DIY Gift Wrap Organizer

In my ongoing search for clever organizing ideas, I found this ingenious way of keeping gift wrap under control: using wire closet shelving!

This is how The Family Handyman describes it:

"Propping up rolls of gift wrap in the corner of a hall closet often means wrinkled, torn or lost rolls. Here's a way to keep the rolls neatly organized and easy to reach.

Make a wrapping paper "corral" by screwing a small section of wire closet shelving vertically to the side of a closet wall. Just slide the rolls in!"

Don't you love it?

More on DIY storage:
DIY Cord  Storage:
DIY Closet Storage from Flea Market Finds
Turn Your  Clutter into Storage - DIY Ideas

Organizing Products I Use - Organizing Sandal and Flip Flop Storage

As I went through the summer and end-of-summer sales, I began accumulating enough sandals and flip flops to create a mess in my closet! I've posted a solution using dry cleaner hangers, but I didn't want to sacrifice that much closet space. What to do?

I chose an over-the-door shoe organizer. I could get a pair of shoes in each of the twenty-four pockets. I haven't filled all the slots by a long shot, so I have plenty of room to grow without creating a mess in my closet! Not that I necessarily want to fill up all twenty-four pockets with summer shoes! 
 

Such a simple and inexpensive solution to shoe clutter!

More on Organizing Products I Use:
Organizing Products I Use - Shoe Organizers (but not for shoes)
Organizing Products I Use - Repurposed Furniture
Organizing Products I Use - Two-Shelf Dish Organizers

 

DIY Scarf Storage

 
Thread scarves though shower-curtain rings attached to a hanger for wrinkle-free, easy-to-see storage. Another idea from Redbook.

More DIY organizing projects:
What to  Do with those Dry  Cleaning Hangers? - Make a DIY Shoe Rack
Organizing Your Bracelets - Go Vertical!
Organizing Toys Using a Wire Garden Planter

A Time-Saving Laundry Tip - Color-Coded Laundry Bags

    
I heard a tip to make laundry a little easier: buy each member of your family three laundry bags - one for whites, one for lights and one for darks. If possible, purchase a different color for each person. For example, you could get a light blue bag for lights, and dark blue bag for darks, and a white one for whites and tie a blue (color-safe) ribbon to it. Ok - I know I may be getting obsessive here!!

Train your child how to differentiate between light and dark colors - a great learning tool even for toddlers!

When it's time for a load of light-colored laundry, ask your child to bring you his light bag. Since it will probably not be full, tie up the bag and wash the entire bag. If the bag is not too full, you could toss it in the drier and save all the sorting! And since the bag is color-coded, you know who it belongs to!

You can then teach your child how to fold the clothes in the laundry bag and organize the clothes in the closet or drawers. A way to prepare your child for leaving home and eventually a time-saver for you, once he gets the system down!

More on clothes/laundry:
Three Steps to Organizing Your Closet
A Dozen Tips for Staying Clutter-Free in 2013
A Unique Way of Storing Folded Clothes

What to Do with those Dry Cleaner Hangers? - Make a DIY Shoe Rack

  
"Remove the cardboard bar on the bottom of a wire pant hanger, and reshape the ends with pliers to make hooks for flats and flip-flops. Slip your shoes on the newfangled rack and give yourself a pat on the back."

Isn't that clever? Another great idea from Redbook!

More ideas about shoes:
Get Organized Month - Organize Your Shoes
Three Steps to Organizing Your  Closet

Ruthless Closet Purging - Organizing for a Move ... Or Not

   
We have about a month before the closing of our house. In the meantime, we're going through every inch of our home to purge those things we don't use, want or need.

A few nights ago, I went through my closet and dresser. I looked at every item and asked myself if I love it and wear it. For those things I wasn't sure about, I tried them on to see how they looked. I got rid of several things I had only worn once or just a few times. I've lost some weight and some of the things just don't look good any more. Or I just don't like them well enough to wear them.

In one sense, I feel wasteful, but in another sense, I feel efficient. Now everything in my closet and drawers are things I use and like. And I know someone else can get some use out of the items I never wore. And I've reduced the footprint of my clothes.

I also noticed a couple of items that need mending. I'll try to remember to mend them while watching a movie or the news.

And it became obvious that some of the clothes I wear frequently are getting faded. I identified a couple of things I need to buy to replace those faded ones. When I went shopping a couple of days ago, I knew exactly what I needed to buy and was able to take one item off my list in a very short amount of time.

You don't have to move to purge your closet! As you get ready for spring, look over your winter clothes and get rid of those things you didn't wear over the winter. As you take out your spring clothes, try them on and get rid of those you don't like. You'll see what you have, what you need and bless someone else with your discarded items.

More on purging your closet:
Declutter Sentimental Clothing - Turn Them into a Quilt
Efficient and Clothes-Lean
Donating Business Clothing for Job Interviews

Efficient and Clothes-Lean

    
For some reason, I'm in the mood to clean out my closet. Maybe it's because I've come to the point of having enough clothes I really like. That creates a glaring contrast to those clothes I have in my closet that I don't really like or like how they look on me. That keep hanging in my closet unworn.

So why am I keeping the latter? Good question! 

I want my closet to house only my "feel fabulous" clothes. As a result, I'm removing those that don't fit this category. Even if they are in good shape. Even if they fit. Even if I've only worn them a few times. Painful, huh?

