Back To School Organizing Tips : 2013 ideas

School is in session! This time of year we can all use a little organization advice. Use these creative and helpful tips to store more in your home.

Organize Your Important Papers, Bills, Receipts & More

 



 

 

Just Drop It

Take charge of underused kitchen items that could be repurposed for organization. This vintage toast rack becomes an elegant in-box on an entry table. Use the slots to keep postage stamps handy for outgoing mail and to sort what comes in.

 

 

Portable Projects

Forget boxy filing cabinets. Flat-bottom tote bags are sized right for file folders and make perfect project carriers. Tuck a separate shelf under a desk to keep the bags upright. Add more storage with a set of stackable drawers on the desk and stash wrapping paper in a pretty bin beside it.

 

 

Office Out Box

With meetings, school, practice, and pets, it's easy to lose track of time on busy mornings. A drop zone is a foolproof way to manage mail that needs to go out the door. Designate two trays  one for bills to pay and one for outgoing letters near the entryway of your home to make sure nothing is missed.

 

 

Expense Tracker

A well-ordered expense tracker makes it easy to maintain inventories and keep important documents on hand. With several compartments, this file box ensures manageable space to organize receipts and other frequently-accessed items. Look for a device with labeled pockets so you can organize information by subject or date, or alphabetically.

 

 

Style-Setting Role

By keeping papers on hand and off the desk, this wall-mounted file helps corral paper clutter. Use each compartment to organize items by category, such as bills, schoolwork, and notepads. Affix metal hooks to outer panels for keys or grab and go items.

 

 

Message Center

Keep clutter at bay with a multi-purpose work station. This communication haven is built from a patchwork of magnet, dry-erase, chalkboard, cork, and pegboard squares behind the built-in desktop. The combination of materials ensures that messages and papers can be stored in versatile ways. Use magnetic boards to hold papers you need only temporarily, dry-erase boards and chalkboards to jot down quick messages, cork boards to stick more permanent papers on (favorite take-out menus, emergency phone numbers), and pegboard squares to mount containers for desk supplies.

 

 

Out to Dry

Create a personal filing system that meets your daily needs and makes sense to you, but make it easy to use. Intended for dishes, the slats of this drying rack stand file folders and notebooks at perfect attention. Use the slotted compartment designed for sponges to stash small office supplies.

 

 

Tray Chic

Quarter-sheet baking pans make great clutter-catchers in shallow desk drawers. Designate a tray for each specific need, such as organizing bills or corralling extra office supplies, to keep counters clean .

 

 

Raise the Bar

Keep needed items in sight and in mind with color-coded folders. Attach towel racks to the side of a desk to create a file cabinet. Add grommets to file folders and hang them from the bars with curtain hooks. Personalize each folder with labels and postcards for a memorable way to organize.

 

 

Stationery System

Stash everything you need to accomplish a task in one designated area. Perfect for storing small items, this letter holder adds a burst of style to the desktop and keeps colorful stationery on hand for jotting a quick note.

 

Kids' Organization

Keep homework and school papers organized with a simple filing system. Standing files with tabbed dividers sort paper by subject or activity, making it easy to separate classes from extracurriculars .

 

 

Great Space-Saver

Sync your family's busy schedules with a communication center at the heart of your home. A host of wall-mounted organizers, such as bulletin boards, magnetic panels, and file folders, save space and encourage parents and kids to exchange important messages. Magnetic strips of memo board provide a place to hang cards and photos.

 

Organize On the Go

Create a portable coupon and receipt organizer from an index card case and stash it where you'll remember to take it on errands. Alphabetized divider tabs are the perfect solution for filing lists accordingly. The holder's small size makes it easy to stow in a purse .

 

 

 

 

Easy Organizing Tips for Closets 2013 Ideas

Closets are valuable storage space. Make your closet work harder with a clear organization strategy and the right tools from modular closet storage systems to the simplest of shelves and bins. Check out this ideas that can be adapted to any closet space.

