Magnolia Mamas : Organization

Showing posts with label Organization. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 8, 2022

Everyday Organizing for Busy Moms {Delegate and Accept Help}

November is here! The first week always flies by because we are in a post-Halloween hangover and Halloween being on a Monday this year didn't help! I'm so happy for November though because that means the holidays are just a few short weeks away! I haven't decorated for Christmas just yet, but as soon as I have a few free hours that is what I plan to do. Until then, we are enjoying all things Thanksgiving and turkey.

A new month means a new post up in the Everyday Organizing for Busy Moms series. This month I'm talking about delegating and accepting help. This one isn't easy for me. I'm sort of a control freak who likes things done a certain way. I'm a I'll-just-do-it-myself kind of person because I know it will be done and be done right. However, I've learned that it is literally impossible for moms to to do it all so I've been forced to delegate some tasks and accept help for others.

Delegating usually comes in the form of me telling my kids things they need to do. Some call it nagging, I call it building character. In all seriousness though, I'm their mom, not their maid. I expect them to help with certain tasks around the house and time to time there are things I just need them to do.

Asking for and accepting help is a big one! This is almost always in the form of carpool for me because with three kids it is just logistically hard to get everyone where they need to be. Add in a husband that travels for work and it becomes nearly impossible. I had a realization one day though that anytime someone asked me to give their kid a ride I was always happy to help out because I know what it was like when you just don't have another option. I am ALWAYS willing to say yes if someone asks me for help so I finally started doing the same. Organizing carpools with teammates and friends has been a lifesaver and really was the only way to make it work if my kids didn't want to start having to missing things. I always hated asking (and still do), but it really does make life easier on us moms and is the only way when you've got multiple kids going multiple directions. So my biggest piece of advice to you is don't be afraid to ask another mom for help. Chances are she would love to help and will likely ask you for help in return. A win-win!

That's it for this month. I can't believe only one more month left in 2022!!!

You can see all the posts in this series linked below. :-)

EVERYDAY ORGANIZING FOR BUSY MOMS

January {Keep a Family Calendar}

February {To-Do Lists}

March {Time Pockets}

April {Declutter}

May {Laundry & Dishes}

June {Meal Planning & Grocery Lists}

July {Paper Planners}

August {Stay on top of it!}

September {Do a Last Sweep}

October {Stockpile Supplies}

Tuesday, January 22, 2019

How To Organize Your Jewelry

Last when when I shared about my new "blogger room" I posted this picture on Instagram and got so many questions and comments about my jewelry board that was seen in the background.

I decided to do an entire post dedicated to organizing jewelry and share how I keep mine organized. Many years ago my friend L told me about a jewelry board that her husband had built for her. She told me how she was wearing her jewelry so much more because she could see it all and that resonated with me.

I had SO many really cute things, but always wore the same stuff over and over because everything else was either put away and like the old saying goes...out of sight, out of mind.

If I did go to try to find a necklace or bracelet it was most likely in a tangled mess with all of the other stuff and such a pain to have to try to deal with. I asked the Mr. if he could build me a jewelry board and he said it would be a piece of cake.

I kind of took inventory of all my jewelry back in the day and decided that I wanted a few rows for long necklaces, a few for shorter necklaces, and then the rest of the hooks were spaced closer together to hold bracelets and earrings.

We already had a piece of plywood cut about the right size in our basement left over who knows what so he sanded and painted it and bought these little hooks. Then my dad was in town so he helped finish it up and it is has lived in my closet ever since. Mine is about 6 feet tall and 3.5 feet wide.

After getting it all organized I completely agreed with my friend. I was wearing all of my jewelry SO much more because I could see it all.

I think that no matter how you decide to organize your jewelry, being able to easily see it all is key!

Then after you get dressed you an easily scan what you have and decide what pieces of jewelry you want to wear!

I also have a jewelry box that I keep some special pieces in and things that I don't wear as often and don't want hanging on the board.

I also have this jewelry stand that I bought from Michael's last year that I keep cuff bracelets on (because they don't really hang well on the jewelry board) and also my watches.

It even has little spots where I keep my small post earrings that I wear frequently.

In my girls' rooms I have used small command hooks in their closets to hold and display their necklaces. It is a very cheap way to be able to see it all, but I feel like I'm about on the verge of needing to get them something else. They have a lot of necklaces and they often get tangled because they have so many hanging on each hook.

