Philip Schmidt - The Complete Guide to a Clutter-Free Home

BLACK&DECKER

THE COMPLETE GUIDE TO

Organized Storage Solutions & Projects

by Philip Schmidt

Minneapolis, Minnesota
www.creativepub.com

Copyright 2009

Creative Publishing international, Inc.

400 First Avenue North, Suite 300

Minneapolis, MN 55401

1-800-328-0590

www.creativepub.com

All rights reserved

Printed in China

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Digital edition: 978-1-61673-394-0
Softcover edition: 978-1-58923-478-9.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Schmidt, Philip.

The complete guide to a clutter-free home: organized storage solutions & projects / by Philip Schmidt.

p. cm.

At head of title: Branded by Black & Decker

Includes index.

Summary: Includes strategies, ideas and step-by-step how to projects that offer creative storage solutions to help control household clutter--Provided by publisher.

ISBN-13: 978-1-58923-478-9 (soft cover)

ISBN-10: 1-58923-478-2 (soft cover)

1. Storage in the home. 2. House cleaning. 3. Orderliness. I. Title. II. Title: Organized storage solutions & projects. III. Title: Organized storage solutions and projects. IV. Title: Branded by Black & Decker.

TX309.S32 2009

648.8--dc22

2009028981

President/CEO: Ken Fund

VP for Sales & Marketing: Kevin Hamric

Home Improvement Group

Publisher: Bryan Trandem

Managing Editor: Tracy Stanley

Senior Editor: Mark Johanson

Editor: Jennifer Gehlhar

Creative Director Michele Lanci-Altomare

Senior Design Managers: Jon Simpson, Brad Springer

Design Managers: James Kegley

Lead Photographer: Joel Schnell

Shop Assistant: Cesar Fernandez Rodriguez

Production Managers: Linda Halls, Laura Hokkanen

Page Layout Artist: Tiffany Laschinger

Shop Help: Charlie Boldt

The Complete Guide to a Clutter-Free Home

Created by: The Editors of Creative Publishing international, Inc., in cooperation with Black & Decker.

Black & Decker is a trademark of The Black & Decker Corporation and is used under license.

NOTICE TO READERS

For safety, use caution, care, and good judgment when following the procedures described in this book. The publisher and Black & Decker cannot assume responsibility for any damage to property or injury to persons as a result of misuse of the information provided.

The techniques shown in this book are general techniques for various applications. In some instances, additional techniques not shown in this book may be required. Always follow manufacturers instructions included with products, since deviating from the directions may void warranties. The projects in this book vary widely as to skill levels required: some may not be appropriate for all do-it-yourselfers, and some may require professional help.

Consult your local building department for information on building permits, codes, and other laws as they apply to your project.

What makes this book different from the many other books about home organization and storage? Simple: it not only guides you through the process of decluttering and organizing your home from top to bottom, it also shows you how to create dozens of innovative storage solutions for maintaining order in every room in the house. It isnt simply a bunch of commonsense tips youve heard a thousand times, illustrated with some old photos that resemble your parents or grandparents house. Nor is it an entry-level woodworking book with black and white diagrams showing you how to build six different spice racks. The Complete Guide to a Clutter-free Home is a practical guide intended for the enthusiastic do-it-yourselfer whose goal is to create an efficient, visually pleasing home for today, where every item has its place.

Since youre thinking about home organization, and perhaps have even slipped into daydreams about a blissful, clutter-free existence, youve surely wondered what the secret is to keeping everything in its place: Better storage containers? More closet space? A remodeled kitchen? A bigger house? Of course, having more space and more places to put things might help, but only temporarily. The fact is, a three-story home can have as many storage challenges as a one-bedroom apartment, its just that one can be crammed with a lot more clutter than the other. The real secret to a well-organized home lies in a process of analyzing your everyday activities and finding storage solutions that make it all work better.

To be sure, part of that process is weeding through all the junk youve been diverting to piles in recent months or years. This follows a process of its own, which youll learn about in the first chapter. But soon enough youll come to the more thoughtful work of devising a storage plan for each room, and then creating or choosing the best projects or products to meet your needs.

As you work toward your goal of a clutter-free home, it will help to remember that organization is always a work in progress. Dont expect a global transformation to happen overnight or even over a long weekend. Once you get started, youll find that much of the organizing work involves adopting a new way of thinking in addition to seeking the right place for everything. Youll also find that each accomplishment, no matter how small, will motivate you to do more. Try to set a doable goal for each block of time you have available, and focus on tackling a specific area before moving to the next. Like any big project, household clutter is best managed one step at a time.

The photos on the next few pages will help inspire you to get the ball rolling and take control of the clutter in your home.

Gallery of Storage Success

This versatile kitchen island is a one-man-band of clever space utilization. It includes a prep surface for the cook, a breakfast bar for the family, and a spacious storage alcove that is put to good use as an entertainment center. It also creates a visual barrier that helps segregate any kitchen mess from the other living spaces.

This easy add-on to the end of an upper cabinet run takes pressure off the horizontal surfaces below, where the various notepads, keys, and pencil holders would otherwise reside.