The Gift of Organization

Posted on July 25, 2012 by Mary Hunt in Tips 10 Comments

A recent column about my commitment to organizing my kitchen prompted a huge response from EC readers. I am happy to report “mission accomplished!” After reading an email from K.T., I was really touched. I think I’ll follow her lead and offer my help to a few people I know.

Organized

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FROM PILES TO LUXURY SUITE. My kitchen is pretty well organized, but Mary’s kitchen challenge got me thinking about my elderly, ailing mom’s home. She is stuck in her bedroom, almost buried under mountains of stuff. With her blessing, I dove in and organized as Mary recommended. After about 20 woman-hours, I presented her with a beautiful, clean, inspiring bedroom, walk-in closet and bathroom. We call it her luxury suite. She loves it, and I feel so good having helped her. Now I have a place to sit when I visit. I’m thinking of heading to her kitchen next. K.T., email 

A TOILET’S FRIEND. My toilets get a buildup of mineral deposits, and I’ve spent hours on my hands and knees with a pumice stone or fine grained sand paper. Now I sprinkle a little Bar Keepers Friend in the bowl, give it a good swish with the toilet brush, and let it sit until the next flush. I do this weekly, and the toilets are sparkling white, with no effort. Jean, California 

MAKE YOUR OWN FOAM. I bought one bottle of good quality foaming hand soap. When it ran out, I refilled the bottle with diluted regular liquid hand soap. The foaming action is in the pump, not the liquid. Marci, Georgia 

COOKING OIL SPOUT. When I open a new bottle of cooking oil, I take a sharp knife and cut a small triangle out of the foil safety seal. Then I poke a tiny air hole on the other side of the opening. This works great, and I don’t worry about pouring too much oil. Norma, email 

FRENCH-VANILLA TOAST. One morning, I wanted French toast but didn’t want to get out all of the ingredients. I noticed my French Vanilla coffee creamer and decided to mix that with my egg. Voila! Great French toast with little bother. Jean, Florida

SKATEBOARD MOVER. I use an old skateboard to move heavy things when I’m by myself. I can push things where I need them without straining myself. Karen, Virginia

ADD A SHELF. Most upper kitchen cabinets come with two shelves, placed equal distances apart. When I’m setting up a kitchen, the first thing I do is remove the shelves from the cabinets. Then I start at the bottom, placing items where I want them. I install the next shelf as low as possible, leaving enough room to remove items with ease.

Generally, there’s a lot of room at the top of the cabinet for another shelf. I buy shelving and the little shelf hooks at my local home improvement store. I’ve been pleasantly surprised at the additional space I’ve created in my cabinets. Sandi, Virginia 

Do you have a tip to share? Let us know in the comments below.

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Posted on July 25, 2012 by Mary Hunt in Tips 10 Comments
  • jtd

    BarKeepers Friend should be used near/on metals cautiously – it will ruin/discolor some metals. It removes rust very well but be sure to rinse well. I like the toilet bowl idea but hope no harm can be done to any pipes ! Hopefully enough water flushes and dilutes the product enough??!

    • LMM

      It is an acid, so be careful if you have a septic tank. I usually flush some baking soda after using an acid product like this.

    • Barbara

      Folks,
      This poster is silly — and needs to check more carefully before throwing out ill-considered cautions that do not have any basis in fact! Read the LABEL or call customer service before responding.

      1. ruining or discoloring metal: label states BKF is safe to use on metals EXCEPT gold and silver. From my own lengthy experience, it’s super on stainless steel and copper, which takes care of the majority of metals found in the kitchen.2. What evidence do YOU have, jtd, that it can harm pipes? Whether you use BKF in the bathroom or kitchen, it goes through the same pipes, doesn’t it — duh! Why would it be safe to use in the kitchen but not in the bathroom?
      BTW, I did what jtd apparently never thought of doing — called customer service! They state it is safe for pipes.

  • Emjay

    My husband, a structural engineer, is earthquake-savvy for our home here in California. Due to his advice, when we remodeled, we moved breakables (glassware, delicate items, etc) down below the counters in the kitchen and put the pots and pans in areas where they would take the brunt of any quake’s stress. We do not place anything heavy or breakable above our bed, so no heavy pictures (or even light ones) on the wall above us. We’ve done these kinds of things for years and have endured one quake that could have done a lot of damage but did not because of his precautions. It’s surprising to me that magazines featuring houses in quake zones like ours show glass fronted cupboards, open shelving with dishware artistically (but foolishly) arranged, huge mirrors over beds and yardscapes with unsecured and balanced statuary. So when people do their home organizing, I hope that quake safety is considered!

  • Karen4755

    My 1960 built-in, pull-out cutting board is in terrible shape. To make it useable, I put a thin plastic disposable cutting sheet on it & hold it in place with a thumb-tack. It is thin enough that I can slide the cutting board in & out without having to remove it. An additional plus is the plastic sheet is dishwasher safe.

  • michelleV

    before you threw out the kitchen clean out challenge I was already in the “purge” mode! I have now gotten through the entire house with the exception of the garage (hubby’s job) and the attic. I will be having one heck of a garage sale in the fall! Can’t wait and I’m so proud of myself for this accomplishment!

  • Judi Gant

    To help remove candle wax from glass holders, pour boiling water into holder. Wax will melt and float to top as water cools. This works best on smallish bits of wax.

  • D Larrison

    For hard water mineral deposits in the toilet, I use the vinegar solution that is left after cleaning out the coffee pot – just pour in bowl and let sit overnight and brush in the morning. Of course, clean vinegar is also effective – I just like to get another use out of the coffee maker vinegar!

  • Barbara Krall

    To Jean from California:
    I use Barkeepers Friend for lots of stuff around my home and swear by it — will try it on toilets (that’s about the only thing I haven’t yet used it for).
    What a pity you spent hours scrubbing lime scale off with a pumice stone — have you never used distilled white vinegar to dissolve lime scale? Works like a charm — also makes stainless steel fixtures & sinks and windows and glass knickknacks sparkle! I have 20-grain hard water and no water softener, so it’s a constant battle against lime scale.
    I also recently discovered that magic erasers work well on lime scale deposits, but they are expensive enough that I use the eraser as the last step to remove any leftover resistant spots. I cut the large rectangle into 1/2 inch strips — makes the eraser last longer.
    Non-toxic enviro-friendly toilet cleaning recipe (great if kids or pets): (approximate amounts)1/4 cup Arm & Hammer WASHING Soda1 – 2 cups undiluted white vinegar1/2 cup BAKING sodaAdd to toilet (mixture will foam), mix with scrub brush. Let sit overnight or as long as possible and periodically swish with toilet brush to keep the vinegar in contact with toilet bowl above water line.
    Sometimes there is a ring of lime scale left at the water line or under the rim where the water flows in. To remove, turn off toilet shutoff valve (a great way to test that the valve is working), then flush toilet. Water will not re-enter, leaving the water line ring exposed. Use a very small amount of some brand of hard core toilet bowl cleaner or CLR on a nylon green scrub pad. Re-open toilet valve and flush.

  • Sheila-Harbor Beach

    If you use a roll-on deodorant, when you think it is all gone, turn it upside down (put in a container if it won’t stay up alone) and you will get several more weeks of use from the bottle you were ready to throw away.