Friday, October 8, 2010

56 October Featured Space: Kitchen - Disastrous Drawers {part 2}

So on Monday, I shared a messy little secret we had going on here at the Jones' home.  It was nightmarish to this gal, and although I looked at it each and every day, it's something I completely put off tackling...

And now that I have it done, it's like, "What in the blankity blank were you SO scared of?"  It was incredibly easy to slim down and organize and living with the end results have been a little slice of heaven!  And to know how many minutes of our lives had been wasted digging through those drawers {and carefully non the less to ensure we didn't slice fingers!}

Well, I am saying goodbye to those risky digging days.  Because our drawers are now fab.  I look for reasons to go into them now, vs. running and hiding under my bed.

So when I left you last, I had just emptied out all the drawers and put all of my old and duplicated items into a box to donate.


This fortunate gal had a generous friend that had a couple rolls of wallpaper left over from one of her projects, that she gifted me, and I had been eagerly waiting to use it.  So I did!

I vacuumed out the drawers, wiped them clean and lined them with the wallpaper!


Showing a pretty before and after!


Not only does the wallpaper make the drawer uber fabulous looking, it will also remain easy to wipe clean and prevent bacteria from entering the wood.  And will just pull right back up someday if I change my mind on it {which I don't foresee happening!}

I decided that I needed to make a small investment in this project to maintain strong long term results.  And more importantly, I wanted to provide us with a much safer way to store our sharp belongings.

Again, thank you to Target for being my one stop place for all things.  Target had exactly what I was looking for, which was a drawer knife block {which ran me about $20} and some acrylic drawer organizers {which were under $15}


I decided to go with the knife block inside the drawer, because:  A} My knives are older and not the prettiest, and B} I don't have a lot of counter space and C} I feel like if they were out, the little ones would be more apt to grab at them, however, in a drawer, out of sight, out of mind!

I started with the top drawer, which used to look like this:


And popped in the knife block!

    

And then in went the knives!


We designated this whole drawer for all things "sharp" or for "cutting", so using the old drawer organizer I had been using to corral our knives previously, was now used for our peeler, pizza wheel and can opener.


Giving the drawer a final look of this!


And if you think that's good, this next drawer is my absolute favorite!

However, it wasn't always....


I just placed in the acrylic drawer organizers...


And filled them accordingly, based off of storage size and the utensils I had remaining.

I paired down all my measuring cups to just my most expensive pretty ones, since they were the only ones I ever found my self using anyway {I also have a measuring cup for more specific measurements when necessary}.  And I really used the mindset to keep things simple and paired down.  How many ways to measure do I really need?


Speaking of measuring, my measuring spoons {again paired down}, went into a smaller slot!


The smaller slots were also perfect for holding our citrus items, like juicer and peeler.


But the part that makes my giddiest about the whole drawer, is that my cake decorating accessories are all nicely stacked and corralled, vs. rolling all over the drawer!  They were everywhere before!


And the cake decorator itself tucks nicely in the back!


The rest of our longer utensils were tossed into the last organizer.


Giving the finished drawer look of....


Can I totally swoon over my own projects?  Because I do!

And last but not least, that baking disaster drawer got a little help as well!

It once looked like this crazy mess of making me never want to bake again:


More acrylic organizers were added to the left side, to hold the cookie cutters I saved {this worked for me only because I refuse to do much with cookie cutters.  I know, I am a bad mommy, but I definitely am not a baker and have ruined every cutout cookie I have ever tried to make... so realistically, I only saved my very highest quality ones, which I will use for Jello only, and the rest were tossed {rusty, ew} or given to the kid's to play with in their play kitchen}.


My mixer attachments went into another slot.


And one for the mixer {I just used a hairband to keep the cord in place!}


I tossed my rolling pin on the side and it was complete!


Our final drawer is one that was always organized, it just got some paper added to make it prettier!


And that's that!

Side by sides are my favorite part.  And these ones are definitely no exception!  I was feeling very accomplished after this quick and easy pair down organizing makeover!




