Paperwork

I’m halfway through my Top 10 Organizing Challenge! First, I cleaned up our entryway drop zone and added a cute wooden mail organizer to hold the incoming mail.  Keeping the mail chaos at bay is a daily battle, but I try to keep it from getting out of hand by quickly tossing/recycling anything that we don’t need to keep. I’ve also been unsubscribing from magazines and catalogs to keep the paper waste down.  I’ve kept my very favorites, but let others go.

 

The large woven basket underneath holds all my husband’s baseball hats or random shoes and I put his laptop bag down there too or else it takes up too much space on the counter.

 

On top is a dish for coins (and not that many currently because I’ve been taking them to the coin star machine at the grocery store and cashing them in:) and one for keys and sunglasses.  Why do men come home with so much loose change all the time?!?! It’s like it multiplies in their pockets.
I splurged on real hydrangeas this time and they make me so happy all vibrant and green!
Here’s the mail organizer up close.  So cute and my son is all about changing the cubes to reflect the current day.  It’s a good way to keep reinforcing the calendar and dates to an almost 5 year-old.  He’s obsessed with knowing what day it is and marking days off the calendar in his room at night before bed.

 

I cleaned out the mail sorter and gathered all the extraneous paper, including from my wallet (receipts, coupons, etc.) to compile them so I could go through them.  I think our mail system is working pretty well since this pile wasn’t that bad.
James’ school work has been getting put inside a kitchen drawer lately so I cleaned that out too.
And gathered all our files that needed another run through. Lots of things we keep digital files for, but there are still some paper copies that have to be dealt with.

 

I like to just spread everything out on the floor into piles and then figure out what needs to go where and what is for trashing or shredding.  We’ve invested in a decent shredder and use it often.  The biggest time suck is going through all the files and then the walk down memory lane as I sifted through my law school application (yes, I still have that!) and rejection/acceptance letters (those too).  I’ve got transcripts and letters of recommendation and tax returns from so long ago, but I like remembering when I made $16,428 as a waitress back in the day putting myself through college, so they stay.  I also have credit card bills that I paid off many years ago and have kept as a badge of pride to never get back into debt.  Thank you Dave Ramsey! My college mentor and I used to meet for lunch and I have his scribble on a napkin and since he’s now in heaven, it’s a sentimental piece of paper I’ll treasure forever.
See how you can get lost in these little papers that tell a lifetime of stories?! But, back to the organizing . . .
I whittled those two big file boxes down to one that I already had (and the hanging files) and like better because it has a lid.
I keep one small accordion file for household things I might need to access easily and other files for blog expenses by year.
A stack of Kirkland’s quatrefoil storage boxes (small, medium and large) work perfectly for holding the old blog expenses, James artwork from this year that I still need to photograph to save, and old calendars.  They look nice in my office too.
To keep a few pieces of artwork/schoolwork on display in James’ playroom, I found this wooden “Look What I Did!” plaque with hooks and let him choose what he wanted to showcase.  In the future, I plan to create an art zone in the playroom and then the sign will be great for hanging those creations.  We still keep lots of James’ art on the fridge with magnets, old school style.
I found a few pretty things at Kirkland’s for my office space too.  I love this shiny gold initial cup.  I was thinking of putting a small plant inside, but was concerned about drainage so for now, I’ve got my colored markers inside.
These ceramic egg crates are perfect for holding little items like jewelry or small office supplies.
So, now I get to check another organizing challenge off my list!

 

Update: You can see the organizing challenges I’ve completed so far here:

 

__________________
keep in touch! 

subscribe | instagram | pinterest | bloglovin | facebook | twitter

You Might Also Like

Meet Megan

Hi! I’m Megan, mom to a thoughtful teenager and spunky young girl. We call Houston home and recently moved into our dream home. I traded my lawyer hat to become a full-time blogger in 2010. I love sharing my passion for affordable fashion, home decor, organization, & fitness to help inspire you to take care of you!

