Organization Hacks That Spark Such Joy, Even Marie Kondo Will Try Them

By Jhoana C September 6, 2023

This article was originally published on morehackz

Ever since Marie Kondo appeared on Netflix to spark joy and help people with the clutter in their homes, everyone has been inspired and filled with ideas to help them get off their couch and start looking closely at everything in their homes. After all, no one wants to spend an hour looking for that missing sock or your favorite shirt. That’s just a waste of time which you can spend doing more important things. Clutter limbo is a bad place to be, and nobody wants to dig that hole deeper. Since Marie Kondo came to our consciousness to bless us with immaculately clean and organized closets, people on the Net have also posted their organizational hacks to help others, and we are thankful for them. They have made our lives easier. In the spirit of sparking joy, we have here organization hacks that will make you want to clean and arrange the things in your home, too.

Charming craft corner transformation

We all have hobbies, and one that we particularly like is needlework. With needlework, you need space, and we guarantee you that you’ll fill that space with plenty of threads and yarns, just like this lady. When quarantine happened, she turned it into an opportunity to organize her things.

Instead of sulking around, feeling bored, sitting in front of the TV, and gaining weight, she channeled her inner Marie Kondo and vowed to organize all her stuff. Well, the transformation has been nothing short of amazing, and we are all here for it.

Well, this is a good use of book-ends

When talking about book-ends, we naturally think of books and making sure they are organized. After all, that is their primary purpose. Who would have known that you could also use them for other things like organizing clothes and help create more space?

Who would have known that book-ends come in handy if you want to fold and organize your shirts in a drawer? Even Marie Kondo didn’t think of this hack. Thank goodness for people on the Internet who are willing to share their organizing secrets.

This hack will make sure your boots retain their shape

Boots are the perfect accessory for those cold winter months. They complete fall outfits, and they protect you from the cold during winter. Plus, they make you look very fashionable, too. However, the problem with boots is knowing how to store them properly.

You want them to retain their shape and keep them clean and nice-looking so that you can still take them out to wear after a few months. How do you do that? By cutting Dollar Store pool noodles and putting them in the boots. Simple as that!

Don’t waste perfectly good space

Every home needs a pantry. Otherwise, where are you going to put all your canned goods and other food items? However, not all of us are lucky enough to have a pantry with enough storage space. Some of us have to make do with what we have.

It’s not the end of the world yet even if you don’t have a massive pantry. The key is not to waste perfectly good space and make sure you use whatever you have wisely, as this person did. Use every inch of space, such as the space behind the door, which people usually forget about.

Vertical storage in the kitchen

Another area of the house that most people always complain that they don’t always have enough space in the kitchen. One of the most effective storage solutions in the kitchen that will enable you to find things quickly is vertical storage.

If you haven’t tried it yet, now is the best time to do so. Look at this photo for inspiration, and we know that you will get plenty of ideas from it. We know that kitchen organization is a big challenge for most households, but it’s an opportunity to get super creative.

Now everything can finally be seen

If you’re into calligraphy, drawing, or writing, you probably have plenty of pens, markers, and office stuff lying around your home, and they’re probably here, there, and everywhere. No matter how many pens you have, you just can’t seem to find one.

Do what this woman did and organize your drawer. You will be pleased with what you see afterward because it’s going to look like you’re selling markers and all other sorts of supplies. Look at how orderly everything is! You’ll be able to find everything easily.

A great way to store pants and shorts

Some of the hardest pieces of clothing to organize are jeans and shorts. Sometimes, you just don’t have any idea if you should hang them or fold them. Lucky for you, this lady is willing to share her organization methods that work just like magic.

Image courtesy of LipstickMonkeyy/Reddit

She doesn’t hang her pants and shorts; she puts them in the drawer. Look at how tidy they are! It’s now easy to tell the difference between one pair of pants or shorts from another. We just hope they stay this organized for the foreseeable future.

Sage spice storage advice

Herbs and spices make our dishes tastier and more unforgettable. There are more than 80 spices in the world, some of which most people are familiar with, while others are not so much. Cumin, according to reports, is the most popular spice in the world.

It’s always good to have spices in the kitchen, but how do you store and organize them? This cupboard riser is an excellent idea because it enables you to see and locate everything easily. You don’t have to spend so much time rummaging through all your spices.

This is a closet we’d love to have

How many times have you opened your closet only to be horrified by what you see? Nope, there’s no monster in the closet, but what’s in it is much worse. You have plenty of clothes but always find that you have nothing to wear.

