Guest Post - How to Organize and Keep Track of Your Kids' Hand-Me-Downs

Sorting through piles of your children's clothes is quite a chore. Kids typically grow out of their clothes in months, leaving you with more stuff to organize and store as hand-me-downs for your younger kids. 

Admit it or not, you’ve tried in the past to avoid the chore, wishing the clothes would magically organize themselves. Well, we all know that’s not going to happen, and you’ll still need to start organizing at one point, so we made this simple to follow guide to make the task less dreadful for you: 

Why should you start organizing your kids' hand-me-downs?

Organizing your kid's hand-me-downs not only helps you get rid of unusable clothes, it also keeps money in your pocket as you get to save on buying new clothes for the younger siblings.  And if you're sentimental about clothes, you'll remember the moments tied up to them when you see your kids wear something their older siblings used to love. 

Even when you don't have many kids, you get the chance to donate grown-out clothes to a charity that needs them more. Also, the thought of having an untidy wardrobe has a way of affecting your productivity at work or parenting. Thus, it's worth the time to organize and store hand-me-downs once and for all.

It's a win-win situation here; you get to declutter, save clothes for your younger kids, give out clothes to others, and free your mind from the stress of having a messy closet.

The things to consider as hand-me-downs

• Pajamas

• School uniforms

• Sportswear

• Casual wear

• Formal wear

• Shoes

• Pants

Things to toss out

• Underwear

• Trendy clothing (they need to be handed over soon as the trend dies down)

• Socks

Materials needed

• Pens

• Labels

• Storage bins

• Closet for hand-me-downs

Steps in organizing and storing your kid's hand me downs

1. Categorize minimally.

Don't go overboard in organizing just yet—you'll be overwhelmed if you classify items by season, age, gender, and purpose. Not all children's wear is same-sized, gender-specific, and suitable for one season only. So the most straightforward approach to classify things is categorizing by:

• Newborn wear

• Toddler wear

• School uniforms

• Shoes

• Toss out/To donate

2. Fold clothes neatly.

Now that you have classified them into five categories, you can start folding them up neatly. This will minimize fabric wrinkles as you store them and help you save up space in storage.

A great folding approach is by enabling them to sit upright on storage. This means that you won't be stacking clothes, which is a recipe for disorganized and mess-prone storage. Having clothes upright and inserted from front to back allows you to see things quickly and avoid digging through piles that ruin tidiness.

3. Pile clothes according to similarity.

Before you store the clothes in their designated bins, you should strategically pile items of the same size, fabric, purpose, and gender. This way, the clothes are not randomly bunched together and placed in a bin.

For example, you should pile together all the girl's toddler clothes and keep a separate pile for the boys.

4. Get your bins and label accordingly.

Now get your bins and label them according to the five categories you identified. Labels will help you easily identify the containers and their contents. You can get creative by color coding and printing the labels. You'll use these labels in the bin itself and the dividers that you'll use to segment different types of clothing in each bin.

Some of the labels you need to prepare are the first five categories, the types of clothing identified based on age, season, and gender. You may even use your child's name to specify who will wear the clothes next as labels. The idea is you need labels for dividers that you'll insert in between the segregated hand-me-downs.

5. Put the clothes in bins and place the dividers.

Now that the clothes are categorized per category and subcategory, you may add them to the labeled bins. Clear plastic containers are preferable, but you may use any bin if you don't have clear ones. 

Insert the dividers to separate sections by age, gender, season, and purpose. Then, tidy up the clothes before you set them aside for storage.

6. Pick one centralized location for storing hand-me-downs.

Find a spot that can accommodate all hand-me-down bins. The centralization will prevent you from forgetting where you stored the containers. The best location can be the top shelf of your indoor wardrobe or under the bed—places that are easy to find yet are usually out of your way.

You may store them in the basement. However, beware of molds that may accumulate over time. The best spot must be dry, clean, well-ventilated, and dust-free.

7. Pick up your "to donate" stash and give them away.

Your "to donate" stash may also include clothes that you may give away to other kids you know. The idea is as soon as you acquire them, think of how you'll get rid of them. This is to lessen the load you have in your children's wardrobe. You won't have any use for them anyway.

Other reminders when organizing and storing your kids' hand-me-downs

• Toss out ripped, stained, or too worn-out clothes. 

