Clutter Free Challenge Day 7: Toys

Hello friends!  It is day 7 of the 31 Days to a Clutter Free Life Challenge and today we are working the toy scene.  As you may know, my husband and I don't have any human children of our own; we have a Dingo baby.  However, we also have three nieces and two nephews... and consequently, a toy basket.

I had recently done a mini-purge and attempted to maintain order with a few tupperware containers and gallon-sized zip bags.  The toys behaved very well on their own and stayed in their respective places, but when the kids came over, chaos ensued.

I realized that my system wasn't working.  I had too many toys crammed into each container and too many toys free-ranging... I had made it too difficult for the kids to put the toys away.

The goal for today is to weed out toys that aren't in good condition or that don't actually get played with, and organize them by type in a functional way.

Here are the before photos:

The giant, over-flowing, toy basket.

That funky-looking monkey on the top is "Wink."  He was my childhood buddy and, as you can tell, he was loved.  I decided to keep him elsewhere because the kids don't play with him anymore.

Dingo Before.  She is supervising.

I know, the assortment is random.

This was my initial attempt at creating order.

I tried to pare the toys down to only the ones that were better quality and that I had seen them play with.

I used the gallon-sized zip bags with the sliders because I wanted to make it easy to get the toys out AND put them away.  I labeled each bag with a Sharpie.

I tried to refrain from stuffing too many items into one bag, even though I think fewer bags looks nicer.  Too many items makes the bags more difficult to fill and close.  I want to make it easy for the kids to put the toys away, because I want them to... put the toys away.

Here are the after photos:

Maracas, green airplanes, and felt fruit... a recipe for a party, I say!

I got this 56 gallon bin at Target for under $5.

Everything fit nicely, with enough room for the kids to find what they are looking for without taking everything else out to get to it.

Dingo After.  I'm not so sure about her supervising skills.

As I mentioned in my day 4 post I decided not to keep the toys in the living room, which is why I put them in a bin.  I put it in this attic-like storage space we have.  It will be easy to get the bin out when the kids come over, but will leave the living room clutter-free in the meantime.

What's your favorite toy storage solution?

Cheers,

Caitlin

Clutter Free Challenge Day 6: DVDs & Video Games

Oh, the DVDs!  It is day 6 of the 31 Days to a Clutter Free Life Challenge.  Today is the day we sort and organize all those DVDs and video games we have in a jumbled mess somewhere.

I lucked out a little today because we don't have any video games.  That said, we do have a decent stash of DVDs that needed some attention.

Here are the before photos:

I love this vintage phonograph table a girlfriend gave me... but it hides a dirty little secret...

Surprise!... clutter!  On the left are various DVDs we own, and a few that we borrowed.  On the right are two CD books full of CDs and one I keep DVDs in.  Clearly, I have a few more to put in there.

Dingo Before.  She's smirking because she knows about the secret.

First, I pulled everything out of the table and sorted the DVDs into piles.  Then I dusted, because that needed to happen.

DVDs to keep, DVDs to give away or back, DVD sets, and my husband's school-related DVDs.

I pulled all the paper inserts out of the DVD cases.  Then, I cut the front image with the movie title out of each one to fit inside the CD book with the DVD.

My little Fiskars paper cutter made cutting out the images fairly quick.

Talk about space-saving!  Empty cases on the left and, my much smaller, stack of DVDs with inserts on the right.

I put them all in the DVD book in order of genre and then put everything we are keeping back into the table.

Here are the after photos: 

On the left are a few sets we kept in original packaging because it was small, my husband's school DVDs, and the DVD book.  On the right are the CD books.

Dingo After.  She is laughing because the secret is out, but I don't care because everything is in order now.

I used to keep all my DVDs in their cases and was constantly trying to find a good storage solution.  When I finally came up with the idea to keep them in a CD book, I couldn't believe how much space I saved.

Do you hang on to DVD cases?  What's your favorite DVD storage solution?

Cheers,

Caitlin

Clutter Free Challenge Day 5: Books & Magazines

Here we are on day 5 of the 31 Days to a Clutter Free Life Challenge and the intent for today is to purge, sort, and arrange our books and magazines in an orderly an deliberate way.  I have to admit that books and magazines are a weakness for me and I have a million justifications as to why I should keep each one.  Today, I am determined to be strong!

Here are the before photos:

Books and foolishness stashed in the bedroom.

More foolishness in the bedroom.

Kitchen craziness.

Sometimes, you want to check out a recipe while you are studying for your A&P...right?

Living room clutter.

Dingo Before.  She has decided that because she can't actually read, she doesn't need to be involved in this challenge.

I did donate some books during this process, but I also put some in storage for when we have more shelf space available, because books are something I really value.  However, I did try to be intentional about what I kept.

