Organizing With Baskets

Organizing with Baskets
There are dozens of ways to organize with baskets in your home. Here are over 80 ideas for organizing with baskets in every room of your home. You can probably think of a few more even.
In the kitchen or dining room… 1. Use hanging wall pocket baskets, which have flat backs, to store dry sponges and scrubbers as well as pot holders, oven mitts, dry dish rags and spare kitchen hand towels. 2. Store spices or vitamin jars in square and rectangular baskets with see-through wire sides and solid rattan bottoms, which are quite sturdy. Perhaps make extra counter or closet space by purchasing baskets with handles and then hang them by hooks under the kitchen cabinets. (Caution: Don't store vitamins, or also medicines, in spots easily reached by your children or grandchildren, or where heat might damage these products.) 3. For the table or countertops, try round decorative baskets to hold fruit or vegetables. A round basket that's about 13 inches in diameter and five inches high works well for five to 10 pounds of potatoes. You could do a centerpiece of flowers in this basket too. 4. Small square baskets are cute and efficient for holding stacks of paper napkins. Or use a rectangular narrow basket to hold rolled up linen napkins. 5. Find a mini basket with two divided slots to hold your salt and pepper shaker side-by-side. 6. Any picnic type basket with hinged lid and swinging handles is great for storing and hiding anything from coupons to receipts to refund offers. And this type basket is easily carried between rooms so you can work on those projects in the home office, on the couch or at the dining room table. 7. Wine baskets serve their purpose (and make great last-minute house-warming gifts too, with the wine inside, of course). Wine baskets are usually a vertical shaped basket with sides high enough to hold steady a bottle of wine in its upright position. But the basket could have a square, round, or cylindrical shape. It usually has a fixed handle for toting the wine around. 8. Purchase a basket for holding wine but instead use it for holding tall utensils, such as tall wooden mixing spoons or plastic spatulas. In my kitchen, I use a rectangular basket with short wire sides, a rattan bottom, and wire/rattan scoop top handle to hold medicines. It easily fits into my food cupboard and makes it simple for me to keep medicines organized and in one spot. And I never have to worry about knocking over the bottles in a cascading effect since they're neatly contained by the basket. When I want medicine, I just pull out the whole basket. It's a portable medicine chest. 9. For serving food or drinks, use a round or rectangular platter shaped basket (shallow or deep and with or without handles) or an African harvest bowl. Protect the basket with a piece of plastic wrap or a cloth napkin and serve anything from tortilla chips to bread on it. Put a cookie sheet in a deep rectangular tray to create a steady bottom to better balance glasses when you're walking. 10. Some rectangular or round shaped baskets already come lined with cloth. They're called casserole baskets and obviously fit certain sized casserole dishes perfectly. 11. Tiny round baskets fit perfect on a freestanding microwave for holding odds and ends like bread ties and leftover restaurant salt and pepper packets. 12. Small rectangular baskets with a divider also work great as cup dispensers. Stack paper or Styrofoam cups in them for easy storage and distribution. You might find this basket sold for holding two wine bottles side-by-side to prevent them from clinking into each other. But they can equally hold your vinegar and oil bottles. 13. Utensil, or silverware, caddies work great for just that usage. Or use them to store and separate items such as straws, coffee filters or plastic utensils. 14. Multi-tiered wire baskets that can hang from the ceiling, or are on self-standing wicker or wire pedestals or feet, are often used for holding potatoes or fruit. In the family room, living room or den… 15. Large magazine baskets are ideal for storing their namesake, magazines, as well as newspapers, paperbacks, and hard-cover books. Set them beside your favorite recliner. 16. A large magazine basket by the side of the fireplace (but not too close!) works great for storing several fire logs. 17. Use a deep, round or cylindrical shaped basket on the coffee table to hold television or other electronic remotes. A basket made of rags will slide without scratching (or put a doily underneath). 18. Keep your favorite sewing supplies or craft tools handy in a large picnic style basket with a hinged lid and handles for easy toting. 19. Store video tapes, compact discs and DVD's in a rectangular shaped open basket under the television, on a book shelf or even on the end table for easy access and neat storage. 20. Baskets in assorted sizes, shapes and colors are good for holding candy and look decorative on end tables.

Organizing with Baskets