DIY

How to Organize Everything

January 17, 2024

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Organizing your entire house can seem overwhelming, but with the right strategies and tips, you can make the process easier. Learn how to efficiently organize everything in your house with these helpful guidelines.

How to Organize a Teen’s Closet

Greta’s Room Sources

We used The Container Store’s Elfa system in Greta’s room, and I’m go glad we did. It was easy to customize her oddly shaped closet with the storage solutions she really needed — like what to do with all of those shoes and boots! My biggest lesson in this closet was how to maximize vertical storage. I still can’t believe how much fits in such a small space.

How to Organize a Toddler’s Closet

Polly’s Cottage Room Sources

With little ones, I’ve found it’s all about baskets and bins. They can’t fold or hang things yet, but they can still put things away. Here’s how we set Polly up for success.

How to Organize a Room Without a Closet

Faye’s Room Sources

I know on house listings a room is not a bedroom if it doesn’t have a closet. We actually removed the closet from Faye’s room and set her up with this little armoire. It’s the perfect size for a little girl’s wardrobe! But I’m thinking this storage solution would be really handsome in a guest room, too.

How to Organize a Closet “Dressing Room”

Cottage Closet Sources

In our last house, we made the room off of our primary bedroom into a full closet/dressing room, and I still think about that room every day. If you have the space for it — I couldn’t recommend a dressing room more highly. And, we used IKEA PAX, so the ticket price was nowhere near what a custom closet system can cost! One word of caution: We tend to grow to the size of our tanks ;) (I’m looking at you, shoes.)

How to Organize A Linen Armoire

Laundry Room Sources

We bought this antique armoire for our laundry room, and it really solved the need for a linen closet. If your hallway closet is being used for something else (or maybe it’s non-existant!), consider a big ol’ armoire for sheets and towels.

How to Organize Backpacks

Bonus Room Sources

If your kids are like ours then you have a dining room table that’s a catch-all for backpacks, books, school papers, and boots. We needed a storage solution for after-school stuff and installed these lockers in our bonus room/family room. It helps that they’re right next to where the girls do their homework.

How to Organize Your Fridge

I find that fridges need storage solutions, too. In addition to the drawers that are already built in, we have containers for fresh produce, leftovers, and anything else that might be “loose.” This blog post talks about how we like to do it.

How to Organize the Pantry

It’s those little turn tables for me :) We’ve learned a few things about what we need as a family when it comes to pantry organization. Our current pantry is an amalgam of all of the pantries we’ve loved before, but take a peek at the video tour of our last pantry.

How to Organize Serving Trays

Kitchen Sources

The problem is — when you stack ’em, you have to pull them all out to get the one you need. We have wire storage organizers (shh! I got them at Target!) for this part of our kitchen, and it’s making me want to host even more.

How to Organize Lids

Our Place Pans | All-Clad Pans

We have a custom drawer in our kitchen for lids, and it’s a real game-changer. In this blog post, we also talking about other life-affirming kitchen organization — like how we organize our knives, spices, and even our reusable water bottles :) (Those Stanleys aren’t going to organize themselves!)

How to Organize Attic Storage

It’s a wonder we ever found anything in the attic before we put up these shelves and sorted all of our seasonal decor into bins. The problem with attics is that they’re mostly unfinished. Don’t let that stop you. Put together some free-standing shelves, label a few bins, and you’ll be in business.

How to Organize the Garage

I’m here to tell you — the secret to garage storage is mounting racks to the ceiling. The ladder is already out there! Get as much as you can off the ground and put away. Then, you can actually park the car in here, too.

How to Organize Cleaning Supplies

You want cleaning supplies to be portable. You’re going to use them all over your house, but you don’t need to store them all over your house. Instead, get a couple of caddies that can move with you.

How to Organize Toy Cupboards

When our girls were smaller, we hid their toys in plain sight — in something we lovingly called the “fauxdenza.” (We loved this piece so much, we built another one in the dining room of our last house.) Of course, you can use this storage solution to organize anything, but it’s especially great for storage toys and games in common areas.

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What do you think?

  1. Holly S says:

    These are all gorgeous but I think that most of us don’t have these huge spaces to put these organizing systems in. Would love to see tips for small spaces.

  2. Erika Lucas says:

    I’m struggling with “too much” storage….if that’s even a thing. Our current house has so many kitchen cabinets, so many closets, and storage downstairs, I’m finding myself getting lost in the extra space. We’ve never had this much storage, and I’m definitely grateful for the abundance, but my ADHD brain struggles with an abundance of anything! Ha!

    • Tara says:

      Erika, I feel every part of your comment lol. I went from a 600 sq ft house to a 3000 sq ft house, and while my husband brought PLENTY of stuff with him (this is our first home together), I find my storage spaces are a mess because I don’t have to come up with crafty ways to make everything fit. We also don’t purge as much because there’s places to put all the junk. Bigger isn’t always better!

  3. Courtney says:

    I would like to see someone organize a fridge that most of us have (small and cramped) instead of a big brand new gorgeous fridge. Same goes for closets, drawers, etc. Thanks!

    • Tara says:

      Courtney, couldn’t agree more! Check out Naptime Kitchen. She’s got four kids in a normal-sized house. It’s not supposed to come out for a long time, but her book’s working title is “I Just Need a Bigger Kitchen – And Other Lies I’ve Told Myself”. Sounds familiar!

  4. Liz M says:

    I love to organize and usually re-organize as our needs change in our home. Its not a one time and done thing! I find with little kids its more often since they are constantly growing and changing (toys, clothing, how they use a space).

    But for cleaning supplies – I keep kitchen, bathroom, mudroom, laundry room supplies in a basket in that room. I am more likely to do a quick clean if the items are there and I don’t have to go to a cleaning closed to
    find things (other than the mop and vacuum).

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