18 Ways We're Living With Viva Magenta

Back at the beginning of the year, we talked about how Pantone's color of the year is Viva Magenta and many of you asked how you could incorporate that into your homes. We're taking a look at 18 different rooms from people across the internet both from this year and earlier who have used magenta in innovative and beautiful ways to decorate their homes.

Use Magenta Details

This kitchen is already amazing, with the cream walls and the white subway tile giving the teal cabinetry room to wow. But having little magenta details throughout the room like the rug the tea kettle and the blinds is a great way to bring this color into your home without having to do an expensive makeover. Or give up a color you already love.

A Stunning Dining Room 

You can always use color blocking to separate rooms one from another the way the magenta breaks up the dining room from the living room to the right in this room by Studio DIY. But within the space of the dining room it ties everything together, letting you know that this is one room.

Courtesy of Studio DIY

Courtesy of Rebel Walls

Use A Mural

Maybe you're not interested in doing the whole room in magenta. You can use a mural instead, like this one from Rebel Walls that not only pairs it with several other complementary colors but also shows several different shades of magenta and lets it be balanced by the White and neutral tones throughout the room. It's a way to bring in some color without overwhelming yourself.

Relaxed & Inviting

The vibrant magenta in this bathroom makes the artwork and the mirror on the walls stand out all the more add in the green from the matching bottles and the plant life and you have a very warm and inviting bathroom.

Courtesy of Decoholic

Courtesy of Kati Curtis Design & Thomas Loof

Utterly Refined

Or maybe you want a more sophisticated look for your bathroom. That's where this bathroom takes the Cake. With the long ornate mirror paired with the deep magenta of the walls, it has a very sophisticated appeal. Throw in the matching hardware for the lamps and the faucets, and the drawer pulls and you have a very refined look.

Shaping UP

If you really feel like getting crazy, this ceiling mural from Shapes For The People, is the way to go. You still have the balance of colors that work together from the teal to the magenta to the yellow and the orange, but combined with the shapes, it is a very unexpected and playful atmosphere.

Courtesy of Shapes For The People

Courtesy of 41 West

Main and Modern

On the other hand, maybe you need something vibrant in your modern bathroom. The magenta walls paired with the sterile light in this bathroom is so utterly modern, but it practically shouts the Pantone 2023 motto of “being you”.

Surprise

What about in your kitchen though? Maybe your kitchen is already full of color and light but you need some areas where it's different. That's where painting your cabinets and the underside of your Island can come in. We are all over adding splashes of color in unexpected places and doing the underside of the island like you see in this photo is one of our favorites. It is an unexpected place that most people wouldn't think to paint but it pulls the room together.

Courtesy of ANNIE SCHLECHTER

Central Focus

Maybe you're looking for a little more sedate living room but you still want something to show your personality. That's what this living room has in spades. The majority of the room is done in neutrals from the floor to the curtains the walls and even the ceiling. And then you have the couches and the tables but it's in a small enough quantity that it's balanced.

Adding In The Drama

If you need something a little more dramatic in your life this is a good source of inspiration. With the deep blue painted brick and the gold dripping down the ceiling the velvet wingback chairs POP.

Looking Up At Magenta

If you're looking to add color but you're not sure where why not look up? All of the colors in this living room work and the magenta ceiling is another neat piece in that puzzle.

Countertop Shine

Another kitchen but this time the magenta is front and center with the countertop. Instead of tying the room together the counter is the focal point drawing your eyes to it, and balanced against the wood siding it creates a vibrant yet homey feel.

Splashing Magenta Around

This cozy kitchen is a great example of how to make color work for you. Several colors are mirrored in different locations, and it ties everything together. Our favorite though is the magenta backsplash that's slightly muted. Using a colored backsplash is a great way to add small doses of color into your kitchen. Techniques like peel-and-stick or removable tiles it's even easier to try out options until you find one you like.

Upgrade Your Pantry 

If you've got a storage nook or a butler's pantry, give it an upgrade and some color! This butler’s pantry from VanderHorn Architects is a great example of just that.

Pairing the magenta with the natural wood overhead and the white framing in this nook balance each other while making it a welcoming space.

