Take a trip to the dollar store for inexpensive organizing containers
I’m always surprised by the number of people that tell me that it never occurred to them to check out the dollar store for organizing baskets and containers. Girls, I’m hear to tell you that nothing beats the dollar store for inexpensive organizing containers, well unless you count recycled boxes but that’s a whole different post for another day. The dollar store is where it’s at. And yes I know they are made of plastic and probably overseas somewhere, I know. Please don’t send me hate mail. I get it but it’s what I can afford and they’ve changed my life. Seriously.
Unfortunately though I haven’t had too much play time with my baskets lately and it makes me sad. Since we’ll be moving provinces in a couple of months, I’ve done more purging of stuff recently than organizing of stuff. And oh how I’m missing the organizing side of it all and the high that comes from it. The other day I so needed a fix and bad. So what’s a girl to do? Why visit the dollar store (Your Dollar Store for More) of course!
Come along with me and enjoy the eye candy.
Come closer
Remember this picture from last week:
Yep most of those colored bins can be found at the dollar store. Check it out:
Want to see more?
These ones are my favorite for organizing drawers and they are 4 for $1.50:
Loving every minute of it.
So pretty. Hello lovely colors for spring.
Ahh there, now I feel better (don’t you?) and believe it or not I didn’t buy a thing. Not.one.thing. I really can’t because I don’t know yet what my requirements will be in my new home but you’ll be happy to know that just walking up and down and up and down and up and down that special aisle was enough to stop my shakes and give me the fix I needed :) Thanks dollar store!
So what’s the dollar store like in your neck of the woods?
Closet Space Saving Ideas
Well ladies I think I’ve met my match…my container, bin, basket match that is. Oh boy are you in for a treat today as the lovely and talented Laurie, from Tip Junkie, takes you on a tour of her home. She’s definitely an organizing junkie herself and her post here is causing me to drool silly all over my keyboard.
Thanks Laurie for sharing your obsession with us all and giving me a huge “fix” for the day! :)
Hello fellow Junkies! I’m Laurie from Tip Junkie and I just adore Laura. I am excited to give her the day off and guest post for her today. As you’ll see in this post, I’m a closet bin-aholic as I love storage boxes! If I can’t find exactly what I want – I’ll even make my own.
Here are a few space saving ideas that I’ve done in my home over the past year or so. I hope you’ll get a few frugal ideas and some over-the-top ones as well.
1. Add extra shelves to give everything a home.
My poor hubby has had to add shelves to every closet in our house. It not only adds a lot more storage space but it also allows you the extra room to keep it beautiful.
Those green boxes hold my off season clothing.
2. Large decor bins are really pricey, so I made my own baskets. I bought cardboard boxes and hot glued fabric onto them to match my master bathroom decor.
The fabric boxes hold my hubby’s off season clothing, 72 hour kit for emergencies, and glass housewares we got for our wedding that I can’t bring myself to get rid of.
3. Pick a fun color theme to make your closet fab.
I converted my guest bedroom’s closet into a craft closet by using the color scheme hot pink and black. I labeled all the baskets and have more baskets and storage hiding under the black/white fabric.
4. Make picture labels to help organize toys.
Picture labels serve two purposes: To allow kids to help clean up faster on their own and make rotating easier.
I keep the majority of my boys toys in the attic. Every so often, I’ll rotate the bins from the toy room and grab a few new ones from the attic. This system is painless as I can easily tell what’s inside with a quick glance.
Tip: If you have young children, you can minimize the clutter by storing toys on a high shelf for adult access only. When your kiddo wants a toy to play with, they can easily point it out. Don’t forget to replace it with one that is already out.
5. Tubs and bins actually add space to your pantry.
I’ll admit, I was a bit skeptical that bins would #1 add space and #2 be effective in a pantry. It seemed a bit unnatural at first. However, after having this system in place for almost a year, I can testify to you that my pantry still looks like this picture today. It works!
It has also solved another problem with my boys called “last snack”. My sweet hubby got the boys hooked on having a last snack before bed. Since having a “treat” bin and a “snack” bin – I eliminated the ongoing debate of having oreos (and other sweet treats) right before bedtime as they are only allowed something from the “snack” bin.
I hope you’ve been inspired with some new organizational ideas for your closets. It’s made such a difference having beautifully decorated and organized closets in my home. Clean up is easier and I’m more motivated to keep my closets neat and pretty.
