File Your T-Shirts

Need a really great way to store your t-shirts and keep your drawers tidy at the same time? Try the File Method. This is my favorite way to organize tees. Rather than the typical way of folding and stacking t-shirts in drawers, fold your tees in half twice and then stand them up on end. This makes it really easy to see them all with just one quick glance. This method also keeps your tees wrinkle free and makes it easy to pull them out and put them back in again without messing up the rest of the drawer. Try this with your jeans, too.

Create an Entryway Drop-Zone

In your home create a drop-zone to land your stuff when you first walk through the door after a long day of work, play, or errands. It doesn't have to be big and fancy like we often see in the magazines. It can be as simple as a small table and a hook for your purse and coat. The important element is to make sure it's organized with a place to put things like mail, keys, receipts, sunglasses, cell phone, shoes and shopping bags. Having a drop-zone will help stop clutter from accumulating in other areas of your home. If you live with others, create a place for everyone to drop their things and get all on board to help keep it maintained and messy-free.

Reuse Plastic Linen Zipper Bags

Save the plastic zipper bags that brand new linens and sheets come in. Their uses are endless! It's kind of like getting an extra little bonus when you buy new tablecloths, pillow cases and blankets. They're the perfect clear container for organizing many things. The small bags are great for storing toys with a lot of little pieces like legos or barbies. They're also great for storing craft projects and art supplies. Use the smaller bags for organizing your suitcase when traveling and use the larger bags for storing spare blankets, quilts, and your sweater collection during the summer. When not using them stack them inside of each other and put them in a convenient, easily accessible location so you see them often and remember to use them.

Bathroom Clean-As-You-Go Routine

Tired of a constantly messy, gunky and grungy bathroom? Want to know the secret to keeping it sparkling clean? Follow a Clean-As-You-Go routine. This doesn't have to take long and can be really easy if you store supplies close at hand. Store a small towel and glass cleaner under the sink for quickly wiping spots off the mirror. Stick a suction cup sponge holder to your shower wall. Use the sponge for wiping down the sink and countertops and for cleaning the shower while you're actually in it. Get in the habit of wiping and rinsing every day (it takes just seconds) and watch your weekly bathroom cleaning chores disappear.

Designate a Place for Items Leaving Your House

Place a big basket by your main entryway and designate it as a place to temporarily put things that don't belong in your house (that need to be taken elsewhere). These are things such as: library books, a borrowed cake pan from your mom, items that need to be returned to the store, a book or magazine you'd like to pass on to a friend, old batteries or ink cartridges that need to be recycled, or even reusable grocery bags that need to be put back in your car so you remember to use them again. Get in the habit of checking the basket every time you leave the house to see if there's anything that can be taken with you.

Organize Your Plastic Food Storage Containers

Do you have a kitchen drawer full of unmatched plastic storage containers and lids of various sizes? Does it drive you crazy when you can't find a lid that fits? Take just a few minutes during your day (some time today) and organize it. It doesn't take long and it's so great when it's done. 

Start by emptying the entire drawer and place like with like. Then match up as many lids with their mates as you can. Toss or recycle any containers that don't have mates, that are old and yucky, damaged, or that you have too many of. Take the lids off the ones you want to keep and store them vertically inside a gallon size Ziploc bag (unzipped). In the drawer, stack any containers you want to keep inside one another by size. Place the larger containers on the bottom of the drawer and in the back. The smaller ones go in the front and on top where they're easy to see.  

If you don't want to mess with any of this and you'd rather start fresh (especially if your containers are old and stained), go out and purchase a new set of matching plastic containers with just the right number and size of containers you think you might use. If you end up getting too many, no problem. Just find other ways to use them in your home. They're great for storing many things.

A "Cool" Storage Idea for Ice Cube Trays

Tired of unused marinara, pesto, or fettuccine sauce going bad in your refrigerator? Try storing it in ice cube trays! Ice cube trays are not just for ice anymore. For awhile I actually stopped making spaghetti because the extra marinara sauce always ended up going bad in my refrigerator before I could use it up. I only cook for two and the standard 32 oz. jar of spaghetti sauce was more than I needed. Storing and freezing the extra sauce in ice cube trays is the perfect solution! Now I can make spaghetti all the time without feeling guilty anymore about wasting sauce. And, you don't have to stop there... ice cube trays are also great for storing and freezing leftover coffee (for iced coffee), baby food, gravy, and so much more. Use ice cube trays with lids for food protection and greater stackability.