OCD alert

My husband and I spent Saturday afternoon together at IKEA. Kidless. For 3 full hours (lunch first, then shopping). How blissful was it to be able to stop and look at everything? Quite blissful. Something you rarely (if ever) get to do, right? Yep...us, too! But it happened and we took full advantage.

While drooling over everything and wishing I lived in the show rooms, I stopped for a moment to pick up some more of the hanging file folders I had found the last time I was there. Funny that hanging file folders were on the IKEA list, but nonetheless they were! I knew exactly what I wanted to do with them when I got home. {By the way...we also picked up a new TV stand and some odds and ends to use for future projects I hope to show...someday.} So, while my hubby put together the new TV stand, I had a date with my label maker.

I have been a Stampin' Up! demonstrator for almost 2 years now and I love, love, love, love, love their cardstock (nothing else compares in my humble opinion). Stampin' Up! has 4 color collections and there are 10 colors in each collection. I store them in a file drawer for easy access. Below is what the *BEFORE* looked like. Not too bad...each color is labeled and looks easy to find, right? Right...kind of, but after Stampin' Up! reworked their color collections the folders weren't staggered correctly because I did some re-arranging of the files and brought new colors in. (Raise your hand if you noticed they weren't staggered...come on, Sarah F, I know you noticed! ;)

But look closely...


Maybe a little closer...


Yep! You noticed it, too? See those bent edges of the file folders? It drives me crazy! {This is about the time when you roll your eyes at me and shout, "Don't you have more important things to do?!" Why, yes, yes I do. But when my OCD flares up, I'm not able to turn back.}

Me and my label maker worked our magic...

So, what used to be a fairly organized cardstock storing system (with bent file folders and crooked rows-ugly to the eye) is now a beautiful OCD work of art whenever I open the drawer. And, yes, I am well aware that only I will be opening that drawer 9.5 times out of 10, but that's the problem...I will see it every time, so it has to be pleasing to my eye!

And, in case you're wondering...yes, I already saw that one of the hanging file folders is not positioned correctly and it is a little out of whack. It's already been fixed in real life. Aren't you proud of me for not going upstairs to my craft room to take another picture?

So...you didn't believe me when I have said in the past that my perfectionist tendencies are a sickness? If this post doesn't prove it to you, I don't know what will!

taming the paper monster...or trying to at least

The 21 Day Challenge has officially ended, but I'm not done organizing yet! I never completed all 21 days, but I'm still determined to get as close to covering all 21 days as I can!

Last Sunday, I was able to organize the junk drawer {easy!}, but that wasn't all I did. I was also able to put into action a system that would help conquer the random piles of mail and papers that seem to be scattered everywhere on a daily basis. Day 17 of the 21 Day Challenge at A Bowl Full of Lemons was to organize a mail station. I sort of had something in place, but let's be honest...it wasn't working for me or else there wouldn't be papers everywhere!

My normal routine for getting the mail was 1) look through it walking back to the house, 2) realize that there wasn't anything too exciting, and 3) once I got into the house, set it down on the counter, office desk, entryway bench, or any flat surface. One time, I found 3 different mail piles in 3 different places. Not good for someone who likes to avoid paper piles, but yet I'm still notorious for it...please tell me I'm not alone! The current "mail system" (ha!) doesn't work because it always turns into this after awhile...

{hanging my head in shame}

This is a before of my current "command center". It's workable, but more often than not I would just shove odds and ends into the black organizer and it would always just look messy.

~ BEFORE ~

Up close view...see that wire organizer by the phone? It holds all of our random eating out coupons and other misc. small papers. It's actually magnetic, but since our refrigerator doesn't hold magnets, I put it there "for now" (9 months ago!) I just don't like the look of all this hodgepodge.

~ BEFORE ~

Here is the side view. It's kind of an eye sore in my kitchen. The big white binder is for my daughter's preschool stuff. Yes, I keep everything and at the end of the year plan to go through it. I have more to share on what I did with this binder and where its new "home" is now, but I'll save that for another post.

~ BEFORE ~

My biggest problem was just trying to have a place for all the papers once I opened the mail or brought something home, so with the help of many inspiring blogs I've read, I decided to keep a small file box on the kitchen counter. Off to Target I went, and brought home two options. One that cost me $9 and it was the silver wire look and this one below that only cost me $3 and it was black! I opted for the cheaper option and will be taking back the other one, so I can buy something else for $9. *wink*


I thought about what I needed the most and came up with 7 hanging files: To Pay, Ryan, Heidi, Mikayla, Austin, Coupons, and Contacts (which has all of the random directories from church, mom's group, etc.). The file box isn't huge, but I already have a place in the office that has a folder for "to be filed". I just needed something that would hold things my husband and I needed to be sure we were on top of. This way we can set aside a time every couple of days to see what we need to take care of without sifting through piles of paper.


