Even A Small Cabinet Helps

Lately we've been battling a bit of extra "stuff" on the kitchen counters. Since my counter space is limited, I need to make the most of it, where I have it! So, I did some figuring and measuring, and decided that there was a small area at the end of the coffee pot counter where a narrow, upright storage cabinet would most likely fit. This prompted an enjoyable trip to the local home improvement store where we were able to purchase a cabinet to meet our needs. (It was the last one they had in stock!)

It would just require figuring out a new place for the display shelf currently occupying that space. Hmm....

Ah! Here is where I could relocate my display shelf, with just a bit of rearranging.

The nearly bare corner actually looks cozy now!

Once home, Dean got right to work putting together our cabinet. The only bad thing was there were only 2 color choices to pick from - white and dark brown. I had hoped they would've had oak, but I settled for white as it at least matched the counter tops. I was on standby to assist, and take pictures, of course! :)

Checkers stopped by during the process for some attention and loving from Dean.

Once all the pegs were in place, each panel of the cupboard was secured into another, and screwed together.

The manufacturer now provides a neat little gadget that helps to hold those tiny nails for securing the back board to the cabinet. How clever!

Once the nail has been tapped in to stand securely, you remove the gadget and finish hammering the nail in.

The final job - screwing the door hinges in place, then hanging the door on the cabinet!

Completed and in place ~ what a beautiful fit. I love how Dean's suggestion of cabinet top accessories really finished off the look!

Look at all that extra space! My heart was so happy with such a little addition that made a huge difference. To date, we have neatly filled all of the shelves and the installation of this cabinet has been a complete success!

  

~ ♥ ~

Don't you just love a simple home improvement project?

Decluttering 101

What to know before you start

1. Like most big projects, your decluttering project will look worse before it gets better. You’re going to have to pull out everything to do this job right, including things you’ve got stored in dusty corners and crammed into boxes out of sight of visitors – the stuff that secretly bothers you because it’s a mess, but that you’ve pushed aside to one corner of your mind and try to forget about.
2. You’re going to have to relinquish your hold on material things – if you knew a fire was going to burn down your house, you had better be able to fit anything you would be devastated to lose in one cardboard box (photographs, collectibles, anything else that is unique and irreplaceable).
3. Similarly, realize that your memories, of good times and bad, aren’t stored in objects, they’re stored in your heart and your soul. Stop forming connections with inanimate objects, and get ready to give away things you haven’t used in over a year to charity. There is someone out there who needs your stuff more than you do.

 

What you need to start decluttering

1. You need boxes or bags to hold everything  

     you’re going to get rid of.

• One set for items to donate.
• One set for things to put away
• One for items to sell (optional).

 2. You also need lots of trash bags. You’d be surprised at how many useless papers and true junk   

     you'll find when you’re cleaning.

3. Not everyone will want to do it this way, but we like to clean out areas at the same time as we 

    declutter them, so we usually have plastic, wood, and glass cleaner and paper towels with us when 

    we’re on the purging rampage, so we can return the items we decide to keep back into a neat, 

    dust-free area.

Decluttering, step-by-step

1. Pick a room to work on first (we suggest the worst one first, to get it over with).
2. Open every drawer, cabinet and other containers one by one, moving in a circle from one area to the next, not skipping any places.
3. For every item, ask yourself these questions:
   • Have I used this item within the past year?
   • If someone took this out of my home, would I pay to replace it?
   • Does this make me happy or serve a useful purpose?
4. Make a quick decision! Don’t linger, you’ve got a lot of stuff to get through – and remember that the more useless stuff you get rid of, the happier and freer you will feel when you wake up tomorrow morning.
5. Place each item in the appropriate box/garbage bag.
6. Once the contents of the entire section have been emptied, vacuum and wipe down the area where they were being stored.
7. When you are finished with one room, take out all the trash, and put your donate boxes in the car to give to charity and return all items in the “put away” box to their proper places in your home.
8. When you are ready, begin the next room.

General decluttering tips

• Work on one room at a time, and don’t start on the next area until you have completely decluttered the current one. This will keep messes under control.
• Make the purging a fun experience. Do it with your significant other, as long as they are supportive of your mission, or listen to music or an audio book while you’re cleaning and purging.
• Don’t get overwhelmed; give yourself permission to take breaks. Only pull out as much as you can handle during the time you have to work on this project. You didn’t get a cluttered house in just a few days, and it’s okay not to have it completely decluttered in a few days, either.

Information Credit: http://micro-living.com/guide/home-decluttering-checklist/

Hanging Shoe Rack Uses

I've never given these much thought for organization like this, but it bears keeping in mind! Just couldn't put anything really heavy into the plastic pockets or I'm sure they'd tear away from the backing. A canvas shoe rack would probably be better for the bigger things.

