15 You Asked: Budget Organization

Being able to do anything for free or next to nothing these days seems like an accomplishment.  But when you can do something for free that can change your days, ways of living, and create less stress and chaos in your life, well, that's an incredible feat!

I definitely splurge time to time when it comes to organizing {one of my favorite passions is organizing, how can I not invest a little!!}, or doing what I can to create a safer, more enjoyable lifestyle for my family.  However, there are often times when I have a ton of organizing ambition and have to get thinking creatively on how to do it on a super tight budget....


So, I thought I would throw together some quick ideas for budget organizing, including just knowing where to begin.  Because who doesn't love to make some impactful changes without dishing out a ton of moola to do so?!


1. Assess your situation.  What room is your biggest trouble spot? What are you avoiding and why? What areas are most crucial to your daily routine, and that ultimately slowing you down? The whole point to getting organized is to spend more time doing the things you love, and being with who you love. It's also a lot less stressful on the mind to have order, vs. rummaging and searching for things. Keep the "whys" in mind when choosing where to begin.

2. Sort.  Once you have decided where to start, it's time to clean out that zone. Whether you are doing a drawer or a closet or a whole room, the process is the same. Just snag three bins, boxes or even old blankets to create your sorting zones. One for Trash, one for Donate/Sell and one to Keep. When deciding, think, is this benefiting us? Have we used it within the last couple of months? Will we really miss it if it's gone? You also have to consider what it might cost to replace the item in the future, or determine that an item just needs to be located to another more practical area of the home. If you absolutely can't decide, keep a box of "can't decide" items and tuck it away. If you end up going back for that item to use, it was a good thing you kept it. After a month or two if you haven't revisited the box for the item, it's time to say goodbye. Also, knowing what to donate/throw is all about current condition. Anything completely damaged or useless should be tossed. Anything in decent working condition can be donated. Also look at your inventory and see if there is anything that you could potential profit off of by selling it on Craigslist or eBay or in a garage sale {but only if you have the time to do it}.

3. Take inventory.  Time to look at your "keep" pile and decide what is staying and where it makes most sense for it to be located, to ensure you are streamlining your day and that space. This is also the best time to assess your storage needs.

4. Shop your home!  This is my FAVORITE part!!  Take a stroll through your house and search for unused storage containers and bins. When doing this, it's really crucial to "think outside the box". Do you have things that could double as storage?  For example, use a vase for rolling hand towels or stashing kitchen utensils.

   

Or utilize baby food jars for spice storage or small scrapbook crafts and ice cube trays are great for corralling earing and other small jewelry.

 
Paper towel holders can corral ribbon or hair accessories. The sky is the limit. And you can also revisit that donate pile to see if you have anything that can be repurposed. And don't forget the power of paint! A fresh coat of spray paint can make anything old come back to life!

5. DIY.  If you are unable to locate any storage within your home, it may be time to get creative. Whipping up storage boxes out of wood scraps:

Using soup cans to hold office accessories

or tools.

Or repurposing a Kleenex box for spice or seed packets.

To hold remotes.

Or even spice packets.

These are all things that I have been able to do for free to create additional storage!

6. Label.  Whip up some labels on your computer to print out.

Use address labels inside your books, CD's and DVD’s. Cut out the pictures on boxes, or print pictures from the internet, to place on toy bins for the kiddos.

   

If you love to scrapbook, create some labels with your pretty supplies.

Utilize your PC skills to create checklists and spreadsheets that can keep your clan in order, whether for grocery shopping, cleaning or just a daily to do list!

The sky is really the limit, and again, can be done with things you have around the home already!

7. Maintain.  Last but definitely the most important thing to do is to be disciplined about your new organized space, and maintain it. If it's not easy to maintain, it may need to be revisited and you may have to go back to the assess stage again. It's ok to head back to step one. I have reorganized a coat closet about 3 times in the last year, because of changing needs and streamlining things further. It doesn't happen overnight, it takes time. The most important thing is that your newly organized space is working well with your daily routine, and not hindering it! Oh, and watch for creating piles. Piles can mount faster than kids find that stash of chocolate! {and you know how they can locate that stuff in about .2 seconds!} 





Of course, this is just the tip of the iceberg.  There are so many more things that you can do, and if you are having a brain block, just dig through the blog world for ideas and inspiration, the possibilities are truly endless! 

I know I am not the only one out there organizing on a budget!  You all spoil me with your stories and eye sugar daily, so I am calling to you to leave more budget friendly organizing ideas and comments today for myself and the readers, because budget organizing is the new black, in case you didn't know, and I am declaring it that way, because for some reason I think I can!