Organizing crafting supplies

There are lots of reasons why you might want to organize your crafting supplies. Maybe they take up too much space in your home, space that you could use for something else. Maybe you would save money if you didn’t end up buying the same things multiple times because you couldn’t find them when you needed them. Or maybe being less frustrated with your supplies would increase your enjoyment when you craft, making it more likely that you would complete your projects. The reason decluttering them gets tricky is that, by their very nature, crafting supplies spark joy!

How to choose what to declutter

First, get real about what you do. Is this a case of fantasy self, where you imagine a version of you scrapbooking, but in reality, you know you’ll never actually sit down and do it? Do you have enough supplies to sew several quilts, but really, you’ll never get around to making even one? Did you start a project that you are no longer excited about and don’t want to continue? It’s fine to let go of those supplies that can still be useful if YOU won’t use them. (I can also help find good homes for those items so they don’t end up in a landfill – I’ll give you some ideas below.) This helps make room for the supplies you will actually use!

Second, look at the leftovers from previous projects. If you have a yard of fabric left and really love it, it’s reasonable to think you will find a way to use it! But if all you have left are a few scraps, or less thread on your spool than it takes to fill a bobbin, please let it go. These items can be recycled responsibly, and getting rid of them will free up so much space! On the off chance that you then need to purchase something again, I guarantee you that the 20 minutes or $20 you spend doing it will be worth the extra space you’ll have after decluttering.

If there is anything clearly expired or unusable, like dried up paint, frayed or stained fabric, or paper with water damage, please let it go without guilt.

You can also assign yourself a specific project with a deadline. For example, if you love love making greeting cards and gift tags with odds and ends from various projects, gather ALL your scrap supplies and schedule a time to use them. Whatever is left over after that date goes – and then remember to actually use the cards!

Finally, you know which items were pleasant to work with and which were low-quality and made the experience frustrating. Recycle all those unreliable items and keep only the best, most useful ones.

How to store your crafting supplies

I always say that your things should be easily accessible. It may not be feasible to leave your sewing machine set up on a table at all times, but it can’t be stored away too far either, or you’ll get overwhelmed by the mere thought of setting it up!

A spare dresser is usually a great way to keep things accessible, but not in plain sight all the time. If you want to use labels, you can put them on the lip of the drawers so that they are only visible when the drawer is open – this will reduce visual clutter. You can also use stackable plastic drawers, or add an over-the-door storage rack in a closet or craft room.

Location is important as well. I love knitting, and I pretty much only knit when I’m in front of the television. So for me, it doesn’t make any sense to store my knitting supplies in a separate room – I store them in the living room, where they are easily accessible when I use them. That also limits how much I can own at any given time, because I don’t want the space to look messy!

Where to donate your discards

If the item can still be useful to crafters, you have several options. You could donate your supplies to schools or scout troops. You can also post them for free on Nextdoor or a local Facebook group.

In San Antonio, we have a second-hand store called Spare Parts which accepts donations of arts and craft supplies. If you want to find a good home for your discards while supporting a non-profit, this is a great place!

If you have a project that is unfinished due to disability or a loved one’s death, consider Loose Ends, which can match you up with a volunteer who will finish the project for you.

March may be National Craft Month, but it is always a good time to organize crafting supplies!

Gift Wrap Storage

This post contains one or two affiliate links with Amazon, which means that if you make a purchase using that link, I’d receive a small commission, at no cost to you. I do not have such a deal with The Container Store, though if you hire me to shop with you, I can get you my organizer discount on your purchase!

A common pain point, especially around Christmas, is how to store gift wrapping supplies. I’ve even met one person who is so unsure of how to deal with it that she actually throws everything away after Christmas and just buys new supplies every December. That’s certainly one way to deal with it, but let me help you be more efficient!

Declutter

The first step is to declutter what you own. I’m the type of person who always saves supplies if they are still in good condition, but I do get rid of those that are torn or wrinkled. I’ve also added a few reusable supplies, like furoshiki (squares of fabric) and cloth ribbon for wrapping gifts, alongside the usual disposable or recyclable supplies.

If you are trying to streamline what you own, consider creating a capsule of sorts. For example, if you were to buy plain red paper, you could use it for Christmas and Valentine’s Day as well as birthdays! You can also pick only wrapping paper that contains at least *some* red, and then as long as you have red ribbon and red gift tags, you’re all set! Limiting the colors of your supplies actually make them more versatile.