How does that happen? Well, it happens frequently to people who don’t organize their things and just throw stuff into the closet when they’re in a rush. The closet you see in the photo is one we’d like to have. It’s the closet of our dreams.

Get yourself a label maker

If you don’t have a label maker yet, it’s time you get one because it’s one of the handiest things you can have in the home, and it’s a worthy investment that won’t sit around collecting dust. It doesn’t have to be an expensive kind. Even the basic type will do.

Labeling makes it easier to find things in the home. You’ll be able to save plenty of time and spend it on more important things. Need some inspiration? Check photos on the Internet, and they will convince you to get yourself a label maker.

A linen closet that almost looks impossible

We won’t try and hide anything; our closet looks like the left. We believe that most people’s closet looks like that as if a hurricane has run through it. Some of the most difficult things to fold and keep organized are bedsheets and linens.

The closet on the right is what we aspire our closets to look like. It’s tidy and folded neatly, and it makes finding things very easy. The owner must have spent countless hours organizing it, and because of that, she found out that she had more space.

Genius hack when moving

Moving from one place to another is very challenging. You have to pack all your things, including glassware and clothes. Clothes have to be folded, put into boxes, and unfolded again when taken out. But, what about clothes that are hanging in your closet?

Image courtesy of randomusefulbits/Reddit

Do you have to fold them too? But they will end up with creases, and you’d have to iron them again before hanging them in the closet of your new house. Is there a better way? Follow the method you see in the photo and everything will be easier.

Organize and display your children’s books

Having children in the home is a blessing, but it can also mean disorganization and chaos. It means toys everywhere, books on the floor, and clothes even in the kitchen. Just ask any parent, and they will tell you that what we say is true.

If you’re tired of seeing your children’s books everywhere, try using rain gutter shelves. They are a great, innovative, and economical way of making sure that there is a place for all your children’s books. Other people on the Net pointed out that Ikea spice racks can also be used for the same purpose.

The laundry room looks brand new

The laundry room is not visible to guests, be it family members or friends, so most homeowners don’t pay a lot of attention to it. They would rather spend their energy, time, and money making sure that living areas look beautiful.

However, if your laundry room gives you a headache every time you see it, it’s high time to make some improvements. How? By organizing it, of course. Look at these before and after photos, and you’ll see that after they organized, the laundry room looks brand new.

Another pantry that’s spick and span

We envy people whose pantries are immaculately clean. They make us think if the pantries are just for display and not used on a daily basis. A good example is the pantry you see in the photo below. Is it even real? Or was it just used for photo ops?

How does the owner have so many organizational skills? Well, it seems that a good place to start is to use labeled bins. This means locating things easily and quickly. Want snacks? You can easily reach for them. We only have one concern though, how come their pantry has so much processed food?

Champion document organization

It’s important to ensure that you have your documents in order so that whenever you need them for whatever purpose, you can easily reach for them. You don’t want to search through 20 years’ worth of paper when you need your birth certificate.

We like how this lady has managed to compile her documents and label them accordingly. You know exactly where to find documents pertaining to the home, appliances, or the pet dog. We guarantee you that her life is so much easier than others because of this.

Don’t throw your toilet paper rolls

We don’t think much of toilet paper rolls. Once we run out of toilet paper, we just take them out and replace them with a brand new one. If you want to organize your cables and help Mother Nature at the same time, you should do this!

What do we mean by this? You can stuff cords and cables in the toilet paper rolls so that they don’t get tangled with each other. We all know how frequently that happens and how annoying that can be. Reduce waste and use your toilet paper rolls.

Pay attention to the space under your sink

Another place in the home to which most people don’t pay any attention to is the space under the sink. After all, guests don’t go to the kitchen to purposely look below your sink. So, most of us just pretty much throw things in there.

However, you should start thinking about it so that space doesn’t look like a warzone. No, you don’t need to spend money on storage boxes because you can use the bottom of boxes from packages. They may not look as pretty, but they get the job done.

Get benches with storage

Living in a home with limited space means that you get to be creative and think of innovative ideas of how you can make do with what you have. You have the chance to think of out-of-the-box storage solutions.

One great idea for a tiny home is to get benches with storage space. They ensure that you have enough space for people to sit on, as well as space where you can keep things. You can also consider getting a built-in bench if needed.