Here are the after photos:

I moved the bookshelf from the bedroom to the living room.  It was nice to have the room to add a few photos and candles... the awesome Lego flag was a birthday gift from my 8-year-old nephew... and I love it!

Dingo After.  It's so hard to stay awake when there are lots of books involved.

Are books difficult for you to get rid of?  What is your favorite magazine?

Cheers,

Caitlin

Clutter Free Challenge Day 4: The Living Room

Day 4 of the 31 Days to a Clutter Free Life Challenge is here and it's all about shaping up the living room.

Today we are challenged to take an honest look at our living space and remove all that isn't currently useful, in good working order, and that we don't love and want to see daily.

Here are the before photos:

Um, yea... not terrible, but also not a space that I look at and sigh in peace.

On the far wall is a stack of red IKEA crates, that I don't love, full of books and topped with a basket of toys.  "Why do you have two lamps in the same corner," you ask?  I would also like the answer to that question.  On the couch are some spring/summer pillows that should be stored and a couple of pillows that came with the couch that I don't like.  There are also some place-mats tucked behind the cushion, because you never know when you might need one...?  On the table is some random clutter and a laptop.  And then there's the leaning tower of blankets.  We top this room of with a Dingo bed and blanket.

Dingo Before.  She is tired of the living room clutter.

I took the crates away because I don't love them and they weren't very functional for what I was trying to use them for.  I may paint them and try to use them somewhere else.  The basket was a gift I actually do like and will keep, but we don't really need to keep toys in our main living space, so I moved it.

I moved my husband's laptop to his new "office" area and returned the random clutter to it's proper home.  Then, I ruthlessly weeded out that massive pile of blankets and pillows.

All that remains of the leaning tower of blankets, ready for donation.

Here are the after photos:

Aaaah, so much better!

I moved the little electric wood stove from Home Depot that was hiding in the corner to the far wall, and moved one of the Target lamps to the other side of the couch.  The much more reasonable blanket bin is from Marshall's.

I don't remember where I got those pillows... probably Marshall's, Target, IKEA, or World Market... and probably on sale or clearance.  Dingo's bed is from T.J. Max.

Dingo After.  I think she approves.

I like that my living room feels much more peaceful.  I don't know why it took me so long to simply remove the things I don't love.  I am learning that I would rather have fewer things around me, but enjoy the things I do have.  Now I will be much more deliberate about what I bring into my living space. 

Do you ever hold on to things because you don't have something to replace them with?

Cheers,

Caitlin

Clutter Free Challenge Day 3: Mail

After my rocky start with day 2 of the 31 Days to a Clutter Free Life Challenge, I am happy to report that day 3 has actually exceeded my expectations.

The goals for day 3 are to create a functional mail-wrangling system.  This system is essentially two parts.  The first part is physical and entails creating a mail station with a place to put important mail and a practical way to discard junk mail.  It also involves unsubscribing from paper catalogs to decrease the amount of mail coming in.

The second part is more time-management and schedule based.  It involves designating a specific time to process mail, pay bills, and file documents.  With both of these components in place, I should be able to keep the mail pile to a minimum.

Before I get on with the photos, I have to make a disclaimer.  Our "mail center" is also where my husband studies, so my end goal was to make him an office/desk space as well.

Here are the before photos:

Office chaos!  This craziness is a combination of mail, school books, magazines, office supplies, random manuals, games, and a coffee pot we rarely use.

Dingo Before.  She is very skeptical that I will be able to create order out of that chaos.

One quick dash through Staples and Target later, and Ta-da!  Order, fabulous order.  I didn't think to take a "haul" photo, so I'll just list what was purchased (everything I got from Staples was from the Martha Stewart Home Office line and was on clearance.)

Staples: 4 Brown 12"X10 1/4" Shagreen Pockets ($2 each), 3 Brown Small Stack + Fit Shagreen Boxes ($0.90 each), 2 Brown Stack + Fit Shagreen Pencil Cups ($2 each), and 1 Brown Stack + Fit Shagreen Tray ($1.40).

Target: 12 Gold and Silver Foiled Nate Berkus File Folders ($5.99)...this was totally a splurge item, because who really needs foiled file folders?  My justification points are: A) they are gender-neutral, so nice for the husband's space B) they are soooo pretty!  To note, I did have to trim 1/2" off of one side of each folder to fit them in the pockets.

Total Damage: $22.09.  To be honest, I think you could create this same set up for little to nothing if you spent a little time getting your craft on.  Mason jars would make adorable pencil-holders and I've seen some amazing card-board transformations on Pinterest.  However, since time is what I am short on, I went the lazy route.

Here are the after photos:

The Shagreen Pockets hold 6 files labeled: Cait, Nate, Action, Bill, Shred, File.

Shiny!

The little basket I've had for years and it holds envelopes, stamps, and checkbooks.  The pencils are in an old candle jar and the Shagreen Pencil Cup holds pens.