107 Comments

  1. Wow, congrats on getting so much done! I really like what you did with the table near your door – for mail, loose change,etc. The hydrangeas are lovely! Fresh flowers make such a difference. (www.annaeleeinteriordesign.com)

  2. I'm loving the antique canisters at the moment. I breaks down the not so pretty baking flour bags I had in the pantry and makes it charming and more appealing to the eye! Thanks for doing this giveaway and thank you to Kirklands as well!

  3. I was in H-Town over the weekend with my HS girlfriends and made a stop at Ikea on the way home. I knew I should have picked up more baskets while I was there! I'm loving this whole organization series – well done!

  4. I've been looking for just the right jewelry organizer, and I'm happy to say that I just found it on kirklands.com! It is the Ivory Cheval Jewelry Armoire Mirror. Thanks for the opportunity to win a $100 towards my purchase of this item! 🙂

  5. You organized things in such a cute way! I started doing a similar project last week…. It's not done yet because I haven't figured out what to do with everything (how to organize it) and also because I keep going down memory lane and losing focus! lol
    You did a great job. Thanks for the ideas, inspiration & chance to win too! Love your blog!

  6. Wow! So many great ideas! I love that mail bin, that would be really useful for my pre-k daughter to work on implementing days/months/etc that she's learned in school. And thanks for the motivation! I'm working on getting my hubby on board to get our entire house organized, one room at a time. So far, it's a giant mess with everything getting moved to the basement. It's a MESS!

  7. I love this post Megan! I have been trying to finish up our office for the past month and haven't been able to find an accent chair that is the right color and style for a small corner of that space. I had completely forgot about Kirkland's until I saw this post and found the Cream Linen Sargon Arm Chair! It's perfect and I found a bunch of accessories for the space as well! Thanks!!

  8. I'm a fan of the sherpa blankets. I just re-did our living room and have been looking for a new blanket to drape over the couch for chilly days. These look warm and inviting.

  9. Paperwork can be the absolute hardest thing in the house to go through, but it looks like you did a great job! I love the initial cup & the egg crate plate-I would've never thought to use it in the office area!
    As far as from Kirklands website…right now I'm loving their Vintage Rooster & Cow framed art prints-they would be so cute in the house my fiance' and I are sharing 🙂

    xoxo, SS

    http://www.TheSouthernStylista.blogspot.com

  10. These posts have been getting me motivated to organize our space too. It feels like we are in limbo though because we might be moving in the next month so I'm not sure how much to do.

  11. Loved looking around the Kirkland's website. 2015 is my year for organization and I saw lots of great ideas! I love the choices of fabric storage boxes and I could really use the ceramic egg crate dish next to my sewing machine for all my pins and needles, etc. I'm new to your blog – really love your style!
    Warm regards,
    Ruth Lutz

  12. Containing paper is a constant battle! And I'm like you- it's fun to reminisce as you clean through that stuff!

  13. Organization inspiration, indeed! I'm loving the distressed white letter holder, or just about any accents that are fresh and de-cluttering.

  14. I just went into Kirkland's today and found a beautiful upholstered dining chair that I'm going to use in my bathroom instead of a tiny, uncomfortable bench I've had for years. I didn't notice the storage bins, but I'm definitely going back to look for them!

  15. Such great ideas! I recently visited Kirklands and saw that they had the gold monogram mugs but they only had two left (neither with my initials). Apparently they sold out almost immediately and I can see why.

  16. I love all Kirkland's. There are so many beautiful items to choose from. It would be hard to choose just one item. I've been looking at rugs recently, and I really like Kirkland's Gray Harper Patchwork Area Rug in size 8'x10'.

  17. They have so many wonderful things! I love the lamp with the built in shelves! Great concept as you always can use a lamp and who doesn't need shelves! Brilliant!

  18. I have gotten great lamps, candle sconces, decor items, pictures and lots of goodies from Kirklands! Always love their holiday selections too. I need a side table for my bed and would love to win the gift card!!
    GADawn57

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *