It’s been a while since I did a follow-up post to my Where Do You Keep That? series. I started it in August after listening to an episode of the Girl Next Door podcast and then Elisabeth took the post and ran with it, providing me with a long list of things to talk about! I may be able to squeak out yet another list after this post, so stay tuned for that! For now, let’s dive into some other categories of household items so I can tell you exactly where I keep them in my house.
Light Bulbs
The bottom section of the bookshelves in my dining room are all for organization! I have a bin that’s strictly used for backstock for cleaning supplies, kitchen supplies, etc. This bin also houses backup lightbulbs. Once I run out, I immediately add more lightbulbs to my cart on Target so I’m never without lightbulbs.
Incoming Mail
I am so bad about checking my mailbox regularly. Since I live in an apartment, I have to walk to a community mailbox area to gather my mail and sometimes I forget to do this until a few weeks have passed. Oops! When I do grab my mail, I usually take the time to go through it. If there is mail that I am not quite ready to deal with, I’ll throw it in my little organizer that’s near my door. The goal is to go through that organizer once a month and take care of lingering mail tasks, like paying a bill or making an appointment.
Laundry Baskets
I only have one laundry basket in my apartment because I use my washer as its own “laundry basket” of sorts. (More about that here!) The one laundry basket I have sits in my bathroom closet. I use it for towels, washcloths, reusable cotton rounds, etc.
Garbage Cans
I have three garbage cans in my apartment. There’s my primary garbage can that sits right outside my kitchen. There’s my bathroom trash can next to my toilet. And then there’s the valet trash can that I set outside a few nights a week to get picked up. (I transfer the bag of trash from my primary can to the valet can whenever I need the trash to be picked up.) I keep that trash can right inside my door, next to my TV stand.
Broom and Mop
My broom and my mop sit inside one of my closets. Out of sight, out of mind!
Sunglasses
I keep one pair of sunglasses always tucked into a pocket in my purse. The other pair is usually in my car but if I bring it inside for any reason, I’ll throw it in my purse when I’m tidying up around my apartment.
Items to Donate
I always keep a trash bag in my closet that I fill with items I want to donate. It’s not the prettiest thing, but I like always having that bag on hand because inevitably, I’m throwing things in it on a regular basis. (Bonus: Eloise now thinks it’s the ideal place to nap now. A million comfortable places to sleep and she chooses a trash bag, sigh.)
Batteries
I use an eight-cube bookshelf as my TV stand. The top shelf is for books and the bottom shelf is for organization! In the second bin, I keep small plastic containers for miscellaneous items, and one of those items is batteries. I only keep AAA and AA batteries on hand because I haven’t had a need for any other type at this point. Once I use up the last of the batteries, I will immediately add a new pack to my Target cart.
Paper Storage
I have a portable file folder in my closet for paper storage. Once a year, I shred anything that’s older than seven years, so the file folder keeps getting smaller and smaller because most things are digital these days!
Tupperware
How annoying is Tupperware? And yet… it is also so necessary. I feel like my situation is somewhat under control but things could get dicey at any moment. Right now, the top shelf of one of my kitchen cabinets is reserved for Tupperware, although I had to move one set of Tupperware containers to the second shelf when I got my bento snack boxes. So now the top shelf is for my big containers, bento boxes, and a plastic bin for smaller containers/tops. The second shelf is for the other set of containers (I use these frequently for leftovers!).
How many laundry baskets do you have in your house?
