Organizing the Basement

Here in Midwest, basements are common. I know in many parts of the country, they are not typical. But we are lucky enough to have them here. However, basements seem to be a catch all for junk and clutter. Although we moved just over a year ago, we are part of the junk of the basement crowd. Rather than throwing it away, we just moved it along with us. We have collected lots of seasonal decor over the last year (I blame Target and their 75% off sales), and I realized as I was putting it all away that it would never fit.

So I decided that I would make it one of my 2010 goals to get the basement in shape. With the help of clear plastic bins from Target and a few trash bags, the project was a breeze. I used the motto "When it doubt, throw it out". I actually donated things to out local Goodwill, but you get the idea. It was just time for things to go. I'd say 90% of the items in the basement are holiday related. The other 10% are old pictures, cards, my husband's military things, etc. I am super pleased with how this turned out and I tried to group my Christmas decorations by bin as I was putting things away this year (i.e. tissue paper, bows, ribbons in one, boxed ornaments in one, etc.) so that it will be easier to find things next year. I also put all of my apothecary jar fillers in one bin and just generally tried to make life easier when I need to find something. When I get a minute (or an hour), I plan to get my label maker out so I can make things even easier on myself.

This entire project cost about $30 (or 5 bins at $6 each). I already had a ton of bins and just had to purchase a few more in the same size. I always buy the 70 qt. clear plastic bins. Always. I think they are the perfect size and I love that I can see what is in each one without opening them. Also, I feel like the bigger containers can get SO heavy. If you can't lift them, they aren't going to work. I really wanted to get wreath holders for the wreaths I made here and here, but Target was all out at their after after Christmas sale. Hopefully I can get some next year.

Do you have a messy basement? Or a super organized one? Let's see pictures!

Before


After

Winter Apothecary Jar Ideas

NOTE: WE'VE MOVED! Visit: Ramblings of a Suburban Mom for lots of apothecary jar ideas! After taking down all my Christmas decorations, things were looking very plain around here. I didn't want to leave my apothecary jars empty until Valentine's Day, so I decided to do a winter display. I used fake snow (from Target), a candle decorated with ribbon (I used a hot glue gun to attach the ribbon) and tissue paper pom-poms (a Martha Stewart craft project). As usual, things did not go exactly as planned (working with tissue paper is so hard), but I am pleased with the results. It is not so easy to find all white fillers. I wanted white glittery snow flake ornaments, but could not find any that were the size I wanted. I am going to keep my eyes open so I can be ready for next year. "Snow" covered pinecones might be a thought for next year too.

The Reveal of the Refinishing Project.

As promised, here is the final reveal of the bed refinished project! You can check out the before here. I dug around the basement quickly and threw on the first queen sized duvet / sheet set I could find. Since then, I have found a few different duvet sets down there, so I am still deciding on what I want to do. I do not want to buy anything new right now, since I have no real "theme" planned for the room. If I find something I love, it will be easy to plan use that as a base to build the room around!

I am super pleased with the way it turned out and can't wait to tackle something else. I have a few cheap IKEA side tables in the basement I would like to do something with. I am not sure that they are real wood, but I don't think it will be a problem. I am not even sure that these nightstands were real wood come to think of it? I bought them super cheap from Target probably 12 years ago and I am amazed they have survived thru all these moves. It's shocking how long some things last.

Update on Refinishing a a Bedroom Set

Well, I did not meet my Thanksgiving deadline, but I(*) did get it finished by the new year! Here are some "in progress" pictures. Please ignore our messy garage. That is one area I have not gotten to yet. But I will! The first step was to lightly sand the bed and nightstand. Then prime. Then paint. We used spray paint rather than a paint brush to make it easier and hopefully allow the paint to go on smoother. I believe the entire project took less than a week (working a few hours here and there) and cost less than $50. Stay tuned for the final reveal!

*When I say "I", I really mean my husband. He took over this project after I came up with the idea and did a fabulous job on it!*