Thursday, July 15, 2010

Tight Spaces

Do you suffer from a small space and no storage room? Guess what- time to get creative! Believe it or not, there are ways to store your things when tight on space.

What's under your bed? Is junk and that lost sock lingering under your bed? If so, you're not utilizing that space very well. Find narrow boxes or old dresser drawers that don't have a home anymore, and use them for under-the-bed storage.

Time to redecorate. Cover uniform boxes and/or tubs that have lids with decorative fabrics to create side tables and ottomans. Place a glass top or table tray on your new tables to keep them from getting squished or concave in the center. Large picture frames with the glass still in them make a good table tray, and you can personalize the art inside and paint the frame to match your decor.

Vacuum sealed bags are marvelous! I only recently discovered how awesome these space saving bags are. They really do work, and you can fit so much more into your closet! It does take an investment, but well worth it.

These are only a few suggestions. Take a look around your space and find the "empty" spaces that are hiding all around you. Just be sure you're not storing junk and creating more clutter!

Friday, July 2, 2010

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

What do the "3 R's" of being green have to do with being organized? Well, quite simply, it keeps clutter out, and more money in your pocket. Here's how:

REDUCE Use less disposable products. Example-Use a terrycloth towel to clean a spill vs a gazillion paper towels. I usually pull one out of the dirty laundry to do this, so it's not adding to laundry already needed to be done. You will also have less garbage, and not have to buy as many paper towels! We live in such a "throw away" society that we often forget that for generations people got along just fine without all these "conveniences."

REUSE Tin cans are great organizers! Clean the food remnants out, remove any sharp edges, and take off the label. Leave it plain looking, or add a cute label for the new contents with scrap booking supplies. They are great for pencils, pens, crayons, buttons, paper clips, scissors, eating utensil caddy for a party, etc... Use your imagination! You can also punch a hole near the top and hang it on a hook on the wall if you are limited on shelf or counter space.

RECYCLE
Check with your local disposal company to see what items are recyclable. Most areas have free recycling and offer curbside pick up and/or drop off sites. Recycling as much as possible reduces garbage build up in your home and the landfill. It does take discipline to not just toss it in the trash, but getting organized and clutter free does too.

My family follows these guidelines regularly. Our household has 7 people, and we only go through about two 13 gallon bags (standard kitchen size) of trash a week, and that's with a kid in diapers (Yes, disposable. We did cloth for a long time, but other circumstances changed that.) We will have even less when we get our compost going.

Once routines are established, it's really easy to keep up. Getting there is half the battle. You can do it!