7 Week Organizational Challenge : Week One Recap

Good Saturday Morning! 

I have been working overtime this week in an effort to encourage YOU that it can be done! From now on, I will be a week ahead of each of you. This will provide photo proof that the tasks can be completed and give you some ideas of how to do it! (that's my hope anyways!)

So as week one, the master bedroom, comes to a close, here is my progress! It was quite the task seeing as this room has been totally ignored since we moved in. It was the catch all, the place no one else saw and so I kept telling myself it didn't need painted, or organized; that it didn't matter. Man oh man! what a difference having a completed, organized, relaxing bedroom makes! 

Jimmy insisted that we should paint it and complete it, just as we have the rest of the mail level of our home. I cannot take all the credit for this room, because he worked VERY hard to get it al ready for me to organize and decorate, and I appreciate his work VERY much! 

This was our room when the day care was still here:

The single light on the wall was the ONLY lighting in the room. It was SO dark.

I kid you not, this is what our room has looked like since we moved in... 

I'm embarrassed as I type... 

That heater, ugh... pain in the behind! It is radiant heat, which I can live with, but this thing was SO inconsistent! We woke up multiple nights with it being 79+ degrees in our room.  And if I turned it off, it took a full 24 hours to not be hot to the touch.  Bye Bye heater! 

Here is my mirror propped up on an [unpacked] suitcase, and our disasters of closets.

Our headboard was too big for this room without some adjustments, so for now we don't have one. I hate that. I have a plan of what I am going to do, but am searching for JUST the right item..

For some reason I had myself convinced that our bed could NOT go under the window (where the heater used to be) but upon my husband thinking otherwise, we tried it and I love it! 

Mid closet clean out! 

hard at work...

And boy did that hard work pay off! Check out our FINISHED (aside from the future headboard) Master bedroom! 

I just want to go curl up on my bed as I look at these pictures! I am in love! 

I really like the accent wall behind the bed.

I took to heart what the January calendar says about getting rid of anything you don't find useful or beautiful. 

The basket on top of my dresser hold those misc. things that collect and make your dresser look messy. (heating pad, change jar, chapstick etc.)

Jimmy's dresser houses some photos and my jewelry box and my neckless & earring organizer hang above it. 

Don't our closets look so much better? 

Lets take a peek inside! :D

Focusing on the "A, B &C" zones really helped me to organize the closets! 

Now jimmy's Tshirts and Flannels are easy to access, dress shirts a lower, still easy for sunday mornings and the misc. stuff and my skirt hangers are on the other side!

Here is my side before...

And after! I have my boxes of special things i've collected over the year and my heels up top, pants on the left, and all my shirts organized by style/ sleeve length. and then my boots and shoes are below!

All clean! All organized! :) 

~paige

Scarf Organization

My scarf collection has always been an organizational issue for me:

I have tried the "shower curtain rings on the hanger" trick and it failed, they always slid to one side or another and the mass of scarves I own made for a VERY bulky hanger in the closet.

My next attempt was a scarf hanger made of a bunch of little circles for each scarf to rest in. Aside from the same issue of bulk, it also snagged some of my scarves and was just a pain. 

So I always settle for them all over the house, on our door, in the closet, in my dress, on the entry way hooks, in the car, on the counter. basically where ever they land is where they live. 

It's a pain! 

Until I found THIS:

   

I am pretty sure its a rack for thread, but when I saw it , it just screamed SCARF ORGANIZATION!! So I mounted it on the wall behind our bedroom door, And in a matter of minutes, my scarves went from this:

To this! 

Now we can access the other necessities on the door rack (belts, tanks, etc.)

And I can easily see all my scarves and easily access them! 

I'm not positive, but I would venture to say I will wear a bigger variety of my scarves now too, since they are easier to get to and not piled on top of one another! 

So, if you are like me and have a growing scarf collection scarf addiction, keep you eyes peeled for one of these thread racks! 

~paige

Bathroom Renovations

I would assume the 70's were great... but just not in my house.... in 2015. 

Welcome to our master & hall bath:

The hall bath functions as the kid bathroom, as well as guests. (we have a guest bath downstairs off of the guest room for out overnight company, but this one is on the main floor!)

My desire is for the master bath to be, like our bedroom, an oasis. A kid free, relaxing retreat.

Neither of these photos scream "Welcome to our home!" or "Day at the spa!"

