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I’m always looking for clever ways to wrangle items in my house. So, thought I’d share a few of my recent favorite organization tricks I’m using right now or have come across and definitely plan to use!

This idea of using a deviled egg platter to store jewelry is something that I’m definitely going to do. I’m sure my mom or grandmother has a deviled egg dish somewhere that I could have. These days I don’t think it’s common to take deviled eggs to gatherings so they likely have one laying around (or is it still common and I just don’t have a clue? Maybe it’s so retro it’s hipster??) But I think this is one serving dish that was a staple on brides’ registries at one time. How nice to display jewelry on a family heirloom. It’s not doing much good collecting dust in your cupboard.

Style At Home

Have a bunch of ribbon thrown into a drawer? I would imagine some of you also have a paper towel holder that you no longer use and maybe you’ve tossed it in the garage sale pile. Well, check out this idea…

Real Simple

This is such a great and easy way for a child to see which coloring book they want. And what a perfect size holder to hold markers. Let’s face it, kids don’t need a ton of writing utensils at one time. This is a quick item that you can sit out at the dinner table without getting ALL of the art supplies out.

Real Simple

I am usually drawn to the cosmetic/bathroom aisle at Container Store (I know, weird right?) One day while looking at cosmetic organizers for Tessa  (remember this post?) I came across this organizer and thought it would be perfect for solving a dilemma in my kids’ bathroom.

Container Store

I was so tired of seeing toothpaste tubes all over the bathroom sink, wet toothbrushes in the sink or in the drawers where they could never dry out and listening to my two children argue over whose toothpaste it was they found on the floor.  That’s where this cosmetic organizer came to my rescue.

Kids’ Bathroom Tray

Now each child has his/her own space for their toothpaste and toothbrush and someday spot number three will be for William but for now it holds my daughter’s detangling spray.  I also love having a spot for the nail clippers–until now it seemed these were always lost.

This is the area that I stumble over to every morning and while it looks fine–I thought it might look a bit more put together if all the items were corralled.

Amy’s Drink Station-Before

It looks a little more put together. The tray was purchased here.

Amy’s Drink Station-After

Any favorite or out of the box organizing trick?

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Just a quick Friday post to give you all the heads up on a great storage solution. I’ve been looking for a way to store big toys like stuffed animals in my son’s room. Canvas storage bins are great, but he tends to beat them down a little and before long they just look droopy and sad. I liked the idea of a big basket, but wanted something a little more colorful. Then, I was in Target a couple of weeks ago and came across these patio ottomans.

Target

Sure they’d look great outside, but thinking outside the (big) box (store) a little, I thought–flip this over and it would be perfect for storing toys! So, I picked up a couple to try them out–love them! They’re about 20″ high so easy for the kids to reach into and not deep enough that stuff just gets lost in the bottom. And when the toys are dumped out, they can double as extra seating for friends!

One ended up in Conor’s room

And the other at our back door for the kids to throw their winter and rain boots in. It’s perfect for that because it’s “all weather wicker” (otherwise known as plastic) and metal so mud won’t be a problem and it’ll hold up to the heavy boots. The other seagrass baskets are from IKEA and I use them to store everything we need as we head out the door each morning–everyday shoes, sunscreen, etc.

If you like them, definitely head out to Target right away though because when I was at my local store yesterday, there were only two left! The good news is that you have three days to get there–Happy Memorial Day everyone–”see” you Tuesday!

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There is nothing that excites me more than seeing a space that has been totally transformed with organization (I know, lame right??) In fact, over the weekend, I helped Tessa go through piles and piles of papers in her office- it was so fun to be able to see the floor in her office. As a side note, a good lesson here is that when you have a big cleaning job to do, have a friend help you. They’ll encourage you to clean out more than you might be willing to do on your own!

So when a reader sent me these before and after shots of her garage, I knew I had to share them with all of you.  AMAZING- and I would do the happy dance everytime I walked in this garage if it were mine. The garage is one of those places that can become a dumping ground for junk, but it doesn’t have to be a mess and it’s often a space that provides huge opportunity for extra storage…if properly thought out.

Here’s a shot of the wall before:

Lisa has two little boys and lives in California so they are the lucky ones that get to be outside year round…and have all the gear to prove it! She specifically needed a place to store beach items, sports equipment and a large amount of shoes By the way, I’ve already asked how one family could own so many shoes! (And, seriously couldn’t Nike just invent one shoe that fits all sports for kids?!?)

And, tah dah! Here’s a shot of the new space:

As you can see, Lisa grouped all of her like items together…bicycle helmets, beach equipment and balls are stored in these easily-accessible shelves.

I told you they have a lot of shoes! But, imagine all of your shoes neatly lined up like this instead of thrown on the ground by the door…heaven right?

 Love this drawer to hold all of the balls for easy access.

One thing that I think is worth pointing out is that when Lisa went to the Container Store (this is the Elfa System) to design this organization system, she thought it would be a place to hold only sports equipment. After installing the system, she realized she still had enough room to add other items.  One entire shelf is dedicated to her Costco bulk items.

Lisa was so impressed with the sales associates at the Container Store.  I asked her if she was overwhelmed in designing the system but she said that part was easy.  She went to the store with an idea in her head of what she wanted to store and the associate gave her tons of ideas and put the plan in action.

In case you’re wondering….here’s a glimpse of the other walls in her garage.

Bikes off the ground

This is the perfect spring project to take on. Take advantage of all the possibility for extra storage in your garage!

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