I’ve quite literally spent the last few weeks tidying. There has definitely been some cleaning in there too, but mostly tidying. And I’m not done. Let me explain…

When I visited home (Newfoundland) last month, one of my friends told me about a book she thought I would love – The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up . You’ve probably heard of it, right? It’s a #1 New York Times Best Seller… but somehow I was late to the party. Anyway, the biggest thank you to Amy for suggesting it – I LOVED it.

{Disclaimer. I’ve always been a bit of a compulsive organizer (there are labels in my refrigerator, and organization is listed as a hobby on my resume), and lover of tidy, minimalist spaces… but regardless, this book is awesome (and pretty funny too).}

I won’t ruin the book for you, but essentially the premise is that we surround ourselves by things we don’t love, and if something doesn’t spark joy, you should get rid of it (donate, recycle, throw it away). And it set me on a mission. Here are some of the things I’ve been up to.

In the bedroom:

{Clothes folded to perfectly fit the drawers, and stood vertically so I can see everything at a glance.}

{Boxes used as drawer dividers keep things separated.}

{Boxes are also a great way to divide up large drawers.}

{All my necklaces are hung on hooks, so I can easily see what I have and they never get tangled.}

{Teacups and saucers are an awesome (and cute) way to store earrings and rings.}

{Organization for glasses – I blogged this DIY previously here .}

{And my spring capsule…which I’ll blog soon!}

In the kitchen:

{Serving dishes stacked on open shelving.}

{All the bar supplies corralled into one place.}

{Organized cupboards, made more efficient with these shelf dividers from Ikea .}

In the bathroom:

{Makeup and accessories, all divided into smaller containers by product type.}

{Espresso cups, shot glasses, or old candle holders, are great for dividing up bobby pins and elastics, etc.}

{All the towels are folded to fit into the vertical bathroom storage.}

{Toiletries are stashed away in small containers (that have even smaller containers inside them to divide everything up). These slide out easily to get at what you need, and keep the shelves from getting cluttered.}

Cleaning:

Just a few random cleaning ideas that have made my life easier lately…

{Cleaning the shower is a pain, so I usually just do it while I’m in there getting a shower. I use this brush (actually for dishes) and fill the handle with 1 part dish soap and 2 parts vinegar – it works so well, even if you have hard water. Then I just store it in the basket with all the other bath products. Best thing ever.}

{In Canada I always used this floor cleaner by method . It’s non-toxic, no-rinse, smells great, and doesn’t leave the floor sticky or slippery. But I can’t get it in France :( So lately I’ve been making my own… it’s really easy and works just as well. Idea from here .}

{Okay, don’t laugh at me. But I taped a toothbrush to the end of the skinny vacuum attachment. While this might seem crazy, if you have old-school water radiators in your home, you know the struggle of trying to clean those things! This toothbrush / vacuum combo make it so much easier.}

Cheers to tidying! And spring!