I checked Amazon to see if there was something that might work for them and actually found several great options!

This Jewelry Armoire with mirror is nice because it is multi-purpose. I love that it serves as a full length mirror, but open up to all of this jewelry storage.

This is a similar option that is an Over The Door Jewelry Organizer . You could hang it on the back of a closet door to save space, but still have lots of organizational options.

This Rustic Jewelry Organizer is a good option if you don't have a ton of pieces that you want to display/organize. Plus, it takes up a lot less space.

I've seen these Pocket Organizers for Jewelry before and feel like they are great because you can hang it over a door or in your closet and then when you travel it is easy to wrap and take with you!

Lastly, this Table Top Jewelry Holder would be nice to set on your bathroom counter or on a dresser to hold pieces that you wear more frequently.

I pinned a bunch of other DIY ideas and organizational tips for jewelry on Pinterest, so you can check that out here! No matter how you decide to organize your jewelry, make sure you can easily see and access it all so that you can completely transform your outfits by wearing the amazing jewelry you probably already own!

Monday, September 25, 2017

15 Uses for Command Hooks Around the House

A few weeks ago a friend of mine was telling me she needed a solution for her daughter's necklaces that kept getting tangled. I used to have the very same problem until I came up with a way to keep them organized. I shared my command hook tip with her she texted me a few days later thanking me for sharing and saying it was working out perfectly. That got me thinking because I use command hooks for SO many things around my house. This post is not sponsored in anyway. I just really do love these handy little things, keep extras at my house at all times, and thought it would be fun to share all the ways I use them! Also, this isn't one of those posts that is going to be pretty because I literally just walked around my house and took pics with my cell phone, but I do hope it will be practical!

1. Since I mentioned it above, I figured I would share that first. My girls' necklaces used to get all tangled in their jewelry boxes, so I started using small hooks in their closest for them to be able to hang up and really have easier access to their necklaces.

2. Obviously Boo-Boo does not have the same need in his closet, but he does have SO many hats so I put them in his closet for him to hang is hats on.

3. Also in the girls' closets I have some hanging for them to keep their bags and purses organized.

4. In our downstairs coat closet I put large hooks on one side so the kids could easily grab and then hang up their coats during the fall/winter. It's much quicker than trying to get them on an actual hanger and keeps them from being on the ground.

5. On the other side of that hall closet I have hooks for some of their sports bags.

6. Outside the door leading to the garage I have a hook where we hang our dog's leash.

7. The playroom has lots of hooks. One for hanging bags and another for aprons the kids use in the kitchen.

8. I use large clear ones outside on doors for my wreaths and other decor that I hang.

9. I use outdoor hooks for hanging garland at Christmas time.

10. I recently discovered these large waterproof hooks that are perfect in the shower. They hold the shower caddies down low enough so the kids' stuff is within easy reach.

11. I have them hanging on the kids bathroom walls because we didn't want to mount towel racks down low (knowing the kids would be growing taller and eventually need them at a normal height), but I can't stand wet towels on the floor. This was a good temporary solution so the kids could hang their own towels without needing my help and without us needing to move towel racks down the road.

12. Our reward jars are mounted on a window in the kitchen that is easily accessible and a large, heavy duty hook has been holding them for 3 years now!

13. In my pantry I have my aprons hanging on a hook.

14. I also use them to hang wreaths inside my house. I didn't want to ruin my cabinets, but knowing this will come right off when I'm ready for it to, I don't have to worry.

15. I use tiny clear hooks on the brick mantle to hang our Christmas stockings and then will leave them up all year because they aren't visible and then be able to use them for other holiday decor.

So there you go! I probably have a bunch of other random ones around my house, but those are the ones that popped into my head. How do you use them? Any fun organizational tips you could share!?

Monday, January 23, 2017

Playroom Organization Ideas {Playroom Home Tour}

One room that gets used more than any in our house is the playroom. When we were building our house I knew that I wanted the playroom to be on the main floor. In our previous home, it was on the second floor and while it got used, the kids just like to be close to the action so having the playroom on the same floor as the kitchen where I usually am was the best decision we made. We combined two bedrooms during the remodel for the playroom. The Mr. kept thinking it was way too big, but I knew we would fill it up quick with all of their large toys and things. Plus, this saying kept sticking out in my head.

