I know that I revealed in my last organization post that I had a penchant for things that speak to me visually. Things can be practical and pretty at the same time. I thought I would share a few areas or items in my home that I use to help keep all of the stuff that I have to keep track of from entering into the pile of oblivion (only to be lost forever when they are swiped up to be placed in a bag hidden from the eyes of visitors). You know….the never open a closet in front of strangers rule?

I will start with the small things and move up into the bigger items. Remember…they have to look pretty!

Lists, menu’s, magazine clippings of a product you want to try and find on your next shopping day, receipts from your last shopping day of an item that needs to be returned, letters to be mailed all need to find a home and preferably not one at the bottom of your purse/pocketbook.

 To alleviate them from being “at home” in the bottom of my bags, I took a cute decorative little clipboard (5 X 7 size) and now I clip all those little flyaway pieces to it. It is easy to bring it with me as I am running out the door to to my car and back. I have even clipped small Ziploc bags to it that held the tiniest light bulb ever that I had to match up at the store because I had thrown away the package. To keep it where you will not forget it, you can hang it by the pretty little ribbon near where you make your grocery lists or as you go out the door.

Next dilemma:

I was forever ripping out recipes and…putting them in a pile to never be seen again. Now I have the perfect place to keep the ones I want to try each week so that they are in full view. I took some old tin tiles that I had found and glued a ribbon to the back to make a hanger. I hung 2 of them on the cabinet next to my stove and added a pretty magnet and viola.

This project took a bit more time. I was fortunate enough to have a book shelf in the wall in our kitchen above a desk where the kids can do homework. The open shelving drove me crazy though for it was the first thing you saw when you entered the room. I asked my friend Jennifer one day (remember my artist friend and jack of all trades go to girl?) if she thought that she could make a door and trim it with molding (to make it look pretty!) that could hide the cabinet. To solve another problem…the chore chart…I asked if she could paint the door with chalkboard paint. (We now paint everything with chalkboard paint and yes…the board does say, “take down Christmas decorations the week of March 4th! I had a few here and there that I wanted to make made it back into their hibernation boxes for at least a few months. It does NOT say take down the Christmas tree!)

The door opens up and there at my fingertips are the kids school binders, papers, BD cards, etc. You can even hang schedules on the inside of the door!

I hope that you might get a little spark in your eye when you see this that says, “I too can LOOK like I am totally organized.”

Happy organizing!