15 Popular Organizing Tips that Don't Work 

Yaaaaaaassss! The spice jar thing. You are the first person that had the same experience as I did. No doubt, it is beautiful, but our drawers are not super glide and the weight was the first issue, and as you said, extra from decanting was the next. I gave them away and am back to the drawer of chaos...but managable chaos. Thanks for voicing an opinion that is not shared by the masses. :)

I love my spice jars but now i don't do the cooking, my husband does, and they don't work for him. We're in the process of, as we finish a jar, not decanting and just using all the mismatched containers they come in. It's driving my OCD brain crazy but it's his kitchen now 😊 I am so glad to hear someone admit that a cleaning schedule doesn't work for them. Now i don't feel so guilty about failing at so many. I work full time and have some pretty serious health problems so a lot of time i just don't feel like doing anything. And the laundry! I just do it all on the weekends. It would drive me crazy to do it daily. If we need something during the week, my husband does it.

The original OXO containers used to seal super well, but since they have replaced them with these PoP 2 containers, its been horrible as it really does not seal. So sad as I used to love them.

one of the best videos ever. I have to add one...the boxes that go on bookshelves , i never remember what's in them

I love my OXO containers. I totally agree about spice decanters. Now I have 2 of every spice. The pretty, expensive container which took forever to make a label symmetrical that now comes off. And the real jar that fits the use of spice. It has the right kind of lid and the size that I use, ie large for garlic powder and small for cloves.

I agree with you on the OXO and spice jars!! And the decanting shampoo… and the cheap Dollar Store containers.

I think deciding where you are currently in your life is helpful. I’m retired and good for big projects. My son is a stay at home dad with littles so sometimes 5 minutes is all he’s got. Also , I’m a lot more minimal than I would have thought in cabinets and drawers but love home decor. 😀

Not everything needs to be in a container. As for the spices my cousin advised me to binder clip it and put all packages into a big air tight container

Jenky cheap containers drive me crazy. Especially (as you said) when they aren’t really square so they take up too much room. I’d rather spend more and have what I actually want. It might take me a bit before it’s in my budget, but at least I’m actually able to use them.

This may be your most entertaining video to date 😂. You keep it real. Love the shirt!

Off topic....in case you don't know... Your earrings make a lot of jangle sounds.... Hitting your microphone....😅

I just don't use that many spices when I cook which really simplifies things.

Loved your video!! So real and down to earth. Those schedules are just to torment people 😂 For uniformity and affordability ~Just get all your spices from Trader Joe’s or Kroger depending on what you like better. The Kroger brand metal tins are actually cute and their store brand is actually decent quality spice. Plus I do like their tops a lot with a sprinkle, spoon or shake out a bit options. Trader Joe’s is a pretty good quality spice, I love the glass jars and the variety they have. But if you want uniformity stick with one or the other. I’m ok with having different sizes and colors and put it all into a big bin and pull out my bin when I’m cooking then they all go back and I don’t really care how that bin looks no one sees it but me. I do try to keep certain spices together- like cloves, nutmeg cinnamon -kind of more baking spices and I keep things like garlic and onion powder etc together and then just variable spices that get used for lots of things like my oregano, basil, Montreal steak seasoning etc. Every now and then I do get careless and have to go through and put them back in a little better order but it’s not a big deal. Btw if anyone wants to decant and go to glass at IKEA the little round containers that have a flat bottom hold quite a lot and are perfect for bulk spice buying. They just take up a fair amount of room. I think they’re close to 4 oz or are 4oz. But for most things you won’t be left with 2 bottles of spices. These do need labels - after a while paprika and cayenne look just alike 😂whew! 🥵

Amen to all of these! Especially decanting conditioner... I had the bottles "decanting" on my bathroom counter top for at least 3 months 😂

I have maximum 8 spices that are repeatedly used on a daily and weekly basis. Then there is my Indian spice collection that is used rarely. So, for spices I had to divide the daily/ weekly used spices very close to the stove and the rarely used can go out of sight somewhere .

