versatile too. Think outside the box. Don't just use them for shoes. They're also great for craft supplies, pantry items, collections of small toys or trinkets, baseball cards, accessories, jewelry, bath items, etc. The possibilities are endless. Be creative.

In my 8 year old's closet, I've used it to organize all of those lego instruction booklets. It also houses the boys' magazine subscriptions. Just roll them up and pop them in. Easy and accessible when you need to find a certain one.

Ok, speaking of Legos...I have a problem I need some serious help with. See all those boxes? That is about half of what we own. Yeah, I know...crazy! But they are the most played with items we have. The boys LOVE them and so does daddy! Back in the day when we only had a few sets, organizing them wasn't a problem. Now I feel like the whole house is being taken over by legos. HELP!
Most of these sets are put together, but there are extra pieces and lots of older sets that aren't put together...culminating in a BIG HOT MESS! I need some suggestions. I've tried a few things, but nothing seems to work very well. It would be nice to have them organized in such a way that it would be easy to find what you need, but still have them out of the way.
HELP!
Please, any ideas would be welcomed and appreciated.

30 comments:

Unknown said...

You are one organized lady! I love how your shelves look so pretty and are so organized. As for the legos, I have the same problem. Good luck with that!

Domestic Goddess..Diva sometimes said...

I love your bookself! Pottery Barn Kids? :) Everything looks organized! Great job!

Valarie Lea said...

Love the book shelf! I didn't join this party, cause I am a slacker and need to get organized. :)

SarahJarnagin said...

Love the shelf your sis made. I've been wanting to make one of these for some time. Martha Stewart has directions on her site for those who are interested.
You are so organized. You should visit my house and help a girl out!

SarahJarnagin said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Mother Hood said...

I LOVE the book shelf in your girl's room! I want one!!! I have a bag of stuffed animals waiting to be donated! So liberating!

Unknown said...

I love everything! Your ideas are as beautiful as they are functional.
I have the same Lego problem, most of our sets are now mixed all together, we have one of those train tables (from a garage sale, of course)with bins underneath to hold the legos. Special sets are in ziploc bags to keep the pieces together.

Jen - Balancing Beauty and Bedlam said...

Oh my - can I borrow your sister for a few projects, and then you...I need you to help me. :)It's looks amazing - everything. Way to go!

Thrifty Decor Chick said...

Oh oh oh I love all of it!! The book shelf is ADORABLE! The girl's storage looks so pretty and functional. And yet again, I am SO jealous that you have Ikea. I've said it a million times -- I want one!

Jodee said...

I also love the clear shoe organizers. I bought one for our bathroom and it holds all of our toiletries!

I love the book shelf too. It looks exactly like Pottery Barn kids to me!

Betsy said...

I love how you have your daughters room. Very organized and functional while being cute.

Jerri at Simply Sweet Home said...

Wow, everything is so neat and organized. I have an award waiting for you at my blog.

Mandi Shandi said...

Girlfriend, care if I borrow your sister for a while? I have been toying with getting that shelf for 2 years. Seriously, I do love it and may end up getting it.

Everything looks great, just as I knew it would, and I have that same basket by my back door. It makes such a difference!

Kimba said...

Look at you and your organized self! Very impressive! Your sister did a fantastic job on the bookshelf. I want one!

Isn't that snowflake great??? I found it at a local crafty shop after Christmas. 50% off baby!

If I thought about it for a while, I could probably figure out how to make them. They're some sort of twiggy, natural material that been shaped like a snowflake and frosted with white stuff. How's that for a technical description?

Kimba

Anonymous said...

Amanda

Thanks for stopping by my blog, I did not paint the cabinet green, it was given to me and when I said I wanted it the family thought I was nuts I love it!! My craft room is coming together so nice, I am working on a floor lamp today I hope to have done by the weekend but we'll see it's not as easy as I thought it was going to be..ha!!! You look so organized it makes me jealous, but I'm trying!

Michelle said...

