Solutions for storing spices

Here are a few of my favorite solutions for a spice cabinet.  Most people who love to cook also like to have their spices easily accessible.  Try one of these products to help make food preparation easier and more pleasant.

A two-tier turntable is helpful for tall cabinets and eliminates wasted vertical space:

The Swivel Store gives you the option to keep spices in a narrow opening:

Purchase a Swivel Store

This expandable shelf organizer provides tiers to store spices and make them more visible:

Purchase the expandable shelf organizer

Stacks and Stacks offers this drawer system to stack spices on their sides:

Purchase the Stacks and Stacks Drawer Spice Organizer

When all else fails you can always improvise with baskets or mop/broom holders!

Less is More

Because I am an organizer many people think I hate stuff, that I despise things and belongings.  When working with a client one-on-one I am able to dismiss this assumption pretty fast.  I don’t hate stuff and I do not disregard other people’s precious items.  What I try to help people see is that relationships and quality of life are so much more important than anything we own.  Organizing is often not about the physical stuff so much as it is about our perception of those things. 

If disorganization, clutter or a lack of systems negatively affects you and those around you, you are being held captive by what you own and allowing it to control you.  This will cause stress in your life and ultimately your relationships.  Sometimes people have simply acquired more than their space can comfortably contain, but the belongings are relatively current.  Other times clients are drowning in an avalanche of memorabilia or things associated with memories.  This habit will hold you in the past, keep your present from being enjoyable and even your future from moving forward. 

It is essential to visualize what is most important to us, and also those around us.  When we can clarify and then agree on what that vision is we become more able to live and exist with less.  Remember less is truly more!

Does your space need a tune-up?

I suppose even a professional organizer can become stuck in a rut J.  A couple months ago I tried to stuff some unruly plastic bags back inside themselves under a deep kitchen cabinet.  Suddenly, I asked myself why on earth I had not purchased a plastic bag sleeve.  Then I asked myself why this imaginary bag sleeve was not hanging on the inside of my kitchen cabinet. 

This solution, while so simple and intuitive, seems to have evaded me for the first year I have lived in my apartment.  The irony is that in a client’s house I would have seen the same issue a while ago and made the proper storage suggestion.  Why did it take so long?  Even organizers can get stuck in a rut.  We all do it.  We are used to using our space a particular way.  We are accustomed to viewing it a certain way.  This means that every space, even one belonging to an organizer, needs a tune-up every once in a while. 

Spaces that could benefit from a tune-up are highly used, high traffic areas such as an entryway, kitchen cabinets, a closet or an office drawer.  I like to open up a cabinet, step back and ask myself:

Does this set-up work well for me?  What don’t I like about it?  What would I change?

What can I do to suit my daily needs more effectively?

Is there a product that would make this space more efficient?

I would encourage you to perform a tune-up every six months unless the need arises earlier.  Remember that any well-organized space at some point needs a little reassessment to ensure it is working well and to its fullest potential.

A quick guide for proper closet heights

Many people struggle with a closet that does not have the appropriate space between hanging bars.  Even worse, some individuals have invested a lot of money in a new closet system only to see their shirts overlapping their pants below.  Don’t make the same mistake!  I found this great little guide to help remind us of the distances needed to have ample space between clothes.  It may seem like a lot but do not forget that you need to account for the length of the clothing as well as the hanger it sits on!

What to do when organizing another person's things

Sometimes we are forced to organize the space or possessions of another person.  You may think that is an obvious statement given my work with clients and their stuff.  However, I am talking more about working with someone close to you, or working with someone who cannot be there and do the work themselves.

My husband works very hard and also goes to school part time for his master’s degree.  His time is very precious and he has not had much of it over the last year and a half to go through old papers or make his desk a productive work-space.  As I have taken on these tasks myself I have learned a few best practices to add to my repertoire, specifically how to work with someone close to you, all the while preserving his final say and respecting his space and belongings. I hope you can use these strategies to perhaps help your children or spouse.

1. I usually let him know that I am attempting to organize something or some space and tell him up front that I won’t be throwing things away unless they are obvious trash.  This alleviates any fear he may have that I am just looking for an opportunity to get rid of his stuff.
2. I try to sort into categories I think make the most sense to him and not me.
3. I try to put the categories in storage places I think will be most intuitive for him and not me.
4. I label everything, including files, drawers and bins so he does not have to guess where things are.  This is crucial if someone needs to learn a new system of storage but did not create it.
5. I ask for five minutes of his time to show him where everything is and get his feedback on the placement.  If he wants something moved, it gets moved.
6. I wait until another time to ask him to look through the “trash” with me.  If there is a lot I break it into several little “sessions” so he does not feel overwhelmed.  We are more likely to sit down and do it together if it does not seem like a task that will take all afternoon.
7. I try to be patient of he asks me where something is instead of showing exasperation as he learns the new storage arrangement.  Remember that person was not there when you put everything away and they may need some grace and assistance.  

Family Meal Planning Made Easy

I grew up in a busy household of five children.  As you can imagine this fact made dinner no small matter at my house!  Over the years I learned some strategies to make the process of shopping and meal planning easier. 

Create a printable list: Writing a shopping list for the entire week can be a daunting task as you try to figure out what meals you wish to make, not to mention remembering the staples you need to re-stock your pantry!  We came up with a printable list in Word (Excel is fine too) of all the foods we typically buy, with extra space to write in amounts or exotic foods.  This may take a couple edits to truly be all encompassing.  Foods were arranged in categories (not alphabetically) so we were not walking back and forth through the store wasting time.  This list was printed off the computer and hung up every week.  During the week if we ran out of something or were getting low my siblings and I would circle the food item.  By the time shopping came around almost all the work was done.  My mom simply circled the foods that we needed to buy for meals. 

 Create a menu of your favorite foods: There are so many different ways to customize this step so it works for your family!  At my house we designed a categorized list of all the meals and sides we enjoyed.  The list was divided into pasta, soup, meat dishes, vegetables and starches.  My mom could easily make meal combinations without wracking her brain.  She then wrote out the meals for the week on the family wall calendar. 

For people who are more visual you can create your own magnetic calendar for meals.  Below is one of my favorite examples but the possibilities are endless:

Use the same ingredients several times: If you are on a budget it will take a bit more creativity to make meal planning work.  I have found choosing meals that have similar ingredients in succession prevents waste and uses up the leftovers that would normally sit around in your fridge.  If you need to buy herbs try to make several meals in a row to use up the fresh greens before they spoil.  Or if you are making chicken use the leftovers to make soup the next day.

Great Christmas products

Here are some of my favorite items and products that are sure to make Christmas time easier! 


Square Storage Box and Ornament Storage Trays

Storage Box Link

Large and Small Ornament Trays Link

You don’t need a fancy storage box for ornaments.  I love this clear bin because the contents are visible.  You don’t need to label the box!  I also like these storage trays because they have sides to prevent the ornaments from falling off the tray when you remove a layer from the storage bin!

Ribbon Box

Ribbon Box Link

No more fighting with roles of gift wrap ribbon!  This little box both stores and dispenses the ribbon so it does not get tangled or crushed.  


Foam Ornament Packing Envelopes

Ornament Envelope Link

I am one of those people who reuses the tissue paper an ornament came in to store it.  After a couple years the paper gets torn and the labels get crushed.  These packing envelopes are a great idea!  Keep your ornaments safe and organized.

Holiday Dinnerware Storage

Dinnerware Storage Link

The peek-a-boo window in these storage boxes sold me.  You do not have to label the box or even remove the lid to see the contents!  You can see the pattern and the inside through the large clear window.