Organizing By Personality

I am not a naturally organized person.

I never have been, and never will.

Flip back a few posts, and you'll see the horrible before.

I still can't believe I posted that picture...

but I did,

and now it's out there for the world to see.

With four kids, ages 6-12, our house has been constantly evolving....

I am constantly recycling and giving things away.

If I didn't, there would be even more stuff lying around everywhere.

Here is what my art studio looks like today,

and this is the book that got me there.

It's called The Organized and Inspired Scrapbooker, by Wendy Smedley and Aby Garvey.

I bought it a few years ago.

Read that line again.

a few years ago...

Hmmm...a few years ago my kids were 3-9 years old.

If your kids are in that age bracket,

don't try to take on too much...

Recently I went through and did the little exercises in the workbook.

I took the time...I worked through my ADD.

I didn't want to, but I did

and it made a huge difference.

I don't like clutter.

This book helped me realize that I organize best with open containers...

that I can't see through.

I also realized that I can't stand plastic ones.

Not even one little bit.

I organized by like objects.

And it doesn't always look pretty.

These are projects in the works....quite a few of them.

I know, they're in plastic envelopes...but until I find pretty woven basket-like ones,

these will have to do.

I can grab one, work with it, and then put it back.

I'm not a seamstress.

I simply wrapped the shower rod with burlap, and used cute safety pins.

For now, it works.

Someday, I'll sew it.

That someday may be when my kids are ages 16-22,

and that's ok.

Storage container wheels out...from Ikea, years ago.

Photo boxes on the top...still to be organized a bit more.

There are even some empty drawers...exciting!

Here is the kid zone.

The little boxes on the top were found curbside, as is.

Isn't it amazing what I find on my runs?

Time to head out for one in the morning.....

Inside are scissors, envelopes, crayons, markers, pipe cleaners, etc.

They are all things they use regularly, and can plop on the nearby table.

In the metal cabinet are their plastic bins...organized by item.

The kids don't mind the plastic.

I just close the door, and then I don't have to see them. :)

The closet, I mean pantry, locks.

Little things like safety pins, metal words, letters, etc. are in the muffin tins.

I also learned I organize well by color.

The jars of ribbon are by color.

The little jars are flowers by color.

The scraps are organized by color.

Little doo-dads (paper, graphics, etc) are in the drawers by color.

The paper is sorted on the racks, by color.

Maybe my aversion to plastic went a bit too far.

Jello molds and angel food cake pans work well for paint and glue guns.

Until tonight, when the kids wanted some angel food cake,

and I couldn't find the pan in the kitchen.

Doesn't everyone store their acrylic paint in an Angel Food cake pan?

Nope.

Probably just me,

and I'm okay with that.

-Julie