Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Organizing My Life, Part 1

Although there were some serious downsides to moving over Christmas, there was one very large benefit. Because we moved ourselves, pretty much everything we moved I touched twice; once to pack it, and once to unpack it. I got to seriously consider each object we own. If we love it and use it, we keep it. If we haven't used it during this assignment, we chuck it or put it in a garage sale pile. Simple as that.

Since I've had very little to blog about because I have been busy cleaning, organizing and purging, I thought I might share some of what I have done and some easy ways that I organize my home. Just ideas. If you have something that works for you, please leave a comment. I am always looking for new ideas!

Our master bedroom in this house is larger than in our old house and the layout is much better. I keep nothing under our bed, except my heating pad.


Since we don't have a tv in our bedroom, I use our armoire for my jeans, Tony's sweaters, jewelry, perfume and jammies in the bottom drawers. I use 3M removable hooks (LOVE those things) to hang my long necklaces on the inside of the doors. The same hooks have been there for years...I just hang up all my necklaces in the same place when we unpack. For the rest of my jewelry sets, earrings, bracelets, and pendants, I use these fishing tackle boxes from Wal-Mart. I love them because each compartment is adjustable.

Next to the door, I keep a basket of books that
Tony and I haven't read yet. Looks pretty and keeps them together.

And the last thing is the bathroom. I keep bins under the sink for toiletries that we frequently use and another for new bottles of new shampoo, soap, lotions, etc. so they are on hand when we need it.

And my make-up drawer has two plastic lunch boxes I've been using for years to keep everything neat and tidy.

Just a couple of things. I hope you don't think I'm being pretentious by sharing these ideas. By no means is my house always put together. But I have found that my life is smoother, I sleep better, and I get more done when my house is in order.

And my mom wanted to see what my new house looked like.

More to come another day!

8 comments:

Marisa said...

You can come organize my house anytime. It's driving me nuts. 100 year old homes are not big on storage and it's not big enough for 7 people.

Kathleen said...

great storage ideas! i love the necklace one. for anyone who doesn't have an armoire (or a place with a swinging door), i use the bottoms of jewelry boxes in the top drawer of my dresser to separate and organize my necklaces and bracelets.

does your house have a lot of storage space? where do you keep your off-season clothes/shoes if you don't keep anything under your bed?

Amber M. said...

Kathleen, we have tiny bedroom closets but 3 huge hall closets so I requisitioned one for my bags, shoes and summer clothing. And poor Tony's clothes get to go in the guest room closet. I keep the kids' off-season clothes in a bin each on their closet shelves.

Jeni said...

I would not could not dare show you my innards (sp?) right now...yours look GREAT! I am in need of a cheap tackle box.

When I move to California I am going to need a purse closet...I have gone from 1 to 100 in 5 months flat.

Jami Rugg said...

Since you're in the mood to let all your organizing show, how about show what you do with your kids never ending string of papers they get from school, church, scouts, and this that and the other.... I'm getting overwhelmed now that Anabelle has started preschool and in Sunbeams. I just don't know where to put these piles of cute milestone crafts and art, nor can I figure what to keep, and how to store. Papers are my enemy right now. What is your fix?

Chazlyn Robbins said...

wow, I love it! Your room looks so tranquil. Thanks for the great tips. I especially liked the books you haven't read yet in a basket. Tim and I always have piles of books on our nightstands and it looks so messy. I'll have to try the basket idea.

Eloise said...

You are amazing, Amber! I wish you would come and organize me. I have piles of stuff under my bed and under my sink. I may need to invest in some baskets...

My hat is ever off to you!

Loralee and the gang... said...

I was just thinking the other day how nice it was when we moved into a new home that everything was all organized and fresh-looking because I'd purged the excess before we'd moved. And I was thinking the other day that my house was decidedly un-fresh because we haven't moved in 12 YEARS! (Which is actualy pretty amazing because in the prior 16 years we lived in eleven different places). Not that I want to move. I don't. I just need to grab some of your tips and run with them. So keep them coming!