The Entryway Re-do

The entryway in our apartment can hardly be called an entryway. It’s a 4’x3’ pint-sized speck of space that really has been useless…until now! Despite its small footprint, the functionality of this space really needed to pack a punch. An entryway in a home is probably one of the hardest working spaces a home can have. It’s the first space we encounter when we walk through the door and the place we unload our junk – think hats, jackets, bags, keys – just to name a few.

The problem with our entryway or lack thereof, is the tight spacing. The swing path of the front door is essentially all we have to work with. That’s it folks. We tried a few different options (as seen below) and even mocked some up in the past but none ever seemed to fit the bill when it came to functionality.

This shelf situation lasted the longest but probably only out of laziness or from being stumped as to how to solve the problem. Then one day I was just so fed up with it and took everything off the wall. As with most projects – starting with a blank slate is really the first step. It pushes the reset button on the space and allows my brain to reset too in terms of design. Without the distraction of “stuff” I hate staring back at me, I can start brainstorming on a solution that I’ll love in the end.

I patched all the holes and gave the wall a fresh coat of paint. Then I made a list of the issues.

Clutter was the #1 issue and biggest driving force behind the entryway re-do.  What I learned from the last time around that I tackled this space is that we’re not a family that can handle “open shelving”. Some are, some aren’t. We are definitely in the AREN’T category. Unless I constantly policed or tidied up the shelf, it was a constant catch all for “stuff”…receipts, business cards, candy and/or candy wrappers, change, pens, pencils…etc. It was a nightmare.

The 2^nd biggest issue was ease of convenience. Over time I’ve found that unless it’s easy, kids and ahem…grown men, won’t use it. It was amazing to me how many times I found jackets strewn all over the house – on the couch, backs of chairs, on the floor (!!!!), when our coat closet was literally an arm’s reach away! Apparently small kids and grown men have trouble opening doors and reaching for a hanger to hang up their coats.

With all my issues written down, I set about to solve them once and for all and give our tiny entryway a whole lot of functionality too. What I ended up with is hooks and baskets. No more open shelves! I determined that clutter will always be but I can handle the clutter so long as I don’t have to see it J. Below is the end result – ain't she pretty?

I installed a set of 3 hooks that people of all ages can use with ease – no more hassling with hanging our coats in the coat closet. For whatever reason, hooks are so much easier for kids and even grown men to use. The thought! We still keep additional coats in the nearby closet but for the ones we use more often, these hooks have been a saving grace. They’ll come in handy too for guests who need a quick and easy spot to store their coats while they’re visiting without having to ask where to put it. Using the hooks in our entryway have worked so well that I’m thinking of using them in the bathrooms too instead of towel bars – another things certain people in our household have trouble using!

To tackle all the other clutter that seems to accumulate at the front door, I hung up a woven basket that I picked up from the bath section at Ikea to corral wallets, receipts, cards, loose change – all of the above! As I said before…as long as I don’t see it, I can deal with it. The basket conceals the mess and is big enough to hold every day essentials like wallets and keys. I still keep my keys inside our coat closet with my purse, but for my guy who likes to empty his pockets at the door, this has been a perfect solution for him. When it starts getting out of hand, I can easily sort through the contents and purge what isn’t needed. What was once a daily battle is now something that only needs to be managed once a week. A win-win.

Once the issues had been addressed, it was time to add in some personality! My favorite part of any project. I added a couple of address numbers above the hooks because they were right next to the hook section at Lowes and I liked how modern and sleek they looked next to the almost aged look of the hooks. I painted the numbers a deep navy blue which ties in the brand new Target rug I found at Goodwill (score!). Goodwill is like Target’s clearance center in case you haven’t been lately.

The sunburst mirror added to the opposite wall lets us ladies (or guys too) do a last minute quick look when we’re headed out the door and it’s gold color coordinates with the aged hooks on the opposite wall.

