Getting My Organization On...

So today is another snowy day and I decided not to venture out on the roads.  Eli and I have had a pajama day and I thought it would be a good time to take advantage of doing a little organization in the basement, pantry, refrigerator, and junk drawer.  I reorganized mine and Eli's closet the other night so I think that jump started me on wanting to get more in order elsewhere.   Organization used to be more of a strong suit for me but when life gets busy things often get misplaced and it soon looks like chaos.  If I have a place designated for certain things then when I go to put them away it makes it easier to keep it more in order, otherwise, things just get piled on top of one another and then I'm swamped.  This gives you a good idea that my house is so far from being perfect and it's just like anyone else's.  I do love when my house feels organized though because it makes my life feel so much better in every area.  It's truly amazing how it can effect the mood of your entire life!  With that said, today I got my organization on and hoping to tackle more as the week goes on!

First up on the agenda was the basement.  It was in total disarray and I wanted to tackle the storage section of the basement where all our totes and boxes are stored.  There were totes opened and off the shelves everywhere from trying to find things.  I had miscellaneous items laying around waiting to be either stored in a tote or put in a Goodwill box.  The basement still needs more functional shelving and I need more totes to make it feel more "orderly", but for now I'm feeling so much better after what I accomplished this morning. In the future here soon, Nate has plans to build wood shelving down there and buy more totes and label everything so it feels more uniformed and easy to find everything.  Post to follow once we get to that step!

Before...

 After...

 Before...

 After...

Next up on the agenda was my small little pantry.  I would LOVE a walk in pantry closet someday but for now I am thankful for what I have.  This too needs some revamping in the future as well.  We have wire shelving which is started to warp in the middle because of the weight of the goods that are stocked on the shelves through the years.  Hoping to remove those and replace with real wood shelves to make it once again more functional.  I went to the dollar store recently and found small plastic totes with the chevron pattern on them.  They had other ones with different geometric shapes as well that were very cool and modern looking.  I knew immediately that I wanted them for some sort of organization in the house.  When I was glancing at the pantry this week I realized that's where they belong. I spent a total of $5 on these plastic boxes and it gave the pantry a nice face lift.  I also found some other containers laying around (2 from Ikea) and a glass jar that wasn't being used as well as some canning jars to help organize the food and give it a more aesthetic appeal :)  The bottom of the closet is where we put our recyclables which should be picked up tomorrow. Here is before and afters...

Before...

 After...

 Close-up of the boxes and containers I used.

 Very top shelf is where we store water pitchers, popcorn maker and things that we don't use that frequently since it is hard to reach.  Second shelf down is this one below.  To the left we have extra pantry items on hand in the back in case we run out.  We often buy in bulk at Sam's so we store some of the extra here or in our jelly cabinet.  The plastic box is our treat box with something for the sweet tooth and gum.  I have some of my canned tomatoes (that I canned this summer) sitting on the shelf along with my rice and pasta that I have stored in canning jars as well.  I usually keep my oil over by my baking area but the bottle is too tall for my cupboards so it stays in the closet.  I need to get a smaller glass bottle to transfer the oil over and keep it with the rest of my baking items.

 Third shelf down is home to some of our snacks and cereal.  We always have cheeze-itz and animal crackers on hand.  The other tall container has cereal in it and it's great for that.  I purchased those at Ikea this past year.  In the box is granola and rice krispies that I use for making granola bars.

 Bottom shelf is our snack area.  Eli likes to help pick out a snack so I put this one at his level.  One of the boxes has nuts/dried fruit, one has chips (we always have tortilla chips in our house since chips, salsa and avocado is a favorite here) and the other box houses miscellaneous snacks.

Next up was our junk drawer.  I had bought an organizer at Ikea this past year as well as another dollar store bin so this drawer looked neat and orderly months and months ago, but again it became mass confusion after a while.  The plastic bin that I used in this drawer has several compartments which is nice to split things up.  One compartment houses tools such as screwdrivers, pliers, measuring tape and flashlight that we like to have accessible.  Another compartment has cords to our computers and phones in it.  Some of the smaller compartments have extra batteries, paint swatches, sticky notes, etc.  In the bin to the right I have pens, extra paper, coupons and menus to local restaurants that we like to have available.  In the back in my address book and stamps.  Everyone needs a junk drawer for those small miscellaneous things that need a home...I just like to have one that has some sort of order to it so when I'm looking for something I know where it is at a quick glance.  Here is the drawer...

Before...

 After...

 Lastly, the refrigerator got some love but I didn't document it with pictures.  Nothing too exciting happened here, but it does feel clean and more organized. I like to do this every time before I go grocery shopping so when I come home with groceries I can put them right away without fighting for a place to put them.  Anyone else have any handy tips on organization?  Or have recommendations for organizational tools.  I find that the dollar store has an abundant of tools for smaller spaces/closets.  Enjoy the rest of your day and thanks for stopping by!