 

 

Strategy: Folding Clothes

If you prefer to fold your clothes or have a lot of clothing that is best stored folded, Meryl Starr, a professional organizer in New York and author of The Organizing Workbook, recommends these tips for folding clothes within your closet.

1- Shelves should be about 12 inches deep, roughly the depth of a stack of clothes. You don't want a lot of wasted space in front or behind.

2- Ventilated shelves promote airflow around folded clothes, which cuts down on the possibility of mold, mildew, and pests.

3- Group like with like (jeans with jeans, etc.). Same-size items stack more neatly. Put clothes you use most in the center at eye level.

4- Don't stack higher than about a foot, and leave at least 6 inches between the top of the stack and the next shelf for easy reaching in.

5- Add drawers to collect smaller items. If you don't have drawers, use a basket or two. Position drawers below eye level so it's easy to peer in.

 

 

Strategy: Hanging Clothes

Hanging up clothing inside a closet is an easy way to keep clothing organized, especially if you have a lot of dress clothes, suits, or dresses. Lorie Marrero, creator of The Clutter Diet online program, recommends these tips:

1- For the double-hang area, put the shortest clothes on the top rod and hang the bottom one as high as possible under them. Use space freed up near the floor for a shoe rack or storage bins.

2- Organize garments by category and separate with hanging labels; the more specific the categories the better. For example, subdivide your shirts into short- and long-sleeve, or casual and dressy. Bonus points: Organize by color within a category.

3- Keep shoes, purses, and jewelry in hanging organizers there are dozens on the market so you can see them alongside your clothes.

 

 

Strategy: Storage for Shoes

If you love shoes and deciding how to store them is your main closet woe, try these tips from John Trosko, a professional organizer and co-author of The Experts’ Guide to Doing Things Faster.

1- Slim shoes, such as flats and flip-flops, can be stored two to a cubby. Use spare slots for belts, scarves, and clutches.

2- Drawers give the closet a polished, built-in look, plus handy closet door storage for folded clothes. Bulky items like sweaters and purses can go on the open shelves.

3- Eke out another sliver of storage by putting a shallow basket on the shelf below the top row of hanging clothes. Use it for things that fold up small, such as tights, T’s, or socks

 

 

Planning: Clean Up & Clear Out

Plan a closet makeover by measuring your current closet to determine hanging requirements and storage needs. Next, you'll need to clear everything out of the closet so the new system can be installed. This is a good time to go through items you can no longer use and donate them to charity.

 

 

Planning: Shelf It

You might think the more shelves, the better but this is not always true. The shelves themselves take up inches of precious storage space, and too many of them can make it difficult to stack or remove items. It's best to design shelves that will fit the various items you have to store.

 

 

Planning: Shoe Solution

If shoes flood your closet floor, develop a smart strategy for storing them. Keep the shoes you wear all the time accessible on shelves if you have room. Store seasonal and special occasion shoes in easy to see clear plastic boxes on the top shelf of your closet. Or simply reuse the original box and attach a picture of the shoes to the front of the box.

 

 

Planning: Space Management

If your bedroom is small, consider placing your dresser inside the closet. You can install shelving above it and still maximize the vertical space a closet has to offer.

 

 

Planning: Closet for Two

Whether it's for kids or for a his-and-hers, a shared closet works best when territories are clearly defined. Place a tower of drawers in the middle of a reach in closet, which will give each closet occupant their own side of the closet. Assign drawers to each person to achieve shared closet bliss.

 

 

Features: Closet Cubbies

Organize your own closet or a child's with a combination of double-hanging rods, drawers, and shelves. Drawers corral small items such as socks while cubbies hold folded items. Upper shelves can store out of season shoes and clothing in clear bins with lids.

 

 

Features: Slanted Shoe Rack

Storing shoes on slanted shelves makes it easier to see the shelf contents. Before installing slanted shelves, consider how many pairs of shoes you need to store and about what size they are. Ankle boots will need more height than flats. You might want to space the shelves differently, or decide on a set spacing based on the height of your tallest shoes. If you have a lot of tall boots, consider storing them elsewhere, such as beneath a hanging rod. Look for inserts that will help boot shafts stay upright at organizational stores.

