My home office/studio organization was to be last week’s post. However, I kept thinking that I will post as soon as I am finished. Well, there are still a few clutter hot spots in my office but the progress I’ve made needs to be shared. You see, organizing in real life is not all about eliminating every mess or hot spot but rather dealing with them when they happen.
Overwhelm often keeps us from decluttering and organizing. We just don’t know where to start because we don’t think we have time to do it all at once. You know what? We don’t have to do it all at once. We need to start with one space no matter how small and complete the decluttering and organizing process. The next day, do it again in another space and so on and so on until done.
Done. Are we ever really done? Well, yes and no. We can finish decluttering and organizing a space, a room, or the whole house. But unless we have a maintenance plan, we will be doing it all over again too soon!
Let me share with you my “new” office. What’s done, what’s still waiting, and the maintenance plan. Is it perfect? Not yet, but neither am I so it works!
Don’t wait to do it perfectly!
If you wait until you can organize perfectly, you will either never get out of the stage of being overwhelmed or you will spend way too much money on needless organizing tools that add to the disorganization without helping clear the clutter. You will notice in the photos that there are still a few boxes that need to be sorted. But, four is a lot better than the twelve that were there last week!
Find storage space by using walls and the space under desks and tables.
My office is a working space, not a showroom. It is more important to have my creative tools easily accessible than to have a spotless room. It is not a large room (about 10×10) so space for storage units is limited. I found similar ideas on Pinterest and then took what I had and went for it.
The items on the wall were filling and overflowing boxes and bins in my curio cabinet and my closet. I would forget what I had and buy them again wasting both money and space. Now they are where I can see them and use them.
Another typically unused space is behind the door. An over-the-door shoe holder corrals pens, pencils, markers, chalk, craft scissors, scrapbooking tape and photo corners, etc. I don’t have to be shuffling through a drawer because I can see clearly what I have.
Rarely do your feet need to go all the way to the back of the space under a table or desk. So that is where my sewing machines and toolbox live when they are not in use. My printer and scanner live under my desk so they are close to where I use them.
Group like items or categories together
Instead of having all of my books in my office, I chose to move my devotional and inspirational books to another room. What I kept in here are my Bibles, reference books, and books that pertain to my blog, business, and hobbies. The books are arranged by subject, i.e. décor, hospitality, mentoring, etc.
You will notice there are stacks under the hutch that I use for a book case. Those are my genealogy research books and scrapbook supplies. They are stacked until the budget allows for a low bookcase that will house them in that otherwise unused space.
I am working on the bad habit of setting small items on the shelves in front of the books to “put away later” or “just until I need them.” The small box and zip bag contain items for a shadow box that is waiting to be hung. But “honey dos” are a whole different post.
The curio cabinet that was holding all the items that are now on the wall is housing my painting supplies. The bottom shelf holds pattern books for my various crafts. I enjoy a lot of different creative pursuits so that requires creative storage. On top of the cabinet are my knitting needles, crochet hooks and latch hooks stored in antique canning jars. No, I didn’t buy them all. Many are hand-me-downs from my mom and grandma.
Label bins and boxes
Use labels to know what is in your boxes and bins so you don’t have to look through all of them to find the item you need. My closet is a work-in-progress when it comes to labeling. Right now, the bins all have post-it notes with the contents/categories in each box. My plan is to print the labels onto card stock and Velcro them to the bins. That is a task for a less busy season.
Use hooks and hangers to keep items off of the floor and backs of chairs
I love Command hooks. Hooks on the storage wall hold washi tape threaded onto a pants hanger and hold spools of ribbon threaded onto lengths of ribbon. I have also used them on my closet door to hold my aprons (one I wear when painting to protect my clothes and one for sewing so I am not covered with strings and scraps when I finish).
Skirt and pant hangers are ideal for holding items like quilt rulers, stencils, vinyl paint cloths, and stitchery bags. It makes the items easy to see and access when they aren’t in a pile or hidden in a box.
Maintain your organization
Make decluttering a habit. Don’t keep scraps that you know you won’t use and be real about the “someday” projects that take up space. Don’t add more stuff until you make room for it by eliminating something else. This way you don’t overwhelm your organizing system.
If you get it out, put it away. As you can see in the pictures, I’m still working on this habit but it’s improving. I try to use the TIDY system everyday to keep my office and home from becoming a clutter pit. TIDY stands for Take five minutes In every room, Dash in and pick up Your messes.
I hope my journey of decluttering and organizing will inspire you. Please share with me if these ideas have helped you create some order in your spaces, rooms, and home.
Thank you for letting me share my heart for home!
