I have been thinking about blogging about meal planning for a while. With the coronavirus pandemic currently a part of our everyday lives, there isn’t a better time to talk about it.

I’ve been a Professional Organizer for eighteen years. I’m also the ‘head chef’ in my family. One of the most vital organizing systems I’ve created in my home is the meal planning I do for my family.

Why do I meal plan?

I grew up with my mom planning our meals–I witnessed the benefits of planning ahead. As a single woman (an elementary school teacher living on a tight budget) I shopped, packed my own lunches, and planned dinners according to the needs of my schedule. Now, as a wife and mom, good nutrition, multiple family food allergies, and a busy lifestyle make meal planning a necessity to stay on top of our food needs.

Why is it important to meal plan?

We eat every day. Multiple times a day. To live. There’s no getting around that…

Anything we do multiple times a day, every day should have some kind of automation so we don’t have to constantly be thinking about it.

Meal Planning is a multi-step system and organizing strategy designed to take the every-day-multiple-times-a-day thought process of ‘what-are-we-going-to-eat?’ out of your head and put it onto paper or your favorite digital tool.

You want to avoid organizing your sock drawer–OK. I’ll give that to you. But, please–don’t avoid meal planning. Especially now.

Why is its important to meal plan NOW?

In the time of coronavirus, food shopping is considered an essential trip outside of your home. For safety reasons, we’re supposed to stay out of public spaces as much as possible. This is not the time to be running to the grocery store for a forgotten ingredient or because you can’t think of what to cook for dinner.

Meal planning is a time management strategy but now, it is also a safety measure that will ensure you spend as little time as possible food shopping in public. You’ll also know exactly what recipes you’ll be making, what foods you’ll be eating, and when you’ll be eating them–one less thing to think about every day when we have so many other recent lifestyle changes to juggle.

*If you currently do most or all of your food shopping online due to age, illness or personal choice, it’s even more important to take the time to create a meal plan for you and your family.

If you’re a beginner to meal planning (or any other organizing) I advise you to start small, start easy, and start where you are. I want you to have the tools necessary for meal planning–not only for the sake of good nutrition, saving money and time, but also to keep you safe.

What are the benefits to meal planning?

Besides promoting healthier eating, meal planning saves you time, money, and stress.

Time

With meal planning, there’s no need to take time out of your day to run to the market, find a parking spot, grab a few items, stand on line, come home and eat later than you wanted to. Meal planning will put hours back into your life!

Money

With a meal planning system in place, there’s no need to pull out a menu and order last minute takeout–often more expensive than a home-cooked meal. Fewer trips to the store means fewer opportunities for impulse shopping which can add up to hundreds of dollars a year. With many people out of work at this time, meal planning is a necessary part of tightening up a budget.

Stress

This coronavirus pandemic is causing us to feel more stressed than usual. Our brains are working on overdrive. With that being said–we HAVE to eat. But, we don’t have to keep all that food-knowledge in our head. Meal planning takes the every day decision-making out of your brain.

“Your mind is meant for having ideas, not for holding them” says David Allen (the founder of the Getting Things Done work-life management system). Bluntly said, (by me)–your brain is not a storage device! We already have enough swirling around up there–we shouldn’t keep any more information up there than we need to!

Are you ready to learn how to meal plan? Great! Follow the steps to help you get organized for meal planning…

My Seven Step System for Meal Planning:

Step 1: Do a Brain Dump

Take four separate pieces of paper. Write the word ‘breakfast’ one one, ‘lunch’ on the next piece, ‘dinner’ on the third and ‘snacks’ at the top of the fourth piece of paper.

Take a few minutes to do a ‘brain dump’ of what meals/snacks you like to eat and write them on the appropriate papers.

Ex:
breakfast = almond butter on a bagel, blueberry pancakes and syrup, cereal with milk and fruit
lunch = chicken nuggets and french fries, turkey sandwiches and chips, cheese sticks with crackers and baby carrots
dinner = chicken cutlets/steam-in-bag veggies/rice, spaghetti and meatballs
snacks = dried apricots, Oreo cookies, pretzel rods

Step 2: Ask for Ideas

Gather the members of your household and ask them to brainstorm their favorite meals in each of the categories and add them to the appropriate lists.

