Simple “Finds" for 12 Rooms, that will Start Putting Your Home in Order

Are you in the mood to put your home in order, now that spring has sprung? Do you scramble to tackle the shambles that is your cluttered home? Help is on the way... I’m going to share a few easy ‘finds’ for 12 rooms in your home—simple items that will soon make you say, “Where have you been all my life?” (Note: I do not have any financial interest in any of these products, their manufacturers or sellers.) But, where and how to begin? You don’t have to proceed in the same order of rooms I’ve listed below… The important thing is just to start SOMEWHERE!

1) Toy Room—Boxes & Bins:

Our toy room has always been the biggest eyesore in our house; the hardest to keep organized. What a blessing these soft canvas toy boxes have been! The biggest mistake parents make in attempting to organize their toy room is to get one big toy box. You can position a different canvas toy box in targeted area of the toy room; and it will make cleanup quicker and easier. Or if you prefer, they look nice all on a shelf or all against one wall. (NOTE: Any shelf should be secured into the wall, for safety.) No matter how you choose to place them, the goal is to give children visual cues where to find and where to put away their toys.

For instance, all my grandbaby's horses and accessories go in the canvas toy box with a horse on it. (I can’t tell you how much time and trouble this has saved in hunting for a particular pony, halter, blanket, or toy brush!) Her zoo animals go in a canvas toy box with a giraffe on the front; safari figurines go in the one with a cheetah on the front; Frozen toys go in the one with the scene from Frozen on the front; toy train toys go in the canvas toy box with the train on the front, all her stuffed puppy dogs go in the dog box, etc. No matter what your child is into, you can probably find a canvas toy box to match. Here are some 'character' ones if you've got clutter from these toys:

In the rare instance you can’t find one with the particular picture you want on its front; get a plain soft canvas box and some colored felt pieces… With some scissors and glue, you can cut out a simple design (perhaps using a coloring book page as a stencil) to make your own custom one. (Why not turn it into a craft project with the kids?)

MAINTAIN: At first, you'll have to train the children (and yourself) that, “These toys go into this box, and those toys go into that box.” With the visual cues, they will be quick learners. Your toy room will look so organized! But the most pleasurable part for me for me, is seeing how much more enjoyment the children get out of their play, now that they can easily and quickly find the toys they’re wanting.

TIP: A few toys always manage to get carried into the living room. It's helpful to keep a few small bins in your living room to store those rogue toys. The next time children head for the toy room, they can grab toys out of these storage bins and take them along. Doesn't getting organized feel great? It looks even greater.

2) Entryway—Boot Tray & Coat Hooks:

Don't let your visitors be confronted with a cluttered pile of shoes and tracked-in mud, when they enter your home. The simple solution is to have a boot tray by the entry door. (I used to have a pretty copper one, but switched to this lined kind, for the absorption; and as a bonus, it's non-skid and less noisy.) Be sure to measure where it will go before ordering, to make sure the size you pick fits the space.

TIP: If you're fortunate enough to have plenty of room, consider getting a larger one and placing a tall, pretty urn as an umbrella stand in the corner of the boot tray. (A friend gave me a tall Asian style for an umbrella stand; but you could probably find one at an antique shop, too.)

Are you finding coats and jackets tossed haphazardly over various pieces of furniture? The way to clean up this clutter is to provide a place for people to hang up their coats right when they come in your door. These hook racks are a simple, but effective solution. The size and number of hooks will depend upon the wall space you have available. NOTE: Even though we have a coat closet just around the corner, we found that guests who aren't going to stay for awhile prefer using these hooks right by the door, for easy access.

3) Living Room—Trays & Silicone Coasters:

Trays are a great way to switch sloppy into style! The easiest way to keep the tops of your furniture looking nice and neat is to gather everything into a tray. What an easy fix!

Traditional coasters are OUT—they are old-school. Why? Because they're bulky and often stick to the bottom of your glass or cup. Children find them difficult to position their glass onto them correctly, because they're just too dang small—which defeats their function. The solution is to repurpose silicone trivets to use as large coasters! They look so nice, flush against your furniture. Plus, they come in such a wide variety of decor, the most difficult part will be choosing which color.

4) Family Room—Cupboard to Hide Cords & Shelf End Tables:

The biggest clutter problem in our family room was how to hide all the cords. My husband and I both use 'lift' recliners, so there were extra cords and a surge protector. Our solution was to get a narrow end-table with a cupboard in which to hide all the cords, and put it between our two recliners. It was easy to drill a few holes to slip the cords through, while sticking the mess inside the cupboard. Ta-da! No more eyesore!

Another issue was where to put all the items we need to have near when people sit, such as tissue box covers, etc. Our solution was to hunt for fully-assembled end-tables with shelves. It looks so much nicer now, but everything is even handier to grab! (Did you notice I said "fully-assembled"? We are not IKEA people... I will pay extra if I don't have to assemble something.)

5) Bedroom—Drawer Dividers & Bins:

In the bedroom, sometimes the clutter that needs to be organized is not out in the open... Just think how much time you'll save every day if your dresser drawers are organized? Dividers and bins are the simple solution. The nice thing about expandable dividers is that you can use as many or as few as you want to make your drawer how you want it. Because they're expandable, they'll fit most any size drawer.

As for the bins, they're not just for the pantry anymore! They work great for storing socks and underwear. I like the clear ones, so you can easily see what's in them.

TIP: Use similar bins in your bathroom cupboards.

6) Closet—Hanger Cascaders & Shelf Dividers:

What's the number one problem in closets? Not enough room to hang all your clothes. Cascader hangers let you hang six items of clothing in the space it usually takes for just one. Hang all one type of clothing on each hanger; i.e. short-sleeved colored shirts on one, long-sleeved colored shirts on another; jeans on one, dress pants on another, etc.

