A little eye candy for all you organization junkies out there...

If it involves baskets or bins and labels I can't resist...

Matching labels and matching canisters....!

Vintage suitcases as memorabilia containers!

the above and below are AMAZING

An artist's studio with organizational furnishings down to a T!

Check out the baskets with all the fabric swatches archived...

Paint cans mounted as spool reels! Also check out the buttons and other notions in small magnetic tins on the mirror!

1. Snakk Klikk
2. Pinterest  (labels free for download at BHG)
3. House to Home
4. Real Simple
5. Real Simple
6. Life Work
7. Little Green Notebook
8. Pinterest

A post-holiday orgainzation special: Those new electronics=more cords. How to manage them

Here's a DIY for you. When I saw the cord explosion behind my parent's entertainment center - all I could think was - "project!" Especially since I had it on good authority that the holidays would bring a couple of more cords into the mix, it was time to find a system to manage them. I'm sure everyone here can relate to this in some way, and this DIY costs $0 - not a penny.

Before - Here is the mess

Pretty bad huh?

Get yourself a dusting cloth, or electronic wipes, and your vacuum cleaner. Take this opportunity to wipe of the cords, consoles, and equipment while you're back there anyway. When you unplug cords or cables LABEL THEM so you know where they came from and what they go to. I used blank adhesive address labels and folded them around the cord at each end. Each end would be labeled with the name of the hole or device it goes into. You'll see this in the example below.

The end of each cable is labeled with the corresponding hole, i.e. " AV 1" or "Front Speaker - Left" You may find a labeling solution that works better for you based on your equipment.


In the middle of the project - don't worry - things might look worse before they look better.


Analyze if anything is hindering you from keeping the space organized and easy to maintain. For example, on the back of my dad's entertainment console, there were only two small holes for cords to be fed through. This made it really hard to ad a new device or change the settings on something.

So...being that the backing of the console was only fiber board, I traced a rectangle with a pencil and cut a much larger opening with a hacksaw. This allows easy access to the back of equipment, and provides better ventilation.

After cleaning and wiping everything, and labeling the cords, I put all the equipment back in the cabinet, rewired everything, and utilized regular household twisty ties to bundle the cords.

Labeled cords coming out of their respective equipment...


Cords bundled with twisty ties, with excess slack coiled up, and plugged back in. Using a power strip makes it easy to turn off everything in one easy action.

Labeled cables going into the back of the TV

The finished view from the front.

So what do you think? Do you have a mess of cords you've been wanting to organize in your house? Any good tips for managing cords?

For more cord management and electronic tips, check out last week's interview with Apartment Therapy's Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan on Techorating.

My interview with Apartment Therapy's Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan

I was so honored to have a chance to chat with Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan. He's the founder of Apartment Therapy, which was the first design blog I ever discovered and what ultimately inspired me to start blogging. We talk about "techorating," - successful decorating with technology that merges function and design. Below is the video of our interview, some still images, and even more tips from Maxwell on techorating.






Maxwell in his chic office at the Apartment Therapy headquarters.

The latest book from Apartment Therapy - "Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces," is packed with ideas for integrating technology into your decor beautifully


Apartment Therapy headquarters.

Techorating in action at Apartment Therapy. Cord management has become more attractive over the years with nifty helpers like these CableDrop cable clips.



One of my favorite ideas. I didn't even know these existed - a charging station that can charge up to four phones and only one cord. It's called the Duracell myGrid.


Instead of the outdated speakers you see above...Maxwell suggests looking into products like this ceramic Phoneofone III by Science and Sons. Your iPhone sits in the cradle at the opening and the sound is amplified. Read/see more info at Science and Sons. You'd expect this beauty to be almost $1,000, but it's actually $195 +SH.



He also mentions this Jambox from Jawbone. Completely wireless and small - but 120 DB. Cost is $199 and it comes in several colors.


Here are a few more resources from Maxwell.

An article on merging color and technology on Apartment Therapy. Click here to read.

A wiremold article for when you have to run cables/wires without drilling holes.


Click here to read.

Mini makeover for my home office

As some of you know I work from home - well, at my parent's house - while I'm getting my web design business off the ground. Since I'm limited in how much I can alter the appearance of the room since the space and the furnishings belong to my parents, I focus on keeping it as organized and functional as possible. I was lucky enough to be contacted by the folks at Command products from 3M asking if I'd be willing to test out some of their adhesive hooks, picture hangers, and other goodies an organization junkie like me goes gaga for. Of course I agreed and below you can see how I completed two office projects.

On a side note, I was surprised when I found these chic metal hooks! White plastic doesn't always fit into everyone's decor, so they were smart to create these stylish options.


Okay. So the two projects I needed to do were to find some solution to the absolute mess of cords on my desk from my speakers, backup drive, and extra monitor, and to hang my inspiration board.

Below: My cords


The 3M Command problem solver, medium cord clips


First thing I did was bundle up any cord slack and secure them with white twisty ties. (Most of my cords are white so I chose white). Make sure you leave enough loose cord to reach the electronic or outlet it's associated with.

Plan carefully and mark with a pencil if necessary where you'll place the hook. Wipe down the surface of the wall or furniture with rubbing alcohol, and allow to dry, before applying the hook.
Another thing I never knew about the adhesives is that before hanging anything on them, let them set for an hour.

My results aren't particularly pretty, but much more orderly. Now I need a table skirt to hide the cords!

The cord clips work great!

The next project was to hang my inspiration board. I decided to use these Damage Free Hanging Strips, which are similar to velcro - but much stronger. They have an adhesive side that go on the wall, and an adhesive side which stick to the frame.




I've wiped down the wall, marked where the board will go, and applied the hanging strips.


I then mounted and pressed the board to the wall. Unfortunately it fell about 30 mins later. In all fairness to the strips - I made a few mistakes that I'm sure affected the results. I didn't really read the directions thoroughly, and didn't press firmly for a full 30 seconds - completely forgot to wait an hour before hanging (I'm sure this was what did me in), and I didn't apply the strips to the frame at all, but attached them to the strips on the wall. Also, this wall is actually has a plaster texture, so the surface wasn't completely smooth.

Good news is, I used another hanging product -
I followed the directions to a T and it did the trick!

As a whole, I think these no-damage Command products are ideal for renters who don't want to put holes in walls, or those who want the option to move things around without having to patch holes. Also - don't make my mistake - read the directions! Also, save the packaging or go to the Command site for removal instructions.

See some pretty and practical inspiration at the Command site.


Disclosure: I received these Command 3M products as a sample