Courtesy of VanderHorn Architects

Magenta In Focus

Adding a focal wall is a great way to unify the look of your room as this bedroom shows. The magenta tiles add texture and color to the room but also add a very pop feeling that counters the more ornate headboard and settee.

Magenta In The Background

While the chairs are magenta and certainly draw your focus, we want to point out the magenta wallpaper in the background. Using the wallpaper to add a second color in the background allows you to add some pop to the room against the darker paint. It also adds a ton of personality, without taking away from the room.

Living In Jewels

This living room is like living inside a jewel box. The walls might be white, but the layers of magenta and gold offer a stunning and lavish living room that anyone could be comfortable in.

A final room that’s done in shades of magenta and gold but feels very sedate somehow. If you get how this one works, let us know!

Do you think you'll be adding Viva Magenta or similar colors to your home sometime soon? Let us know over on our Facebook page, as always, we love to hear from you.

If you're wondering why an appliance repair blog is going on about colors and decorating, don't worry; this isn't all we do. Whether it is your freshly painted washer, or your still stainless refrigerator that is giving you fits, we can help. At Appliance Rescue Service, we work with you to find a date and time that meets your needs. Will send out one of our experienced technicians to diagnose the problem and then fix it. Whether you're in McKinney, Frisco, Dallas, Allen, or anywhere in between, we are here for you. Reach out to us via our contact page or by giving us a call at ((214) 599-0055). 

Which of These Four Styles is Best For Your Bathroom Renovation?

Which Plan Fits Your Home Needs?

So you're looking at updating your bathroom, or perhaps, you are gutting it completely. Either way, there are design choices that you want to consider before you bring in contractors or designers.

Let's get the basics out of the way. No matter what type of bathroom it is or how you envision it looking, some things will stay the same. You want to know what your budget is. You want to know how much of a safety net you have when those costs inevitably go over. Whether it's due to unforeseen issues, running out of a particular material, or having the project stretch longer than intended. It's always better to have a secondary amount of money you're willing to spend. You will need to research who you want to work with. Who in your area has the skills you're looking for? Who has the necessary licenses and permits? Which brings us to the next point, what licenses and permits do you need in your area? In your blocker's neck of the woods, it has recently been deemed that no one who is not a professional is allowed to do plumbing or electrical work, even to fix a faucet. Knowing what you can get away with on your own or what permits will be needed in order to make changes to your house is vital. Without that, the project delays for even longer, and you want to get down to business. It would be best if you also had a plan for what you want.

Fortunately for you, coming up with that plan is what this article is all about. We're going to look at four different cases that might cause a person or family to redo their bathroom and various features you might look at to fit that particular ideal. 

The Spa Bathroom

First up, we have the spa. This is for the person who loves spending time in their bathroom. This is for the person who enjoys being able to relax and wants their bathroom to reflect that finally. Whether every night, once a week or just once a month. If your ideal place to retreat to, to give yourself some much-needed self-care, is a spa, then this is for you.

Courtesy of PIRO

• Starting with the floor, look at doing underfloor heating and even cooling since this is Texas.

• Putting dimmer switches in or purchasing special light bulbs so that you can adjust your lighting

• Add an oversized tub to soak your worries away. And also be able to use all sorts of bath salts and bath bombs.

• Put in a walk-in shower with a built-in bench to soak under the water after a long day.

• While you're at it, either a waterfall shower head or having multiple shower heads from different directions is a treat that should not be missed. You can even ensure that the shower heads have Bluetooth capabilities so you can put on relaxing music.

• A towel warmer is a luxury, especially in the middle of a cold snap. 

The Family Bathroom

Next, let's take a 180° turn to a family bathroom. If you have a large family of children, it's not always possible to give everybody their own bathroom. Sometimes it makes the most sense to put all of the kids to sharing one bathroom. With that in mind, there are several features that take this from a Gordian knot to merely a Herculean effort.

Courtesy of Michal Jarmoluk

• Design a family bathroom from the ground up for cleaning. It will save you a headache later.

• Make sure to install an exhaust fan to prevent mold buildup when you have showers one right after another.