Store

As for storage, if you are low on space and/or budget, the easiest solution is to use a hanging garment bag for wrapping paper and perhaps a pants hanger for ribbon, as below. You might even have those supplies on hand already! If you have a lot of rolls of paper, consider subdividing them, such as one bag for Christmas and one bag for birthdays.

If you like this idea and want something that is more specialized, I recommend this hanging two-sided storage caddy. I love that it has space for bags and gift tags, and you could even store premade bows safely.

Another good way to store gift wrapping supplies is in a tote under your bed. You can opt for a canvas tote or a plastic one. Both allow you to store all your supplies in one spot, though I have a slight preference for the nesting boxes in the plastic tote, which will protect bows more adequately and help you keep accessories in their designated space.

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Another solution that doesn’t take up too much space is an over-the-door rack like this Elfa version, below. It fits behind most closet doors, and Elfa systems are highly customizable to your needs.

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Finally, if space and budget are not an issue, let me introduce you to the Cadillac of storage solutions: the Elfa Gift Wrap Cart below! I bought mine about 20 years ago and it’s still as good as new! I believe the price was lower back then, but I recommend that you wait for an Elfa sale before buying it. I haven’t labeled the drawers (because I’m basically the only member of my household who uses it), but the top one is for gift tags and scotch tape; the second one is ribbon; then tissue paper, bags, and boxes. And rolls of wrapping paper on the side. Wrapping gifts is such a joy when you’ve got a place for everything!

Keeping counters clear

I am going to be brutally honest and vulnerable here… My kitchen counter was a mess. Not the whole counter, mind you, just the part of it that was on the edge between the kitchen and the living area, right next to the pantry. But things had begun piling up, and the law of entropy kicked in – once things start piling up, the pile attracts more and more things. It’s just physics. It goes beyond “flat surfaces are clutter magnets” because once the first few items have been set down, your brain unconsciously sees it as an invitation to just put more stuff there (one or two more things won’t matter, right?), and then it’s a complete mess.

So when I absolutely couldn’t stand it anymore, I did the only reasonable thing: I took myself on as a client. Meaning, I stopped just letting this pain point exist, I detached myself from the situation, and I looked at it the same way I would look at a client’s kitchen to come up with a solution. Here’s my process.

1- What types of items are on this counter?

Figuring out what types of items make up the clutter is crucial to figuring out how to stop them from piling up! In this case, I had two big categories: electronics (that spot is where we put the tablets and chargers because it’s super convenient) and pantry overflow (things that had not been put away in the pantry properly). The pantry overflow started because I had a big canister that I meant to replace with a smaller one, but I procrastinated and left it out on the counter. Clutter is just unmade decisions, right? And from that moment onward, various items that belonged in the pantry just settled down to live on the counter with the big canister – either they didn’t make it back into the pantry after being used, or they were not put away with the rest of the groceries.

2- Figure out a solution for those types of items!

Alright, the electronics are there to stay, so let’s make it work. I went to The Container Store and looked at a bunch of trays and shallow bins before settling on a water hyacinth basket that looked good to me. Now, the tablets and chargers live in that basket. This works because not only do things stay corralled in there, but they also visually come across as having been put away where they belong rather than left out on a countertop.

As for the pantry overflow, I finally got that smaller canister that fits in the pantry. A few items were consumed as intended, some were returned where they belong, and I made a larger spot in the pantry for backstock to help prevent this situation.

3- Evaluate the solution

To prove my point that clutter attracts clutter, I didn’t tell my family members what I was doing, nor did I give them specific instructions for maintenance. They liked the basket and instinctively understood that electronics go in there. Because there was no clutter on the counter, things no longer piled up there unnoticed. After two weeks, I took another picture to show how it’s going. Two extra things made their way back: one is my husband’s glass of water, which he just always puts down in that spot, and that’s fine. The other is a bottle of supplements to stir in water for one of our kids – it’s just way more practical to have it there instead of in the dining room with the other supplements, so that’s where it lives now. And that’s it!

4- Tweak as needed

Things change in our life – right now we’re in a season where we use those supplements, but eventually we won’t need them anymore. Maybe it’ll be something else left out on the counter instead, and we’ll have to tweak the system to suit our situation at that point. Or maybe I would have needed to reevaluate the solutions I came up with if they had not been working well for us – that happens, and it’s normal. But I think we’ve got it handled for now!

The ongoing cost of ownership

Sometimes, people are reluctant to get rid of items they own because they paid a lot of money for them. I’m talking here about items that are no longer useful or loved or important, but are kept simply because the owner perceives them, rightly or not, as valuable. After all, why would you get rid of something if you paid a lot of money for it? Well, I can see that point, but… Have you ever thought about the ongoing cost of ownership?