Everyone eats? Everyone gets a say!

*In the time of coronavirus–remember to also list out meals you may be cooking for/delivering to family and friends. You’ll need to add those ingredients to your shopping list, too.

Step 3: Start Meal Planning

Now that you’ve written down meals that everyone likes to eat, it’s time to start meal planning!

Two things to consider:
-what recipes you want to make
-how many days you want to plan for–two? Five? A whole week?

It’s now time to take out a new piece of paper (to plan out your meals) and consult those four pieces of paper from Step 1 and Step 2 for ideas on what meals to plan for.

As an example, let’s create a one-day sample meal plan using the meals from above:

MONDAY
breakfast: cereal with milk and fruit
lunch: turkey sandwiches and chips
dinner: spaghetti and meatballs
snack: pretzels

Next, make a list of foods in each meal:

breakfast = Cheerios, almond milk, raisins, banana
lunch = sliced turkey, rye bread, lettuce, mustard, Baked Lays
dinner = box of spaghetti/sauce/chop meat for meatballs/garlic & butter/Italian bread/salad items (lettuce, cucumber, etc.)
snacks = Rold Gold pretzel rods

Whether it’s one day or a whole week, do the above exercise for each day you are planning meals for.

*It’s important during this coronavirus crisis that you be in the supermarket as infrequently as possible for everyone’s safety. Please try your hand at planning out a few of your meals. If you’re not used to doing much cooking or meal planning, start off planning for 1-2 days and slowly work your way up to a week’s worth of meals. Don’t stress about this–start where you are.

Step 4: Take Inventory

After listing out all the food items you’ll need for the meals you’re planning to make, it’s time to take inventory and see if you already have the ingredients for those meals. Take the list from Step 3 and a pen and carry it to your fridge, freezer, and pantry area(s). If you already have the item at home, circle it on your list–no need to buy it (unless you want to stock up on more while at the store). Any items not circled will be added later to your Shopping List.

*If you’re using a specific recipe, take time to review it to determine what ingredients you’ll need.

Step 5: Shop at Home

You don’t always have to start from scratch. Meal planning can also start at home. It’s a time, money, and stress saver to meal plan with…
-items that are about to turn green and fuzzy in your fridge
-items that have been in your freezer long enough to have a few ice crystals on them
-items in your pantry that are about to expire
-items on sale at the supermarket

Maybe you have mushrooms that have 1-2 days left in them. Plan to make mushroom omelettes for lunch or chop the mushrooms into the sauce to go over spaghetti and meatballs.  Or, maybe on page 3 of your supermarket’s sale circular, you see that chicken cutlets are on sale. Consider buying enough to make chicken based meals once a week for a month.

Add these ‘shop at home’ and ‘supermarket sale’ options to your meal plan for the next few days. This is not the time to let food go to waste!

Step 6: Put it on your Calendar

There’s a famous time management quote that says, “What gets scheduled–gets done.” Let’s combine that with David Allen’s quote from above about how your brain is not a storage room. Take your meal planning ideas out of your head and put them on your calendar!

What day do you want to make that spaghetti and meatball dinner? What day next week do you have a 4pm Zoom call?

Take out your calendar and organize those meals you just spent time planning for.

Some things to consider…
-Do you want to eat meat and vegetarian meals on alternating days?
-Do you want to create ‘theme nights’ such as Meatless Monday and Taco Tuesday?
-Which days do you want to cook? Which days would you prefer to support a local restaurant with a take-out meal?
-Do you think you’ll have enough food for a ‘leftovers night?’

All good questions to ask yourself while scanning your calendar and meal planning for the days of the week ahead of you.

*In the future (after the coronavirus pandemic is over) your schedule may include days/nights where you’re working late, your son has to be at baseball practice, or your daughter has a dance class. Check your calendar for those events and plan to make on-the-go and quick-prep meals (or takeout) on those days.

Step 7: Make Your Shopping List

You’re ready to make your shopping list! Grab a long piece of paper or your phone (whichever you prefer) and start listing out the foods you’ll be needing to purchase for your pre-determined amount of meals.

Here are two ways to do this:
-List out your foods by category (an easy place to start–especially for beginners)
-List out your foods by supermarket aisle (for advanced meal planers and/or those who are familiar with the aisles of the stores they shop in).