• Ensure the grouting is tight and your floor is sealed correctly. Not only does this prevent anything from breaking or pieces from getting ripped up, but it also makes cleaning much easier.

• Consider baseboard lighting so that it's easier for everyone to find their way at night without having to turn on super bright lights. Baseboard lighting is fantastic, in our opinion, and it means you don't wake up half the house. 

• Prioritize the storage that you have, and be bold and creative with creating new areas that work for your needs. 

• Putting a shower stand in one corner of the shower means that you don't have different products over every edge of the tub and falling onto the floor if they get bumped.

• Inside the cabinets, you have to make sure to maximize your vertical space. This can mean everything from having different baskets for different purposes to utilizing stacking boxes and shelves.

• And since you're redesigning, the spaces between studs can be turned into narrow nooks for storage. We've seen this put to Great use for giving every child their own cubby for their towels, robes, and grooming products.

The Host Or Hostess’s Bathroom

You may not have a house full of children at this point, but you may have family and friends that visit often. For the host or hostess, a proper bathroom would look different. Instead of being a catch-all for keeping your family healthy and clean, it becomes a place to ensure your guests have all that they need during their stay.

Courtesy of La Belle Galerie

• You'll want an all-in-one shower as well as a deep tub. You can add on mood lighting to the shower head or get one with a Bluetooth speaker to make the experience relaxing for your guests.

• A smart mirror that allows for increasing or decreasing light by voice command is fantastic for giving your guests a private area to get dressed for whatever the day might hold. They are also able to tell the weather!

• Having a fully equipped first aid cabinet. While we never want our guests to need it, having a stocked cabinet on hand ensures that whatever your guests might need, you're prepared. 

• Putting in storage for plenty of oversized towels, wash clothes, bed linens, and robes. Having a cabinet like this ensures that not only can your guest make themselves comfortable, but they don't have to feel that they're bothering you if they need something in the middle of the night.

The Utilitarian Bathroom

If the other three haven't looked like you, you might be looking for something more utilitarian. For when you're done working on your latest project, be it metal, wood, paint, or any other messy endeavor. You may like to work on old cars and need a bathroom that isn't the same as the main house one. A utility bathroom would be more your speed. 

Courtesy of Amie Foster & Apartment Therapy

• For that, we start off by recommending a curbless shower. This is a shower that has a linear drain at the back edge to make it easier to drain. It also means that there is no separation between you and the rest of the bathroom, be it curtain or door. Not only does this maximize the size of your shower, but in this case, it means you aren't tripping over something if you need to rinse something off immediately.

• Having a solid counter with a deep stainless steel sink and a high faucet is another consideration if you regularly work with messy, staining, or caustic materials. Ensuring that you also have plenty of counter space around that sink means that you can put any specialized soaps in easy reach without having to hunt for them when you're in need.

• It's also handy to have a separate and dedicated washer and dryer in the same room. This way, as you get clean, the clothes you were wearing can as well.

• Putting a secondary sink next to your washer and dryer is an easy way to leave clothes to soak if you get anything on them that you'd rather not keep. 

• Installing an exhaust fan in this bathroom is another necessity, not only for keeping mold out but also for airing out the room.

• Installing either a solid floor, such as polished concrete that is then sealed, or installing large tiles that need very little grout, makes it much easier to clean a bathroom like this. With that, you could run a hose from either sink and wash everything towards the drain that you already have in the shower.

These are only some of the possibilities for what you might want in your bathroom. You might focus more on bringing in a sauna or mixing together two of the ideas. There's nothing that says you can't have a utility-oriented bathroom with a bit of spa thrown in there. Whatever you decide, let us know over on our Facebook page. As always, we love to hear from you.

If your washer and dryer that you have are giving you trouble and are perhaps smoking or flooding the space that they're in currently, give us a call. We service everywhere from Addison to McKinney, from Dallas to The Colony. You can give us a call at ((214) 599-0055) or by heading over to our contact page. We'll work with you to set up a time and date that fits your schedule for when our technicians can come and help. Appliance Rescue Service is always focused on getting your home running smoothly again.

