Showing posts with label organizing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label organizing. Show all posts

November 23, 2013

8 Tips for a thoroughly organized bathroom...




Please welcome my guest blogger today, Eva Stephen! Eva has a lovely blog Home Decor by Eva, and she has some GREAT tips to help you not only organize your bathroom, but also give you some great product ideas to improve the decor!  Eva loves to write and does a lot of DIY, so do stop by her blog and follow her to see what project or advice she has next!!  

Here are Eva's tips on how to organize your bathroom:



The bathroom or washroom is a well-used part of the home, but not one
 that we particularly consider from a décor point of view, that is, 
until we have important guests coming over to dinner!


These eight tips will help you to get your washroom beautifully organised and attractive and, perhaps even more importantly, how to keep it that way.



1 Firstly, you must be organised when planning housework and décor. 
Set a specific time to sort out each room, allocating your bathroom a 
mere fifteen to thirty minutes each week. You may think that this is too
 little time, but once you have a planned layout for your bathroom, and 
have incorporated some or all of the following tips, you will be 
pleasantly surprised at how quickly each room can be restored to tidy 
glory. This is your time for sorting through the parts of the bathroom 
that are not obvious, the towel cupboard, the supply of toiletries and 
anything else that might not be noticed when you are quickly blitzing 
through.

Towel cupboards can be found here:  Target.





2 Throw away old and unused products and make sure that the family 
finishes up bottles of shampoo, conditioner, hand soap and shower gel 
that otherwise might sit on the shelf for months with a spoonful or two 
dirtying the bottom of the bottle. Insist that all the little ends are 
used up (you may find it easier to use them up yourself!) or tip all the
 little dregs into one container to take on holiday or camping. Make-up 
should be used up within six months usually so check the expiry date and
 throw away any products that have passed that date. Just throwing away 
old products and making sure that tail-ends are used will be a help in 
de-cluttering a bathroom, leaving only what is needed by the family on a
 day to day basis.







3 Everything in its place and a place for everything, goes the old 
adage. Make sure that there is space allocated to everything that is 
needed in the bathroom, and stay on top of the changing needs and whims 
of your children. Hair products, shaving paraphernalia and other beauty 
products will accumulate dangerously if left unchecked! Make sure, at 
least once a week, that there is nothing not bathroom-related in the 
bathroom, brutally pruning out anything that does not belong!


(image)





4 The simplest way to make sure that everyone has an equal amount of 
space in the bathroom storage is to allocate each member a certain 
amount of space for their stuff, be it a small container, wicker basket 
or even just a delineated space on a shelf. When everyone is given 
responsibility for their own toiletries it becomes a lot easier to 
maintain the room as a whole, and it is no problem at all to spot the 
one or two people who are responsible for unnecessary clutter

(image)



. 
5 A regular routine will be your friend in the bathroom. Sort out 
surfaces prone to clutter often – daily if needs be. You may find it 
helpful to set a rota so you are not the only one constantly doing the 
same thing! The basin is often crowded with small pieces of make-up and 
various lotions and potions because people like to look in the mirror 
while applying them. Similarly, the top of the toilet can become 
crowded, especially with items that are used by the whole family. Make 
sure that someone pops into the bathroom daily to put all these products
 back into their proper place. Visual clutter can also be managed by mirror cabinets, with multipurpose function, these pose to be mirrors with a hidden cabinet space.

You can get a medicine cabinet  like this one or like the one below:

(image)




6 Try and avoid wasting space, even in the name of beauty. If your 
bathroom is very small keep decorative items to a minimum, flat on the 
wall, with no protuberant and exuberant flower displays or any 3D wall 
art. While pot plants can be part of a larger bathroom colourful and 
attractive stickers and vinyl pictures can brighten up a small bathroom 
without using up any space.




(image)






7. If you make it easy to maintain and clean the bathroom, even quite 
small children will find it easier to leave the bathroom in a reasonable
 state. Try to ensure that they do not have to stretch too high or climb
 on the edge of the toilet or bath to put things away; not only is this 
difficult for them it is very dangerous too. Installing a lower towel 
rail and mirror so children can operate safely in the bathroom is an 
excellent idea.