Oh my! I remember having that many Ledos a few years ago....:(

ellie mae said...

Wow, everything looks great and very organized. Great job :)

My twins have a bizzilion legos. We keep ours in those rolling plastic bins. Some have 5 drawers and some only 2-3. They roll them out of their closets when they want to build and create then when their done they roll right back into the closet. I can post a photo for you on my blog if you would like :)

Jen~ Lipstick and Laundry said...

First of all I LOVE all the organizing and crispness of everything... We have been collecting Legos for 16 years, I store them in a rolling cart as I call it those towers with 3 small drawers and 3 big drawer with the wheels, we have a few and the "instruction books" that come with each set I slip in a page protector and have a Lego binder they are all stored in!
~Jen

Unknown said...

I LOVE de-cluttering too! In fact I spent the whole weekend at my neighbors house helping her do that. She's got 2 teenage boys who don't want to part with anything. We took everything off shelfs and down from walls and started fresh with decorating and organizing. It was like HERDING CATS but we made a big dent. Next weekend is for going through her clothes! Your sister ROCKS....I love that she made you that book shelf. and TOO funny about your daughter's shoe addictions. That's funnY!!!!!

Anonymous said...

We have tons of legos, too, and my kids are pretty good about keeping sets together. We use alot of rubbermaid-type bins to hold gallon sized ziplock sacks for the bigger sets, inserting the small picture and number from the side of the lego box in the sack with the legos. Then we keep the directions either in the sack (if they fit) or in another basket/bin of directions. For some lego sets, we also have the stackable bins with lids that flip together and then interlock (sort of like shutters).

I know - lots of plastic. If I were to start over, I would use sturdy baskets instead of plastic tubs, but the ziplock bags really do work well.

It isn't perfect, but it works much better than using the original boxes, which are NOT designed for storage! Good luck!

Unknown said...

Hey Amanda! You now make me want to go and clean my house... the right way. You go girl! As far as the starfish. It was just two;)

Nicole said...

YOur blog is adorable, how have I missed it??? Love your decluttering ideas, my kids would be jealous of all those Lego's. I love the IKEA containers, I'll have to watch for those next time I go!

Mrs. Gray's Class said...

Everything looks wonderful and so organized. So funny I just wrote about apothecary jars also - some great ideas out there.

TuTu's Bliss said...

I am tired just looking at your organizing prowess. Our shoe organizer is a Barbie retreat. Fun blog. Hugs, Jen

Amanda @ Serenity Now said...

I can't even tell you how excited I was to find your blog this afternoon! I have two girls, a shoe addiction, and some clutter. I have already found some great ideas on your blog. Thanks! :)

Kela said...

We have tons of Legos too. I gave up trying to keep the sets separated. Now we keep all of our pieces in cigar boxes we rescued from the recycling center. Any containers would do. We separate them by color tho so it makes it much easier to find what you're looking for if you want to make a specific machine/creature... I keep all of the instruction books in a large zip-loc bag and store it in my son's closet. This system has worked for us for quite awile. Now my 4yo daughter is getting in on the action so we'll need to organize the pink, purple, teal... :)

iris7531 said...

Love the house for the stuffed animals. I don't think my boys would like it though ;). I just have a tub for the boys to throw theirs in. They have SO many, and the younger two still play with them.

About the legos, a friend of mine bought tackle boxes to put her grandson's in. But I think those organizers for bead would work.
I make beaded jewelry and they have lots of pockets for the small lego pieces. Hope that helps.

RN and OSHP said...

I love your style! The boxes from ikea are so cute. I have never seen them there, I'll have to look for them.

RN and OSHP said...

I love your style! The boxes from ikea are so cute. I have never seen them there, I'll have to look for them.

Says Ms. Copenhaver... said...

Love the over-the-door storage also! We have one in our playroom for the annoying mass of stuffed animals that looks quite similar to yours! Love it! Keeps them in one place and partially organized and, most importantly, OFF THE FLOOR!

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