Ways to Update Your Bathroom, and Ways You Shouldn’t

Some of these were great and some didn’t make sense

We just survived Black Friday and like many of you, we were looking at all of the articles shouting about the greatest products for your home. But, have you ever really thought about the items? Or do you  just scroll past? This week we’re taking a look at a popular article over on Buzzfeed and giving our breakdown on whether or not we think you should add these to your bathroom. We’re looking at this article, so if you want to check it out before we get to it, have at it! 

Before we get started, this is our rating system. We did a rating of 1-10, with 1 “Being no way am I buying this” and 10 being “absolutely, you should get it”.

1. 1 - NO, these look beautiful for about a week before the hot water makes them lose their shine. They also don’t hold everything that you need if you have a household of more than 1 person. 

2. 5 - We are split on this one because, on one hand, you can DIY this look for yourself much more easily, BUT if the bamboo lids fit with your current decor, it’s an easy purchase. 

3. 1 - We have been warned to absolutely NOT do this, as it will actually ruin the finish on your tub. If you turn a normal cleaning into an attachment that’s one thing. The brushes that are designed for your drill though, are typically made with metal or wood in mind and will ruin your lovely tub. 

4. 10 - Utilize that vertical space! Poor design choices of homes often leave us with large gaps of useless space, so we love finding ways to solve that issue. 

5. 10 -  We love the idea. 

6. 6 -  Definitely useful if you choose the right one, but there are also definite possibilities of smacking your head against it. 

7. 10 -  Verified cleaning products are always a win in our book! 

8.  7 -  Bubble baths are a definite win as far as we are concerned, but we will say that with smaller tubs, such as builder grade, we will caution a need for awareness of your space so that you don’t tip it over or get hurt trying to get in or out of the tub. 

9. 1 - WHY? What is the purpose? 

10. 10 -  We’re not really concerned about the look of this one, but for ease of access and cleaning, we are all over it. 

One

Two

Three

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Five

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Eight

Nine

Ten

11. 10 - Not only does adding mirrors make a room feel more expansive, but it also makes it ~breathe~ more. 

12. 10 - Although not relevant to making your bathroom more organized, luxurious, or even magazine worthy, a squeegee is very useful for getting it clean. 

13. 10 - Dead useful for getting ready in the morning. 

14. 2 - It’s pretty, so it gets a point, but… why?

15. 10 - We absolutely agree on this one for several reasons. Your light fixture absolutely affects the way the rest of the room looks. The clarity of the light or how diffuse it is will also reflect on the space and how you use it. 

16. 8 - We love the idea of this one, but we won’t say it’s a need, more of a next step up for the look of your bathroom. 

17. 5 - Having a  set in your bathroom can absolutely tie everything together. But pastels? No. 

 18. No. We’re not even dignifying this one with a rating. Instead, we suggest a simple tray or a tiered system that will actually make use of the counter space that it sits on. 

19. 3 - Peel and stick tile is great for the kitchen, and we have sung its praises many times in the past. But in the bathroom, it is too likely to be damaged by humidity and water from the bath/shower and will need to be replaced frequently. If you’re up for that challenge, we so go for it, but be aware of what you’re signing up for. 

Eleven

Twelve

Thirteen

Fourteen

Fifteen

Sixteen

Seventeen

Eighteen

Nineteen

20- 23  10 All of them do what they say, and are great for cleaning

24. 8 - This is very tiny, and might not work for all bathrooms, but we do appreciate what it does and how well it does it. 

25.  7 - Cute, good for aesthetic but is small and easy to trip over. 

26. 8 - Definitely a luxurious upgrade to your shower experience, but we do prefer having options for the pressure that this waterfall shower head doesn’t seem to supply. 

27. 5 - Although definitely very useful, we would argue that this has little to nothing to do with aesthetic or looking like your bathroom is more spalike or luxurious. 

28. 6 - Much like the peel-and-stick tiles, this one can quickly deteriorate due to the humidity of the room. However, if you choose the right adhesive, you’ll gain the balance between “Sticky enough to stay on the wall for years to come” and “So sticky that it will peel off the paint AND the drywall when you want to replace it for something else.” 