What closet tips do you have?
Organizing your vehicle
Since we are concentrating on our vehicles this month, I thought I’d re-post this one from the archives. This is how I organize my own van although keep in mind I no longer have a baby but a toddler so things do look a little different now.
Remember the baskets I purchased just the other day? Well I finally came up with a great use for the second basket. I decided to use it for the baby toys in the van and it is just the perfect size. I am so happy because I was using a different basket before but it was just way too small. Don’t these toys look so nicely organized and tidy sitting in their beautiful container like that…..yah right….don’t let me fool you….by the time we get to wherever it is we are going you can find these toys literally thrown all over the vehicle…sigh….but at least clean up is a snap.
Since I was taking a picture in the van anyway I thought why not show you how I organize the area between the driver and passenger seats. We have a mesh netting type thing that came with the van that hooks to the sides of the seats….inside this I have three baskets….two are for CD’s (one for grown up CD’s and one for the kid’s music) and one bigger basket for all the miscellaneous crap essentials that you need while driving.
Here is a close up shot of the CD baskets. They are awesome…I purchased four of them at Zellers many years ago but have also recently seen them for sale at Staples.
Okay so now let me go through the red basket with you because I know you are just dying to know what I keep in there…lol.
- First in a separate container (inside the red basket) I have a mini hairspray (for last minute emergencies!), hand lotion, bandaids, Nutrigrain bars and a pen.
- In another separate container I have our sunglass cases, gum and a package of tissue.
- Then I have a big ol tub of wet wipes because as all moms know you can never have too many of these.
- Next to the wipes is my coupon case. I like to keep the case in the van so it is one less thing to remember to grab as I’m going out the door. I don’t like to keep it in my purse because I keep my purse to a bare minimum….in fact my purse is just one of those wallets on a string.
- Finally I have my emergency baby feeding kit which contains a bib, facecloth and spoon and no I haven’t used it yet but I like to be prepared…lol.
The bigger kids have another container for their electronic games and gizmos that slides under the seat in the back. Sorry I forgot to take a picture of that one.
There you have it and as you can see even our van can’t escape my freak like obsession love of baskets!
Originally published January 25, 2007
Finding a home for my buckets
In 2007 I shared with you that I was not a fan of that particular type of toy storage (you can read all about why here) and then I asked for suggestions as to what to do with it. Many of you chimed in with your opinions which was awesome. I did end up getting rid of the white holder (I didn’t have the space to store it) but for the life of me could not part with the colored buckets. I just knew they would come in handy one day.
Today was that day. They found a home in my garage on a bookshelf that I recently picked up at the local recycling depot.
Those buckets now hold the following:
1. hockey pucks
2. balls
3. squirt guns
4. gardening gloves
5. chalk
6. bubbles
Many of these things use to be thrown into one big bucket and it was hard for my three year old to access them. This definitely makes it easier for him. I still want to label each of the buckets but was excited to show you how I was finally putting them to use. You know, in case you’ve been laying awake night after night wondering all this time :)
Container for my containers updated!
I know I’ve had this picture on my flickr page for awhile but just realized I hadn’t posted about it yet. I love giving those who know me in real life more ammunition to tease the heck out of me about my crazy addiction. And for those of you who might be new here, hello my name is Laura and I’m addicted to containers! Please don’t be afraid, even if what you are about to read is totally true :)
I love containers so much that I like to keep “extras” for those times I’m in need of a little snuggle organizing fix. It comforts me at night knowing they are there, waiting for me. So patient my containers are. And when I walk past them on my way to the laundry room I hear them giggle in anticipation because I know they wonder if today will be the day they get to come out to play. I hate to ever let them down. I like to treat them right including ensuring they have adequate accommodations. No container should be inadequately housed. It’s just not right.
This is how my containers use to rest:
But then I had an idea….
Awhile back my son outgrew his change table and so being the re-purposer that I am, I wondered what new life I could give to this change table that was no longer needed for dirty butts.
That’s when I knew.
This change table was destined for greater things….a mission of honor in fact. A coveted position like no other.
Blog friends and real life friends that will no doubt make fun of me please meet the new container for my containers!
Isn’t she pretty! I definitely sleep better knowing that my lovelies are all tucked in comfy and warm. Sweet dreams my friends, sweet dreams. Tomorrow just might be your day to come out and play :)
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