Welcome to the 30 Days to Less of a Hot Mess Challenge! We’re clearing clutter, reorganizing and letting in fresh air to build a home we love. New to the challenge? You may want to begin at the start.
**************************************************************
Here’s a little something about me: I’m obsessed with binders. I think I have one for everything under the sun. My recipes, blog planning, blog education courses and, of course, my Home Organization Binder. Ha! I love how easy they make it to keep track of everything in my life and how simple they are to update.
One of the most important binders in my home is the Home Organization Binder. Honestly, I’ve had mine for a year and haven’t used it to its full potential. Not even close to half, but I’m working on adding more as I declutter and gather everything in one place. Affiliate links are used in this post for your convenience.
What IS a Home Organization Binder? It’s a 3-ring binder (fancy or plain, it doesn’t matter, although I prefer pretty) that holds all the information needed to run your home.
Where can you find a Home Organization Binder? I personally use this one by Emily Ley. (No surprise there, ha! I just love her cute stuff.) Or you can grab a plain one from any store. I prefer a 1.5 to 2 inch 3-ring binder. And I like a pocket in the front to hold loose items.
To create your own Home Organization Binder, you might need:
- a binder (like this one or this one) – this is the one I use!
- Dividers (these come with pockets, or you can get plain ones, too.)
- 3-Hole Punch
- Label maker & label tape, optional (But I’ve heard this one is awesome and connects to your phone! It’s on my wish list!!)
- Home Binder Printables! (I found these, and they look awesome and all-encompassing. You can buy the big MacDaddy set or individual sets in her shop.)
What are some key sections in a Home Organization Binder?
- Yearly Goals (get my goal sheet printable here)
- Favorite Family Meals (find it here)
- Weekly Meal Plan & Grocery List
- Important Family Dates
- Emergency Contacts
- Babysitter Notes
- Home Maintenance and Repair Contacts
- Home Projects – to-do lists and supply lists, etc.
- Yearly Home Maintenance Chores
- Daily and Weekly Cleaning List
- Monthly Budget (if you keep it on paper)
- Family Bucket List
- Items Borrowed List
- Passwords List
- Packing Checklist
- and a million more!
There are so many ways to use the Home Organization Binder that would benefit the whole family. You can pick and choose what works for YOU and your family. Sound good? I’ll be sharing more about how I use mine for meal planning when we talk about that subject!
Why I Keep a Home Organization Binder
What motivates me to make a binder like this, more than just wanting to be organized, is wondering what would happen if something happened to me. I handle almost everything within the four walls of our home. Sure, my husband washes dishes, bathes the kiddos and mows the grass (and a TON more), but I manage most of the day-to-day details. He’s busy at work, so it just makes sense for me to handle the details since I’m the one here all the time. Also, I’m more organized than he is.
That said, there are so many little things he would never know if I were hit by a bus.
So let’s keep things super morbid and just call this the “Hit by a Bus” Binder. Ha! Just kidding. But you could if you wanted to. It just gives me peace of mind knowing things are in one place and in order if anyone ever needs them. Plus, when I need it, it’s all in one place too! Bonus!
As I’ve been cleaning out my office and decluttering, I’ve come across a variety of things that have been added to my Home Organization Binder. Some examples are:
- Business cards from vendors we’ve used in the past. We always say, “Who did we use to fix the _______ last time?” Then we go back through our phones trying to figure out who we called. Now it’s all in one place!
- Paint chips and colors in our home. I’m creating a “home” section in my binder for all the little details about our house, like the paint colors (and formulas) we used, brands we love, the manufacturer of our fence, our fridge filter part # and plenty of maintenance information. It was all floating around the house in various file folders and drawers before.
- Coupons and gift cards
I keep my binder in my command center just outside my kitchen. That way it’s easy to grab whenever I need it, since I use it a lot for meal planning.
Do you have a Home Organization Binder? If so, what’s your favorite part? The rest of us might want to steal the idea!
Don’t forget to share your organizing and decluttering this month on social media with the hashtag #lessofahotmess
The Messy Work: Start your Home Organization Binder today! Or if you already have one, go through it and make sure everything is up to date and in the right order!
Tomorrow we’ll be talking about the organized workday! See you then!
Right there in the mess with you, Laura
Ready to find calm in your home again?
You can’t decorate a home full of clutter. Start your decluttering journey with 30 days of encouraging, helpful emails to keep you going!
More Posts You’ll Enjoy:
- The 10 Easiest Family Command Centers to Set Up
- How to Tame Paper Clutter: An Industrial Command Center
- Furnishing a Teen Girl’s Bedroom: 10+ Tips and Tricks
- The Best Holiday Planner Printable Binder
- Decluttering Your Home in 5 Simple Steps
PinPinPinPinPinPin