Stack your shoe racks

Imagine this, you’re walking to your bedroom late at night, and the lights are off. Just before you reach your bed, you trip on a random shoe on the floor. This is the third time this has happened this week! If this has happened to you, then it’s time you invest in a shoe rack.

Image courtesy of Rebecca Reich/Amazon.com

The internet is full of shoe rack options, but consider getting one that can be easily stacked. the one above is actually three shoe racks stacked on top of each other. The racks are still secure and can tonnes of shoes.

Use drawer dividers for decluttering

Clutter everywhere makes our heads ache. Living in a home that’s full of clutter can increase your stress levels and just might make you not want to go home anymore. When you open your clothes drawer, the last thing you want to see is clutter.

How do you get rid of clutter in your drawer? By making sure you have drawer dividers. They are available in various sizes and colors, and they can fit pretty much all drawer sizes. You can also use old shoeboxes which you can beautify with leftover pieces of wrapping paper or paint.

Make sure you can find the lids in your kitchen

If you’ve ever cooked or spent some time in the kitchen, you’d know that one of the most common problems in that area of the house is being unable to locate the lids you need. We’re talking about all kinds of lids here, both for pots and food containers.

How do you ensure you don’t lose the lids in the abyss of all your kitchen stuff? We just found an insanely useful hack on the Internet and kudos to the person who shared this. Hang a file organizer on the inside of the cabinet and put all the lids there. Pretty nifty, right?

Use your attic for additional storage space

The primary purpose of attics is to provide a large mass of slow-moving air in the home, but aside from that, it is also often used for storage. That’s why you shouldn’t just leave your attic in a sorry state. Make good use of it.

The attic is the perfect place to store various knick-knacks or items you only use once a year, such as Christmas or Halloween decorations. This homeowner scores brownie points for making sure that all her stuff is not scattered on the floor.

Label cords to make them easier to identify

The number of electronics and gadgets we have in the home sometimes makes it challenging to identify which cord belongs to which appliance. We oftentimes end up pulling the wrong cord. Thankfully, there is a sure way to avoid this incident.

Labeling cords is a simple task, and it’s a lifesaver. This lady chose to reuse bread plastic clips to label her cords. We love her approach because she is hitting two birds with one stone. She’s not only recycling; she’s making sure that you can easily identify cords in the home.

Bins and labels go a long way

When it comes to home organization, particularly your closet, bins and labels go a long way. However, it takes more than just purchasing a few bins and writing labels. You also need to sort out your things and determine which ones you’re going to give or throw away and which ones are worth keeping.

Sorting out piles of stuff can be tricky because there’s always something in us that wants to hold on to things but you need to know when to let go of stuff you no longer need. Once you get rid of clutter, that’s when you organize what you have left and put them in pretty bins. Need inspiration? Just check out the before and after on this one.

Being able to locate and see all your earrings at one glance is a joy

Ladies who love accessorizing can relate to this; how many times have you wanted so badly to wear your favorite earrings, but you just can’t find the pair? This is a perennial problem that needs solving once and for all.

We love this lady’s method, and we just might copy it. We can look at all her earrings perfectly lined up with their pairs all day. Now, you don’t have to empty the entire jewelry box. You can see and locate all of them at one glance. What a joy!

Konmari method for tissue papers

Do you keep plenty of tissue paper in your home? Are they just lying around with no specific place where they belong? How do you ensure they are nice and tidy and easily locatable should you need to use them? Plenty of questions, right?

Well, do what this lady did. You’ll thank us for it, we know. She used the trusted Konmari method to make sure she organized everything. Just look at the result! The tissue paper starts from the lightest color on the left to the darkest on the right, just like a rainbow!

A lifesaver for scarf collectors

We don’t have many friends who are scarf collectors, but we reckon people around the world have problems storing their collection of scarfs. After all, they are not the same size as shirts, tank tops, and shorts. They are a different kind of clothing altogether.

Who knew that shower curtain rods and rings would come in handy in the organization process of scarves? Some people just come up with clever ideas, and we love them for it. What would life with a lot of scarves be without them?

Check your desk drawers now and then

Have you taken a long, hard look at your desk drawer recently? Scary, isn’t it? You can’t even tell where’s the pen, the tape, or scissors. It’s like a tornado swept through your things and wreaked havoc. Time to organize this beast!

Throw away stuff you barely use, firstly. We’re quite sure there’s plenty there. Keep like items altogether such as pencils, pens, and erasers. Make sure to use desk organizers, too. They are cheap and easy solutions that will help you.