(image)














8. Make it look attractive. As strange as it sounds, people like to 
keep attractive rooms looking nice, while dingy or grubby rooms will be 
left a little bit worse! Your efforts in making the bathroom look 
appealing will hopefully pay off with the dividend of being maintained 
that way!



Incorporating these easy steps into a regular washroom maintenance 
schedule are sure to help you have the attractive and still functional 
bathroom of your dreams, one that is easy to use and even easier to keep
 looking good!


HAVE A GREAT REST OF THE WEEKEND!! THANKS FOR STOPPING BY -


If you need decorating or styling assistance, please contact me at monacointeriors76@yahoo.com

January 22, 2013

Best of MI...Organizing the closet 101...

BEST OF MI - FROM 2010-

January is a great time to clean out, organize, throw out, reorganize and putter around when its cold outside.  I used to work for a closet company and learned the right way to organize my closet - if you are at wit's end, keep reading and get organized once and for all!! 


Ok, here's the deal...I cleaned my linen closet yesterday and then decided to clean out my clothes closet and...um...3 hours later my back and feet were killing me because I went crazy and ended up getting rid of most of my clothes and then some!! Sooo, I thought these pictures were fabulous of what I would REALLY like my closet to look like, but, doesn't even resemble.

I used to design and sell closets for a local company and the first thing we did on a consultation was advise the client to throw out what they haven't worn in a year or less and basically just chuck out everything else not being used. That includes the 'I'll keep this skirt just in case I wear it in the future' - well, that happened to me and I realized 5 years went by and guess what??? I NEVER WORE IT!!!




Next step is, once the closet is cleaned out, its time to arrange the clothing by style for easy dressing in the morning. So, I have all my blouses together, slacks, short sleeved shirts, jackets and so on...it really makes life easier to have everything hanging together.

I highly recommend wooden hangers - they are great for keeping shirts shapes (try saying that 3 times fast)...also, the slim velvet hangers that allow you to hang more clothes in a tighter space...plus you can buy so many pretty fabric boxes now to keep all your extras in...

This closet is a good example of using space efficiently...by having the double hung areas, it allows you to have more clothes in a small space instead of one long bar along a closet.

I try to keep moth repellent handy as well - I lived in a house where I had an infestation and it was a nightmare, so its always good to store woolens in an airtight container or bag. I just bought travel bags that don't allow any mildew, mold or pests on your fabrics. Love these! I'm going back to buy a few more...

I also want to buy a nice handbag hanger this week - it keeps all your handbags in one place...I have been keeping mine inside another big bag!!! I know you all have probably heard or read about closet organization before so I hope you don't mind me blathering about it.  Oh, and I took control of the linen closet by labeling all the towel piles because I have people (um, hubby and sons) who keep grabbing any old towel - usually a swim towel to dry off.  It just makes more laundry right?

Hope you have a great week and please visit again and say hi!!

(images California Closets)

If you need help with organization in your home, making a space pretty or just not sure about what furniture, fabric or paint to use...contact me and I can turn your space into an inviting place. Contact me @monacointeriors76@yahoo.com.

October 24, 2012

Gotta have these...organization edition...

Hello there, I apologize for spotty posts, but, I have just moved again, so my focus is trying to get my home in order and I just got my computer up and running again last night.  Thank you for stopping by for another edition of what's out there in the design world for the home and because I am in a very small cottage, topping my list is finding practical ways to store items. Of course, a trip to Goodwill wouldn't be a bad thing if I need to get rid of stuff!!

Here are some great decorative items to help you store your belongings:

I had the smallest box when I was little (my best friend did too) and we
LOVED them!! Great for jewelry and cosmetics, vitamins and random items. 
I may need another one now! Go to the Container Store
for more information; prices are from $16.99 to $39.99 -


This is a great for maximizing space -
I used to work for a closet design company and the double
hung organizer is key to doubling your hanging space - I 
could use one of these too - $19.99 at Target -

I can't do this edition without Ikea!  This is a set of 7 boxes
for just $12.99 - you really can't beat IKEA's fabulous
pricing - how great are these?? For multiple uses -


Can you use any of these items? Let me know! Feel free to leave
me a comment telling me your favorite find or creative way for organizing any 
part of your home - I'd love to hear it and possibly use it in my new home.

Have a great rest of the week !

If you need help decorating your home, I am available for my VirtualDecor
Services at great rates - email me at monacointeriors76@yahoo.com.