Under the Sink Makeover

Those of you who know me well know that I'm an organzing phene! My house is often chaotic with two little kids, but open a closet or drawer or pantry and you will find little bits of calm. I'm not 100% done with any one area- it's all a work in progress. Seems like just about the time I get caught up on my clutter, an old area has outgrown it's organized system. So it's a constant thing for me but it brings me a little peace. I feel accomplished and more relaxed after a little project. So I thought I would share my latest one. I keep a lot of our cleaning products (everything that I use in the kitchen and downstairs area at least) under my kitchen sink. After 3 years of living here, my previous system has gone awry. So here's how it breaks down.

Step 1: Assess the damage.

Step 2: Pull out all my shit (this is the worst part for me because small dark spaces that could have wet areas really freak me out- can't stand nastyness). In doing this part I discovered that a pipe was loose and causing some mildew/mold (DON'T JUDGE ME :) so Ryan went to Home Depot and installed a new gasket- good as new!

Step 3: Sort products according to type and frequent of use. Keeping the frequently used items towards the front and using a tension rod for all my sprays (Thanks for the idea Pinterest!!) I like to keep practically everything in some sort of container. One it looks pretty. Two it lets me know when I'm running out of something or have too much. And third, it's a lot easier to rinse a plastic shoe box out in the dishwasher than pulling all this shit out again and wiping it down.

Total project time- about an hour.
Total cost- $6 for shoeboxes and the gasket (not sure but bet it was cheap- Ryan didn't complain :)

BTW- If you have never tried Mr Clean Magic Eraser, you really should. Favorite product by far because it works on stuff you would never think could be so easily corrected (i.e. crayons!!!!). And my second favorite- vinegar! Works like a charm, super cheap and makes me feel good knowing I'm knocking out germs with vinegar's fancy name, Acetic Acid! Perhaps a post on vinegar one of these days...