How I Organized My Cabinet Shelves

Top shelf housed snacks.

Have you ever noticed how clutter loves to accumulate?  I mean, clutter multiplies like rabbits!  It is an ongoing struggle to organize all the "stuff" that takes up residence in a cabinet such as this one.  The reality is that my cabinet was holding too many collections.

I removed some extras from my cabinet.

I took out an acrostic poem project that was on the bottom shelf--brown photo binder to white box.  I removed, from the top shelf, the little blue basket which held a hair dryer.  Then, I removed my hubby's files.  Those are housed in a hunter green colored plastic file holder.  That worked out because he needed them closer to his computer desk.

My cabinet still looked cluttered.

I noticed my office supplies needed better containers.  Also, my files needed to be combined.  Above, you can see the two plastic see through containers in the bottom shelf.  Those were holding half and half of my own files.  That's when I remembered a brown rolling file holder I had in my storage shed; I asked my hubby to bring it back inside the house. 

I have had this brown cart for years.

I had put this rolling cart in the storage shed because one of the wheels is broken.  Still, I wanted to keep it, just in case.  Once again, it has come to my rescue.

See-through plastic top allows me to use it as a makeshift table.

It's funny how I come back to the solutions that worked before.  I can roll this cart under my wooden-dining-table-turned-desk.  I can pull out the cart when I need to get to my coupon file.  Oh, this is so much easier now.

Round containers create dead spaces.

I still had to deal with my miscellaneous office supplies, like paper clips and thumb tacks.  That's why I bought the tiny containers with tops and two pink mini-crates.  I prefer squarish containers, and these were definitely perfect.

I bought 8 tiny containers for $2.00 at a grocery store.

These small crates cost $1.20 each at Big Lots.

The pink mini-crates being stacked didn't work for me.

I removed my writing coursework from the cabinet.  I recently finished the course so I don't need to have the white binder, books, and assignments in my cabinet.  I placed some of those items in one of those see-through boxes.  That allowed me to take those things out of the cabinet but still keep them together.

One crate held office supplies.

I repurposed the other plastic see-through container.

I decided to place the office supplies into one of the plastic see through containers.  The box did not over fill with items.  That freed up space in the pink crate.  I used it below by standing it on its side to hold smallish books.  You can see that I now have space to place extra items on the bottom shelf.

This is a closeup of the crate turned on its side.

These are paper tray I've had for years.

I've tried selling these paper trays at yard sales.  I'm glad I still have them.  The top shelf holds office supplies that I want ready at my fingertips.  My stapler, tape dispenser, battery-operated sharpener, rectangular basket full of writing utensils, and a ruler are within my reach.  The bottom shelf is for paper needing to be shredded.

A closed cabinet hides my stuff.

There are other things I've removed, like the box that my digital camera came in.  A boat-shaped wooden basket was removed.  That held some snacks that needed to go out of my room.  I was having too much late-night snacking.   Lastly, a collection of reusable plastic baggies, of all sizes, needed to find a new home.

Of course, before I go to sleep, I close the doors to my cabinet.  That shuts out the work waiting for me.  I believe in out of sight, out of mind.  In addition, to me, it's important that my hubby wakes up to a clean home, especially when my office is in our master bedroom.

Well, thanks for "listening" to my strategy for organizing my cabinet.  I hope you got some good ideas to use in your own home.

Next week, I'd like to address what I did with the doors of the cabinet and what it inspired.  Stay tuned!

How about you, my readers?  Do you have a cluttered cabinet needing to be reorganized?  I hope you can find some ideas.  The internet is a perfect place to find ideas.  I believe looking at the Container Store website can yield some wonderful, inspiring ideas.

May God bless you all with His wisdom and peace.

This entry has been part of the Family Fun Fridays series.

Utility Room Update

Before picture of over-sized shelves.

A few shelves in a room can make a big difference!

Back in June of this year, I posted about how we reorganized our utility room in Cleaning Challenge Update Sixth Week--Home Office & Utility Room.  The over-sized black plastic shelves had overpowered the small utility room.  It made me feel claustrophobic so we removed them from the room.  That made a big difference, but I knew we still needed some shelves.

Before picture showed cloth baskets weren't working for us.

We had also removed the cloth hampers for dirty clothes we had used for years.  We turned to round white baskets that we owned.  I labeled the white baskets.  The only thing I didn't like was that they were on the ground.  I felt we needed shelves.

Detergent was placed in only reachable shelf.

My detergent was still far away from the washer.  I wanted the detergent to be placed closer to the washer.  Below is a picture of a recent update.  Now, this is much better: 

This is the current set up to our utility room.

