You know the drill because it happens every day…your family walks in the front door and drops all their stuff instead of putting it where it might actually go. In most homes you can find keys, hats, gloves, shoes, bags, the mail all piled up on top of each other. It’s no wonder things get lost in the house! Well let me fill you in on a little secret – with a little effort and some training, you can get your entryway cleaned up and organized in no time. This, however, is not what you want it to look like:
photo credit: joguldiHere is how we did it in our house…
Immediately upon entering my front door, there is a place for almost everything so that nothing gets lost. Keys go on the key rack hanging on the wall. Cellphones, spare change, and pocket lint go into the drawer of an old night stand right next to the door. Mail goes into a mail holder on top of the night stand. Shoes and boots go right onto the waterproof mat laid out next to the wall, and coats go on the coat rack behind the door. And after a while of working together to make sure we put our stuff in the right place every day, it has become a habit that just comes naturally. Now it feels weird to NOT put everything away right upon entering the house! So if your family has a hard time staying organized by the front door, and your foyer fills up with clutter each evening, start putting together a landing zone for all your stuff:
1. Hang a key rack by the door up on the wall.
2. Put a small table with a drawer underneath it.
3. Lay down a mat that is dedicated to just your shoes.
4. See if you can fit a coat rack (or better yet, start using the coat closet if you have one) next to or behind the door.
After a little bit of training, it will be easy to keep your front entrance organized and clutter free!
Great ideas! The best thing I did in the past month or so was to put a dresser as an entry table at my front door. And then instead of leaving it empty so there was room to toss a cluster of crap at the door when we walked in, I decorated. I put decorative things on the dresser and there is NO ROOM now to clutter the entry way with mail, papers, keys, everything. We are forced to go the extra step to put the things where they belong. It has really helped.
Just having something there always helps, as too many people don’t and end up throwing everything on the ground!
What a great site! I think all of us could simplify and organize our lives.
The front door scenario describes my house to a T, except that all of our stuff gets piled up on the kitchen table. My husband and I either eat out or eat in the living room … Terrible, I know! I definitely need to designate a space for all the “stuff.”
Thanks Kristen!