 

 

Features: Built-In Drawers

Consider built-in drawers for storing sweaters, undergarments, and accessories. Shorter drawers might only store a stack of four T-shirts or two sweaters, which is beneficial because you don’t have to dig through a large stack to find what you’re looking for, but a series of shorter drawers might not offer the same amount of storage space as larger, taller drawers. When you have more drawers, it means you need to have more space for the tracks and other drawer hardware.

 

 

Features: Lighting

Whether your closet is big or small, good lighting will make it even more functional. Look for ceiling-mount lighting that doesn’t need to be hardwired as a quick update for a reach-in closet. Lamps can be used in a walk-in closet for extra illumination, which is beneficial for dressing areas. If your walk-in closet has a window, install a light-blocking window covering. That way, you can keep out the natural light when you’re not using the closet. Constant sunlight might cause some clothing to fade.

 

 

Features: Double Bars for Kids

For a narrow and short space, stair-step rods for kids’ clothing storage. Since their clothing is short and slender, you can hang one rod higher and further back in the closet and another bar lower and more towards the front to get a double layer of storage. Consider tension shower rods, which can be installed without making holes in the wall and are easier to change as the child gets older.



 

 

Features: Double Bars for Adults

Using double closet rods one over the other  is the best way to squeeze more storage space out of a closet. Be sure to measure the length of each item you'll be hanging there and allow another 6 inches of clearance above and below each rod. Blouses, shirts, skirts, jackets, and kids' clothes will all fit on double rods.

Ramblin' About a Few Things

 These are all roses I've made or cuffs I've made.

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Okay as a doting great grandmother here's another video of Caroline learning her dance steps. It's 5 minutes long but you don't have to watch it if you don't want. But I'm her great grandmother so I get to post it. See how this works? LOL

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A few weeks ago while filling out the Pre-Op registration for surgery, one of the questions on one of the many forms had a question at the very bottom: Is there anything else we should know about you or your family. I wondered to myself if they didn't have enough already! But, as you all know, if you don't follow the rules, you don't get to play the game. So I put on there for that last question: Yes, we're a very humorous family. Hubs saw it and said, 'Maybe you should put on there I like model trains.' So I did! The nurse looked at it and smiled. She was very polite and informative as she had had the exact same surgery years ago. I listened intently. I don't think she had much of a sense of humor, certainly not to my obnoxious level, but she did smile. I liked her a lot.
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My hubs, Love Bunny, is frequently asking me 'why' I do a lot of things I do. I simply tell him I'm OCD and he can get over it. That's just the way things are with me. He sighs, we kiss, and go on...MY way, of course.
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Hubs and I are pretty different as many people have told us. So what? We love each other and that's all that matters, but he does have a little quirk that drives me crazy. If I ask him a question, he rarely answers yes or no, but 'okay' as if that's an answer to a question that has a definite choice, not just yes or no. Example: Do you want steak or hamburger for dinner? Answer: Okay. See what I mean. Drives me insane!
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Several days ago I was perusing the internet looking for images to post on here and came across some unique blogs. But there was one of just photos and I noticed the comments on this one blogger's photos. She had one with 674 comments, one with 2,112, one with 3,357, one with 4,335, one with 8,748, one with 8,999, one with 9,114, one with 32,200, one with 36,900 and one with 60,760 comments! I couldn't believe it.  I didn't read the comments but I wonder why that  blog would generate so many comments. Most I've ever seen by far. A few hundred would boggle my mind but 60,760? Wow!
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I eat french fries because it's the vehicle I use to get the ketchup to my mouth.
I eat carrots as the vehicle to get the ranch dressing to my mouth.
I eat salads to get the balsamic vinaigrette to my mouth.
I eat fish because I love fish and it's the vehicle for getting tartar sauce or cocktail sauce to my mouth.
I eat pancakes/waffles as the vehicle for getting maple syrup to my mouth.
I eat biscuits as the vehicle for the butter and jam delivery to my mouth.
French bread is the vehicle for butter with garlic powder.
Without these vehicles I'd be a very sloppy mess.
I just love vehicles!!  :-)

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A beautiful home in a warm climate, perhaps Florida or California.