29.  5 -This one just seems like a given to us? 

30. 10 - Mix it up with different colors, and we love this one. 

31.  15. For our final one, this is definitely one to round out the article on, as it is absolutely a fantastic way to finish any shower. If you’ve got the space in your bathroom for this, go for it. You will absolutely thank yourself later. 

Twenty Four

Twenty-Five

Twenty-Six

Twenty-Seven

Twenty-Eight

Twenty-Nine

Thirty

Thirty-One

With that we have finished out this article and we want to know what you think! Reach out to us on our Facebook page or in the comments below! We’d love to hear from you on what you agree or disagree with. 

If you’ve got issues with your major appliances and you found our blog by accident, no worries! Check over at this link and that’ll take you straight to our contact page. Or if you’d rather talk to us directly, you can give us a call at ((214) 599-0055). At Appliance Rescue Service, we’re here to help you get your home running smoothly. 

This is all in the interest of fun and discussion, and we don’t have anything against Buzzfeed or the author of the article. 

True or False? How Many Trends Do YOU Know?

Check Out Our Quiz To See How Many You Can Spot

Courtesy Of: Country Living

• Display Your Art in the Kitchen 

  This one is true!  It's become very popular this year to bring art all throughout the home. Companies like Displate offer art that is sturdy enough to hold up in the kitchen, while others are looking at digital frames like the ones from Samsung. 

Courtesy of: Kinedesign

• Bringing Back Freestanding Bathtubs 

  This  one is also true.  We're loving having bathtubs be the center of the bathroom again. Although the concept of self-care is a bit contentious as to what defines it, there are many different reasons to love a good soak. From the physical to the mental to the emotional, there are dozens of benefits to a soak in the tub, and having you bathroom's central focus on it just makes sense. 

Courtesy of: Wallart & Indecortrends

•  Bring the Garden Inside with Floral Wallpapers

  This one is true. We talked earlier this year about bringing in larger patterns for wallpaper into the home, gardens seem to be what's really getting the focus this year. We can't say how long this trend will last, but with peel and stick wallpaper, we don't think there's any harm in finding the perfect wallpaper for you. 

Courtesy of Zionstart

• Let Yourself Breathe with High Ceilings

  Here we've got out first false. While this is a fantastic design option in your blogger's opinion, current design trends aren't currently focusing on this one. The towering ceilings are lovely to look at, it's not an easy look to get if you're not building your own home or purchasing an older property. 

Courtesy of Paynes Grey

• Make It Minimal with Metal and Glass 

  This one is also false, and is actually a trend from the 1920s instead. Check out the precise lines and the shine of glass, it's a very Art Deco style. At the moment the straight lines aren't so much a thing as are curves and more natural shapes. 

Courtesy of: Revival Beds

• Make Your Room Royal with a Four Poster Bed 

  This one is very true and we love it! As we've mentioned previously, we're all over the idea of being comfy in your home, that your home should be your castle and your getaway. This trend is taking that to the next level and bringing back four poster beds and we are loving it. 

Courtesy of: The Chive

• Be Comfy All Year Long With Cozy Fabrics

  Another true one, and again, very much an outcome from the pandemic. Adding in comfort to every room, when you don't know what a given day will bring you, is a fantastic idea. Whether that's linens and cottons or velvets and weighted blankets, we love that people are focusing on making their home safe, clean and comfortable 

• Let Your Room Be as Complicated As You Are With Contrasting Decor

  This one is true, and admittedly, we can see why. By having your room one color and then bringing in different contrasting colors, it allows you to have more play and expression in different rooms. 

Courtesy of Trendesignbook

• Bring in the Bling with Art Deco 

  Sadly, this one is false. Although Art Deco has become popular again, at the moment the trends are heading more towards those of Art Nouveau, rounded natural shapes and natural colors. 

Courtesy of :Touch of Design

• Flounces Everywhere! 

  Thankfully, in your Blogger's opinion at least, this one is currently false. While flounces are currently rather popular as an accent when it comes to clothes right now, we aren't seeing them transition back into decor just yet.  