Doesn't even look like the same drawers right?  Which is why IHeart this project so much!  And knowing that my knives won't become dull so quickly, and that we won't accidentally loose a limb by digging, is a great piece of mind that I have been needing!

And for your very observant folks, I know there are more pieces to this puzzle I haven't divulged on yet.  Like cooking utensils and potholders... guess you will have to wait for part 3!

What do you think?  How are all of you coming along on the basket challenge?  I had quite a few of you mention you were going to try it!  Who is beautifying the insides of their drawers? {that just doesn't sound right!} You all know why I am nuts like that though, I totally think that when something is pretty, it's much easier and more motivating to keep it organized!

56 comments:

  1. LOVE IT!! I love the wallpaper idea! I am sure it feels great to have everything in its place!

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  2. Love this. I can't wait until Part 3.

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  3. This is so cute! We just bought a house and the inside of our drawers have unsightly grease stains I would like to cover. How did you lay the wallpaper? Did you adhere it or just lay it flat?

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  4. Love it! Where did you get your knife block?!

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  5. Hi Jenn!

    I just used a wet sponge, completely saturated the pre-pasted backside and smoothed it on flat, just like I would have if it would have been on a wall. The great thing about this specific paper is it is supposed to just peel back off someday when I don't want it anymore!

    xoxo,
    Jen

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  6. Hi Amber!

    I found the drawer knife block at Target: http://www.target.com/Hampton-Forge-Drawer-Knife-Block/dp/B001Q6I92I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&searchView=grid5&keywords=drawer%20knife%20block&fromGsearch=true&sr=1-1&qid=1286553999&rh=&searchRank=target104545&id=Hampton%20Forge%20Drawer%20Knife%20Block&node=1038576|1287991011&searchSize=30&searchPage=1&searchNodeID=1038576|1287991011&searchBinNameList=subjectbin%2Cprice%2Ctarget_com_primary_color-bin%2Ctarget_com_size-bin%2Ctarget_com_brand-bin&frombrowse=0

    Thanks!

    xoxo,
    Jen

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  7. Great tips!! Can't wait for part 3.

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  8. I know I want the inside of my drawers to be beautiful!! lol You're a hoot!

    When we moved in our rental we (AKA my husband because I hate measuring) lined the inside of all the cabinets and drawers and it's the best thing ever. I'd love to have a knife drawer one day! The drawers we have now don't allow for it, but I really love my magnetic knife holder I got from Ikea. I keep my knives, 3 sets of tongs and 2 pairs of kitchen scissors on them and use them all the time, very handy!

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  9. As much as I absolutely loved every inch of your super neat and organized drawers, I have to admit, I liked your comment at the end of the post the best -- about beautifying the insides of your drawers. I am sorry but I can't stop laughing about that. That was awesome. LOL.

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  10. I LOOOVE the wallpaper and am going to GET that drawer knife block!!!! The clear dividers are SO much better than the mish mash I have now. I LOVE your blog!!! XO, Pinky

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  11. Great drawers Jen. I too have two such drawers in my kitchen. Maybe this will motivate me to clean them up this weekend. Knife block is on my list now!!! Thanks for the inspiration

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  12. SUPER organized! I actually use so many of my utensils that I have a lot in there. But, I think I'm tempted to go and pick out a few and toss those!! Thanks for the motivation!

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  13. Beautiful to see!

    Those measuring cups are mouth wateringly delicious - any idea where I could get that in Australia?

    Zara.

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  14. Hi Zara!

    I found mine at Pier 1 {http://www.pier1.com/Catalog/Dining/tabid/493/List/0/CategoryID/111/level/a/ProductID/7507/ProductName/Flower-Measuring-Cups--Set-of-4/Default.aspx}, and have seen similar pricy ones at Anthropologie {http://www.anthropologie.com/anthro/catalog/productdetail.jsp?id=970029&navAction=jump&search=true&parentid=SEARCH_RESULTS}. Not sure if they have anything similar in Australia...

    Thank you!
    xo,
    Jen

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  15. Jen, they look great! I blogged about it on my blog http://5dinners1hour.blogspot.com/

    Now I need to get busy on my drawers!

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  16. So inspiring! Thanks for sharing!

