laundry closet

Busy week packing; I think I've done nearly twenty loads of laundry to prepare linens and clothing for shipping. All these chores have me thinking of a really efficient and stylish utility spaces like this.

Source: hendelhomes.com via Ann on Pinterest

organization

Mentally preparing for the next house seems absurd but I always rethink the way I do things before a move. I loved the pared down cleaning advice, so any organizational tips? My current linen closet is a disaster, as is my pantry and don't even think of opening the door to the laundry/storage room...

Source: bhg.com via Ann on Pinterest

resolutions

Ah, the post-holidays clean-up. This time of year always sparks a million resolutions for the next and chief among them - get organized. Especially as I haphazardly toss the ornaments into a bin and pray they make it to the next year. For a little inspiration, Jen Jones literally has me trying to keep up with the Joneses as I believe her house is the most organized ever.

Yes, even her freezer is organized. I know.

pantry jars

Symptomatic of not being able to paint or wallpaper, I channel my domestic energy (if you will) into organizing. When we moved to the South, I had a shock. My old ways of keeping dry goods in their original packaging was absolutely not working! Everything went stale within a day, clumped or worse - became bug infested. Within twenty four hours of opening, snacks were inedible and I would need to buy more flour! So I had to come up with a solution.

My husband's family had once been in the dry goods business and we started talking about old cracker jars. I did some research of old dry goods stores for inspiration. Then one afternoon I caught myself watching Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory and decided my pantry ought to look like the candy shop... only I don't really eat refined sugar so not nearly as fun.

Image from Little Things, check out her thin mints recipe!

I decided jars were the way to do it. My cupboards are now a lot like these of Emerson's (of EmersonMade) pantry via Design Sponge. I also love these from BHG and Pinterest via decorology


Although, I'm not going to lie. I am terribly frugal about things that are out of sight. So nice French hermetic jars were a no go. I did cave and use hermetic jars for spices. I hate opening that cabinet and smelling spices so I decided not to mess around and invest instead of keeping them in the original plastic containers. As for the rest of it I have been using the Ball Canning Jars in the Pint Size to hold small quantities and the Wide Mouth Quart size for other thing. Finally, I chose full size cracker jars for very large quantity dry goods. I wish I had the discipline to just collect jars, but no. Honestly, this system makes me happy every time I open my pantry cupboards and it looks truly organized.
And lastly, my snack solution has to be more sloth-friendly (i.e. light, portable and dishwasher safe for the lazy person, i.e. me) so I use large, disposable glad containers. Honestly, this was the best thing I ever did. They stack wonderfully in my cabinets, are inexpensive and they are light enough to carry cereal to the table. When dropped, they don't break and they don't open. I know, not as aesthetically pleasing as glass but I've used this system for horse supplements (no glass in the barn) and dog meds, too. I love it!

Another great resource was found by Ready Made, Specialty Bottle. I love how she etched hers. I'm not that fancy, I just use my label maker on the lids and call it a day!

growth charts

I've been shopping for shower gifts for a fellow nomad with munchkins/bambinos/kids/children/whatever you want to call them lately. I've noticed some really clever growth charts that can move with you. I am so loving this if you are crafty (and want to make it for me, just kidding) you can find the directions here on WhipperBerry.

Personally, my family was quite old fashioned. We preferred the method used in Drayton Hall in Charleston, South Carolina - right smack on the wall. Although, unlike the Draytons, we didn't include the height of our dogs!

Photos by Drayton Hall and Anne G

closet case

I've noticed that when you can't remodel or repaint, one thing you can always do is reorganize. So when that "nesting" urge strikes, I find myself reorganizing my pantry or my closet. That's right, closet, singular. My husband and I share a closet made for one.

Whomever designed our high rise, take note - in 1100 sq. ft. (maybe I just think this coming from the city) you can fit more than one person. Thus, you need more than one tiny closet. I like to call it a "boîte à bijoux" closet... Yeah, right...

Anyways, for a little eye candy/inspiration I am loving the images assembled by The Estate of Things recently, check it out! Here is a sample of the images she collected:

photos on Flickr and by Steven Gambrel

Here is a personal favorite, just because I like wooden built-ins. Actually, I like closets that look more like clothing libraries than laundries or boutiques, but that's just me. This one belongs to Eva Longoria-Parker as photographed by Instyle Magazine.


So back to reality. The one thing I've learned is that even the worst closet can be revived, inexpensively by these, all available from Target, Ikea and Walmart. Maybe not the most permanent solution, but it sure is a start:

Matching wooden hangers. I cannot say enough about this. I own about 150 of them and they are inexpensive to boot, thank you Target for your thirty odd dollar multi-packs! They make our closet look a lot less chaotic. There was a time when I went for colorful plastic but believe me, matching hangers just feel neater.

A good, vented, shoe rack that doesn't look rickety is such a luxury. Especially if you wear leather soled shoes. I once heard a discriminating sartorialist say that men should have enough leather shoes to never wear them back to back. The reasoning being that if you didn't give the leather a chance to dry out (think sweaty feet, sorry for that image) you'll ruin them faster. Anyways, for twenty-some bucks at Walmart, I'll take it!

Now here is where things get strange. I love shelving but rentals often have inexpensive wire shelving which can lead to lines in your sweaters. I like modular shelving but without a back, I found things were constantly falling behind them and impossible to dig out. An affordable solution? Well remember how I said I like closets that resembled libraries? I use MDF bookshelves with shelf separators. Inexpensive and readily available from any discount retailer, these are awesome and they look great with several lined up in a row. And if the movers are ever rough with them, I know I can easily find a replacement like this Billy bookcase from Ikea, but FYI Target and Walmart carry some similar ones for around twenty dollars if there is no Ikea nearby:

So that's how we cheat to make nightmare closets (okay, just one) work for the two of us.