Listing foods on your shopping list by category can look like this:
Ex: spaghetti and meatball dinner from above (with a box of spaghetti already in your pantry)

Shopping List
Cans/Jars/Boxes: spaghetti sauce
Bread: Italian bread
Meat: 1.5 – 2 lb package of 85/15 ground beef
Spices: oregano
Dairy: butter
Produce: lettuce, cucumber, fresh garlic

Listing foods on your shopping list by supermarket aisle can resemble this (using my local ShopRite as an example):
Ex: spaghetti and meatball dinner from above (with a box of spaghetti already in your pantry)

Shopping List
lettuce, cucumber, fresh garlic (my store opens into the produce section)
oregano
spaghetti sauce
1.5 – 2 lb. package of 85/15 ground beef
Italian bread
butter (dairy is the last aisle in my store)

This infographic spells out the basics…

Congratulations! You’re a meal planner! The more often you do it, the easier it will become–I promise! And over time, you will notice your meal planning efforts saving you time, money, and stress–now in crisis time and anytime.

Be safe. Be healthy. Be a meal planner!

What meals will you plan this week? I’d love to hear about them in the comments section below…

It can be a cupboard in your apartment, a shelving unit in your garage, or a separate room in your house. Whatever it looks like, a pantry acts as a functional space for storing canned goods, baking supplies and anything you just HAD to buy during that last double coupon offering at your supermarket. With winter months quickly approaching, it is a perfect time to start stocking up on non-perishable food items and creating an organized area for them. All the squirrels are doing it. Why not you?

Here are 5 easy ways to help your ‘inner squirrel’ start organizing your food pantry…

Use Helper Shelves
Helper shelves (one of my favorite organizing products) double the horizontal space in your pantry, offering more space for canned goods, boxes, bottles, etc. They often come in 3-4 different widths and heights—some are width- and height-adjustable. Helper shelves can be found in the same aisle as other kitchen organizing products and purchased at general stores like Target or in specialty stores such as The Container Store. Use them on a shelf in a pantry closet or upper, lower, or corner cabinet in your kitchen. Helper Shelves = Saving Space

Group ‘Like-Foods’ Together
Group foods and/or products by type, brand, or ethnicity for easy retrieval. For example: Put all canned fruit in one area, brownie mixes on another part of the shelf, and all spaghetti sauce jars and boxes of pasta on a shelf separate from the other two. Now go to your pantry and gather ingredients for tonight’s lasagna dinner. How quickly did you locate the pasta and sauce? Probably, pretty darn fast since they’re now grouped together in one place…Grouping ‘Like-Foods’ Together = Saving Time

Keep it Neat and Orderly
Place cans/jars/bottles on shelves with labels facing front. Line up boxes with their ‘spines’ facing front (like library books) or facing forward depending upon your space limitations. This way you can scan the shelf quickly and find what you need in a matter of seconds. Disorganized shelves are a big time, money, (and food) waster. Orderly Shelves = Saving Time and Money

Take Inventory
Before you go to the supermarket, take inventory of your pantry shelves. Helpful Hint: Line up your cans/jars/bottles from the back of the pantry shelf to the front edge with labels facing forward. Depending upon their size as well as the size of the shelf, you may be able to line them up 3-4 deep. When you need a can/jar/bottle, take it from the front. When you see you have one left (hugging the back wall of the pantry), it’s time to put that item on your shopping list. Taking Inventory = Saving Money

Rotate Your Food
How many times have you found cans or boxes of food languishing behind an extra large cereal box? You don’t know how long it’s been there and you’re not planning on serving botulism for dinner, so that old can of peas you unearthed is money down the drain. Whether you line them up one in front of the other or stack them, it is important to rotate your boxes/cans/packages of food. If you usually buy cans of tuna in bulk and stack them 6-high on your shelf, don’t pile five new ones on top of one old can. Put that remaining can in the fridge and stack the new ones behind the old stack. You can take it a step further by dating your canned/boxed goods. It takes a bit of work but it’s worth it. Even non-perishables can perish…Rotated Food = Saving Money

Bonus
If you’re going the extra mile to organize your pantry, why not create some labels for it? Labels can be used to mark off  ‘food zones’ after you’ve grouped ‘like with like.’ Or, label those storage containers you use to hold bulk items. Canva.com, a free graphic design platform (that I love to use!) recently launched a tool to help you design beautiful labels. Check out their kitchen labels page for templates and ideas to help organize your pantry. For a variety of other types of labels, check out their Labels Hub here.