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  17. Wow!! I am SO inspired to do my drawers now! Not just kitchen but bathrooms too! A girl after my own <3, I heart Target and Ikea!

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  18. Oh I am so glad that Mod Podge Rocks pointed out your cannister post! I began perusing and saw this post, which is great! I am working on my kitchen drawers right now and was at a total loss. This has been super inspiring! Thanks!

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  19. Wow! I totally need to do this to my kitchen drawers. Thanks for sharing your creative awesomeness. :-)

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  20. I really like the wallpaper! Where did it come from?

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  21. Hi Anonymous,

    The wallpaper was leftover from a friend's project and she gifted it to me, and I plan on using it ALL over the kitchen, I just adore it!

    I have seen wallpaper popping up all over, even on Target.com and HomeDepot.com.

    Happy hunting!

    xoxo,
    Jen

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  22. I love the idea of pretty paper and clear drawer organizers! I'm going to have to "borrow" your brilliant idea. :)

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  23. Looks so great! The pretty paper is a sweet touch.

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  24. love the use of wallpaper under the clear organisers. I think I will definitely use this idea!! Thanks for sharing~

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  25. Gorgeous! What an inspiring project. I love acrylic drawer organizers. I used them in my bathroom drawer, but alas they do not fit in my kitchen drawers.

    The wallpaper is a great idea.

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  26. Hi Jen! I love all of your posts but I had a quick question: do you normally just line the bottom of the drawer, or did you just do it because you had less material? do you think it would look better with the whole thing lined?

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  27. I do usually just line the bottom of the drawer, haven't seen it done any other way so I am not sure? Maybe I am doing something wrong? :)

    xoxo,
    Jen

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  28. hey again,
    okay, i just thought people line the sides of them too. maybe I'm just crazy haha. Keep up the good work!

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  29. Oh, man- I wonder if I actually have enough drawer space to make this work for me...it'd be great!

    Beautiful drawers :)

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  30. FANTASTIC! I've been wanting to (but putting off) doing the drawer organizing for a while now! Thanks for the motivation! I <3 your blog!

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  31. I have 2 drawers in my kitchen much like the ones you organized. I have different size drawers however. Instead of having 4 different drawers, mine is 3, and the middle drawer is twice as deep. Do you have any suggestions how to get the most use out of that drawer as well as making it organized? It just seems so deep (probably twice the depth of one of your drawers). Thanks for any ideas!

    Nicole

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  32. @Nicole,

    They make great "stackable" organizers for drawers, I would keep an eye out for those, I know they have them at the Container Store in different finishes and prices: http://www.containerstore.com/shop?productId=10023938&N=&Ntt=stackable

    xoxo,
    Jen

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  33. Hey Jen,

    Adore your blog. It has made a huge difference in our home. When we are tackling a new project even my hubby asks, "well how does the blog lady do it?" :) I wanted to know where you got those adorable measuring cups? They are so sweet.

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  34. @Molly - the measuring cups were from Pier 1, they don't have them online any longer, however, they always have adorable options!

    xoxo,
    Jen

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  35. Thank you for sharing superb information. Your web site is very cool. I am impressed by the details that you have on this blog. It reveals how nicely you perceive this subject. Bookmarked this web page, will come back for extra articles. You, my friend, ROCK! I found simply the info I already searched all over the place and simply couldn’t come across. What an ideal site.

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  36. I can't express to you how thrilled I am to have discovered your blog!!! Thank you for all the wonderful ideas!

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  37. Love your blog. Thanks for sharing all you do!

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  38. Love reading your blogs, and love how you organized your drawers. My problem where I live is that I have ONE, yes you heard that right, one drawer for silverware and limited counter space. I am a kitchen utensil fanatic also, so I have lots of gadgets. Although I know I need to go through the dreaded drawer, and get rid of some things, I am looking for ways to organize in the kitchen with limited space. Any ideas??