The green magazine holders are from Target a long time ago.  Magazines are on the left and books on the right.  The Shagreen Tray in front holds office supplies, scissors, etc.

Dingo After.  My organizing has exhausted her.

I think catalogs are my number one paper clutter nemesis.  I have already cancelled one catalog and will cancel others as they arrive.  I actually receive mail in the office I work in, so I usually discard junk mail before it enters the house, but catalogs have been my weakness.  I am very optimistic about the new mail/office space and look forward to putting it into action.

What do you think is the biggest contributor to paper clutter in your home?

Cheers,

Caitlin

Clutter Free Challenge Day 2: Entryway (and confession)

Alright everybody, it's time for me to come clean... I have a confession to make... It's day 2 of the 31 Days to a Clutter Free Life Challenge and I have already fallen pray to hypocrisy.

The challenge for day 2 is to tackle the entryway.  The goal is to create a space with homes for shoes, coats, purses, keys, umbrellas, a collection basket, etc.

Many days and several weeks ago, I wrote my my first blog post.  In that post I state that "success will be measured by completion and effort, not how shiny or Pinterest-worthy the process is."  So, why am I posting day 2 of the challenge on what should be day 5 or 6?  Because a picture is worth a thousand words, let me show you.

Beautiful Hooks from Marshall's

These are the reason... beautiful hooks I found at Marshall's.  I was determined to knock out day 2 ON day 2, and was thrilled when I found the perfect hooks to transform my entryway from drab to fab, only to have my dreams shattered upon attempted installation.  The nail hangers on the back are 20 inches apart and wall studs are typically 16 inches apart.  

So, of course, instead of plowing forward and completing the task without those hooks, I spent a few days trying to figure out how to use them anyway.  I was so caught up in presenting a perfect post with beautiful after photos that would impress you all, that I lost sight of the real goal... COMPLETING THE TASK!  Once I got my mind back in the game, I whipped myself into (more humble) shape and got to work.

Here are the before photos:

 I used to hang my Keys on the door handle so I knew where to find them.

A Bench from T.J. Max (full of board-games), a Tote from Marshall's (full of reusable grocery bags), my husband's Flight Bag, some 31 Bags stuffed under the tote, a Painting a friend made, and a Hanger and Curling Iron meant for Goodwill

A Door Mat from Target, and a Bin from Marshall's with Dingo's toys.  Oh, and yes, that is Mistletoe hanging above the door because sometimes you need a little Christmas in your life... year-round.

Dingo Before.

Initially, I was hoping to have pretty hooks with a little shelf to spice up they entryway.  In the end, this is what I came up with... not as pretty, but just as functional.  The only thing I purchased was a $5 boot tray from Target, all the other items were things I already had.

Here are the after photos:

Yaaaay!  Much more functional and cozy!  And yes, I strategically cropped out the mistletoe because I forgot to take it down and it is still festively dangling above the door.

3M Hooks I already had, now hold my Purse, my Keys, and the Tote.  I added a throw I've owned for years for a pop of color.

Inside the Tote.  I weeded out the bulkier bags and consolidated everything.  I keep Store Rewards Cards in the little pocket on the side.  I like this right by the door because I am less likely to forget to bring grocery bags when I shop.

More 3M Hooks hold Dingo's leash and my scarf.  A Target Boot Tray to keep the mud and rain from our boots and umbrella contained.  A woven Box (I think from Target a long time ago) now houses Goodwill items and things that need to be returned to other people.  Lastly, Dingo's toy bin got weeded through... and yes, I am aware that she probably has more toys than most children.  That's how she rolls.

Dingo After.

All in all, I count this as both a lesson and a success.  I may do an entryway revision in the future, but for now I am happy with the transformation... and I will be much more careful during the following tasks to stay on track and not allow myself to get distracted by pride.

What is one way you get distracted from your goals?  What tactics do you use to get back on track?

Cheers,

Caitlin

Clutter Free Challenge Day 1

Well, friends, it is day 1 of the 31 Days to a Clutter Free Life Challenge and I have to say that I am doing awesome thus far...

I have signed the Challenge Ground Rules document and have committed to the process.  It is official now!  There's no turning back.

The Ground Rules are: everything must have a home, everything must have a purpose, everything must be in good working order, everything must have a label, and if it needs to go - get it out FAST!

I think the rule that will challenge me the most is everything must have a purpose.  I have become better over the years about letting go of things I don't need. However, I still feel guilty every time I give away something that was a gift.  I have to continually remind myself that someone else will appreciate and love it more if I don't keep it.

I want my home to be a place of peace where, by William Morris' rule, I have nothing in my home that I "don't know to be useful or believe to be beautiful."  I am both excited and slightly terrified of what this 31 day challenge will bring, but I am ready for change!

Which of the Ground Rules do you think will challenge you most?

Cheers,

Caitlin