What favorite food items will you start organizing your food pantry with today?

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Last summer, I went on a field trip to The Container Store with my colleagues from NAPO-NNJ. As you can imagine, the bunch of us that attended had a blast! We saw a few demos, learned about some new products, and had a chance to roam freely through the store. While I was roaming, I happened upon these: OXO Good Grips POP Containers

They were so cool! You’re probably thinking that I bought out the store…but I controlled myself and didn’t. Even though they were ‘cool,’ they were a bit pricey. I left The Container Store without them in my hand but those POP containers lingered in my brain and heart…

Here are a few reasons why I thought these were a ‘Cool Product.’

• Their square/rectangular shapes fit well side-by-side on shelves
• They stack!
• Easy open/easy close
• Aesthetically pleasing

Fast forward a few weeks. I was shopping in TJ Maxx and found a shelf in the Housewares Department filled with OXO POP Containers! And, in TJ Maxx fashion, they cost less than the ones in The Container Store–jackpot! I brought these two babies home with me, gave them a good washing, and put them to work in my pantry closet.

Here’s how they open and close… This is the lid when closed. That big button gets pressed to open the container. Press down and…

It’s hard to believe but Organized Artistry is heading into it’s 11th year in business. The time has certainly flown! In that time, I’ve written organizing tip articles for my website and almost four years ago, I started this blog.

In honor of 11 years of organizing, I share with you the top ten most popular posts of this blog–plus one bonus post to make it 11. I hope at least one of them will offer you an idea or a resource for creating and maintaining an organized life.

Curious as to what readers liked most?

Top 3 blog posts:

Best Products for Organizing Your Car
This post was the most popular by a landslide! Maybe I need to add ‘car organizing’ to my list of services…

Organizing Inspiration from Curious George
Who would think that a mischievous monkey could teach us a lesson on organization?

Peter Walsh Organizes Rachael Ray’s Kitchen
She’s got a smaller kitchen than one would assume. Peter Walsh makes cooking at home a more stress-free activity for the famous cook.

Cool Product blog posts:

Cool Product – Jewelry Organizer
Not your usual jewelry holder…

Cool Product – Cable Turtle
Wires! Wires! Wires! No more unsightly wire messes thanks to cable turtles.

Cool Product – Fridge Binz
If your fridge need organizing, check these out…

Other popular blog posts:

De-Cluttering Tips
Simple, basic steps to follow for de-cluttering…

Top Ten Helper Shelf ‘Hot Spots’ for Your Home
This was a popular post, too. I love helper shelves! See how they can transform your closets and cabinets.

Organizing Up and Down–a Vertical Makeover
My motto: “If you can’t go outward, go UPWARD!”

Organizing on the Cheap: Target Dollar Spot
Love the Target Dollar Spot. You never know what organizing products (or other goodies) you’ll find there.

New Baby? Time to Get Organized
These little people have a lot of stuff and require a ton of organization!

Bonus post: Some organizing humor…

Professional Organizer Humor
Yes, there’s a bumper sticker for our profession, too!

My blog posts are written with the intention of providing information, tips, resources and sometimes a good laugh. I hope they have provided you with all that and more. Thanks so much for supporting Organized Artistry!

If you spend a good amount of your time surfing the web, I’m sure you’ve heard of Pinterest. If not, run–don’t walk to the site that is taking social media by storm.

According to their website, “Pinterest is a tool for collecting and organizing the things you love.”

As a user, I would say that, “Pinterest is a tool for collecting and organizing images of inspiration.”

A little over a year ago, I joined Pinterest–read all about it here: Organized Artistry is on Pinterest!. I’ve been having a great time with it.

On Pinterest, you create and categorize ‘pin boards’ according to your interests. After you create your themed-boards, you load your own visuals or ‘re-pin’ visuals posted by others to your boards. I created boards for my organizing business and some that have to do with the book I’m writing for brides.  I thought that would be my only use for Pinterest, but it has much more to offer…

– When the time comes to make some major changes in my home, I’ll not only be flipping through decorating magazines, I’ll also be looking for decorating inspiration on Pinterest.