Here's a look at the new entry in relation to the coat closet that I organized almost a year ago. The systems I installed nearly a year ago are still working well for our family so now with the functionality of both these spaces give us no room to make excuses!

Making these small changes has really added so much value to this tiny space and allowed it to really work for our family. Living in such tight quarters makes every bit of real estate so valuable and when it can function the way our entryway functions now it makes the time and money spent very well worth it.

30 Day Entryway Closet Check-In & a Quick Little Project

Hi friends!

 

I'm back today to give a 30 day check-in of our entryway closet organization project and to let you in on what's worked, what hasn't, and how I addressed it.

 

Remember a month ago when I shared this before and after?

 

With a few organizational additions installed and some visual de-cluttering, it's amazing how so little can go such a long way. However, as we continue along our organizational journey, sometimes things could use a little tweak, a little umph, to really take it to the next level.

This little closet organization project has done wonders for our family but after using this space for a month, I realized that one area of this space, needed a little extra organizational help.

I have a confession...

We suck at mail. We pay most all our bills online and who doesn't get truck loads of credit card offers and junk mail? So needless to say, we procrastinate when it comes to opening and sorting through the mail and as a result, we would just shove all the mail in the inbox until it couldn't hold no more.

See?

The inbox on the door was/is an awesome idea, and really, truly has worked wonders. It just needed a little help to help us be better at sorting the mail. My solution?

I took some generic binder clips that I had on hand, added some washi-tape to the front & back, and labeled them with a permanent marker. Now we can clip the mail with these washi-tape clips into self-explanatory categories.

 

They've really helped to corral the mail and prevent it from getting out of hand. So easy to make too!

 

And when we're not using one of the clips? They easily clip to the edge of the basket just waiting to be used...like so:

 

 

The only other addition is a chevron file folder that holds all our coupons and gift cards that staying in the "Outgoing" mail box that we can quickly grab anytime we're heading out the door.

 

 

With these 2 small additions/tweaks, our coat closet is working like a dream and we're no longer combating a messy inbox and overflowing mail.

 

 

I love quick and simple projects like these washi-tape binder clips. I wonder where else I could employee these cuties? Any suggestions? Where would you use some in your home?

 

 

 

Cut the Clutter - Closet Clean-Out

Hey guys... and welcome to my 1st official post! Can I get a woohoo?!

I don't know what it is about the ringing in of a new year that always has me itching for a fresh start but 2015 is no different. The day the clock struck midnight I wanted to purge like a crazy woman and get rid of all the clutter we've accumulated over the past 365 days and living in this smallish apartment only made this desire ever more pressing come 12:01 January 1st. Did anyone feel this way too?

January may be coming to a close but I've been working hard to get this place back in tip-top organized shape! One of the hardest hit areas of our house over the last year was our itty bitty coat closet that sits right off the front entrance. See for yourself:

 

Neat and clean? Think again! Over the last year we really used and abused this space, so much so that it was literally bursting at the seams. It was filled to the brim with so much junk that every time we tried closing the door on all that chaos, the door would pop back open.

 

The closet is right inside the doorway and a space we utilize everyday so it was the perfect 1st project for the new year. Since space is so limited in our apartment and because my boyfriend has 80 jackets (someone please tell him we live in California, not the North Pole), I really needed to find some storage solutions that would make this space work better than it had in the past.

 

So last week I decided to get this closet in order and I couldn't be happier with the result! Read on to find out how I went from that disastrous before, to this beautiful, organized after:

 

 

 One of the first things I do when tackling an organization project like this is to take note of the areas that are causing problems and preventing the space from being and staying organized. Even though this space is really small, it still had quite a few problem areas.