I wanted them to have a big place to play and create and imagine and just be kids. Having this large space for the kids is SO nice! What isn't so nice is all of the room for messes. I'm pretty type A when it comes to my house and I like things in their place. Since the day my kids were old enough I started having them help with cleaning up their own toys and it is something that has just become a habit for them. Now don't get me wrong...there are certainly times when there are toys and things spread out all over this room, but when I tell them I can't stand the mess anymore, they know I mean business and they know they better get cleaning. I think the thing that helps the most with this is having a place for everything. Organization is key so I though I would share some more pictures of our playroom today and show y'all how we keep it all organized.

When setting up our playroom I sort of made different areas based on different types of play. My kids love playing school so their "teacher" section is one of the most used spots! Last week I shared the changing table that I painted and repurposed as a shelf for all of their "teacher stuff" and it continues to work out great for extra storage.

On the shelf I use these baskets from Target to help keep workbooks, notebooks, folders, and other supplies in their place.

I also like to use nontraditional storage in places to just make it look pretty. These wooden alphabet blocks could go in a basket, but they are so colorful and fun that I wanted them to show so I used a large vase that I had to hold them instead!

We purchased a craft table from Land of Nod years ago when Little Mama was just a toddler and it we have definitely gotten our money's worth out of it. They use it for crafts, it's the desk for school, and becomes a table when they play restaurant. I bought the red chairs online from Amazon because they were a lot less expensive than any others I found and they came in tons of colors.

I loved this table because it also has space for extra storage below the table. I use the white bins to hold stickers and coloring books and the red pails each hold crayons, markers, and colored pencils. I just dump them all out of the boxes into the pails so the kids can easily grab what they want.

A new addition to the playroom is this antique Coca-Cola wooden crate. One of the advantages of buying an older home to remodel was that the previous owners left us all sorts of goodies in the basement. I have been searching and searching for a use for this wooden crate and it finally dawned on me that tit would work great in the playroom.

The kids helped me put some items in it that they use most often. We used mason jars to hold the markers, crayon, etc.

Another big purchase years ago was this play kitchen from Pottery Barn Kids. It was a combined gift from us and both sets of grandparents and has been so well loved. Every time I think it might be time to sell it, the kids use it to play restaurant or some other type of game so it is still going strong.

My in-laws were getting rid of this shelf years ago and I took it, painted it white, and bought these baskets from Pottery Barn Kids. They are 10 years old and still look brand new!

These baskets hold smaller toy like action figures, Barbies, etc.

On both sides of this shelf I have Command Hooks. I've mentioned my love of Command Hooks before and I seriously use them everywhere! In the playroom they hold some of the kids bags.

In one corner I have this pop-up mesh laundry basket that is used to hold all the balls. These are so cheap, but so great for balls, stuffed animals and bigger stuff like that.

We have a lot of dress up clothes, old dance recital costumes, etc. and my kids love dressing up and getting into character so these large baskets hold all the dress up stuff.

We had a build in shelf put in one of the corners and while it isn't pretty, it's functional and kind of hidden from immediate view. It holds larger things like pirate ships, the karaoke machine and play cash registers.

And because I'm a boy mom we have lots of weapons. From Nerf guns to pirate swords, light sabers and bow and arrows. They all go in this large basket.

Also because I'm a boy mama, we have tons of trains, cars, and trucks. This train table was a gift for Boo-Boo a few years ago and I love it because he can play trains on it, but he also uses it for other vehicles and those two large drawers underneath have so much storage for all the train pieces and larger vehicles, remote control cars, monster trucks, etc. You'll also see that small plastic bin that I use to hold all the matchbox cars.

The wall above the train table is our artwork gallery wall. I wrote all about it HERE and you can see that our wall has grown! I buy random black frames so I can keep adding to as they bring home new frame-worthy art! It's so colorful and an easy way to fill a big blank wall.

An old TV and TV console are in the playroom for the kids to play the Wii and watch movies. It doesn't have cable, but they watch DVD's in here. Also beside that I have two large baskets with all the babydoll/American Girl stuff.

We have tons of books in the playroom that sit on this dollhouse shelf that used to be in Little Mama's nursery.

And one of the greatest things we did when building our house was put a closet in the playroom. It is holds all the games, puzzles and other random toys. In it I have an over the door shoe organizer that holds all of the craft supplies. It's great because the kids can see just what they are looking for.

There you have it! That's our whole playroom. If anyone else has organization tips to share for kid stuff, please share! I need to tackle my kids' rooms and their closets, so I'm always looking for ideas.

Magnolia Mamas

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