– I have found recipes to cook for my son who has multiple food allergies.

– There are tons of posts on clothing, makeup and health that I have learned from.

It is very easy to get sucked into the visual wonderland of Pinterest for HOURS at a time. There’s so much to see and learn!

Besides other categories, there must be thousands of ‘Organizing’ pins on Pinterest. So many great ideas to learn from and implement in your life!

Since time is precious, I would like to offer you some of my favorite organizing pins on Pinterest. Some I created myself and some I re-pinned from other boards.

Disclaimer: Although I love Pinterest, I think that there are many visuals on the site (especially the ‘Organizing’ visuals) that promote ‘perfection.’ Items in the photos are neatly lined up, labeled and look as if they are untouched by humans. Being organized is not about being perfect. It’s about being able to find what you need when you need it–plain and simple. I try to not promote or perpetuate the idea of perfection in my boards/pins, with my clients and in my own home.

I’ve seen some creative and mega-cool organizing ideas on Pinterest. Here are a few I think you will enjoy, appreciate and find inspiring…

From my ‘Kitchen Organizing’ Board

From my ‘Get Ready for Spring Cleaning’ Board

Spring Cleaning or all-year-round cleaning–this is my favorite cleaning product. With two little boys in the house, I use the Magic Eraser A LOT! Most of its use is in my kitchen with white appliances. It ‘erases’ dirt–yes, magically and is the only thing I have found that can cut through the greasy, sticky spots on my stove top.

From my ‘My Favorite Organizing Products’ Board

You won’t find this organizing product at The Container Store. It’s a productivity app called Evernote.  From their website: “Evernote helps you remember, act upon (and share) ideas, projects and experiences across all the computers, phones and tablets you use.” Every time I get an idea or wish to record information about some aspect of my business or personal life, I store it in Evernote for future reference. My desk would have a zillion post-its strewn across it without Evernote.

Do you watch TV? What’s your favorite television show at the moment?

The Voice?
Big Bang Theory reruns?
Dancing With the Stars?

Watching television can be a great way to relax, learn a new subject or be entertained. But, I’ll let you in on a little organizing secret:

Watching television can be a great way to get organized.

You’re probably thinking, “What? I can organize my house while watching TV? Hook me up!”

Well, I’m about to…

As I’ve discussed in past posts, in order to reach an organizing goal, one must have a plan in place and mini-goals set to eventually reach that goal. Some of these mini-goals or projects can be accomplished while watching television. Sitting down. In your bunny slippers. With a glass of wine in your hand–if you’d like.

Before you plop down on the couch in your pajamas with or without a glass of liquid inspiration, bring an organizing project with you. Here are 10 organizing projects you can do while watching television, getting you one step closer to the organizing finish line:

1. Empty your wallet and go through receipts, business cards, cash, etc.

2. Put your sock drawer (T-shirts/underwear/you get the idea) on your lap and sort/purge/organize

3. Put your kitchen junk drawer on the floor/coffee table to sort through, purge and reorganize

4.  Sort through, delete or update apps on your smart phone

5. Organize recipes into categories and place in plastic sleeves in a binder

6. Sort/Purge a stack of papers from your file cabinet/dining room table/pile on the floor

7. Group photos by event, person or chronologically and put into albums

8. Sort through old magazines

9. Sort/Purge expired coupons

10. Fold laundry and put away during commercials

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If you watch television and you have even the teeniest tiniest interest in organizing then you know who Peter Walsh is. If not, here’s the short version: Peter Walsh is an Organizing Expert from Australia who has a ‘tell it like it is’ attitude but also uses compassion and empathy while organizing with his clients. He has worked miracles in tiny spaces, as well as in the homes of hoarders. I first saw him on an organizing show called ‘Clean Sweep’ and from there, he occasionally appeared on The Oprah Show as well as other daytime shows.

