Thrift Score!

I started reading this book that my sister sent me, which I'm planning to talk about in more detail in another post. But basically it says to start your organization with the kitchen. So I'm starting with my kitchen. I think it's good, because my kitchen isn't actually the part of my apartment that stresses me out (no, that would be the TV on the living room floor and the piles of clothing exploding out of the closet) but the kitchen is a nonthreatening place to start-- a place where I WOULD make changes if it weren't for the other things that stress me out that I feel are demanding my attention. The book says to start with the kitchen, so I give myself permission to start with the kitchen. "The book says so," I say, glaring at the pile of laundry on the sofa.

So I went to the thrift store, looking for a few things to help my kitchen become a more usable, decluttered space.


I bought this jug for my wooden spoons and spatulas and whatnot so I can keep them on the counter. It wasn't the prettiest one in the shop, but it was the most convenient size and shape for kitchen utensil storage, I thought. I also got that clear glass jar basically to go with the blue and white ones behind it in the picture. I use them for rice, pasta, and... smaller pasta. The other day, in a moment of temporary insanity I bought barley and lentils at the grocery store so maybe if I put them in my pretty jars on the counter I'll actually cook with them and eat them. Also, there's not a lot of cabinet storage space, so keeping some things on the counter in little jars seems like a good solution. Okay, I'm lying, there is a lot of cabinet space but it's full of other stuff at the moment-- old sewing projects, photos to organize, C's clothes for when he visits, my high school yearbooks....


A spice rack. For A DOLLAR. And an apple corer (core-er?), because maybe I'll eat apples if they come in cute little triangles.


New ice trays! Fun shapes! And I can make soap in these, too.


Okay, so this is the one item that falls into the "clutter" category. But I HAD to buy it. It looks exactly like the one my grandmother used to have at her house. I remember she would put it out for me to pour milk on my cereal. Let's not discuss why the pitcher is shaped like a cow but the milk pours out of its mouth.

I know it probably doesn't seem like this stuff will help me get more organized, but go with me on this: I'll put the jug on the counter and put spoons and whatnot inside it. This will clear up some room in the drawers that was previously taken up by spoons so I can move, for instance, my hand mixer that I hardly ever use off the counter and in that drawer. Hm. I guess that makes it sound like I'm just REPLACING the mixer with a jug full of spoons. Maybe I'll take some before and after pictures to illustrate how this is going to work.... Stay tuned.