• Donate right away the trendy clothes that will go out of style.

• Give away clothes that your kids won't use regardless of how expensive or cute they are.

• Use a timer to encourage speedy sorting.

• If there are any extras, you may scale them down and move them to your "to donate or give away" bin.

• If your kids don't want to get rid of their unusable clothes, you may consider sorting them out when they aren't around.

Conclusion

Going through your children's old clothes doesn't have to be overwhelming. While it may be time-consuming, you can have fun doing this as a form of stress-reliever or bonding time with your children. With the mentioned steps, you can surely find your way to seamless hand-me-down storage.

About the Author:

Hazel Santos is an experienced Content Writer for Skill Success who also has a knack for DIY home redesign and organization. When she isn't writing, she keeps herself busy by browsing through home organization blogs and redesigning her space at home.

How to Effectively Organize Your Self Storage Unit

We partnered with a storage company for this post. The opinions in the post are honest. All reviews and opinions expressed in this post are based on our personal views. We are excited because we know you will love it.

Storage units can be very helpful when you want to organize your home and put some belongings away. Getting a self-storage unit is an excellent solution for small apartments or households with many family members. However, if you want to be able to find your items when you need them, you will have to do some organizing. We've gathered some ideas on how to organize your self-storage unit effectively to help you along the way.

Storage unit hacks

When you need to put your things in storage, you may be worried about finding them again or leaving them where it's not easy to re-access them.  After all, what good does your storage unit do if you can't find anything? To help you avoid this scenario, we've created a list of storage unit hacks.

• clear storage tubs

• custom shelving

• labeling and creating custom lists

• identify items you need access to

• plan your storage layout

• store large items at the back

• plan your walkways

• don't be afraid of making mistakes

The day has come, and you've decided to reorganize your self-storage unit perfectly. First, you need to think of weather conditions since you don't want to be packing and unpacking during freezing temperatures. Once you choose the perfect timing, ideally summer or springtime, it's time to start shopping for the things you will need.

Consider using clear storage tubs

Don't get us wrong; cardboard boxes will certainly do the work and are a cheaper option. But, since packing is hard enough, having your belongings stored in clear bins will help your future storage access. Investing a couple of extra bucks in plastic containers will make it easier and faster for you to locate what you need.

Another thing worth remembering is to stick to one size of boxes or bins, or two the most. Same size boxes allow successful stacking and accessibility.  

Install custom shelves

Shelving isn't difficult to build, and it's pretty inexpensive too. Having custom shelves along the walls of your storage unit will help you organize your stuff better.

It would be a good idea to install one long, large shelf to put all your see-through bins on. This way, you can go right to what you need, instead of searching forever.

Remember to label, label, and label

You can type or write the labels, laminate them or use plastic plates hospitals use outside their doors. You can also color-code all of your labels for even further simplification. The options are endless.

A thing worth remembering is that you should make content lists for each box you own and be detailed in your writing. Information you should include should be the room things come from and the contents of the box.

Plan your storage unit layout

This step can be adjusted to any type of storage you have, from your garage space, pantry, to your self-storage unit. Ideally, you should put the furniture against the wall opposite your boxes to leave a path in the middle. By doing so, you can access boxes and furniture items without any difficulties. If you need to use the space in the middle, placing your most moveable items there is a good idea so that you can remove them with ease. Chemicals and hazardous spray must be kept away from children and must have proper storage like Storemasta.

Classify items you will need frequent access to

When looking for tips to organize your self-storage unit, one that always comes across is putting things you know you'll need first helps a lot. For example, holiday and seasonal items you will want in the foreseeable future should be near the front.

Heavy furniture you might not want in your new home but don't want to get rid of just yet should be placed in the back.

Store large and heavy items on the bottom towards the back

As you begin packing your self-storage unit, start with heavy and large items and boxes. Your more oversized furniture, like tables and sofas, should be on the bottom. This will also keep your delicate items from being damaged while storing them because of the stable base.

If, on the other hand, you need to store a dining table that doesn't come apart, use it as an extra shelf for your bins and boxes.

What about the walkways?

Putting your shelving on the walls will make a lot of room for walking. Depending on the size of your unit and the number of things you have to store, leaving a walkway is a must. If you have space to walk in between your possessions, you will be able to access them with ease.