Here is the "after" all tidied up. I was able to get rid of a lot of the clutter in the black organizer. (I also got rid of the wired magnetic organizer. It really wasn't serving much of a purpose and was just another thing to make this space look messy.)

~ AFTER ~

Side view - no more white binder!

~ AFTER ~

I kind of had a genius moment and instead of keeping my grocery pad in the black organizer, I decided to put it on the inside cupboard door above. It will help get unnecessary paper off the counter.

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And, for all of those organizing junkies out there, A Bowl Full of Lemons is going to be starting a weekly organizing challenge where she will give you a space to organize during the week. Just what I need to keep motivated, so I'm joining in the fun!

clearing out the junk {drawer}

Wow! I think I did more today (Sunday) than I have done all week! Saturday was also a productive day as I {finally} cleared off my office desk...a long overdue task!

One of the tasks I accomplished was to clear out the junk drawer. This was the Day 1 Challenge of the 21 Day Organization Challenge at A Bowl Full of Lemons. I have been meaning to do this easy task for awhile now and I figured I would start out the day with something quick to get me motivated to keep going.

~ BEFORE ~
{not too bad, but could use a little tidying up}

~ AFTER ~
It took me 20 minutes to do this project, but I chose to take everything out and wash out the drawer sorter for a "fresh start".

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After clearing out our "junk drawer", I decided that really this wasn't the junk drawer that we have in our kitchen. So, I decided to try to clear out one more that needed help.

The drawer below was one that, when we moved in (9 months ago!), had all of the paperwork for the house (appliances, house info, etc.). As we moved things in, we kept this drawer as our catch all for stuff like that and it soon became home to all of the baby-proofing gadgets, too. After realizing that this is NOT the place for papers for the house and we haven't used baby-proofing in years, I decided to take care of it once and for all (really all it took was an extra 15-20 minutes and finding a new home for this stuff). The baby-proofing gadgets went to the garage sale pile, and the paperwork went to the office closet. There were other misc. things in there, too, but we sorted them out right then and there and found homes for those little things, too.

~ BEFORE ~

After clearing out the above drawer (it's actually pretty big!), I was able to move these sandwich and Ziploc bags shown below, which I didn't have room for in a drawer (you know, because I needed to have junk in a drawer instead). These have been living on the inside of our pantry door, which was not always the most convenient.

~ AFTER ~
They're all together now...how it's meant to be.

And, now look at the neighboring drawer. It's looking so empty...I'm sure I'll re-arrange some things to fill in that space, but it feels good to know there is room when I need it!

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And, guess what else we (and by we, I mean my wonderful husband) started this weekend?! Mikayla's room is finally having a paint makeover. We've been in our house 9 months, have had the paint for 6 months, and I'm so glad that we are finally making it happen!

Mikayla was so excited to help...she just had to put this sign up on her door. I love that girl.

desk clutter...good bye!

So, technically today is Day 19 of the 21 Day Organization Challenge which is the master closet (sounds so overwhelming right now!), but since I showed up late to the party (found the challenge on Day 9), I'm still trying to work on all of the challenges I have missed before I start the new ones. Will I ever get caught up?

Today's task that I was determined to get done was to get our computer desk in working function again. Over the holidays (and, if I'm really being honest, even before that) our office became the pit of doom and whenever company came over I made sure the door was tightly closed (it's the first room you see when you walk in our front door). Thank goodness for not having glass french doors!!

I'm back on Day 2 of the Challenge when we were encouraged to clean off the TOP of our computer desk. We are blessed with an amazing computer desk that my husband was able to get for a smokin' deal before we moved into our new house last April. I love the color, the layout, and all of the space to put things. However, as you will see in the "before" pics, you'll notice that I wasn't using it to its full potential and instead of looking like a gorgeous desk unit, it looked like a place to dump things. Today that has changed!!

~ BEFORE ~

~ AFTER ~

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~ BEFORE ~
{up close}

~ AFTER ~
{up close}

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~ BEFORE ~
{this was definitely the hot spot for paper clutter!}

~ AFTER ~
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~ BEFORE ~
{left side of the desk with top part opened}

~ AFTER ~

I'm so happy to see all that clutter cleared off! It really is going to be my mission to keep this space clutter free. To make that happen, I need to work on my "mail/paper system", which is Day 17 of the Challenge, so I'll be getting to it soon...let's hope! I also noticed after looking at these pictures, I'd like to change the decor a little for this space, but for now I'm going to leave it "as is" as I tackle other spaces that need organizing. I need to start with that part first and then I can work on sprucing up the spaces a bit next.