We wish to have a pantry like this

This is the pantry of our dreams! It is so organized that sometimes, we believe this doesn’t exist in the real world, only in magazines. Pantries in the real world are definitely not this tidy! Do they even use this pantry at all?

Perhaps some people are just lucky that they can manage to have immaculately clean and color-coded pantries! It’s easy to read the labels, and the products are easily located, so it’s easy to reach for anything you desire. You can find basically anything in this pantry without any problems.

Upcycle aluminum cans

Households all over the world surely have plenty of aluminum cans lying around after buying countless canned foods from the grocery store, such as soups and canned vegetables. Help reduce waste by upcycling them and using them as a container for pens and other things.

We know they look unsightly at first, but that can be easily remedied by covering them with washi tapes. They don’t cost a lot, and they are easy to use. Just a few seconds, and the cans will come out looking beautiful.

Organize your documents

Moving to a new home is the perfect opportunity to start a file organization practice. You want important documents within easy reach because everyone knows you need them all the time. Even if you’re not moving to a new place, it still makes good sense to start your file organization practice now.

Put similar documents in a single folder and label the folder. You can start with house and vehicle documents, medical documents, and a folder for bills and payables. Keep in mind to purge now and then because you don’t need to keep 5-year old documents.

S-hooks are always handy

If you didn’t know this yet, S-hooks are very handy in the household. It doesn’t matter if we’re talking about the bedroom, living room, kitchen, or bathroom. There is always a purpose for S-hooks. But, we’d like to highlight a different part of the house.

We’re talking about the garage where most people keep their tools, cleaning equipment, and other things. Look at how organized this part of the house is with the help of S-hooks! You can easily hang different tools on them, making them easy to locate and grab.

A magazine holder for canned goods? We never thought of that!

Pantries have plenty of canned goods, as we’ve seen on this list. Sweet corn, tomato sauce, green beans, soups, canned tuna, corned beef, tomato paste, and other processed foods are some of the most common canned goods you will find in many households. How do you organize them, though?

We never knew that magazine holders could help with this. However, this is tricky because it requires the cans to have the same dimensions, so they fit in the magazine holder, but it is still a good idea that can be applied to pantries everywhere.

We love this grandpa’s organizational idea!

This guy’s grandpa has got it all figured out when it comes to his tools. Most men have plenty of nails, screws, washers, and other things lying about, and most of them don’t know how to keep them. This grandpa will help you.

We love how this grandpa organized them! He kept them all in the drawer and used the actual hardware for easy identification. However, we have a suggestion that can make this better, and that is not to paint the hardware for less confusion even though it looks pretty chic.

Color coding books?

How do you store your books? Do you organize it alphabetically according to the title? Do you use the Dewey decimal system? Do you do it by genre? Or do you simply not give any thought to the organization and just put them on the shelves?

This fellow has synesthesia, and this causes him to use colors to visualize specific alphabets or numbers. Instead of fighting it, he chose to go along with it by sorting his books according to color, and it’s visually stunning.

Make your hangers nonslip

Don’t you just hate it when your dress or tops slip off the hanger and fall onto the closet floor? We sure do, and we have been made to believe that we need to purchase special hangers to prevent this from happening.

The good news is we don’t have to do this. If you have wooden hangers at home, you can easily make them nonslip by putting hot glue on the edges. Just make sure that you wait for the glue to dry before you hang your clothes.

This is a drying rack we’d like to have

This is a product we can get with because it’s a clever addition to every kitchen. Forget about all those fancy drying racks. You don’t have to spend so much to get your hands on a functional one that you’ll use forever!

This drying rack easily rolls out to sit over the sink, so the water dripping from your plates, cutlery, and glassware goes straight to the sink. You don’t need to spend extra time wiping the counter. Isn’t that great?

Binder clips go with cables?

We often think of binder clips as something to only be used with paper, and of course, binders. But, they seem to have a much higher purpose if you look at this photo. They help keep cables in order.

Just put them at the edge of your desk and hang cables there, so they don’t end up all over the floor. Genius, right? This is something which you should try in your home office. Let us know how it goes and if you have used binder clips for other things.

A good spot for a clothesline

Finding enough room in your yard to mount a drying line can be challenging at times. You need to find a spot that gets enough sun but one that is out of the way. If you find yourself running out of space for the clothesline, then this hack might be for you.