First of all, an item takes up space. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a grand piano or a diamond ring, it takes up space in your home, and you pay for space. If it’s a piano, the amount of space is significant! Think about what else you could do with that space if the piano that you don’t use weren’t there. Could you turn that room into a dining room? A home office? A reading nook? Do you have so many unused large items that you are essentially paying rent or a mortgage for a room you don’t need? Are you getting your money’s worth from your space?

This photo was taken by Geert Pieters for Unsplash.

Plus, any object needs to be managed. You have to clean it, clean around or under it, maintain it, repair it, insure it, pick it up and put it away… It costs you time and energy, in addition to mental bandwidth! Managing this item will cost you, and you need to make sure that the cost is worth it in this season of your life.

Then it comes down to the sunk cost fallacy. When we have invested heavily in an item (because we paid a lot of money for it, because we believe that someday we will use up all those scrapbooking supplies, etc.), we are reluctant to let it go, even when we know that letting it go would be more beneficial than keeping it.

This photo was taken by volodymyr proskurovskyi for Unsplash.

There are two quotes on this topic that I’d like to share, and I say variations of these things to my clients often. First, Peter Walsh wants us to keep in mind that just as “inexpensive is not a good reason to buy something, expensive is not a good reason to keep something.” Also, Cassandra Aarssen says, “Remember that the money you spent on your item is gone. You will not be richer because you store this item in your home, and you won’t be poorer if you let it go.”

An obvious solution, in those cases, is to sell the item. Or at least, it seems easy in theory, but is less so in practice. Ask yourself whether selling the object is really worth your time and effort. Will you post pictures of it online and field inquiries from people who might be interested, or pay to ship it to the buyer? Will you really have a yard sale or go to multiple consignment stores? Will you be satisfied with getting only a fraction of your money back after all that effort? If yes, then go for it!

Here’s another solution: look at the cost you already paid as a rental fee. You’ve gotten whatever use you were going to get out of this, and now it’s time to let it go. If you must try to sell it, give yourself a deadline after which you will just donate it. Move it along to its next owner, and your payment will be the peace this brings into your life. Besides, the money you spent on it is gone already, even if you were to keep the item! At least this way you get your life back.

This photo was taken by Fuu J for Unsplash.

8 Organization Hacks for Families with Kids

As any parent knows, keeping a home organized and orderly is no small feat, especially when kids are involved! From toys and clothes to school supplies and sports gear, kids tend to come with a lot of stuff that can quickly take over the house. Fortunately, with a few smart organization hacks, it’s possible to maintain a tidy, clutter-free home even with children around.

Here are some of my top organization hacks for families with kids!

 1-      Create designated toy zones. Instead of letting toys take over the entire house, consider creating specific zones where they can be stored and played with. This could be a toy chest or pull-out drawers in the living room, a playroom with shelves or cubbies, or a basket in a corner of your child’s bedroom. By keeping toys contained to specific areas of the house, you can both keep things tidy and help your kids stay more focused during playtime. This also prevents a collection of toys from growing out of control, since it sets a limit to how many toys they can have – when toys no longer fit in the designated space, you must get rid of some of them.

2-      Use storage bins and baskets. Bins and baskets in various sizes are a great tool for organizing all sorts of items, from blankets and throw pillows to stuffed animals and small toys. Consider getting a few different types – some with lids for items that need to be hidden away, and others that are more open and accessible. You can have your kids help you label the bins and baskets with words or pictures to make it easier for them to put things back where they belong. (I recommend having no more than a few different types of containers in the same space, though, to keep the overall look cohesive.)

3-      Install hooks. Whether you’re dealing with backpacks, jackets, or sports gear, having plenty of hooks around the house can go a long way in keeping things organized. Consider installing hooks in your child’s bedroom, in the entryway or mudroom, and in the garage. You can even get creative with the placement and appearance – for example, you could hang a few hooks on a reclaimed wooden board and mount it to the wall for a rustic-chic look. Just make sure that the hooks are low enough for the kids to reach!

4-      Simplify your child’s wardrobe. Kids can accumulate an impressive number of clothes, but just like us, they tend to wear the same few items over and over again. To cut down on clutter and simplify your child’s morning routine, consider curating their wardrobe to include only their favorite pieces, making sure that everything fits them and that they have enough seasonally appropriate items. You can also try doing a capsule wardrobe by choosing a limited number of pieces that can be mixed and matched to create a variety of outfits. (I like to buy my sons neutral pants and colorful shirts, so they can’t really go wrong when they get dressed by themselves.)