For cleaning items

 

 For art, craft and school supplies

source

For health and beauty items

source

For children's small toys

source

Mission Accomplished

Earlier today I determined to clean and tidy the basement. It's just a basement, so I try not to go overboard, but since it's used often, I like to feel good about it when I'm down there. I don't enjoy seeing pet fur, spiderwebs, lint and loose bits of kitty litter all over while doing my laundry and such. I also don't want a lot of this stuff being blown about the house when the furnace comes on! Besides changing the furnace filter often, I like to pull the filter out and vacuum it in between changes. This helps out a lot since we have a handful of animal children. ☺ (See my post http://simplymekimberlymarie.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-animal-children.html)

Before:

After:

That's better! It was a productive day. I celebrated with a small dish of ice cream out 
on the back patio to enjoy this beautiful, sunny afternoon!!

Daily "To Do" List

For a couple of years now, I've used a simple, pretty notebook to keep myself moving from day to day. At the start of each morning, I date the page, then list what I'd like to accomplish with a check box.  Call me crazy, but I like to see the results of my labor at the end of the day, and a check in the box makes me feel happy! I keep my goals realistic and practical, but if for some reason there's anything I was unable to complete that day, I carry it over to the next page on the following morning.

Depending on the size and type of notebook I have, I put a column either on the side, or at the bottom of the page for listing things I will need to pick up at the store the next time I'm out. Then, before I head out, I compile all the listed items for that week on a separate piece of paper to take with me. These can be anything from household items to pet stuff to groceries.

I've really had such positive results in getting things done, and compiling my shopping list(s) by using a method like this! Often, it's not a matter of not wanting to do something, it's just a matter of getting sidetracked, so having things written down helps me to stay focused. ☺

Children's Room Organization

Shelving ideas like this are my all time favorite way to keep a child's room neat and organized. 

Everything is also very accessible, and easy to put back when done!

Simple Organization Ideas

magazine holder

Use a magazine holder for storage of those wraps and papers that 

often take up valuable drawer space.

tweezers

How simple is this? Use a magnet on the inside metal of the medicine cabinet

to keep your tweezers in place and handy.

So obvious, but would you believe that many people don't have something

as simple as these things to keep their keys and important items all in one place?

baskets

While you may not have the little, individual shelves for storing baskets like

these on, most closets do have shelving that would accommodate baskets that can be used to help keep things like purses, shoes, belts, socks, etc. more organized.

~ ♥ ~

These are all simple ideas that can make a BIG difference!

Closet Organization

house beautiful

house beautiful

house beautiful

I like the simple, basic idea of these plans.

Bathroom Gadgets

Things that would be great to keep my bathroom neat and organized.........

holder for inside cabinet door

This would be perfect for my daughter since I'm always finding the blow dryer tossed up on the back of the toilet!

tension pole caddy

I have to get one of these. With all of our different shampoos, soaps, body washes, razors, and creams, it's a balancing act when any one of us steps into the shower!

toilet paper holder

This is wonderful! My rack stands on the floor, and is always getting bumped into, or knocked over.

soap holder

Now this is nothing short of ingenious! My biggest pet peeve with bar soap is that it gets all soft and slimy from sitting in a little puddle of water.

sprays and brush organizer

I love this idea. A place for everything hair related.

towel rack

This is so much nicer than having the towels hung on the back of the door where they never really dry. And their wetness is up against the wood of the door. You'd need a bit of wall space and room for this, but it's a very practical solution!

Practical Organzation

DIY Network

Love this idea! Stored neatly, but very accessible.

realsimple.com

Lazy Susan's are a great way to utilize more space on shelves in cabinets, and it's so much easier to see what you have!

Endless Crafting

I love the idea of labeling, especially when it looks as nice as this!

Hmmm, this would be a good idea if all your herbs and spices are in similar types of jars, like here, to utilize the space in the drawer to its fullest.

Tupperware

I love storage containers that stack. There's nothing worse than trying to squeeze containers in here and there, and nothing fits just right!

mulletcabinet.com

Drawer organizers are a great way to keep everything visible and easy to grab when you need it.

frontdoor.com

Now these pull out racks for the pots, pans and their lids are a fabulous idea! I'm always trying to cram mine in, or wrestle them out from the stove drawer which is so frustrating.

magnarack.com

I absolutely love these racks for very useful and handy storage on the refrigerator, instead of the mess of papers and silly magnets that end up on it!

Suzzee's Shoppe

Or racks like these would be good for a message center area.