I ‘Like’ Peter Walsh on Facebook. He’s always posting about projects he’s working on, easy organizing tips, and when he’ll be on TV next. So, a short while ago, he posted that he was going to be de-cluttering Rachael Ray’s home kitchen on The Rachael Ray Show. Sweet! My DVR was set. If you didn’t get to catch it last week, here’s what happened…

Rachael Ray, America’s sweetheart of the kitchen had a secret…

She told her audience that she has a tiny NYC apartment kitchen and that she’s just as guilty as other homeowners when it comes to de-cluttering her kitchen–it never happens. Cluttered cupboards, out-of-date food in the pantry and cabinets overflowing with pots and pans were just some of her organizing issues.

If I had her hectic schedule, I might not have time to de-clutter my kitchen either…

She decided to bring Peter Walsh to her home to see if he could get her kitchen organized again. Rachael gave him a quick tour of the room and then he kicked her out and started organizing. Peter started with the pantry–he emptied it, sorted the items and tossed all expired food in the trash.

Some of Peter’s pantry tips:

-Store platters upright for easier access. Use an organizing product that stores baking trays to do the same thing for platters.

-Keep flat surfaces clear. They are for food prep–not for storage.

Peter then headed to a spot most people wrestle with in their kitchen–the junk drawer. Like the panty, Peter emptied the drawer and sorted out the trash. He then grouped ‘Like with Like’ and used containers to keep ‘like’ items together.

Peter used drawer dividers like these to organize Rachael’s junk drawer

What junk drawer items did he hold up for all the world to see? Four pair of gardening shears! Since Rachael didn’t use them very often, he promptly moved them to a different area of the kitchen.

He then removed all magnets from her refrigerator. I have a ton of magnets and children’s artwork on my fridge–Peter Walsh would have a field day with my fridge!

He and his crew worked to de-clutter the rest of Rachael’s kitchen and then brought her back in to see.

The first spot he showed her was the pantry–she loved how de-cluttered it was and how Peter had grouped ‘like’ items with like items on clear trays from The Container Store. They then moved on to the junk drawer–Rachael was so thrilled with the way it looked, she gave Peter a high-five! He had removed many of her household tools and placed them in labeled bins in a cabinet over the refrigerator to get them out of the way.

Rachael then walked over to the fridge and saw that most of her magnets were gone! She almost had a heart attack because a magnet with her deceased dog’s picture on it was no where to be found. It was quickly placed back on the fridge–organizing crisis averted!

As I often do with my clients, Peter gave ‘Organizing Homework’ to Rachael Ray…
-go through all cooking utensils
-separate out the ones she uses often from the ones she barely uses
-keep drawers neat and tidy

Peter offered up two tips and advice for the viewing audience:
1. Stop using the word LATER as in, “I’ll put that away later.” Do things as you go and he promises it will make a huge difference.
2. Flat surfaces are for PREPARATION not STORAGE.

Peter also gave the viewing audience five ‘Double Duty’ organizing products to use in the home:
1. Use an empty tissue box to store plastic bags (I do this in my own home.)
2. Use a tension rod to create hanging space under a sink
3. Thread a tab from a soda can over a hanger and hang another garment from it to double your closet’s hanging space. (I LOVED this tip!)
4. A tag from a loaf of bread can be used to wrap around and label electrical cords.
5. Use extra glass vases to corral multiples of items.

I thought this was a great segment. Kudos to Rachael Ray for being brave enough to have Peter Walsh organize her kitchen for all the world to see!

*Author’s Note: I love watching de-cluttering segments on daytime television–I pick up great organizing and product ideas all the time. But, what I’d like you to know is that de-cluttering a room takes hours–sometimes days and sometimes weeks. It looks quick on TV but what you don’t see is a multi-person crew working arduously to get the job done in a certain amount of time. When it’s just you, or you and a friend, or even you and a Professional Organizer the process takes a LONG time.

If you are de-cluttering an area of your home, don’t despair that it’s taking a while to emerge as a clutter-free space. Make good decisions, have trash bags at the ready and look for the light at the end of the tunnel. Here are a few tips to make sure your organizing efforts are taking you in the right direction.

If it’s August, it must be back-to-school season! Time to buy school supplies, new clothes and shoes and get back into routines.

It’s also a time that includes figuring out what’s for supper every night. If you need some meal planning ideas, check out this article…

Real Moms Share: Easy Ways to Plan Meals for the Week

Photo of my family at Disney enjoying a meal–not planned by me!