Making room for walkways involves careful planning. Remember to put the heavy stuff at the back and smaller things you will occasionally use in the front, and by doing so, create a path or two to go around your storage unit.

Don't be afraid of making mistakes

Even if you have come across our article halfway through loading your storage unit and realized you had packed unlabeled boxes, it's not too late to start unpacking. Whatever you are storing, you want to store it conveniently and with easy access in the future, so investing some time in repacking might be a good idea. You might want to start repacking similar things into separate boxes. For example, kitchen utensils go in one box, while seasonal clothes go in the other.

How to organize your self-storage unit like a pro?

While these eight steps might take some time at first, they are all worth your effort. First of all, they will save a lot of your time and energy in the future. The main focus when it comes to how to organize your self-storage unit the best way should be on accessibility. Following these steps makes your overall organization better. If you can access all of your belongings while knowing which one is which, consider your efforts a success.

Ideas on What To Use Your Spare Room For

A lot of people waste their extra rooms by blocking them off with a bunch of clothes, boxes, old gym equipment, and general junk. The sad thing is, there’s other space for that. Try the garage or the shed for that sort of stuff and reward yourself for your efforts with a whole other room to make use of. Without further ado, here are some of the best ideas on what to use your spare room for.

Baby or Toddler Play Area

One of the better options available is to make the empty area a baby play area. Children’s toys have a way of creeping throughout the house with ease, making cleanup a real time-consuming chore. One of the best ways to combat this is to keep most of the toys in one room. That way, your child can play with his or her toys and stay organized at the same time.

Small Office or Reading Room

If you don’t need a children’s playroom, consider making the room a small office or reading room. All you really need is a desk, a bookshelf, a nice rug, and a comfy chair to make this space feel like home. Plus, you’ll have more storage areas for all your projects and a place to complete them.

Music or Recording Studio

Maybe you already have a reading room and you’ve been wanting to start a podcast on all the books you’ve read. Why not make the empty space into a recording studio? Simply set up some foam dampening tiles on the wall, get your desk and microphone set up, and get to work!

Dressing Room or Organized Closet

One of the other things for which you could easily utilize the space is a closet of any sort. The difference between this and regular storage space is that you can keep a closet neat. Consider having a bench in front of a mirror, a few racks, and some lights to decorate the room to make it the perfect dressing room!

You can go in many different directions with ideas on what to use your spare room for. The choice is simply up to you. As long as the space accurately reflects your needs and expectations, there’s no reason not to redesign it!

Ways To Make Your Hardwood Floors Look More Expensive

Perhaps you’ve moved into an older house or lived in yours for quite some time. If your home has hardwood floors, you’ve likely recognized the signs of wear and tear that they’ve acquired with age. Scuffed and scratched floors can diminish the overall value of your home and clash with your ideas of a satisfactory home interior look. Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to make your hardwood floors look more expensive that don’t involve an entire floor renovation. Read on to explore our top ideas for refining your hardwood floors.

Buff Your Floors

Buffing and waxing your floors are simple ways to freshen up their look and take off years of wear and tear. The buffing will remove just the top finish of your hardwood floors, leaving the rest of its surface unharmed. Then add was for some extra shine.

Pro Tip: Many home improvement and tool rental stores will lend out their hardwood-floor buffer for a small fee. That way, you don’t have to invest in a whole floor buffer to get the job done.

Upgrade Them With a Fresh Stain

Hardwood floor stains allow homeowners to personalize their flooring and establish a more refined aesthetic in their homes. Golden oak and espresso are some of the most popular hardwood floors stains, each renowned for their ability to make the natural grain of hardwood planks pop and provide a polished appearance.

Lavish Rugs

OK, so this option may seem like a bit of a cheat, but it’s true! Adding an intricate area rug to cover up especially worn sections of your hardwood flooring is an easy way to lift a room’s overall appearance. Not only will your home appear more luxurious, but it’ll also feel a lot cozier.

Pro Tip: Utilize rug grippers to keep your rug in its ideal position. Without a non-slip rug pad or grippers, you may stumble over your area rug or shift it enough to reveal the unsightly hardwood underneath.

Creating a more lavish home doesn’t have to break the bank. By following these various ways to make your hardwood floors look more expensive, you can have a luxury home interior in no time.