Organization - Disney's in the Desert

(Under the) Kitchen Sink Organization

April 21, 2022

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When I think about this space over time, it’s really transformed from a catch all when we first moved in (random cleaning products that probably never even got much use. You know how things tend to pile up, and you think ‘oh I’ll use that one day!’? That was us with a lot of things we were keeping in there over the years. And did you know a lot of these products actually have an expiration date? So it’s actually really not great to leave them sitting anyway.

Ok, so in the last 3-ish years I had cleaned up these two cabinets pretty well, but what they were really lacking was functionality. If you’ve followed me for a while, you know that I talk about this often. Organization is not just about your space looking pretty. While this is a great benefit, what it really boils down to is creating a place for your belongings so that you can live your life easier. Functionality first is something I always say. If it’s not bringing in this factor, what’s the point? It needs to serve a purpose for you/your family. Yes, it often takes maintenance. But that becomes second nature once you see how these improvements can help your life. I can’t tell you how much time I save myself and my family because I’ve taken these steps to create order for us. You don’t have to be really rigid with everything either – life happens and sometimes it gets off track but having these sort of systems in place make it easy to pick back up and arrange.

The Plan

Back to these cabinets. I previously was using the y-weave baskets (which I use in other spaces I’ve organized in my home and they’re great! However, they weren’t really serving us well in this space any longer due to the fact I couldn’t see what was inside of them without getting almost all the way down to the floor). I took these out and plan to use them for another project at a later time.

I was able to do a quick reel earlier this month of the process of reconfiguring this space. The first thing I did was remove all contents and wipe EVERYTHING down. This included some of the bottles and products I planned to keep, too. I also took the hand vacuum to get any debris a lot quicker/easier. I took an inventory and tossed anything that hadn’t been used in the last 6 months or might have expired. Next, I grabbed one of these Gorilla Grip liners – they are washable (so helpful! especially in the event something leaks under there at some point) and we cut ours to fit the grooves and indents.

I had researched a bunch of containers and found that these 2 systems by The Home Edit via Walmart were the most cost effective and I knew I was going to need a lot of them because I intended to move several of the items that I had once stored under here to our (refreshed!) laundry room, and I wanted to keep them uniform looking between the two projects. The narrow bins come in a pack of 2 for $10 or 4 for $20. I opted for the 4 pack, because again, I knew I was going to need several of these and I didn’t want to have to place another order and wait to finish because I was short a bin or 2.

I also grabbed this 5 piece “laundry” system, because it was a better bundle deal than buying the few pieces separately. I also love that it came with a lazy susan (which I put some of my soaps and scrubbing powder on!)

Making sure I had a “home” for the things we reach for most (dishwasher pods, dish towels, and all purpose cleaning spray) and being able to keep them in the front was top priority to me. *Just a note* we do have a child safety lock on all of our cabinets so our kids can’t open them on their own.

I’m seriously soooo happy with this little re-organized space and already feel like it’s saving me time and hassle in my daily life.

Still trying to decide if I want to use my fave labels by The Talented Kitchen on these or not — I have some from previous projects but probably need to order more which is why I didn’t add them (didn’t want to leave it half way done). I think they look nice without, but labeling always elevates it a little more.

What’s one space you’re hoping to tackle and get organized this summer? Let me know in the comments!

For more ideas on ‘under the sink’ organization and how to declutter your home, see my featured article over on Apartment Guide!

Home Extras: Organized Tiny Closet

March 3, 2022

Right off of our loft, which is in between our bedroom and the kids’ bedrooms, is a tiny little linen closet. It only has a couple of shelves, and is not very deep, but I thought I’d show you how we use it (and not just for linen!) to better serve our family. We keep a lot of our ‘extras’ here!

Bathroom Extras

Here’s the fact: it is organized – but even above that, it is functional for US! We keep overstock/overflow from our two upstairs bathrooms so that when we run out of shampoo, bath products, toilet paper, etc, we don’t have to rush downstairs (or even to the store) for more.