Clean clothes are on the dryer side of the utility room.  Dirty clothes are to the left where the washer is located.  Also, the detergent is now closer to the washer.  My sweet hubby moved his work uniforms over the baskets which are for the clean clothes.  Then, he placed white shelves from that piece of furniture that now holds the clean clothes baskets.  Can you believe that?!

Two larger baskets at the top have been labeled.

I found I needed to tweak a few more things about our laundry system.  The kids already had baskets for their clean clothes.  I had to label a large white basket for clothes for Mom & Dad.  An oval basket was labeled for linen & towels.

Shelves have been added.

There is a large green box that holds crocheted blankets and pillows.  That is what is actually touching the floor.  Additionally, there is one green hamper that holds the dirty linen and towels.  By the way, I love these shelves.  Hubby has done an outstanding job!

This basket is dedicated to catching outgoing stuff.

I decided to label this blue basket as a catchall for outgoing stuff.  Stuff like outgrown, torn, or useless clothing, books, and toys can go in there.  Then, I can decide what I'll do with those items later.  I have used boxes in the past, but I think this basket will hold a sufficient amount of stuff, until I take it to the storage shed outside.

Well, thanks for viewing the pictures and reading this update. 

I hope this entry has inspired you to organize your utility/laundry room.

How about you, my readers?  Have you updated your utility/laundry room?  I hope that if your laundry system isn't working, you would consider changing things up a bit.  It could help your family want to do the laundry.  For us, it has made a difference because the white see-through baskets allow my kids to see what needs washing right away.

May God bless you all with His wisdom and peace.

This entry has been part of the Family Fun Fridays series.

Cleaning Challenge Update Fourth Week--Bedrooms and Bathrooms

Update on the 31 Days to Clean Challenge: Days 16-20

One of the targets for this week--bedroom shelves

 

Day 16

I'm falling behind.  I'm upset that my writing course has been extended.  I did not expect it.  I am ready for the course to end.  Want to move forward, but I know that I am still have some learning to do.  

Iris has been teaching Kaelyn how to sweep.  

I asked the kids to sweep their rooms.  I have often asked the kids to pick up the slack because I suffer with pain.  My sickness often leads to laziness.  I have to pace myself with the illness because the stress causes inflammation.  The inflammation leads to pain.  I am now eating anti-inflammatory foods which are helping to squash the pain.  Yes!

Blogging is taking a lot of my time.  I'm better at writing.  I might have to take some time off, though.  Perhaps it can coincide with the kids' time off. 

Day 17

11 year-old's bookcase--he needs direction

 

I asked the kids to dust their books and declutter their bookcases.  Have they done it?  I don't think so...

Under the DISC personality quiz, I scored as the cautious type.  I'm calculating, contemplative, and careful.  I like for things to make sense, and I need to understand the reasons behind situations.  I tend to focus on making things "right" and follow some sort of routine.  My weakness is taking too much time to make decisions.

I think it helps me understand that I calculate how to delegate chores.  I contemplate how much to assign.  I am careful not to burden my kids with too much to do.  I have been indecisive as to giving them more detailed instructions because I'm afraid the kids will revolt.

Day 18

For today, I was supposed to clean out our closets, but we had already done that in March.  I did work on my closet problem more recently.

 

Sampling of clutter from our closets--March

Problem in my closet--clothes too tight

Closeup of shoe rack taking space

Opposite door is bare

Over-door rack for shoes at Walmart

Clothes breathing; caps now in utility room

Unpainted wall, yes

Twin flat sheet to hide closet

I had to write out a tentative schedule:

Wake up

Pray

Breakfast

Exercise

Work on Writing

Lunch

Blog

Clean

Homeschool

Dinner

Browse Internet

Day 19 

I had to do a Bible study on the words joy and self-discipline.  It is too detailed to post it here.  I will post it on Sunday.  I did jot down a few Bible verses, but I want to give the study a good treatment.

Had already cleaned out expired medications and toiletries.  Had updated my first aid kit to take to our trip.  I cleaned out my old cosmetics, too.  Well, I kept a few items.  I don't wear too much makeup so I am holding on to the minimum.

Following are before and after pictures of my decluttering:

Messy medicine shelf

Closeup of medicines

Bag containing summer medications

Expiration dates to weed out

Result of messiness--too many band aids

Walmart bag full of old toiletries and medications

Medications organized in bigger basket

Medicine bag on the go

Basket on shelf; travel toiletries and summer meds. on side

Messy shelf for vitamins and supplements

Difficult to see labels of vitamins and supplements

Rack borrowed from elsewhere for vitamins and supplements

Container for toiletries in master bathroom

First drawer of toiletries in master bathroom

Second drawer for toiletries in master bathroom

Day 20

Had to clean bathroom mirrors, windows, and walls.  Used mint-scented Method glass cleaner for the window and mirrors.  Need to dust.

