Organize Your Home in One Hour


Organization. It’s something that we are all gunning for at one level or the other. It makes life simpler and easier to manage. Quicker too. For me, it’s kind of like a high. Organization gets me all excited. My heart beats a little faster and even in the midst of the chaos during an organizational project, the sight of piles getting organized gets me pumped to just keep going. So this weekend when I began an organizational project, I was more than a little gleeful. This project successfully organized the entire house in under an hour.

Woah. Organize the house in under an hour. Am I Superwoman? Maybe. That’s beside the point. I organized the entire house into one bright green binder. Yup, I made myself a house organization binder to organize all those paint colors, manuals, and other various house related materials.

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I started with a binder, dividers, plastic holders, pretty paper, and tape.

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I got the binder from Target and the oh-so-pretty dividers from Staples. My first step was putting the dividers into the binder and labeling each with a room in the house. Since these dividers didn’t have the slide-in tabs, I decided to use my newly purchased washi tape ($1.20 Target clearance!) to make pretty (and removable) labels.

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My categories were:

  • Living room
  • Kitchen
  • Mego Cave
  • Bedroom #1
  • Bedroom #2
  • Hall Bath
  • Master Bedroom
  • Master Bath
  • Basement
  • Outdoors/Misc.

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Now I may add more later, but this is what suits my needs right now. Then, it was time to prettify this project. Why? Because I think everything should add to the beauty in our lives. I splurged for the pretty dividers but couldn’t find a pretty binder that was big enough (or cheap enough in all honesty). So instead I found the $1 section at Target that had lots of pretty rolls of patterned wrapping paper. I of course scooped up a few with this project in mind (and a few others). I thought instead of buying a patterned binder, I would just insert a pattern into the clear plastic front of the binder. That way I could change it up anyway I wanted! All I did was cut the paper to fit and slide ‘er in. I am quite in love that I can see the bright green still peeking around the pattern.

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Then I found myself up to my ears in manuals, warranties, service orders, etc. This is our manual drawer exploding.

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I categorized them all into their appropriate rooms and slid them into a sleeve. Wow, they really ballooned my binder. This works for now but if I find myself running out of space in the binder, they may find themselves in a filing cabinet. I’ll see how it works out.

Another thing I did was collect all my wayward paint chips, separate them by color, and put them in a sleeve in the “Misc.” section. These are always floating around the house, making all sorts of clutter, but I always like to bring them out when a new project is on the horizon, so I thought it would be good to put them in the book.

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Speaking of paint, one of the main reasons I made this book was to organize my paint colors. Each room got a paint sheet where I detailed the paint colors for each item. I also plan on painting a swatch to slide in there so I can always take it out and to the store with me, if needed.

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I also decided that I wanted to keep track of when we change the air filters and put RidX down the septic system, so I made a little template to slide into the front pockets of the binders to keep track of the dates.

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The last step was to put it in its new home. I decided to slide it into a shelf on the bookcase in the Mego Cave so I can easily reach it. I think it looks pretty there all the while being functional too!

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That, ladies and gentlemen, is how you organize the house in under an hour. Wammo. Shazaam. Because it feels that good.

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  • I need to do this, stat! We inherited binders like this for our home but didn’t keep up with them. There are drawers full of manuels, etc. in our basement that I should go through and either put in a binder or recycle if we no longer have that appliance. I love the idea of adding paint chips to the binder, too. Thanks so much for sharing this great idea with this week’s Throwback Thursday party.ReplyCancel

    • Thanks Paula! Yes, it takes some time and organizing (and looking at manuals trying to remember when you even owned something like that) but it is SO helpful. Organizing always has a way of making me feel better. 🙂ReplyCancel

  • I started a management binder a few years ago but never followed through with it. I have been working on gathering the motivation to start/finish it. It’s just sitting on the shelf, every time I get frustrated because I can’t find some household info I think- “darn it, this is the kind of thing I would have in there” 🙂ReplyCancel

    • You can do it Angela!! I’ll be your cheering squad. Just sit down with a movie or show and it will make it much more enjoyable! Just think about all the time you will save in the future too! I also recommend picking bright colors and pretty patterns. Making something beautiful always helps me keep going!ReplyCancel

  • Thanks for sharing such helpful information. You had me at “one hour.” So glad you linked up at Throwback Thursday!ReplyCancel

  • Could you just pop round and tidy me up? I dream of being tidy and manage tiny pockets of organisation but the rest is pretty much winging it! You are so encouraging, I think I could manage this – and organise my house/life one tiny step at a time!ReplyCancel

    • If you were local I would definitely do that Julie! I know you could definitely manage this! Just take it one step at a time. It can feel overwhelming if you look at a whole house but it you do one closet, drawer, and room at a time you will get there!ReplyCancel

  • I love the idea of home organizational binders. I have one for blogging and I’d be lost without it. Thanks for sharing at Throwback Thursday.

    xoxo
    DenyseReplyCancel

    • Home organizational binders are the best Denyse! I definitely think I need to make one for blogging. It’s such a good idea. Now I just have a notebook with all my scribbles.ReplyCancel

  • Betty819

    Megan, You sure are creative: just found your blog via Pinterest this am. I want to sit down and study some of your projects more thoroughly because some really are drawing my attention. Thank You for sharing your creative talents. I do family genealogy and have all sorts of 3 ring binders, about 40 of them; some I purchased, some were given to me, some I have purchased at a Thrift shop for a small amount. Some are held together with gray duct tape..so I plan to replace them. It would look neater if I bought all new ones and replace them so they’ll all be the same color but that can be expensive unless I catch a great sale. They are not all the same thickness either. I keep them inside bedroom and office closets on shelves. Why does everything take so much time and money to replace it or improve it?ReplyCancel

    • Hi Betty! Thanks so much for visiting my blog! So glad to have you! It sounds like you have a ton of binders! Have you thought about buying them in bulk from a home improvement store? Sometimes you can get a discount that way. But I would also scour the back-to-school sales out now too. I bet you could score some pretty great deals on binders!ReplyCancel

  • Betty819

    Megan,
    My problem is lack of storage but you’re right; now would be a good time to hit the office supplies places for notebooks. Went to Staples yesterday for printer cartridges and it was a madhouse. Best time to go there is first thing in the morning when they have just opened..like 7 or 8 am..ReplyCancel

    • Ohh yes, lack of storage can be a bummer. Great tip on when to go to the office supply stores. It definitely pays to be the early bird!ReplyCancel