Quick Clean Up Help

I like to keep extra cleaning products in this space too. All purpose spray, bathroom cleaner, and carpet cleaner because kids but really because you never know when a mess might happen. It’s come in handy especially in the middle of the night if someone gets sick, has an accident, or something else unexpectedly happens. I also keep a small hand vacuum in here (with the charger!) in here too for a quick clean up situation. I’ve always kept these products on a shelf that’s higher so that a baby/toddler who can open a door can’t have access to it. Our 3 bigger kiddos are now old enough that they know better to “accidentally” get into anything in here they shouldn’t and actually can grab something for us if we need them to.

Linens (of course!)

Of course, extra towels, throw blankets, and pillows are stored in here too. We do have a couch and TV in our loft so it’s nice to have easy access to these things for a movie night or just getting comfy and relaxing. I use these deeper baskets from Target to hide them and depending on the size of the throw, I can get 2 in each.

I highly recommend a system like this if you have the space – it doesn’t need to be a big space, even if it’s just a corner or a shelf somewhere off of your main living space.

I’ve linked the baskets and bins I’ve used on this post. I hope this inspires you give the ‘extras’ in your home a little space and in reach for easy accessibility!

3 Pantry Items I’m Loving

February 16, 2022

It’s no secret that the pantry is one item in my home I like to keep up with. If you’ve followed us on Instagram for a while, you know it’s not something that happened over night. It’s taken me (LITERAL!) years to get it how I wanted. Organizing products can be spendy, we all know this right? Even when you buy generic/off brand, but when you need so many containers, baskets, and other ‘tools’ to make it pretty and functional, it adds up quick.

I’ve taken my time since 2015/16 to change things up, buy storage containers when I can, and rearrange things as necessary to fit our family. My kids have gotten older and their pantry ‘needs’ have changed with that, so I’ve made those switches as well.

Recently, Target released some (super cute!) and more affordable options to help you in your pantry space. This is not sponsored, and something I bought with my own money and wanted to give you a review and share how they’re now helping our pantry situation!

White Wire Baskets

OK first thing! These new baskets by Brightroom are not super big or deep (which I was skeptical about – I need all of the storage space when I’m taking up room on a shelf!) but they’re actually the perfect size for snack overflow, boxed cakes, Colly’s baby snacks, and Ramen packs. I was able to squeeze 6 (!) boxed cakes in each (5 in a line, one in the back) along with cupcake liners + some frosting tubes! #winning With bags of chips, you’ll be lucky to get 2-4 in each depending on how full the bags are, but the Ramen packs I was able to get 2 lines of 8 plus stacked more on top of those. Not to go unmentioned, HOW FREAKING CUTE ARE THEY? I love the clean/uniform look.

4 Tier Bin

The options for this AWESOME bin! I posted a reel today on Instagram showing how I’m choosing to utilize it, but it’s really endless for what you could store in here: granola bars, seasoning packets, other packaged foods. We have so many take out packets (Taco Bell sauce, Chinese food soy sauce, chili flake packets….. the list goes on unfortunately…Lol) and when we have extra, we will save and reuse them. I put some of our ranch/soup packets in one, our ‘cake in a mug’ packets, those take out packets, and then the last space in the front went our chip clips (I was pretty excited about this one! haha). They all fit perfectly.

Lazy Susan/Turn Table

I don’t think I’ve seen a better priced organizational turn table in all of my years being organized obsessed!!! It’s actually prevented me from adding one to our pantry in the past. There are two sizes carried – 10″ and 15“. While I really wanted the 15″ to get the most bang for my buck (5 more inches and only $2 more!), I measured my space prior to buying and saw that my shelves would only allow for the 10″ without overhang. I ordered 2 of these to start – they’re AMAZING for your olive oil, vinegar, maple syrup, peanut/almond butter, and other bottled/jarred pantry food. I recently added 2 more for my extra spices that wouldn’t all fit into the designated jars (more on that at a later date!!!). The quality is great for the price!

That wraps up a few of my fave pantry finds as of recently! Stay tuned because next month I’ll be sharing how I revamped my spice shelves and took on a project that intimidated me in the past (spoiler alert: it wasn’t as scary as I thought AT ALL!) Happy organizing!