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    Replies
    1. What about an over the door pocket organizer?

      xoxo!
      Jen

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  39. I love your blog and am MAKING my entire family crazy because I reference it/you so much that they now think I have lost it! You have made me think, purge and come up with better solutions to make life easier so thanks. But anyways my question, do you still have utensils in canister on the counter too? Or were you able to combined all to the drawers?
    -Shannon

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    Replies
    1. Hi Shannon!

      I do have one white vase next to the stove that holds all of the common, everyday utensils.

      xxoo,
      Jen

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  40. Dear Jen, I only found your blog today but when I got to the DRAWER ORGANISING bit (here) and realised that I had been saving a half a roll of pretty wallpaper for OVER 20 YEARS, plus my kitchen drawers were BEGGING to be organised, I went directly to get the wallpaper and started on those drawers IMMEDIATELY...! I didn't pause until they were all done, and now I wish I'd taken photos BEFORE I started. I also realised that I had 2 and sometimes 3 similar untensils so I've sorted them out and they will go straight to the local charity shop tomorrow. What an inspiration you are...my home has started to change right from the very first day I found you. Thanks a million. NADIA IN PERTH, WESTERN AUSTRALIA

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  41. I've now put my daughter-in-law onto you and I'm sure she'll enjoy reading all your blogs as much as I am...! NADIA IN PERTH, WESTERN AUSTRALIA

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  42. Wow! One of the best kitchen organizer I've ever seen, good job.

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  43. Hey Jen,
    Found your blog on Pinterest and I love it. I can't get off of it! So much inspiration:) I'm in major need of being organized lol so I started going on the hunt for a few things you use. One thing I found was a knife block. I don't know about you but I'm head over heels for the store Ross and Tj Maxx and go there for most of my spendings. I found my knife block there for $3.99 and I love it! Do you have a Ross or Tj Maxx?

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  44. We don't have much drawer space, so I put Command wire hooks on the side of our oven, slipped a little string through the holes of ladels, spatulas, & other kitchen gadgets, and hang them on the hooks. Because the side of the oven can't be seen from anywhere in the house (unless you're standing in our pantry), it's great "hidden", but easily accessible storage and holds about 30 items!!! And you can see exactly where that rarely-used potato masher is in a glance! (And is hubby-proof, since the easy visibility means items don't need to be put away on a specific hook.)

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  45. I only have 2 regular size drawers and one double size drawer. I looked on target for the vinyl drawer organizers and coulf not find them; do u have a url for them?
    Unfortunately my oven is surrounded on both sides so I can not hang anything on it;( I am just glad I am moving when my lease is up so hopefully i can find an apartment w/ a better kitchen! My apt. building was built in the 50's and there isn't even an exhaust fan for the oven!;(

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    Replies
    1. Hi there!

      I actually found the drawer dividers in the Target store awhile back and haven't been able to find them since. Not sure if they carry them any longer, but here is another similar option: http://www.containerstore.com/shop?productId=10027695&N=&Ns=p_sort_default|0&Ntt=acrylic+drawer

      xo!
      Jen

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  46. Hi Jen,
    Your drawers look great! I'm just curious where you store utensils such as soup ladles, serving spoons, etc. I have some larger things like that and I didn't see them in your drawers. Do you have another location for those items? Thanks!
    Sarah

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    Replies
    1. Hi Sarah!

      We keep our frequently used utensils in a vase near the stove.

      xo!
      Jen

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  47. Hi Jen, Is all your eating cutlery stored in the covered cans in the kids cupboard, or do you keep more somewhere else? Thanks :0)

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    Replies
    1. The silverware in the kid's cabinet is light weight and smaller so it was perfect for little hands. We also have our main silverware, in a separate drawer. You can see that here: http://iheartorganizing.blogspot.com/2011/08/its-here-kitchen-cabinet-tour.html

      xo,
      Jen

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  48. Love the idea of using wall paper and I have been shopping online for some this evening. I was just wondering if you used prepasted wall paper? Just don't want to wind up with a kind that will never come off.

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    Replies
    1. Hi Laura! I am not sure I would actually affix the wallpaper to the drawer with actual paste, maybe just double stick tape or use the peel & stick wallpaper option. I believe that paste would be quite tricky to remove down the road.

      xoxo!

      Delete

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