We tackled the hall bath first, laying the "peel and stick" flooring over the old linoleum, we chipped off all the old tiles from the counter top and back splash, painted the walls & cabinets and hung a new light fixture. 

We did the same basic thing in the master bath, only with a different color! 

I love both spaces. If you have been keeping up at all with the process, you remember that the house served as a child care center, so you can imagine (similarly to carpet in the dining room) how the main bath faired with multiple little boys.... 

Now both spaces are clean, functional and pleasing to the eye. 

Welcome to our new master bath!

And the Hall Bath!

I think the most difficult process we encountered was the tiling process. They turned out great, but it's not a job for the faint of heart! haha. 

I think the most influential change was the lighting. Holy moley was the 70's chain lighting HORRENDOUS! 

I think my favorite piece from the renos is the corner shelving in our master bath. It adds nice storage, and we can display a few things (who knew q-tips could be so cute?!) 

As a re-cap lets check out a few comparison shots!

There you have it! 

Stay tuned for the 7 week organizational challenge post regarding how I organized the cabinets! :)

~paige

Organized Home

It is interesting to me, that the most space I have to organize, the more cluttered our home seems to be.

When we lived in ND, we lived in a tiny, 2 bedroom 1 bath apartment. It had FABULOUS closet space and ample kitchen storage, but it all reality MOST of out "not every day" things lived in the storage unit across town.

Did I care? No!

I had everything at my fingertips that I needed daily.

Then we moved to WY. At our last house (we lived here for about 6 months) I knew it was somewhat temporary, but there was no definite timeline on when I would have to pack up again. That being said, I unpacked alot, and I decorated. It felt like home. But I never gave into any sort of organizational system since tubs, baskets and time are NOT free!

Now, here we are, the beginning of a new year, in a new home that is the most permanent home I have lived in since moving out of my parents home nearly 5 years ago!

we have been here for exactly one month. I am so thankful for all of the helping hands that moved everything out of our old house and into this one, but lets face it, no one puts your things exactly where you would personally, and as you live in a house, you realize how it flows and what systems will work best for your space.

You Following? Good!

So I am challenging you to embark on a 7 Week* Organizational Challenge!

I have broken the house into different spaces for each week.

They *tentatively* look something like this:

Week 1: January 11-17 Master Bedroom

Week 2: January 18-24 Kitchen

Week 3: January 25-31 Pantry

Week 4: February 1-7 Entryway / Foyer

Week 5: February 8-14 Bathrooms / Laundry

Week 6: February 15-21 Kid's Bedrooms

Week 7: February 22-28 Dining and Living Area

I know this week is half over, and If you are anything like me, the master bedroom is a disaster zone. my plan is to (personally) get two yes, kitchen and master bedroom DONE in the next 4 days so that I can share photos of the successes and failures I encounter during the process!

So what do you need to do?

#1 - Print off the two calendars below

#2 - Gather 6 boxes, totes, bins.. (or tarps in the yard to throw stuff on if you've got as much clutter as we do...... lol!) I kid.

#3 - turn on some tunes and GET BUSY!!

"Why 6 boxes??"

WELL this is where the process comes in, you will need five boxes, for your five organizations "zones"

The process by which we are going to get this done is simple, but I promise it will get worse before it gets better, hang in there!

You are going to EMPTY the space. Thats right EMPTY it. as you clear it out, you will place each item in one of the following zones:

Zone 1: Put away (this is for all the things that end up in you bedroom, kitchen or bathroom, that belong in the kids room, playroom or basement!)

Zone 2: Throw Away (Trash)

Zone 3: Donate (Things you no longer want or use, but that someone else will find as a treasure at your local thrift store or food pantry!)

Zone 4: "A" items (Things you use every day: toothbrush, ipad, spatula)

Zone 5: "B" items (Things you use monthly: pedicure set, exercise clothes (HAHAHA!), baking supplies)

Zone 6: "C" Items (things you use rarely: Sewing machine, cake decorating supplies, foot massager)

It looks difficult, but once you get the system down, it's much nicer that a bunch of piles on your bed/counter/ floor that overflow onto each other and then you have to RE sort!

OK! that being said, here are the calendars, and some printables to help the process! GO! Don't forget to take before and after photos and share them with me on the Mama Manifesto Facebook Page!

Master Bed & Bath Game Plan

January 2015 Organization Calendar

February 2015 Organization Calendar