Pantry Perfect

04 Tuesday Dec 2012

Posted by melissaoconnor in Everyday Design, The Home

Tags

design, interior, kitchen, organization tips, organize pantry, pantry, shelves

Having a pantry in your kitchen is such a great thing. It’s just nice to have everything in one place. Even though mine is quite small, I appreciate being able to keep all our food in one area and you can bet its nice and tidy. However, its also one place that can get messy and out of hand.

My husband and I converted a small coat closet to create our pantry. I knew there wouldn’t be enough space in the cabinets so it was a given. Although I always keep it organized, about two to three times a year I take everything out, clean it and reorganize. Since the door was always in the way, we took it off and hung a cute curtain that matched the country feel of our space. Much better.

There are plenty of ways to keep your pantry looking neat. Here are some great design ideas I found to help you create a useful space in your home.

If you have to create your own pantry, purchase a small cabinet with shelving, drawers and enough room to house all your perishables. In some cases, you can even make it look like it was always there.

Photo Credit: Better Homes and Gardens

Or you can build a recessed pantry where you have an open wall space.

Photo Credit: Better Homes and Gardens

Using frosted glass to cover the pantry is a modern way to keep it hidden while still being able to see what it’s inside.

Photo Credit: Better Homes and Gardens

Keep it cool with unique style and get creative with the doors.

Photo Credit: Shelterness

I love the idea of a cubby style pantry. You can have so much with materials and labels with this one.

Photo Credit: Better Homes and Gardens

If you have a modern or contemporary kitchen and don’t mind having stuff out in the open, a simple bakers rack or metal shelving would work wonders. Even if have a rustic kitchen this would work. Just use wood or another natural element for more warmth.

Photo Credit: Better Homes and Gardens

Or just leave your walk in pantry all open. Just make sure its neat!

Photo Credit: Quaker Rose

If you’re handy, try repurposing another piece of furniture to use. Items like an armoire would work perfect.

Photo Credit: Better Homes and Gardens

Tips for Organizing Your Closet

26 Monday Nov 2012

Posted by melissaoconnor in Everyday Design, Guest Posts, Kim Willington, The Home

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

closets, Clutter, Donate, Hangers, Helpdesksoftware.org, Hooks, Kim Willington, organization, shelves, space, Vertical Space

Closets start to become the refuge for everything else in your home that you don’t have a proper space for or just haven’t taken the time to classify. It’s easier to throw something on a shelf or on the floor of the closet to get it out of the way than it is to properly organize your space.

Bedroom closets are prone to even more clutter and mess with piles of clothes, shoes, scarves, ties, and handbags crammed into every last space. Not only does it make it hard to find the things you need when your closet has reached such a state, but it also brings down the feel of the room, creating clutter and tension.

It is important to get your closet organized to free up the space you need and to create a pleasing, relaxing space. Here are a few tips for how you can get your bedroom closet organized:

Clear the Clutter
Before you can start organizing the things you need in your closet, you have to first get rid of the things you don’t need. Sort through all your clothes, all your shoes, all your accessories and ruthlessly cut the waste.

Donate the items that you haven’t worn in several months. Stop hanging on to those jeans you think you’re going to wear after you lose 10 pounds. Get rid of those shoes you hang onto for a special occasion. It is better to buy these things again when you actually need them than to waste your time and your mental energy maintaining them.

Use Hooks and Shelves
Most closets have a basic rod and top shelf, creating only limited space for hanging clothes and storing boxes. You can create more opportunities for storing and hanging by adding more shelves and hooks. Use the shelves for folded clothes, shoes, boxes, and handbags. Use the hooks for ties, scarves, handbags, and necklaces.

Photo Credit: The Container Store

Creating this additional space will give you more opportunities to organize your items so that your belongings are not cramped and cluttered.

Choose Tiered Hangers
You can only create so much space with more rods or shelves. If your closet is very small or you just have too many clothes to fit comfortably in it, you can create more space by using tiered hangers. These hangers lock onto one another vertically to allow you to hang up to five items in the space of one. You may not be able to use them for bulky items like sweaters, but you can use them for most other items, creating much more space in your closet.

Be sure that the rod in your closet is strong or is reinforced. By using tiered hangers, you are significantly adding to the weight on the bar.