5-      Utilize vertical space. Even if your home is on the larger side, it’s important to make use of every inch of space you have. Consider using vertical space to your advantage by installing shelves or cubbies, or even hanging a shoe organizer on the back of your children’s bedroom door. This is a great way to store items that might otherwise take up valuable floor space.

6-      Get creative with labeling. Labels are a great way to keep your home organized, but they don’t have to be boring! You can use fun graphics or assign colors to different categories (like green for sports gear, blue for sidewalk chalk and bubble wands, and so on). You can even have your kids help you design the labels as a fun family activity.

7-      Make cleaning up fun. It’s important to remember that organization doesn’t have to be a chore. Get kids involved in keeping the house tidy by turning it into a game or a race, or play upbeat music while you work. By making organization a positive experience, you’ll all be more likely to stick with it long term. You’re also instilling good habits in your kids and teaching them life skills.

8-      Have a donation bin. Use a large box (such as this one) to store any clothes, toys, and books that have been outgrown. Once it’s full, donate the contents!

In conclusion, keeping your home organized with kids can be a challenge, but with a few smart hacks and a little creativity, it’s absolutely doable. By creating designated toy zones, using storage baskets and hooks, simplifying your child’s wardrobe, utilizing vertical space, labeling, and making clean-up fun and practical, you can maintain a tidy, clutter-free home that’s both functional and beautiful. Remember, organization isn’t a chore, it’s what makes your life easier!

The junk drawer

I recently saw this Etsy listing for a junk drawer starter kit, containing batteries, rubber bands, matches, a screwdriver, a flashlight, scissors, tape, and a pen. At first I laughed, but then realized that the things in there were useful and, therefore, this was not necessarily a gag gift. But it also made me want to define exactly what a junk drawer is.

photo taken by Karolina Grabowska for Pexels.

According to Wiktionary, a “junk drawer” is a “drawer designated for the storage of various miscellaneous, small, occasionally useful items of little value.” The reason I don’t really like the term “junk drawer” is because to me, “junk” makes it sound like useless stuff, whereas in people’s homes, the contents of the junk drawer are actually useful!

The mid-century modern furniture company Joybird conducted a survey of 1,900 people in 2020 and determined the top 10 items that people keep in their junk drawer, which are (in order): tape, pens, spare batteries, scissors, flashlights, glue, paper clips, matches, rubber bands, and keys.

Infographic reprinted with permission from Joybird.

So here’s the thing: even though I consider myself to be someone who does not have a junk drawer, I do have all of these items in my home – they are just not stored together. I have a home office (albeit in an open area), so office supplies like tape, pens, scissors, glue, and paper clips are stored there. I keep the flashlight and spare batteries in the hall closet, the rubber bands in the pantry, and the matches (along with birthday candles) in a high cupboard out of reach of the kids. In the kitchen, I do have a small drawer of miscellaneous useful items such as masking tape and a marker (to label things going into the freezer), kitchen twine, bag clips, and a first aid kit, but to me that’s a utility drawer, not a junk drawer. It’s all in the wording, right?

The important thing is for every item to have a place, so that you know just where to look for them (and put them away). I love using small trays such as these to corral small items in place. Small trays allow you to customize your drawer, and designating a home for your items keeps order in the drawer and helps you find things more quickly. You can also use small boxes, lids, or even mismatched saucers. If you’re like me and like to label all the things, consider clip labels made specifically for drawer organizers! Labels aren’t necessarily for you so much as for the other members of your household to know where to put things back, instead of just tossing them in there and shutting the drawer.

 Here’s to making peace with your junk drawer!

Spice storage

[This post contains some affiliate links. This means that if you were to purchase a product using my affiliate link, I would get a tiny commission, at no cost to you. As always, I only recommend products that I own myself or that I would buy if I were starting from scratch.]

I decided to write a quick post about my spice storage at home. No matter where you live, whether it’s a single-family house or a studio apartment, whether you own or rent, one constant is that you have a kitchen. There’s a place where you prepare food, which means there are spices. And it’s so common to see spices out of control in a kitchen! They come in different containers: glass jars, metal tins, plastic bags and boxes. Even if you stick to only glass jars, they come in different shapes and sizes! What’s a home cook to do?

The main problem with commercial spice racks is that they don’t seem to be designed by people who cook. If they were, they would hold more than 12 or 20 jars, for one thing! I have about 44 spices in my set, and I would be at a loss to pare it back below 40!