It just so happens that I give tip #8 and Michelle Obama, our First Lady offers the first one. Hope you pick up some good ideas–I did! Even a Professional Organizer needs help with meal planning sometimes…

A while back, I wrote an article for my website about my favorite organizing products. Years have passed but my favorites have not changed. One of those favorite organizing products is the Helper Shelf.

What is a ‘helper shelf?’

A helper shelf divides the horizontal space of a shelf, offering more storage space above and below itself. They come in many different widths and heights—some are even width-adjustable. Looking for one to match your decor? You’ll find most are made of chrome, plastic, metal or wood. Helper shelves can be found in the same aisle as other kitchen organizing products and purchased at home stores like Target or in specialty stores such as The Container Store. They can be used anywhere you need to double a shelf space.

I recently counted how many helper shelves I was using in my home–about 15! And I have a few in my basement that are waiting to be used when the need arises.

I am such a fan of helper shelves, I was quoted in this article about them!

Do you have places in your home that could use a helper shelf? If so, get ready to get organized. Here are my top ten helper shelf ‘hot-spots’ for your home:

1. Linen closet – Besides sheets and towels, linen closets often house medicine, health and beauty supplies, lightbulbs and other small items. This is a picture of the shelf in my linen closet where I keep health items for my two kids. Notice–lots of little packages. A perfect spot for a helper shelf!

2. Medicine cabinet – If there’s a spot in our homes with small bottles and boxes, it’s a medicine cabinet. Most standard-sized helper shelves don’t fit in a medicine cabinet but while shopping at the Christmas Tree Shop a few months ago, I came across one that was made especially to fit in medicine cabinets. I bought it for a whopping $1.99. Turns out I didn’t need a helper shelf in my medicine cabinet so I now use it on my…

4. Kitchen cabinet – This is where many people use helper shelves. My kitchen does not have much cabinet space so I had to maximize the space as best I could.

5. Freezer – I have one of those older refrigerators with the freezer on top. I use a helper shelf to double the space that might otherwise be a pileup of bagels, frozen veggies and leftovers. Small items such as the ice cube trays fit well under the shelf while flat items stack well on top.

6. Pantry – Sometimes we can adjust our pantry shelves and sometimes we can’t. If you have tall pantry shelves that can’t be adjusted, a helper shelf will create more space. Double the space means double the room for food storage! Here, small food items such as jello and pudding boxes fit well underneath and larger boxes stack equally as well on top.

7. Playroom – Kids have big toys and small toys and as a parent, I know that not all shelves accommodate all sizes of toys. Place a helper shelf on a tall shelf to store puzzles or board games on top and create a home for small toys like cars or a basket of Beanie Babies underneath.

8. Home Office – Use a helper shelf in a closet or storage piece to neatly stack and store office supplies. This will make it much easier to find and retrieve the supplies you need.

9. Laundry room – Like the playroom, a laundry room also has large items and small items that both need an organized home. Purchase a heavy-duty helper shelf for detergent storage and place small items such as dryer sheets and a receptacle for lonely socks below.

10. Over/Under Kitchen Sink – I had one of these when I lived in an apartment years ago. It was a great way to make more room for me in my already tiny kitchen. I put my sponge underneath the shelf and kept dishwashing soap and a few decorative items on top.

What are YOUR helper shelf ‘hot spots?’

A few weeks ago, I was in Target and came across some organizing products in the Dollar Spot. I was so excited to blog about my finds!

That day, many of the $1 organizing products I found were office products–file folders, to-do list pads, etc. But, as I was about to leave the Dollar Spot, I spotted this blue bin below.

It looked like a bin I was already utilizing in my pantry to hold my son’s snacks. The $1 one was bigger than the one I already owned. My son is getting bigger and so are his snacks–I needed a larger receptacle for them. Just by looking at it, I knew it would fit.

I brought it home, filled it with pre-made snack bags (that concept is a blog post for another time…) and replaced the old bin with my new $1 find. Voila!

Now, I have so much more room to store the snack bags my son goes through every week. I can prepare them in advance which saves me time in the morning and reach my hand in and grab one when I need one. All for $1–Three cheers for inexpensive organizing products!

Hip hip hooray!
Hip hip hooray!
Hip hip hooray!

I think I made a good investment. What do you think?