Do Double Duty
Take advantage of all the space in your closet by making some items do double duty. Suitcases can be used to store linens like tablecloths and sheets, or you could use them to store last season’s clothes. Handbags can stores scarves, hats or mittens — or even other handbags.

Don’t store items that you will use on a regular basis, such as clothing. You’ll only create more work for yourself when you go into your closet, and the point of organizing is to make life more simple.

Create Vertical Space
Don’t limit yourself to the width of your closet. Create more space by storing all the way up to your ceiling. No, we don’t mean piling clothes and boxes as high as they will go. Instead, add shelves and other storage devices all the way to the ceiling. You can create space over the door and along the sides, as well. You can even create a basket on the ceiling that can hold wrapping paper or similar items.

Photo Credit: HomeSessive

Organizing your bedroom closet is a first step towards creating a simpler, cleaner space in your bedroom. These simple steps can take your closet from a cluttered mess to an orderly space that makes it easy for you to find what you need and makes you feel good about your living space.

Photo Credit: The Buffalo News

How do you organize your bedroom closet? Share your strategies in the comments!

Written by Kim Willington

Decorating Tips for Your Home

30 Friday Mar 2012

Posted by melissaoconnor in Art & Design, The Home

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Tags

bookshelves, colors, decorating, flowers, home, interior design, patterns, plants, shelves, textures

Everyone has a room in their home that needs a little love. Why not jazz it up and add a sense of style that won’t only look great, but completes the entire room? Here’s some easy tips to create a more comfy space and well-designed atmosphere. With a little guidance, anyone can do this. The main thing to remember is balance. You want to think of the bigger picture, so that the final result looks complete and well put together.

General Decorating
A great tip for placing items is grouping them in threes. Sometimes when you put two things together, it feels like something is missing. Three is the perfect number! Keep this in mind when you’re decorating any space in your home. It’s OK to mix patterns, but make sure they relate to one another. Whether by color or theme, they shouldn’t contrast with each other.

Play with textures! No one wants to be in a flat room. Choose your textures wisely but get creative. Having a high-textured rug in the room brings warmth and depth to any space, especially when your furniture may be a little cold (metals and glass). Add some patterned curtains and fun pillows, and the whole room will feel lifted.

Wall Space
Remember, when hanging photos and framed pieces the middle should always be at eye level. If you’re shorter than most people, just raise it an inch or two. I go nuts when I visit people’s homes and they have pictures hanging almost from the ceiling. Whoa! If you have frames that run along the lines of your doorways, that’s a no no. Who lives with you? The Jolly Green Giant!

Also, try not to make your home look like a gallery or museum. Not everything has to be placed in a row. Sometimes, depending on the piece, you can raise one of them so they’re not so streamlined. You want your house to look lived in, not like a museum.

Bookshelves & Shelving
Organize your books into categories. Either group them by color, by size or both. It’s also good to keep certain subjects together so you can find what you’re looking for in a pinch. Sometimes it’s cool to have a section of old vintage books to add a sense of history to a room.

If you’re a collector, this is a great opportunity to let your collectibles shine. You don’t want too many, so make sure you pick your favorites. Always keep some space around the items and don’t crowd the shelves. You want your book shelf to stand out, not just one particular item, so keep with general themes.

Bringing the Outside In
It’s good to keep the outside of your home in mind when designing a space. What do you see when you look out the window? Is there a lot of green from leaves on a tree? Try to bring the outside in and highlight how beautiful it is. Decorate with some neutral colors like greens, browns and blues, and that tree will feel like a part of your home.

Think about light when choosing your curtains or shades. Is there a lot of light coming in a window or not enough? If it’s not enough, then I suggest you get blinds that open easily or a sheer curtain. That way you can block the light when you need to and let the sunshine through the sheers beautifully.

An easy way to brighten up any room is to bring in flowers and plants. Not only will it make you smile, but it’ll smell good and the air will be cleaner. Gotta love natural air fresheners!

The whole point of design is to attract and submerge. You want people interested in what you created and then happily drown in the sweetness of your work. I’m telling you, a few simple makeovers like this will add a modern and clever touch to any space.

If you’re like me, you’ll want to rearrange every room in the house! I absolutely love doing things like this. Not only because I’m a designer, but it really relaxes me. Good Luck!