I can't believe I said I would post these pictures...
...But a promise is a promise, so here are pictures from our messy dresser clean-up project:
A peek into the top drawer gives you a pretty good idea of how badly it needed cleaning. We pulled everything out of all the drawers and here's what it looked like--are you ready for this?
Yeah, it was bad. We found a couple of items we'd been looking for for quite some time which is not surprising when you see that big pile of stuff!
Here's the dresser with everything that belongs in it put back in. We came up with a bag of trash and a bag of garage sale stuff. Yay for clutter-reduction!
The top drawer is where we store most of the girl's books and puzzles. I eventually want to get a bookshelf for these but I'm looking for an exceptional deal first.
We keep her clothes drawer down low so she can put her own laundry away and dress herself. Now hopefully she'll be able to find her clothes much easier since this drawer is rid of a lot of clothes which she never wears or which no longer fit.
The bottom drawer did have more clothes and shoes in it, but now that I went through the dresser and got rid of some stuff, that drawer is empty. I'm thinking on moving all Kaitlynn's clothes in there.
Speaking of Kaitlynn's clothes, guess what this cleaning out helped me discover? Check it out here. That find alone, made this project worth the effort.
All in all, it took about an hour to finish the dresser including numerous interruptions. And I am ever so glad to have it done!
A peek into the top drawer gives you a pretty good idea of how badly it needed cleaning. We pulled everything out of all the drawers and here's what it looked like--are you ready for this?
Yeah, it was bad. We found a couple of items we'd been looking for for quite some time which is not surprising when you see that big pile of stuff!
Here's the dresser with everything that belongs in it put back in. We came up with a bag of trash and a bag of garage sale stuff. Yay for clutter-reduction!
The top drawer is where we store most of the girl's books and puzzles. I eventually want to get a bookshelf for these but I'm looking for an exceptional deal first.
We keep her clothes drawer down low so she can put her own laundry away and dress herself. Now hopefully she'll be able to find her clothes much easier since this drawer is rid of a lot of clothes which she never wears or which no longer fit.The bottom drawer did have more clothes and shoes in it, but now that I went through the dresser and got rid of some stuff, that drawer is empty. I'm thinking on moving all Kaitlynn's clothes in there.
Speaking of Kaitlynn's clothes, guess what this cleaning out helped me discover? Check it out here. That find alone, made this project worth the effort.
All in all, it took about an hour to finish the dresser including numerous interruptions. And I am ever so glad to have it done!
Labels: Making Your Home a Haven
posted by Crystal Paine at 5:30 PM
18 Comments:
I would suggest using both drawers for Kathryn's clothes, unless you absolutely have to put Kaitlyn's in that bottom drawer.
Little ones just can't put away / take out clothes as neatly as we can. If you can manage to have some 'margin' in her dresser drawers, it'll save you some frustration & make it much easier for her to take care of her laundry.
Blessings ~ tracy
Another job well done! Being a mum of 2 girls 2 years apart, what we do with hand-me-downs is to put them in either white plastic shopping bags or small boxes labelled with size or age and "keep for Zara". We use a small section of wardrobe right up near the ceiling for these. We also have some stored at my parents' place. When Zara's clothes become a little too tight or above the knee, we go "shopping in the wardrobe!"
Claire
Ah, Crystal. This reminds me of the decluttering I did when I moved six months ago. Now that I'm about to get married next month (God willing), I don't have too much stuff to take with me to our new home!
Way to go! For me, I think the biggest challenge of organizing/cleaning is getting started.
Once I get going, though, the job usually gets done!
Hi!
Doesn't it feel great to organize?
I don't know if you are in to re-doing old furniture, but I couldn't help but think how cute that dresser would look painted white with glass knobs!
have a lovely day and thanks for the motivational post!
WOW! Isn't it amazing how much you can cram into one small space?
And double WOW! You did a great job reorganizing!
PS--just clicked on the link. That is so awesome that you found those wonderful clothes!
HOORAY!!!!! Your kid's room looks like my kid's! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR POSTING THESE PICTURES!!!! It really encouraged me! Bless you, Crystal!
You have motivated me. I have been putting off cleaning my daughter dresser drawer. Today is the day.
Good job Crystal! Here's a virtual pat on the back! It's so hard to keep kids clothes under control, huh? I still don't have a great system for this. I DO keep a box of "soon to grow into" clothes in the top of the closet, but every time I get clothes out of the boxes in the crawl space, I find something I didn't know was there! :)
I am inspired to tackle my linen closet. It has been bugging me for awhile. I don't know why I've been putting it off--it'll only take 15 min or so, I'm sure. Phebe
Just a reminder for those of you who have little ones: Please be very sure that the dresser cannot tip forward at all. It never hurts to secure the dresser to the wall by means of an eye screw and a latch hook. Small chidren have been seriously injured by dressers falling forward on them. Also, kids have been known to pull out a lower drawer to climb on it to reach something on the top. I don't mean to cause alarm, just want our little ones to be extra safe!
it's a beautiful work of art....well done...we're working on garden projects - of which i'll post within the next few days :-) ahh..spring time in the desert!
Great job, Crystal! I need to do the same thing x's 3. Just thinking about it makes me cringe. I have dreams of one simplifying our clothing so it will fit in our house better.
I constantly have people giving us clothes. You know, "bring it over to their house, they've got 6 kids so i'm sure someone will fit into them." A blessing for sure, but a nightmare to find a place for.
Now that I have been inspired, I think I may try to tackle one myself.
I keep meaning to rearrange my daughter's dresser so she can put her own stuff away. At the same time, I need to weed out what doesn't fit. I have big rubbermaid bins in the basement sorted by size. I need to get into them and get stuff out for ds too. Ya know...it's on the list...
Dear Crystal, I've really enjoyed your blog for the past few years, especially since your life and goals seem to mirror mine back when I was your age (a long time ago!).
Anyway, one of my biggest problems once I started having children was laundry and the organization of clothes. I finally found an easy system that works(!)at least for me. I thought it might help you, too, esp. with Kathryn's clothes, now that she's old enough to dress herself and put things away.
Each child has two small drawers: (1) for pants and underwear, (1) for t-shirts and socks, which they can easily access themselves
Each child also has a closet rod to hang everything else on: shirts, dresses, etc. My older daughters just use the regular closet rods that came with the closets. My younger children have those portable rods rolled into the closets so they can easily access their hanging clothes. (The baby's clothes hang on the regular rod above the portable rods.)
With the rods, the children can easily find the shirt they want to wear without digging through a drawer, making a mess, and dumping out clothes.
However, hanging the clothes has also made a huge difference in the ease of folding/putting away laundry. I only have to fold pants and underwear, which are easy enough. The rest of the items are layed out flat on my bed into a separate pile for each child. I quickly insert the hangers and then call the children to hang up their clothes and put away their pants/underwear. VERY easy! (This method also cuts down on the ironing a bit.)
Well, thank you for all you do for women, encouraging us as Christians, homemakers, and mothers.
Sincerely,
Diana
Great job :D
I'm so glad that you did post those pictures! I often feel overwhelmed when I come to your blog because you have such drive and and accomplish so much. It helps so much to see there are projects yet to be done at your place. :) Thanks for your inspiration!
Oh, the clutter of clothes. It never ends.
I do a big go-through when spring really hits (April here) and in late fall (October) where I go through my three kids clothes, the hand-me-downs, shoes, and see what they have/need. Then I pack up/give away and organize.
So, twice a year things look that good around here!
My oldest is very tidy with her things, but my boys still need help with their "help".
Bless 'em for trying their best!
Smiles!
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