Yes! Great question Karin! All the paper items that need follow up go into a cute gold wall mounted file right by our garage entry. We have two there – one for things we may use – like coupons or sales flyers I may want to look through. The other is for anything that needs action – like bills, recall notices, party invites that need an RSVP (you know, back when we could get together!).

For things that need to be returned to a store or friend, I either take them right to the front seat of my car, or put them in a bag and hang them on the door to the garage. They’re out of the main part of the house, but I still see them enough to remember. For other items that are going to be picked up so can’t go to the car or on the door, we still try to get them off the kitchen counter. Usually, they’ll end up on the dining room table or on my credenza in the office. While I’d also love those spots to always be clear, I’ve learned that having things on them doesn’t create a ripple effect of clutter like happens when the kitchen counters are a mess.

Hi Joycegina, Great question! Using the baskets helps take up the full depth of shelves, while still being able to easily access the items in the back. Most of the open bins also have smaller items, like various pasta and rice, so it’s nice to be able to keep them contained together and easily grab the bin to look through all the options, since they’re above my eye level.