If folded items on your closet shelves are slip-sliding away, straighten up that mess with shelf dividers. They simply slide onto the shelf—no need to hammer or screw anything down. You can move them closer together or slide them further apart, depending on the width of your piles. The best part is that you can make your stacks of clothing higher now, without worrying about them falling over!

7) Kitchen—In-Drawer Organizer & Expandable Cabinet Shelf:

What's the messiest, most unorganized spot in your kitchen? For most people, it's their junk drawer! The problem is everything is tossed in there, it gets mixed up; and then when you want something you have to sort through God knows what, to find it. (Sometimes you never find it!) There's a simple solution... a large, in-drawer organizer. You'll be surprised how well you can organize your junk drawer, just by dividing contents up into three different rows. With the extra space between the side of the organizer and the drawer, put items into zip-lock bags. The next time your spouse opens the junk drawer, they'll be amazed at how organized it is!

Everybody wishes their kitchen cupboards had more storage space. Well, an expandable cabinet shelf organizer can grant your wish... These will double the usable space, by allowing you to stack items above, as well as below. Remember... If there's no room to go out, go up!

8) Pantry—Food Storage Sets with Chalkboard Labels:

There's something about a chalkboard label with white marker that makes your pantry look so good! Pour your different types of pasta into tall, clear containers that take up less space than the boxes. Similar clear cereal containers feature a pour spout. Besides looking pretty, a bonus is no more stale cereal due to not being able to reseal boxes! Both types of containers are airtight—and BPA-free.

9) Dining Room—Antique Metal Trays:

If you've got a nice buffet in your dining room, it deserves a nice antique-looking tray to go on top. The thing I like most about these trays is that you can scatter them... I don't have room for all three of them in my dining room, for instance, so I use one on top of my narrow entryway table. What do you put in them? Anything you normally would have on top of your buffet, such as a candy dish, tall candles, a compact flower arrangement, etc. The possibilities are endless for however you want to arrange it, but the goal is to make your buffet top look even better, by centering items in a tray. Don't like the antique or metal looks of these? Then try a glass or crystal serving tray—you get the idea... Trays help to reduce clutter.

10) Bathroom—Plunger Cover & Paper Cup Dispenser:

The most gross thing in a bathroom has to be the toilet plunger... It will make such an improvement storing it in a holder! Not only will it conceal your plunger, it also keeps the wet plunger off your bathroom floor.

With the pretty paper cup dispenser, no more water glasses from the kitchen sitting on your bathroom counter. No more water drips around your sink from trying to get a drink of water by cupping your hands under the faucet. You'll be ready, the next time you want a sip of water, mouthwash, or water for rinsing.

TIP: Buy some paper cups that match your bathroom decor, to make the dispenser look even prettier.

11) Office—Secretary Desk:

Not everyone has room for a home office in their house. But, you still need a place to write cards & letters and pay bills. The nice thing about a Secretary Desk is that it not only helps keep all your writing materials organized; it hides the mess when you're not working on it! They help you stay organized with cubby-holes for storage; and a pull out drawer that is compartmentalized. Plus, they are so space-saving that you can fit them into just about any room—much more versatile than a larger rolltop desk. No matter where you decide to put your Secretary Desk, it will look pretty in your home.

12) Garage—Storage Unit on Wheels:

This is the best storage unit I've ever purchased for my garage! First of all, it took me less than a minute to unfold it after I got it out of the box. The top flips over one side, if you've got tall boxes you'd rather put there. It's heavy-duty—made of metal. You can order 3-shelf or 4-shelf ones. If you need shelves to tackle the organization of your garage, remember this storage unit.

IMPORTANT: After organizing just one area in each room, take time out to enjoy the improvement… Look how much better it is! You are then motivated to joyfully move on to the next room, and repeat the process. After you've decluttered and organized one area in every room in your entire home, then you will have true cause to celebrate! You have created places of peaceful beauty. The above, twelve-room favorites have been a real help to me in organizing my own home. I hope some of these helpers will assist you to declutter and get organized, as well.

What is it about spring that makes us want to tidy up our surroundings? Does the sunshine trigger a neurological need to start nesting? Is it an emotional desire that grows when we begin to see the beautiful renewal bursting forth out of the earth that gives us peace—and makes us desire a similar pleasure from inside our home? Or is it a spiritual need because we have an organized God and cleanliness is next to godliness? Those are discussions for another day. Whatever our motivation to tidy up, you are now well on your way to making your home into the peaceful, clean haven you've always wanted—a place where you and others can truly relax in and enjoy. Well done! As Dorothy said, "There's no place like home."

If you truly want to feel a sense of accomplishment, no matter which room in your house you enter; the trick is to pick just one problem area in each room to tackle. "Hmmm," you may wonder, "Why not organize an entire room and then move on to the next room, until your entire house is decluttered?" Because, most people become overwhelmed when they try to tackle everything at once—and they either give-up and quit, or become so paralyzed at the daunting task, that they can’t even begin.

FINAL TIP: Be sure to have three trash bags (or boxes) nearby before tackling a room. You are bound to come across both items that need to be thrown away, items that need to be donated (I like Goodwill), and items that need to be put away into another room. When your donation bag/box is full, load it into your vehicle, so you don’t forget to drop it off at the charity of your choice, next time you’re in your car; and get a fresh bag/box. When you’re done with a room, empty your trash. Do not proceed to the next room until after you’ve put away all items that belong in a different room. Now, let the decluttering and organizing begin!

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