The elaborate cleaning schedule! Ugh! Still trying to find one that works for me

Lots of great tips!

Oh yes the spice thing drives me nuts. My daughter went and bought me all these beautiful matching spice jars. I buy spices that are frequently used in larger amounts and have a ton of herbs and spices because I cook a lot. Those jars were the bane of my existence. Herbs didn't shake out as well as the bottles they came in designed for it, I had leftovers and storing those meant now I am storing 2 instead of the one. I also always knew what the bottle this spice or that came in and could grab them quickly, then with them all matching you have to spend more time looking for the one you want. 🤦‍♀

I've not been able to find a sturdy cookie sheet/cupcake tins, etc, organizer. I clink and clank getting them in, out my thin, but deep cabinet next to the stove. Any suggestions?

Hi Laura. The tip of doing a load of laundry every day does not work for me at all! My washer and dryer are in a small closet and to do laundry. I have to pull everything out that is in front of the washer and dryer, including the laundry hamper, I do as many loads of laundry as I can at one time. I do not mind it at all!

In order of appearance (1) I don't decant spices. I keep them in their original jars. I also keep them in the pantry, on riser shelves, so they take up less space. (I don't have drawer space for the spices and herbs I've got.) In general I prefer square containers, but spice jars are largely round, so whatcha gonna do? (2) For the larger containers (not in the kitchen--I don't decant anything), I splurged on the iDesign clear bins (Costco recently had a great deal on a pack of 18 and has other buying options at good prices). They will last forever and they are exactly what I like--way better than any of the less expensive options, and just like your Dollar Stor organizer fail I'm going to save money by getting exactly what I want. Most of them are going behind closed doors in my pantry, cupboard, closets, etc. (3) Agree re "overstock." For me it is a balance between how much space it takes up, what it costs, and how fast I use it. If the I know I'll be able to get the same deal later, I'm less concerned. It's a screaming deal, I might make space for it. Bottom line is that I have to be able to SEE what I have (hence all the clear bins) or I will end up wasting things because I forget I have them. I love the Home Edit's color-coding everything but my books? NO WAY.

I buy all organic spices, and I stick to square containers when I buy them, that way they all fit together without having to decant. I have one seasoning blend I buy in bulk, I saved an empty jar and took the label off, no need to buy anything.

OXO - I can't stand OXO containers. I only use them for non-food items such as q tips, cotton balls, etc. I use mason jars instead and they are super practical, affordable, and easy to wash. Spice jars - I'll disagree on the spice jars. I love decanting and keep the backup in mason jars. Laundry - I'm still trying to declutter because, as a new mom, I am constantly drowning in laundry and can't keep up. I don't have 70 million items of clothing, but I definitely have too many where I can postpone laundry to 2 weeks and that's too much for me 😅

I put my spices in the jars in the cabinet on a lazy Susan

I love books and love the idea of rainbow book shelves. NOPE-can't find anything! I have to look online to see what color the book is to find it. I separate by type-garden, self help, poetry, fiction, pets etc. Now I usually can go right to it.

Your comment about we need to declutter digitally took some guilt off me. Last night I spent 2 hours going through email and unsubscribing and I wondered if this really is decluttering. Confession, part of the time the time I was watching FB reels, so maybe it was only an hour of removing digital clutter. I believe I will feel more at peace when I stop getting information I signed up for and no longer am interested in.

I have my glass clamp.jars on my pantry shelf. The spices live on my bskers rack on trays

Earring asmr lol 😜

My digital files are a mess. 😭

Was somebody recording this? There was a distracting noise going on in the background.

Lol yea I'm not a house cleaner either

I did have backups but using them up and then when I know I’m getting low, I know to watch for it being on sale or just getting replacement With Minnesota winters, I will stock up on pantry so less to get on frigid temps and snowstorm days