This simply points to the old adage: never throw anything away. You’ll find a decorative use for it some day.

Another exquisite lamp I’d love in my home, especially that gorgeous lampshade.

An old lantern lending ambiance to a home.

I simply found this photo stunning.

The pinkish hue to this old building along with the elegant dinner party setting is just so lovely and serene.

Bright colors from probably a Scandinavian country. I found the photos from there so sunny and bright I can recognize them. Plus their women are very good at home crafts.

A peaceful setting, but I found those unique lamps a bit over the top!

This tiny home suggests its homeowner has great organizational skills for such a small place. Very cute!

Some of my favorite flowers, hydrangeas. Ours are blooming madly right now.

A beautiful French chateau.

Another beautiful home.

Just drip pearls over an old dull chandelier and this is what you get.

A rolling cart to hold essentials. Neat idea.

And last but not least, a gorgeous set of pretty pillows.

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Linking up with Mosaic Monday.

Washington State and Blue Bedrooms

For those of you visiting from a Linky party, click on my header/logo above to view other posts on my blog. I think you'll like those also. I'm not usually boring and have lots of beautiful things to look at as well as stories to read, which can be quite amusing. ;-)
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I've updated my tutorial on the new blogger interface here. This one is about blogger wanting you to upgrade for more storage space and telling you that some photos and/or posts will be deleted because you're using too much space. You really need to read this tutorial. Go to the bottom of the tutorial for a bit of advice on what other options you have.
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Washington state is the prettiest state I’ve ever seen. Oh, I love California and our new state of Idaho, but Washington has such a lusciousness that it muffles noises. It was one of the first things hubs and I noticed the first time we went to visit our granddaughter when she and her family moved there—the quietness of it. It’s also very, very lush. Foliage everywhere. Wet. Dewy. Lush. I’d live there in a heartbeat if it wasn’t so expensive. But their first home—their starter home—cost them $600,000. That’s beyond my budget. Too expensive for us retirees to live there so we just visit a few times a year. It truly seems as if the traffic is quieter also.

Anyway, we’ve noticed there and in Oregon that they build the house down from the street level. We first noticed it in Oregon when we went over to a niece’s wedding. A lot of driveways off the street to the houses would slope down. Now, I don’t know about you but it would seem to me with all the rain Washington and Oregon get that the water would drain into the houses and garages. Just doesn’t make sense to us. I’d never seen that until then because in California all the driveways I’d ever seen go up or are level but certainly not sloped down from the street.
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I know a lot of women prefer blue so here are a few blue bedrooms for you. Aren't they stunning?

This one is ethereal. Absolutely stunning.

If I had this door, I'd use it as a door on my office, and I love my office door now, but this one is my kind of door.

Cute vintage kitchen items. This is an English kitchen. I can tell because the cookie jar is called biscuit jar. Darling.

I adore this little étagère. The woman has all her little items displayed lovingly.

If only. Right? ;-)

A unique custom paint job on a vintage dresser really gives this pizzazz.

A quaint small bedroom straight out of an Agatha Christie novel.

A pretty pantry with all sorts of items showing through.

A small European apartment patio. They don't come any smaller than this I think.

Pretty garden surrounding a pool

A dream place we all would like to go to relax and while away a bit of time.

I. Love. Polka Dots.

A beautiful entry to a home or to a garden pathway. I absolutely LOVE moss growing between stones on a walkway.

Lots of pink and white.

While this looks like a wedding canopy, it could well be an easy place to have in a back yard.

Just something about this entry I like.

Caaauuuute!!!

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 I like my pancakes with enough syrup to cover my Camry!
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Linking up with:
No Minimalist Here
Savvy Southern Style 
At the Picket Fence