Before 2013 Gets Here (Oops): Task 3

Happy New Year! I can't believe that it's already 2013. With the holidays, it was hard to keep up with my plan of finishing a few tasks before the end of the year, so, you guessed it, they didn't all get done. But, I was able to get one more in just before the clock struck midnight. Previously, Task #3 was to clean up and organize our office/dining area. Sorry I don't have any before photos, but trust me, you aren't missing much. Way back in the beginning, I had four decorative placemats hanging on the wall and our sideboard you see here now. That was neat for a little while and then got boring reaaal fast. Here is the after:

 

 I'll go through and list exactly what is stored and organized where and why, as well as where I was able to find it:

 A. This shelf is the Antonius from Ikea, mounted to the wall by Ekby Bjarnum brackets. I wanted a space just for personal touches like books and pictures. And our brass number three that means a whole lot to us. Those are the little birds I made as our cake topper for our wedding.

B. A cork-board, found here, is used as a message center as well as a list/note holder. The three clips are for "bills", "to-do", and "out mail". I just punched out some pretty paper and glued two squares over one handle of the clip. You can see the purple push pin behind holding it in place.

C. Baskets, found here, are used to store extra wrapping tools and materials, cards and stamps.

 

 D.  This picture shelf here is used for my business cards, baby food jars of push pins and paper clips, and rolls of ribbon. I made sure to mount it high enough so that it would not interfere with the scanner lid on our printer. 

E. Cardboard magazine holders are extremely affordable and can be spiced up with some crafting paper and glue. I wanted to choose colors that blended nicely together but were contrasting patterns. In here, I have my storage magazines and address books. 

F. Storage drawers found here and here hold miscellaneous office items, post-it notes and scrap paper. Underneath in the black box are items that need shredding.

 

G.  This area is at the top of my list in the favorites category. It is wonderful to grab 'n' go whenever you need a writing utensil. Plus, it's super easy to put away when you're done! Which is why the heck we all organize anyway, right?! You can find everything here, here and here.

 The Budget Breakdown:

A. Shelf + Brackets = $10.00

B. Corkboard = $5.99

C. Wire baskets =$3.99 each

D. Picture shelf = $9.99

E. Magazine files = $1.99/set of five

F. Plastic storage bins = $9.99, $6.99/set of two

G. Metal bar mount, cups + hooks = $6.99

Total for Office nook/Dining Re-do: $59.92 (and done over a year's time!)

Tasks accomplished so far:

1) Organize the chaotic entertainment wall
2) Get pictures/frames off of table surfaces to free up space (for the most part)
3) Tackle the dining area/office nook
4) Organize the laundering area
5)Organize our kitchen cabinets/get dry and boxed foods into clear containers
6) Label, label, and label some more