Organizing With Those Soap And Glory Bags...

Hi Honeys
I hope you're staying warm in this cold snap we're having.  It really is properly cold now with an icy frost on the ground and a chill that seeps through into your bones.  It's more than the cold I dislike at this time of year, although being a Summer baby I'm certainly no fan of being chilly.

I am beyond frightened of walking outside when it's icy because of the (quite natural, I think) fear of falling. I have knees which enjoy twisting out from under me at inopportune times (such as when I'm on stairs) and osteo arthritis in my lower spine that does not need any sudden thumps. Suffice to say, please hurry up Spring!

Today I thought I'd share an organizing idea or notion that occurred to me one evening while I was making dinner...

For a number of years now, just before Christmas when a certain item goes "on special" Hubby has been making a bee line for Boots first thing in the morning before heading to work in order to bring me home that years Soap and Glory mega gift set (thank you sweetheart xx)

Of course what makes these gift sets so fabulous is the great selection of products supplied but another equally valid reason is the very large bag the products are packaged inside.  These bags are far too big to be called cosmetic or even toiletry bags.  I would describe them as vanity cases.  Is that too old fashioned a term?  Much as I adore these bags (and I really do, although the design of the latest one jarred more than a little being far too "busy" and loud for my taste, as I explained here.

Well anyway honeys, I'd started to build a small collection of these quite large bags and since I don't own the hugest make up collection in the world I was thinking how I could make use of them and I think I've found the answer :)


First things first though, do you remember the Ikea Mulig clothes rail we added to our guest room a while ago?  It was originally planned to be used to store whichever of Hubby's shirts he's currently wearing to work, and usually my work shirts will be there too.

Almost a year later, as you can see this simple system, which allows me somewhere to take my fresh ironing to put away and also helps save space in both our wardrobes, is still working really well.

The Ikea Mulig bar is still used as home for freshly ironed work shirts and Hubby now also has two tie hangers hanging there too which organize his (current) favourite ties.  Under his shirts though you'll notice there are several storage boxes.  I adore pretty boxes and baskets and apart from being pretty to look at they're also a great way to corral things to calm clutter.

From left to right in the photo above you'll see (other than Percy the world's friendliest penguin :) a blue box which is home to notebooks.  I'm obsessed. I freely admit it honeys, there is no hope for me I adore notebooks :) Next are little lidded opaque plastic boxes which hold yet more of Hubby's ties all carefully rolled for safe storage.  Next to Hubby's tie collection are two pretty boxes currently containing photos.  We've bought albums though and have plans to organize our memories into those at some point.

Next we come to the subject of today's post :) Sitting below the Mulig clothes bar is a sideboard we've had for so many years. It's made from very beautiful mahogany wood and has three drawers in the middle with a large cupboard on either side.  I recently cleared out these cupboards and thought there must be a better way to organize whatever ends up being stored there.

I had the idea of re-purposing four of the large Soap and Glory bags as organizers...  

They fit perfectly honeys :) As if they'd been made to fill the space.  I'm so happy they fit because it not only means they've found a useful purpose but that whatever ends up calling these cupboards home will be easily accessed and beautifully organized too :)

So far only the bag on the loser shelf on the left hand side has been used. I've used smaller organizers inside this bag to sort and organize my make up.  The only other make up I own lives on my dressing table in our master bedroom and it's great to have the rest all in one place and easy to pop through to fetch if I need it.

I've yet to decide what to store in the other three bags honeys, any ideas?  My craft things all now have a home in a tower of plastic drawers which live in the large cupboard in the guest room. We have a designated stationery cupboard for paper, printer inks etc so they have a home too now.

So that's my latest little organizing project honeys, what do you think?  Of course to do this you don't need to have Soap and Glory bags.  Bags of all sizes and designs make wonderful organizers. Have you used bags to group things together by type or to calm clutter?

Till next time dear ones, stay warm and safe and have a fabulous weekend, huggles always xxx