Courtesy of : Ridgestonehomes

• Paint Your Kitchen, Anything BUT White 

  If you paid attention to an earlier post this year, you'd be wise and know this one is true! Not only are people getting rid of their upper cabinets, but they're also painting their cabinets all sorts of vibrant and stunning colors. 

Courtesy of Sideboards & Buffets

• Ancient Egyptian Design 

  Although Egyptian design is always very interesting, at the moment it's not a top trend. Which is either a  very good thing, or very bad, depending on your love of gold and blues. 

Courtesy of: Factory Direct

• Let Your Sofa Be Curvy 

  This one is true! As much as we're all loving on the curves in nature, we're applying it to our sofas as well. We don't see this one hanging on for long though, as it is rather difficult to plan around a curved piece of furniture, as people in the 70s knew all too well. 

Courtesy of: The English Home

• Plaster work (gilt optional) 

  As interesting as plasterwork is, we're rounding out our list with a false!  Plaster work has the possibility to add so much character to a room, but for the time being it's not a trend. Probably because of the price that goes into it.  

How did you do? 

1-4 = You're still finding your footing for trends. 

5-9 = You're well on your way to being a trendsetter! 

10-14 = You are a verified trendsetter! Go out and help people find the best decor for them this year. 

Did we have any that we missed? Let us know in the comments below or over on our Facebook page. As always we love to hear what you think. 

If you're wondering why in the world we're talking about interior decor when you just need help with your dryer, we've got you covered. Give us a call at ((214) 599-0055) or reach out on our contact page. We'll work with you to find a time that works with your schedule and make sure that we figure out what's going on with your appliances. 

Clearing Out Clutter

How to take all the clutter down.

Table of Contents

Groups

Labels

Give It A Home 

Cunning Storage Solutions

How many times a month do you end up looking around your house and wondering where all of this clutter came from? For us, it's about once a week. Especially after the last two years of living in quarantine, it's a bit much! It's time to start cleaning and busting that clutter. We've got three 'general' tips that can and should be applied everywhere in your home. Then we'll take a look at different areas of your home where you can sneakily hide things that no one will suspect. Let's get started and get clutter busting. 

Group Like With Like

Technically speaking, this is all grouped together.

Photo by Dimitry Anikin from Pexels

When it comes to keeping things organized, you want to group like with like. Books with books, dishes with dishes, pop tarts with pop tarts. (We can't be the only ones whose children insist on having every flavor.) This root concept is really simple, and the great news is that it doesn't have to make sense to anyone but you and your household. (We're adding that caveat because getting kids to use a system they don't understand is surprisingly difficult.) Having everything together means that when you want something, it's easier to find it. So long as it's with other things "like it" you'll know where you need to go. 

So, think about how you sort things. Do you have games, books, and out-of-season sweaters all together on one shelving unit? Could you separate them out so that your clothes go elsewhere, leaving the books and games together as 'entertainment' and the sweaters go with other clothes? This is just us though. 

Labels

This one can be intimidating to start, but once you're going, it's easy to maintain. We'll break it down with you to give you some ideas of how you can use labels to make your life easier. Once it's complete you're under self-applied pressure to keep everything on forward momentum to maintain the system. We'll also point out that labels don't have to be just boring black letters on a white strip of paper. You can get very creative with how you want your labels to look dependant on where you're using them. 

  -Kitchen

In the kitchen, you might consider labeling which shelf is for what inside of your refrigerator. Think about all of those pictures you seem in home decor magazines with the perfectly organized fridges. 

- Pantry

Yup, your pantry can be labeled too. Start by sorting things out (there's that 'like with like' concept again.) Then group it together. Some things to consider might be labelling surplus flour, sugar, types of beans etc. Or if you keep a lot of canned goods, you might attach a  note that the newest cans should go at the back.  This one really is only limited by how in depth you want to go. (Your Blogger is dreaming about the day she has a pantry large enough to warrant this.) 

- Laundry

When you have a large family, or a large closet, you almost always end up with different types of detergent for different purposes. Why not label them? 

- Living room

Yup, you can label your living room too. Break down your DVD collection between "kid friendly" vs " Not" for when you have family over. Or you could seaparate out the different games into different cabinets. 