Here’s my recommendation for storage: If there is one single thing you can do to help get things under control, it’s to decant all your spices into uniform-looking jars. Personally, I favor short, wide jars with a 4-ounce capacity, like these affordable and sturdy ones. The wide mouth of the jar allows you to dip measuring spoons into it, which makes your life so much easier than trying to tip out the right amount of spice! They are also big enough for the contents of most spice bottles. Then, instead of a rack, place your jars on expandable risers like these. You can put them in a cupboard to protect the spices from the light, but tinted jars work too.

The set to which I linked above comes with chalkboard labels and a chalk marker, so there’s no need to buy a label maker if you don’t have one already. You can also consider using a white paint marker directly on the glass jar. If you have room for the jars in a drawer, you can label the cap. And with a custom-sized sheet of galvanized metal and some magnets, you can make a magnetic spice rack!

Another tip is to organize your spices alphabetically. I started doing this when I was 20 or so, after accidentally buying a second jar of tarragon when I didn’t realize I already had one – and I don’t even like tarragon all that much in the first place! Some people like grouping their spices by themes, like putting all the holiday baking spices together, but to me this becomes confusing when I’m cooking Indian food and need cinnamon, for example.

You’ll notice that this set creates clear limits for my spices. When I added dried sage last fall, it took the place of grains of paradise, which I wasn’t really using anyway. Having a space budget helps keep things under control!

Not only do these jars look fantastic, but they are also more functional than the original containers. Both aesthetics and functionality will help you be more at peace in your kitchen, and that, to me, is the point of organizing.

Minimalism

As I start my journey into professional organizing, I’ve noticed that there’s a chasm between what the word “minimalism” means and what the general public envisions. I bet some of you are already picturing a monk’s room, devoid of all material possessions. While that may look peaceful to some, it can lack warmth and comfort, not to mention that it is not at all practical for most people! However, I’m here to say that what you’re thinking of is actually asceticism, not minimalism. The Oxford Dictionary defines “asceticism” as “severe self-discipline and avoidance of all forms of indulgence.” That’s not what I preach.

I like the way Joshua Becker, of Becoming Minimalist, defines it: “Minimalism is the intentional pursuit of the things we value the most and the removal of anything that distracts us.” This essentially means that it’s about removing clutter from your life, whether we’re talking about clutter that is physical (my specialty) or not (overloaded schedule, for example). He says that “minimalism isn’t about removing things you love. It’s about removing the things that distract you from the things you love. It’s about living more by owning less.”

You see, removing distractions allows you to focus on what is most important to you. You own your stuff, not the other way around! When you aren’t distracted by clutter taking up your mental bandwidth (what we might call “visual pollution”) or by objects taking up your time (maintaining them, cleaning them, putting them away), you are then able to focus on what you actually want to do.

I’m aware that some people are vehemently opposed to minimalism, because they see it as “just another boring product wealthy people can buy”. However, to me, that’s missing the point. It’s really just criticism of a certain aesthetic that, granted, we see often, but is not minimalism per se. Minimalism will look different for every household, but to me, it always seeks to improve one’s life by simplifying it.

Of course, that’s easier to say when minimalism is a choice, but it’s not pleasant when it is forced upon us. Did you know that over 60% of Americans can’t deal with a $500 emergency? And that was BEFORE 2020 hit!

In Quebec, where I’m from, I often heard the concept of “voluntary simplicity,” which doesn’t seem as widespread in Anglophone culture. It’s essentially about mindfully choosing how we spend our money and being satisfied with less. In an article titled “The Voluntary Simplicity Movement: A multi-national survey analysis in theoretical context” (published in the Journal of Consumer Culture), Samuel Alexander and Simon Ussher say that “the Voluntary Simplicity Movement can be understood broadly as a diverse social movement made up of people who are resisting high consumption lifestyles and who are seeking, in various ways, a lower consumption but higher quality of life alternative.”

In my line of work, I’ve seen that the initial effort (decluttering, organizing, and changing habits) is time-consuming, but the rewards are reaped later and are well worth it. Don’t let people scare you with tiny living and drastically down-sizing, because that’s not at all necessary! Simple living is the way to go.

If you want to read more on the subject, in addition to Becoming Minimalist, I also recommend Be More with Less. That blog is run by Courtney Carver, who created the fashion challenge Project 333, which I believe was the original capsule wardrobe. If videos are more your thing, there’s the lovely Minimal Mom on YouTube. And let’s not forget Minimalist Baker, whose food blog has recipes call for 10 ingredients or fewer, 1 bowl only, or 30 minutes or less to prepare.

As always, I’m available to answer your questions on the topic!