Also, need to assess how I spend my time.  I have to do it honestly to figure out where I am wasting time.  I know that I spend too much time on the internet and watching TV again.  I need to do things in moderation.

Like I said before, I am not gonna stress if I didn't get to everything.  I'm about 60-70% of optimum health.  I am feeling a lot better, and I am working on my diet, weeding out the junkfood.  This cleaning challenge has covered many areas of my life, not just the house situation.  I am very grateful for this opportunity to improve the quality of life for my family.

Well, thanks for reading this update 

and viewing the pictures. 

I hope this entry has inspired you to clean your homes.

How about you, my readers?  Have you deep cleaned your bedrooms?  Have you weeded out expired medications and old cosmetics?  Are you wanting to deep clean, but you don't know where to get started?  The link above leads to an ebook which can be helpful in prioritizing and breaking down the cleaning.  I encourage you to click on the link if you need more help.

May God bless you all with His wisdom and peace.

This entry has been part of the Family Fun Fridays series.

Cleaning Challenge Update Third Week--Living Room & Bedroom

Update on the 31 Days to Clean Challenge: Days 11-15

You can't see the dust in my living room.

Day 11

For day 11, I had to accept grace because I cannot do everything that I need to do.  Grace allows one to pick up and keep going, even if some of the things do not get done.  There is always a chance to start over again the next day.  I won't be hard on myself because I am limited.

We had already dusted the walls and even the ceiling fans in the living room.  I haven't dusted all of the shelves.

Day 12

This was the scene underneath the television.

Top shelf is now neat.

Bottom shelf is now organized.

For day 12, I had to consider what area in my life I was overdoing it.  I have striven to be a good manager of my home.  I just wish I had enough time to homeschool the way I would like.  I would like to teach with unit studies to incorporate science, art, and writing.  My kids are wonderful at cleaning and teaching each other.

We had already worked on the electronics, organizing the Wii and the videos in the living room. I posted about it yesterday.

Day 13

For day 13, I had to consider which snacks and/or activities I could use to increase my energy level.  I like to nibble on almonds and walnuts, which suppress hunger.  I can't have too much caffeine because I get pains on my body.  I should take my magnesium more regularly; perhaps that can help me gain energy.

I need to ask my daughter to mop the small living area, perhaps we can get to it this weekend.

Day 14

To rev up my cleaning, it was suggested to jazz up my routine.  I like to turn on some good dance music to get me going.  I do more vigorous movement, which helps me get fit.  Music also helps me pass the time.  Sometimes, cleaning can be boring but with music, the time seems to pass by.

Since I live here in Texas, it has already been hot.  Most of our heavy bedding has been put away.  I still need to wash the pillows and flip my mattress.

Day 15

For day 15, I had to devise a lesson plan of some sort to teach the importance of cleaning.  I came up with the following 5 W's:

What: The activity is to clean.

Why: We must be ready at all times to host.

How: Spot clean (10-15 min. for appearance and safety) and Deep clean (reorganize for efficiency and clean for health)

Who: Everybody; whoever makes a mess must clean up after themselves whenever possible.

When: When a mess is made, please clean up.  For example, spilled milk must be cleaned immediately so that no one slips and/or falls and hurts themselves.

I found some quotes about cleanliness at the following websites:


http://www.quotegarden.com/housework.html

http://www.household-management-101.com/house-cleaning-quotes.html

http://en.thinkexist.com/reference/quotes_about_cleaning/


The following quotes about cleanliness were interesting to me:


Housework is what a woman does that nobody notices unless she hasn't done it.
   
    Evan Esar

If a cluttered desk is the sign of a cluttered mind, what is the significance of a clean desk?
   
    Laurence J. Peter (1919 - 1988)

You don't get anything clean without getting something else dirty.
   
    Cecil Baxter

Cleanliness and order are not matters of instinct; they are matters of education, and like most great things, you must cultivate a taste for them.
   
    Benjamin Disraeli (1804 - 1881)

As for what I had to do, I already cleaned the mirrors in my bedroom when I cleaned the ones in the living room.  I use mirrors in my house to make my house seem bigger.  It is rather difficult to clean the windows in my house because many of them are doubled up for the window AC units.  To be honest, the windows are so thin that two of them within the house are cracked.  Most of the windows in my house need to be replaced.

Well, thanks for reading this update 

and viewing the pictures. 

I hope I inspired you.

How about you, my readers?  Have you cleaned your living room?  Have you cleaned your pillows and blankets and put them away?  Are you wanting to deep clean, but you don't know where to get started?  The link above leads to an ebook which can be helpful in prioritizing and breaking down the cleaning.  I encourage you to click on the link if you need more help.

May God bless you all with His wisdom and peace.

This entry has been part of the Family Fun Fridays series.