I hope it’s bright and sunny in the part of the world where you live in. Here, in Bangalore, there is an overcast for the past couple of days, but no rain in sight. But that doesn’t deter us from camping out on weekends, does it?

How and where do you store important bills? Do you have any ideas for stashing away wires and cords of the zillion digital devices that occupy our lives - from Kindle and Kinect to Creative and iPad? How about the knick-kanck in your kids room such as crayons, poster colors and chalk pieces?And, how about those bands and clips in rainbow colors in your dresser?

Over the years, I’ve used a combination of things for storage that’s recyclable and not ugly in presentation ranging from color paper-wrapped shoe boxes to colorful straw boxes. We have a habit of filing telephone, electricity and water bills upto 6 months in a file, and bills for all the other big purchases such as TV, music systems, fridge in a another folder.  The wires go in two cupboard drawers. Though the files and boxhttp://dressyourhome.in/wp-admin/post-new.phpes are neatly labeled, it’s not a IKEA kinda pretty storage. And, with a overdose of color, I’m getting tired of the straw boxes; it’s just personal and a longing for monochromes.

So, during a weekend visit to HomeTown, when I saw the Bigso boxes near the checkout counter, I was floored. Nothing fancy. They are your ordinary cardboard boxes with a sleek pullout handle that can be stacked vertically to created organized storage. Nothing sophisticated, yet makes you want to have it.

Available in various shapes and sizes and primarily in black and white, these no-frills boxes are made of paper laminate and recycled fibre board. The single boxes were priced at Rs. 349. If you are creative, maybe you can even make one. So, here’s a good start to clean and organized closet.

Image courtesy: Bigso box of Sweden

How many receipts do you have in your purse this minute? Do you have bills ranging from dry clean, tailor, grocery bills from Reliance Fresh/More,  vegetables purchased last evening to parlor trips a fortnight ago? The secret is out - these are after all what  makes a woman’s purse bulky! But, if you are the one of those organized ones, then you do know what to keep and where to file and what is to be trashed.

An incident at my son’s pre-school got me started on this post. The school asked parents to submit the child’s file Monday morning. This is how the system worked - at the beginning of the school year, every child was given a file to be taken home, and subsequently it was the parent’s responsibility file the individual sheets of school work that was sent home. The sheets just got interesting with time - coloring, art work, finger printing, oral drilling of numbers and alphabets, and I could see my on growing every week.  So, when I went to drop him Monday morning with the neatly filed sheets of paper, I was stunned to see another mother submitting her child’s file. With not a fold at any corner of the file and no signs of dirt or whatsoever, she has brought it neatly enclosed in another transparent folder. Yes, she was one of those ideal people who had hacked life successfully and made lists of lists, if you know what I mean.

This incident was just an eye-opener to how far we can go in organizing stuff around the house for easy access. Receipts and bills add to clutter around the home easily. It need not be an overkill, but striking the right balance with organizing can save a lot of time and effort in finding something when you need it.

Some simple tips to help you in organizing better:

1. Grocery Bills - Unless you’ve made a big purchase or intent to exchange something, it’s a good idea to trash the bills after checkout.Most stores require to see bills at exit. On exit, just dump them in the trash can instead of stashing away in your purse.

2. Dry Clean/Tailor - Important receipts such as dry wash, tailor or photos, the ones that you need a week or fortnight later, often get lost in the mundane clutter. Store such ones in a drawer or a box after you get home. Label the box so you’d remember. You don’t have to buy a box if you don’t have one, just reuse a shoe box or a old chocolate metal box.

3. Utility Bills - Electricity , telephone, water, credit card, mobile bills, and bank statements tend to quickly accumulate.  What’s worse is you can’t find them when you need them on instances like furnishing address proof. Maintain a file for your utility bills. Wherever possible , opt to receive monthly statements by e-mail. This works well for credit card, mobile and bank statements. Once in six months, revisit the file to discard old bills.

4. Appliances Bills - Maintain a folder to store bills of big purchases such as TV, washing machine, camera, sofa, furniture or anything else that comes with a warranty. We know it as the “pink folder” in our home as all the important bills are filed there after every purchase.

Do clothes fall out when you open your closet? Can you find your socks, hankies easily when in a hurry or do you have to empty the closet to find that red scarf? Is your personal space a treat to one’s eyes - with neatly ironed and folded clothes (with the fold facing outward) lining the shelves and crisp cotton saris and work suits arranged meticulously on hangers?  Many of us fall somewhere in between, don’t we? For a few days, however, after all the contents of the closet has been emptied out and organized, it does sport that Martha Stewart-closet look.

But why is it so hard to maintain an always well-organized closet? Lack of space, time, or no fixed space for accessories? It’s a combination of all of these factors. How much ever large one’s closet may be, if you don’t take the time out to discard what you haven’t worn in 6 months or if reorganizing is a quarterly affair, a disheveled closet will come as no surprise.

Here are some stimulating pictures to get ideas for organizing a closet (read: organizers, drawers, adjustable shelves, cubes and towel holders).

I saw this and fell in love with it instantly. Who owns such a large wall to wall closet? I mean who gets such a HUGE one all for themselves. See all the nice things that fit in there..

California Closet

Closet

Kids' closet

Some other tips:

Maximize your closet space by providing a two-feet tall hanger rack for  saris at the bottom of the cupboard. This way you are not wasting space.

Design a closet that works well for you instead of buying an off-the-shelf product. Keep your belongings in mind.

Organize the closet at the beginning of every season. For instance, winter clothes should be moved to a storage area in the loft or in boxes once spring sets in.

Image Courtesy:

http://www.californiaclosets.com/

Pottery Barn

Martha Stewart Living