Organizing is not about having a house that looks pretty on Pinterest, but rather about having a home that is easy to take care of so you can focus on your family. While there are a lot of tools sold at home solution stores that can definitely help you to contain your clutter, here are some other hacks that will help busy moms to organize their space.
Container and Turntable Hacks
Any home organization expert will tell you that the #1 answer to a clean and decluttered home is to file, don’t pile. And containers are key to making organization happen. Now, containers can be anything from custom furniture to IKEA or Dollar Tree plastic organizers — or even fishing tackle boxes to organize craft materials or jewelry.
Plastic and glass bins can be found almost anywhere in every shape and size, but if you don’t want to spend money on organizing, you can even use old boxes or cleaned out glass jars from food or other products your family has consumed.
Just keep in mind that busy moms don’t always have time to open lids or unstack boxes to keep things clean and decluttered, so most of the time — even with the best of intentions — things get piled up waiting to be put in their proper place later. This is why it is recommended that, especially in high-clutter areas, families use open bins or drawer partitions where items can be dumped quickly.
Making use of containers to collect and store items on lazy susans or turntables (like this one from Bed Bath & Beyond) all over the house also maximizes storage potential in cabinets, especially in those top corner cabinets in the kitchen and bathroom. This can make getting to everything as simple as a swivel!
Label Hacks
When things are labeled, the family can help with organization, because no one has to ask where things go, the label makes it obvious! So make your life easier, and make it a habit for the whole family to help with organizing by labeling.
Whether you use a label maker (like this popular one on Amazon) or handwritten stick-on labels like these chalk marker labels or other adhesive labels, or even markers, like these wine glass marker pens that actually work well on any glass container and rinse off easily in the dishwasher when it’s time for a rewrite, labeling is essential to organization.
In addition to written labels, consider using picture labels attached to plastic toy bins where you stash children’s toys. This helps your young children who can’t yet read to put toys away on their own.
Use your labeling method to write not just what goes into a container, but also the expiration dates of food items or other household items with a shelf life. By labeling your plastic and glass containers, you’ll be able to quickly see when the contents are expired and should be thrown out.
Another label hack is to attach a descriptor note around the cables near the base closest to where they are plugged into your electrical outlets. This saves more than time. You won’t have to follow the cord all the way back to the appliance to know what it is and if it can be unplugged without creating a headache… like forcing you to reset a clock or wait for a device to reboot.
Velcro and Rod Hacks
Are you forever losing the remote because someone in the family sets it somewhere it doesn’t belong? Use velcro on the remote and the underside of your coffee table to attach your remote and give it a home where it can always be found. As a bonus, it will be out of sight making your family room less cluttered.
Place a spring tension rod across the cabinet under your kitchen sink to hang spray bottles. This way, your frequently used cleaning products will be available to grab easily and you are making more space under your sink for all of the other items that inevitably are stored there.
Hook Hacks
Sometimes hanging clothing items on hangers is just too much to expect, especially when the clothes are items that are used frequently. To keep these pieces off of the floor or your favorite chair, install hooks like these from West Elm (or place over-the-door hanging hooks like these from Bed Bath and Beyond) in places where piles tend to gather.
Similar to hooks, a hanging organizer with pockets can make a happy home for shoes… or smaller stuffed animals if your children have a growing collection.
Furniture Hacks
In busy families, stuff just seems to always get shoved under the bed. So if it’s going to happen anyway, why not make it a place with purpose? An under-bed storage drawer like this one from Amazon may be just the answer! Don’t want to buy one? Some families are putting castor rollers on the underside of unused shallow drawers to DIY the solution.
If you aren’t ready to repurpose parts of your furniture, at least try to buy furniture that has a dual purpose for organization, especially if you live in a smaller home. These stools/ottoman from Target and this desk/coffee table with storage from Wayfair are examples of furniture that make it easy to stash everyday items in your main living area in seconds.
Other Hacks
This toy storage bag from Amazon is a game-changer for instant clean-up! Spread it out and let the kids play. Then, when playtime is over, just pull the drawstring to cinch up the entire mess and stash it away!
Do the showers in your home seem to always be filled with half-empty bottles that you don’t know when you need to replace? Or maybe your kids haven’t quite figured out how much conditioner is really enough? Use a shampoo/conditioner/shower gel dispenser like this one from Camping World in your shower to manage the amount of product used and allow you to see when you need to refill.
And if cleaning the floor isn’t your favorite chore, make house slippers into dusters! You can buy cleaning slippers or simply attach microfiber cleaning cloths to house slippers — your own or your children’s — and as the family walks around your home, you’ll all be collecting the dust, dirt, and dog hair.
More Mom Hacks
Save on Organization Hacks with Fetch
And that’s our list of organizational hacks for busy moms. When you’re purchasing your containers, labels, hooks, and other hacks, don’t forget to snap and upload your receipts to Fetch! The more you shop and snap, the more points you’ll rack up toward free gift cards to some of your favorite stores. Click the links, or scan the QR code, below to get started saving with Fetch!
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