- Bathroom

Does your SO have towels that are only theirs? Or maybe you have a set of towels that you want to keep for when guests come, and keep your kids from using? Label where you keep them. You could also apply a sorting and labeling system to the underside of your sink, keeping things from getting lost or shoved in haphazardly. 

-Bedrooms 

Whether it's your space or your child's space, labels can be very useful. We advise talking about a system before you implement it into your kids room though, this way they know what you're expecting. 

Not only means you know exactly what you’re looking at, they also make it easier to find what you’re looking for. Begone clutter!

Give It A Home

That last point leads right into another key organizing concept. Remember how we were talking about having your books and your sweaters together? Take a look at that same idea, and takes a closer look at why you're putting things in certain places. Do you always put on your comfy sweater while you're reading? Or maybe you come in the front door and go straight for your mugs to pour yourself a cup of tea, and you end up with your keys and mail on the counter. These are 'homes' that we unintentionally create for things. 

Instead of unintentionally doing it. try to do it intentionally. If you know you're going to go straight for the tea, consider putting a mail sorter and a basket underneath. This way when you come in, you can sort your mail, have a spot for your keys, AND still stick to your routine. 

For this concept you want to look at what routines you already have that you're willing to change and those that you're not. If you have other areas that you have clutter collecting that you're /not/ happy with, you need to start by understanding /why/ it keeps landing there before you can change it. Would putting a hamper in the bathroom save you from socks all over the floor? What about putting a tray for drinks in the fridge to keep from losing them behind leftovers? Or putting out of season clothing in clear bins so that you can know what you have in between seasons? So grab a pen and paper and check out where you have clutter piles and why they might be there. 

This beautiful pantry from Good Housekeeping is our dream. Look at how organized everything is!

Cunning Storage Solutions

How many places can we find to store things? The answer? Many. SO many. 

Mind the Gap! 

There are two options here, depending on how you're looking at things. A gap that exists already, say around furniture, behind door or above things. Or you might be looking at floorboards and the bottoms of cabinets. 

Do your cabinets go all the way down to the floor, or is there a gap where they rise about 3 inches? There are kits that can turn that into storage. It's great for stashing cutting boards, cookie sheets and cooling racks, as well as any strangely shaped plates you might not want to keep in the 'normal' cabinets.

You can also make use of the space between your cabinets and appliances, unless you're already reveling in a smooth, no-gap kitchen. If you're not though, consider having a custom built, pull out cabinet.

Watch it Stud! 

Behind your bathroom mirror is a great place to turn into a storage area. Some of us already have pop out cabinets, but many of you prefer the look of a flat mirror. Fortunately, you can carve out a space in between the studs and turn that into a set of shelves to get things off of your counters. 

Or you might take a look a full length mirror or piece of art that you have elsewhere in your home and do the same thing elsewhere. 

Doors Go Both Ways

 Look at your doors. Can you hang an organizer on the back of them? Whether you're creating an organizer (thank you Command Strips) or you have one already picked out from Crate & Barrel, doors are a great spot to store things and keep them off the floor.  

Use Space Wisely

We mentioned it before, but putting extra organization into cabinets is very useful. Whether that's stackable boxes or open sided bins, there's all sorts of ways to maximize the space within your cabinets that you might not have thought of. The same concept can be applied to drawers. The most common idea is using a silverware tray so that all of your silverware is sorted "like to like." (There it is again!) 

Avoid this! Put our tips to good use, and bust that clutter!

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels

Are you starting to look at your home a bit differently? What about the open spaces versus the piles of clutter? Let us know over on our Facebook page, we'd love to hear from you. :) 

If you're here not because you need to declutter but because your appliances have gone on the fritz, we can help! Head on over to our contact page and we'll work with you to set up a time that works for you or you can call us at ((214) 599-0055 )! 

Additional Reading

Getting Your Home Clean, Month By Month

Making Cleaning More Fun

10 Crazy Dupes For Household Cleaning Supplies

Organizing Your Fridge For Efficiency And Safety

Decluttering The Kitchen

The Five Most Common Types Of Clutterbugs