If you have a raised deck, then you can mount your clothesline off the side. This is usually wasted space, but now you can take advantage of it. However, try to pick a side of the deck that is away from the grill (if you have one).

A good way to remember which food to eat first

Regardless of how we try to be mindful of the things we buy and put in the fridge, sometimes it’s just unavoidable for good to get expired. However, this doesn’t mean that we should just resign ourselves to that.

Image courtesy of Miss Simplicity/Area Voices

We need a method that will ensure that we curb food wastage. The good idea is to keep an “Eat Me First” plastic bin where you can keep all food that’s close to their expiration date in one place. These bins don’t cost a lot, so invest in one or dedicate a drawer in your fridge for it.

Such a good use for egg cartons

We go through so many eggs per week that we often find ourselves throwing out plenty of egg cartons, and this can quickly add up in your home’s trash can. Why not reuse the egg cartons and help nature in the process?

You can easily store squeeze bottles upside down in egg cartons. This keeps them organized and prevents them from sliding around in the fridge, and enables you to grab them easily when you need them. And don’t worry about the cartons getting wet because you can easily replace them weekly.

We want this measuring spoon clip

Don’t we just love dual-purpose products? They help make life easier without adding so much to the clutter we already have. One item which every coffee lover needs in their kitchen is this measuring spoon clip. It is indeed very handy!

We checked the reviews for this product, and we have got to say, we are convinced with the consistent 5-star rating! Everyone seems to love it, and although we would have wanted to hear about it earlier, it’s still not too late to get one.

A nice way to store jewelry

Which would you rather have? The jewelry on the left or the jewelry on the right? We know hands-down everyone will choose the jewelry on the right because it’s well organized. Stud earrings on top, dangling earrings in the middle, and watches and necklaces at the bottom.

We figured they were using a cork for the stud earrings as not all earrings stick easily to magnets, which is a clever idea. This is a clever way of decreasing clutter and making sure you remember to wear all your jewelry.

Are we in yarn heaven?

If you crochet or like to do needlepoint, you must have an abundance of yarn in your home. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it can easily lead to clutter, and if you want peace of mind, you have to get rid of clutter.

This lady’s yarn sorting session has resulted in something heavenly. She decided to group her yarn according to colors, and boy, they look very nice! Kudos to her for getting through the task and not giving up. This will encourage her to do more work with her yarn.

This lady’s husband must be very thankful to her

We believe that this lady’s husband is thankful that she ended up being his wife because look at how she organizes her husband’s shoes! Not all wives would do this, especially when they work and have to take care of the kids at the same time.

We’re not saying that they are bad wives, but most don’t have the time anymore. Some people say she could have just opted to use the original shoe box, but they attract mice, moths, and other kinds of insects that can damage the shoes.

Use shoe organizers for small items

You can use shoe organizers for more than just shoes. They also make great storage options for spray paints and other small items; you just have to make sure that they are sturdy enough so they can support the weight.

Just hang the organizer and put your small items in the slots provided. But remember not to expose the shoe organizer to light because they tend to disintegrate after some time when this happens, but they don’t cost a lot, so you can easily replace them.

Shelves are always a good idea

If you have ever lived in an apartment with limited closet space, you know how much of a struggle it can be to keep everything organized. One early morning rush can easily turn the whole place upside down, making it look like a raccoon had been scavenging for leftovers all over your belongings!

To remedy a situation like that, we recommend getting shelves. Like in the picture above, you can get them organized and painted however you like. When your shoes, purses, clothes, and makeup each have their own designated space, life getting ready will be so much easier, and your space will look stunning!

Convenient clothesline

If you are a homeowner who doesn’t solely rely on a washer and dryer for your laundry needs, you will love this next one. Having a convenient place to hang your clothes to dry can be a bit tricky. But if you have a deck, we have the ultimate hack.

For this to work, your deck must be a bit far from the ground, so if you have a one-story or two-story deck, you are in luck. With bars like these protruding from it, you can fix as many lines as you can. Just remember to leave space in between.

Kitchen Island With a Hidden Storage Compartment

Storage is a huge thing in a house. For some reason, you are constantly looking for things or places to keep more and more of your stuff! It never ends! It’s actually worse in the kitchen, and sadly, if you don’t have enough storage space, you end up with a cluttered house.

The picture above shows an IKEA kitchen island that was extended using metal brackets and covered with the company’s cover panels. As you can see, it’s a long but narrow space that you can use to store things like foldable tables for when you have many guests.