Now, it's time to organize some craft supplies for a craft night with some ladies from MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers). I look forward to relaxing tonight after working on such a big project!

day 14 - under the bathroom sink!

It's Day 14 out of 21 and today's challenge is organizing under the bathroom sink. Ugh. It's one of those places that I would never EVER choose to show off to anyone, but for the sake of my organizing progress...I'll do it today! There were 4 "under the bathroom sink" options, so I chose the worst place - MINE! The other three just need a little straightening up, but are pretty functional and organized "as is". I'll save you the agony of sharing a gazillion pictures of the other under the bathroom sink spaces and let you just take my word for it that they are much better than the one I organized today! Plus, I don't think my husband wanted me to share his side of the cupboard!

I don't know what it is...I'm actually a really organized person, but sometimes I just go through this rebellion phase and shove things in places just to get them out of the way. Can anyone relate?

BEFORE
Not quite using the containers I already have to their full potential!

I took everything out and piled it all on the floor. Anything that was "backstock" (extra deodarants, body wash, etc.) was put away in another "home", so they wouldn't clutter up the space anymore.

AFTER
Now, that's more like it!

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Right Side - BEFORE

Right Side - AFTER

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Left Side - BEFORE
Left Side - AFTER

I figured while I was at it, I would straighten up and clean out a couple of the drawers in my bathroom. Yuck!

BEFORE

AFTER

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BEFORE
AFTER
I still don't like the way this drawer looks with all the cords, but for now...it is what it is.

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The Counter - BEFORE
My poor husband. He's so good at putting things away on "his side', but me? Not always!
The Counter - AFTER
My goal this week is to have it this clear every day after I've gotten ready.

I'm so thankful for this challenge motivation because it was time to get these "out of sight, out of mind" places back to looking the way they did when we first moved in 9 months ago! I'm still trying to catch up with Day 13 - The Medicine Cabinet. I hope to get to it tonight!

extreme makeover: spice cabinet edition

Day 12 of Toni's 21 Day Organization Challenge at A Bowl Full of Lemons found me opening up the spice cabinet. When we first moved into our new home (last April!), I thought I had done a great job at starting out on a good note with everything nice and clean, especially because I thought I threw out things while I was packing up the kitchen in the old house. I wonder how long that "nice and clean" lasted before it became a "just shove it in wherever there's room" kind of cabinet. However, I don't think I'm alone when it comes to a messy spice cabinet...am I?

BEFORE
Wow. This is so not pleasing to the eye.

AFTER
{notice the same bins from the freezer makeover?}

I wanted to do something a little different with the spices I use often and "pretty it up" a little. I remembered I had these multipurpose jars I had purchased from Ikea that I was going to use for a craft project (but, that was 4 months ago!) I figured I have them now, so I might as well use them!

I took out all of the spices and categorized them into spices I use often and spices I probably only touch a half a dozen times a year. (I'm a baker, but not much of a cook!)

Pretty!
Let's get up close...

BEFORE
~ bottom shelf ~

AFTER
~ bottom shelf ~

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BEFORE
~the middle shelf~

AFTER
~the middle shelf~
The glass containers of flour and sugar (brown sugar and powdered sugar behind those) were on the kitchen counter, but I decided to clear up some counter space and put these things in the cupboard instead.

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BEFORE
~ the top shelf ~
See that spice rounder? I probably used it ONCE in the 7 years we've been married! Needless to say, I said goodbye to it.

AFTER
~ the top shelf ~
This shelf is pretty high up there and I have to really be on my tiptoes to get anything down from it, so adding the baskets helps me pull the basket down all at once instead of pulling down one item at a time. The left basket holds misc. items I use very rarely (tall bottles). The basket on the right holds Ibuprofen, vitamins, and chewing gum.
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Last thing I wanted to show you was my giant-sized tub of cupcake and cookie decorating supplies. I had things in two different places (spice cabinet and pantry), so I combined them all into one. Inside, I have cupcake liners, sprinkles, frosting, cookie cutters, etc.

I'll keep it stored in the pantry...easy to reach.

Thank you everyone for sticking with me during my organization obsession these days. There's just something about January and being motivated to get things done! Did you know January is National Organization Month? Start tackling those small spaces...just take it a little at a time and it's not so overwhelming.