But what good is it to keep them? It just makes it harder to get dressed in the morning because I have to weed through my unfavorites to find my favorites. 

I've started making a pile of giveaways/donations - I love it! 

If there are some pieces of clothing you can't part with or wear only once or twice a year, put them in another closet or in a storage container or in a hard-to-get part of your closet. Don't let them take up valuable real estate in the most usable part of your closet! 

Then, when you get dressed in the morning, you have only fabulous clothing to choose from! Start your fall feeling fabulous and clothing-lean! 

More on being clothes-lean and efficient: 

Another Way to Streamline Your Morning Routine

Vinegar - 10 Ways to Save Your Clothes!

Three Steps to Organizing Your Closet (Kindle)

 

 

Clever Storage Ideas from Better Homes and Gardens

I came across several fun storage ideas courtesy of Better Homes and Gardens. There were several in the article, but these are my favorites:

A towel rack converted to store sweaters and shoes. 

Slide it into your closet under short hanging clothes. Keeps hangers from ruining your sweaters and it's easier than folding! 

 Use drawer organizers to organize game pieces and small games.

 

 No more lost pieces! And so easy to use - just take out the container holding the pieces you want to play with and slip it back in the drawer when you're finished!

Hidden Outlets

 

This is my favorite! If you're redoing your kitchen, have your outlets built in with covers to hide them! If there's enough room, you can store the cords there, too. 

Recycled Paint Cans for Accessible Storage

  

Clean up used paint cans, decorate if you like, and nail them to the wall for easy access. Great for hats, scarves, gloves, socks, hair accessories, etc.

 

More clever storage ideas:

Options for Organizing Spices

Do It Yourself Shoe Storage

Clever Bathroom Organizing Ideas from Martha Stewart

An Easy Way to Store Tablecloths

    
My mom gave me this idea on storing tablecloths: hang them up on hangers! She keeps hers in her basement near her washer and dryer. As soon as they come out of the dryer, they go on hangers to avoid wrinkles.

I keep mine in my guest room closet. In the past, I've used an entry closet. Anywhere where you have a little extra closet space or space for a hanging rod can work. Stuffing them into drawers just creates wrinkles, and ironing is not my idea of a good time!

More on storing linens:

Preventing a Linen Closet Avalanche - Storing Sheets

Get Organized Month - Declutter Your Linen Closet

Three Steps to Organizing Your  Closet (Kindle version)

Three Areas to Swap Out This Spring

   
It's that time of year again to swap out seasonal items. I can think of at least three areas to address:

1. Clothing - swap out your winter clothes for spring and summer clothes. If you store your summer clothes elsewhere than your bedroom closet, it's time to switch. If all your clothes are in your closet, make your spring and summer clothing more accessible and winter clothing less accessible. Don't forget to keep out some transitional items for those cool days.
 
2. Garage - bring your summer gear nearer the garage door and put your winter gear in the back. You'll want your mower and gardening supplies available and hopefully we're done with snow and ice for a while. You may want to change the oil in your mower and top off your gas can.

3. Car - if you keep an extra change of clothes for your children in your car, you might want to change from winter clothes to summer ones. You can put away the ice scraper, and toss some frisbees and summer toys into the trunk.

While you're at it, you may want to clean out the freezer and make one last pot of soup. Make room for summer ices and sorbets!

Hopefully, we're not too premature on this swap. The whole country seems to be having an early spring. Here's hoping winter is over!

More on seasonal swaps:

It's that Time Again - Swapping Out Your Seasonal Tools

Get Organized Month - Clean out the Freezer

Spring Cleaning the Car

 

Three Steps to Organizing Your Closet - My New Book!

    
I'm happy to announce that I've written another small book for the organizationally overwhelmed: Three Steps to Organizing Your Closet - a step-by-step guide to a functional and efficient closet.  Included are hints for your linen closets and resources for maximizing closet storage.

It is available exclusively through Amazon's Kindle. If you're a member of Amazon Prime, you can read it for free. Otherwise it's $2.99. But ... on March 11, 18, 25 and April 1 and 22 non-Prime Kindle readers can get it for free as part of a Kindle promotion. 

As you may know, most of my other books in the 1-2-3 ... Get Organized series are available on Kindle as well. If you prefer print books, they are available at my website.

Spring is coming! Time to get organized. J 
       

Closet Space-Savers and Organizers

    
Looking to get more mileage out of your closet? I've compiled a collection of space-savers and organizers on my Pinterest board so such resources are in one place for you and my clients. I've chosen those with the highest reviews in an effort to provide the best quality. 

Click here to take a look. Hope you enjoy them. :) I have boards on shoe storage and closet organizing systems, too, if you're interested.

More on closets:

Don't Make the #1 Organizing Mistake

Closet Mapping

Get Oranized Month 2009 - Organizing Your Clothes Closet

     

Do It Yourself Shoe Storage

        
I'm always looking for shoe storage ideas. I stole this idea from Krystel Smalls. This particular picture shows children's shoes stored by pairs. But you could also store adult shoes (one in each cylinder), scarves, socks, gloves, etc. 

How to: cut PVC pipe to desired length and glue together. Use in your closet, bedroom, child's room, mudroom, entry, or wherever you like!

             

More on shoe storage:

Shoe Storage Options

Organizing Your Shoes

Get Organized Month - Organize Your Shoes