organization

How Laura Organizes Her Shoes

in , , , ,

This month's first guest participating in the 'How I Organize' series is the incredibly chic Laura of Laura Cattano Organizational Design and of the blog The Order Obsessed. She shows us how she beautifully organizes her shoes in her dressing area:

LauraCattano-AriannaBelleBlog-HowIOrganizeSeries

My dressing area is set up like my personal boutique with everything organized and displayed beautifully. This Lack bookcase from Ikea fits three pairs across perfectly, and there's room in the back for my special occassion shoes stored in their original box. Positioning the shoes front to back saves space. Off-season shoes are put away to give more room and so I'm not distracted by ones I can't wear now. 

Organized Drawers - Clear Dividers

in , ,
instyle-organizeddrawer
organizeddeskdrawer-bhg
When it comes to organizing drawers, dividers are key for keeping like items together and neatly contained {so they don't spill over}. My favorite are clear organizer sets, like this one, this one, and this one, that can be arranged whichever way fit best in the drawer. Since they're transparent, they're also great for showing off a pretty drawer liner.

image credits: 1- from the June 2009 issue of Instyle Magazine; 2-Better Homes and Gardens

Closet Organization: Boots

in , , ,
During these cold weather months it's nice to have boots easily accessible in the closet. A good way to keep them standing up straight and in an orderly line is to use boot inserts. Inserts help boots retain theirs shape and prevent them from flopping and toppling over into an unattractive pile.

closet-makingitlovely6

You can find boot inserts at various places including here and here. For a super inexpensive alternative, use old magazines as inserts (that's what I use for my boots!). *Update: Jami of Imagine shared another super inexpensive alternative: old wine bottles!
Picture 17Picture 18
If you'd prefer, you can hang up your boots by making something like this with cedar boot trees and large cup hooks, or using something like this or this:
stovelhangare_1stovelhangare_2
image credits: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Beautifully Organized Space of the Week

in , , , , ,
This week's beautifully organized space is this closet from the home of fellow blogger Freckles Chic:
closet023.jpg
closet076.jpgIMG_2973.jpg
IMG_2937.jpgIMG_2930.jpg
Isn't it lovely? She created it by donating all the things she no longer wanted and were just cluttering up the space, and by designating a place for everything that remained. Total cost of the transformation was about $100 (for hangers, clips, shelves, storage containers, a hat stand, and headband holder). Proof that you don't need a ton of space or money to create a beautiful closet!
For the before pictures and a breakdown of the items she used for the space, be sure to check out her blog!

Beautifully Organized Space of the Week

in , , , , ,
This week's beautifully organized space is from the home of interior designer Amy Meier. Since she and her husband eat most of their meals on their patio dining table, Amy used the "dining area" of her small apartment to create a fully functioning office for her design business.

Picture 52

A large Ikea bookcase provides easy access to fabric samples and papers carefully organized into a mix of woven and wire baskets, bins, and fabric covered binders. A magnet board next to her metal desk serves as a place for Amy to post pictures and paint and fabric samples that inspire her projects.

Picture 54Picture 56

A trio of white shelves and a three pocket file holder take advantage of wall space and provide a place to hold a multitude of items including fabric covered albums, leather boxes, and sketchbooks.

Picture 53Picture 57Picture 55

Beautifully Organized Space of the Week

in , , , ,
It's the last one of 2010, so let's make it a fabulous one shall we?This week's beautifully organized space is from the home of fellow blogger Megan of Honey We're Home. Prior to moving into her custom built home, Megan lived in a townhouse with very limited closet space so having the opportunity to have a walk-in closet of this size was a dream come true for her.

image[23]

The closet is just off the bathroom and measures 9'4 x 13'2! It was designed to include an island with cubbies in the middle, a shoe rack, built-in dresser, adjustable hanging shelves, shelves for purses, and a fabulous chandelier.

image[33]image[37]

Pants are hung on wire hangers from Bed, Bath and Beyond and jeans are on small felt hangers that don’t bow in the middle. Before the shoe rack was built, Megan counted her shoes to see how much space she’d need. The top shelf was removed to fit tall boots which are kept upright used boot inserts.

image[28]

Scarves are hung and tied over a lower rod. Lightweight sweaters are folded over white plastic hangers from Target and arranged by color -creates such a beautiful rainbow effect don't you think?

Closet 017[3]image[58] Megan created a necklace holder behind the door using Commandhooks. She stores her purses on the side shelves. Her dresser drawers hold gym clothes, undies, sleepwear, and more jewelry.

The full-length mirror to the left of the dresser is where she plops down to do her makeup each day.

image[61] image[65]image[44]

Atop the island is a runner is from World Market, a clear bin holding her makeup from The Container Store, and a flower vase and candy jar from Home Goods. On the right side of the island, she keeps her tank tops, casual long sleeve shirts, and shorts/capri pants. On the left, storage bins from Target hold belts, bikinis, and scarves. The zebra ottoman is from Hobby Lobby.

image[43]

To see more of Megan's gorgeous home be sure to visit her blog if you haven't already!

Beautifully Organized Space of the Week

in , , , ,
This week's beautifully organized space of the week is the home office of interior designer Melissa Warner.

0510-warner-09-office-modern-organized-de

Metal locker baskets with labeled tags contain and organize her many fabric swatches. The bookcase makes use of vertical space.
0510-warner-05-de

On the other end of the room, closet doors covered in a bold over-scaled poppy print wallpaper make the room feel lively and hide more storage. A skirted glass-topped table provides a surface on which to lay out swatches and plans for her designs, while a Lucite chair helps keep the space looking uncluttered by taking up little visual space.

 

images via House Beautiful

Beautifully Organized Space of the Week

in , , , , ,
This week's beautifully organized space is from the home of interior designer and fellow design blogger Erica Cook. She keeps her makeup organized in sectioned drawer trays, her jewelry in beautiful boxes, and a few select pieces out to enjoy in perfectly styled vignettes that are free of clutter -only what she uses and loves:
IMGP2194 IMGP2212 IMGP2192
images via moth design
Erica once suggested to me that her and I may be style twins. I'd definitely agree. We have similar taste and seem to be drawn to the same things (case in point: I also have amethyst rocks and tiffany boxes in little vignettes).To check out how uber stylishly this mother of five boys lives, click on over to her blog Moth Design. She shares many other gorgeous shots of her uh-mazing home.

Portable Storage Baskets

in , , , , , , ,
A tote basket is a beautiful solution for containing and conveniently transporting files and/or project supplies from room-to-room.

Picture 8 image via domino

I'm loving these hand-woven fair trade imports from Tango Zulu:

P.S. You can also use 'em as market totes, magazine holders, picnic baskets...there's a multitude of uses!