 

The first being the blue shoe box in the upper left hand corner of the closet. In it we keep shoe polishing supplies and while it definitely makes sense for this box to stay, having it stacked on top of those other containers made getting into the other boxes a hassle. The blue bin in the upper right hand corner of the closet held extra throw blankets and for a while keeping them here made sense but when I recently consolidated all our other blankets to the 2nd bedroom closet it no longer made sense to keep blankets here as well. The other 2 major issues with this this space was the hook rail we installed on the door of the closet. The hook rail has great potential but we were using it to hold too many bulky items that would be better suited elsewhere and I think this was a major contributing factor to the door not staying closed. The last problem area in this little closet was the mail bin we have shoved all the way in the back of the closet. It was too big, too heavy and it wasn't a great way to keep our mail or other paperwork organized.

 

 

After identifying all the problem areas, I always like to clear everything out of the space and start fresh. And when I say everything, I mean EV-ERY-THING! It really helps to see what you're working with and get a visual for how you can utilize a space better. Once I cleared everything away I started sorting through all the junk and made 3 piles...a pile to keep, a pile to donate, and a pile to trash. From this little closet I had one trash bag to donate and one trash bag to throw away. Crazy!! That's an insane amount of stuff shoved into a teeny tiny space!

 

Once I had sorted through all the contents I gave the closet a good scrub down, vacuum, and made a few cosmetic changes. We already had this hook rail from Ikea but I decided to give it a face lift with some leftover paint I already had on hand. Now we hang less bulky items here like our keys, scarves, umbrellas, and even my purse! Its a great little rail to unload all our items after just walking in the door. I also used the same paint to paint the edge and handles of the wicker basket that sits on the closet floor which I'll use to hold any items that I need to return or ship out. Something as simple as paint can breathe life into items you already own and make them feel new again and the best part is that it doesn't cost any money so long as you have the supplies on hand!

 

 

Another quick and easy fix for any closet is to change out your old plastic hangers. I've been slowly changing out all our plastic hangers over the last few years for these inexpensive ones from Ikea and they really just take any closet up a notch. They come in several great colors and every time I make a trip to Ikea, I grab a set or 2 so the conversion from cheap-o plastic hangers is a little easier on the wallet. As silly as it sounds, having matching hangers instantly and visually de-clutters even the messiest of closets.

 

 

To solve our mail issue, I added 2 wire baskets to the back of the door that I picked up from Home Goods and attached them using 3M Command Strips and Hooks. Paneled doors such as these are usually hollow so I couldn't use nails to hang up my baskets, plus these 3M Command Strips save you from having to patch any nail holes which makes them renter-friendly! And the best part about these hooks, is that even for a short girl like me, I'm able to grab top basket, bring it down to put what I need in it and hang it back up, no problem. When organizing closet spaces, don't forget to use the back of the door when you can! It's a great way to maximize space and clean up the clutter with some inexpensive baskets and hooks!

 

 

We now have a basket for incoming mail and one for outgoing mail. I printed up some simple labels on the computer, backed them on some fun scrapbook paper, ran them through my laminator (what, you don't have a laminator? Well...you really should! I use this inexpensive one I snagged at Target and it totally rocks!), hole punched them, and tied the on with some fun grey and white rope I found in the gift wrap section at Target.

 

 

 

Aren't these labels so cute? Super easy too and now there's no mistaking what goes where! Now all our mail has a fun and organized place to live and it doesn't have to hide in the depths of our closet like it did before! And while I was at it, I made labels for all the other containers too. The 2 clear bins now hold all our loose cords and chargers and emergency kit supplies like flashlights, batteries, tape, etc. Relocating the blankets in the blue bin made space to store all our reusable bags, lunch bags, and our shoe polishing supplies. 

 

 

 

Total Project cost:

 

2 wire baskets from Home Goods - $9.00 ea - $18.00 total

2 sets of 3M Command Hooks - $3.49 ea - $7.00 total

Grey and white rope from Target - $2.99

Everything else - already owned

 

Project Grand Total - $28.00

 

And that's that, folks! What do you think? Do you have some closets that have seen better days? What have you done to contain the clutter?