Welcome back to the blog! It's a new year, and we're feeling the beginnings of a new season (I don't know about you, but I tend to begin Spring Cleaning in February (I'm not an over-achiever, just a nerd)). And since it's the month of love, we thought we would give you a list of five products we love in preparation for the impending overhaul. These five items are multi-functional and may not look like much at first glance, but they are each magical in their own way.

Isn't this photo gorgeous? Don't you look at it and suddenly heave a big sigh of appreciation, letting out some stress you didn't know you were carrying? It's because of our first favorite product, the drawer organizer.

These little guys come in a variety of sizes that allow you to puzzle-piece them together to fit your needs and inventory in any drawer. They typically come in plastic, but we also like to use the bamboo ones to retain the elevated aesthetic of drawers that are a similar color on the inside. You also get your choice of shallow (2 in tall) or deep (3-4 in tall), depending on your drawer depth. We particularly love The Everything Drawer Organizers from The Container Store. TCS enlisted the help of professional organizers to develop this line, so you're getting a little but of professional magic for free just by using them. They're squared off at the top for making efficient use of all your space; they're rounded in the bottom corners for easy cleaning; and they've got little rubber feet on the bottom to keep from sliding around inside the drawer.

Now that you know how cool they are, you might be asking where you can use them. And the answer is, "Anywhere you have a drawer." In your bathroom for your cosmetics and deodorant. In your office for paper clips and sticky notes. With craft supplies and gift wrap doo-dads. Even kitchen drawers for large utensils. I've got some in my nightstand for bookmarks, tissue, and cough drops. And, of course, that junk drawer (sorry, "Utility Drawer"), wherever it may be. (See above photo. There's hope for even the junkiest of junk drawers!)

These pan racks keep your pots and pans upright, and are adjustable to fit both your space and the size of your cookware. The purpose of this product is to keep you from having to fish for the pan you need from a towering, heavy, unwieldy stack.

But let's think outside the box of pots and pans. Use this adjustable rack for other kitchen items like cutting boards, baking sheets (like in the photo above!), serving trays, pot and pan lids, and even square or rectangle glass bakeware. Thinking outside of that, you could use this organizer for items such as construction paper or small canvases in a craft room, or for puzzles and board games in a playroom. Think about this pan rack when you have big stacks of items that you'd like to make more accessible.

In our previous blog post, All About Maintenance, we talked a little about the importance and helpfulness of labels. Labels remind us where our things live when we're not using them. They're our teammates in maintaining order. The Simplified team doesn’t go anywhere without our label maker. Even if a space isn't perfectly organized, a label is an extra 5% of effort that adds an extra 25% of structure.

Our favorite tool is the Brother P-Touch Cube Plus. I'll let you hear why straight from our fearless leader, Whitney: "The reasons I love it are that you can print via Bluetooth from your phone, connect it to your computer to use any font you want, and it allows you to print larger labels for easy legibility compared to standard label makers. It was one of the first purchases I made for my business and it has stood the test of time!"

Truly, another product that makes me sigh an "all-is-right-with-the-world" sigh.

Slim hangers are truly going to save space on any closet hanging rod. The space taken up by traditional wood or plastic tube hangers really adds up! And we're not giving you license to stuff your hanging rods so full that you can barely get anything on and off of them; we're saying that you will be able to tell the difference--not just visually, but also mentally--when you have some extra white space in your closet.

Slim hangers are available in velvet (shown above), rubberized plastic, clear acrylic, or wood. All of them are really sleek (disclaimer: the wooden ones aren't quite as slim as the others). Whichever is your choice, don't forget to buy the ones with a bar on the bottom; they can serve double duty for tops as well as bottoms or accessories that need to fold over.

If you want an extra ounce of elevation, go for hangers that all match each other and that match your space (light walls deserve light colored hangers, while black hangers can blend in seamlessly with darker, dramatic walls). Isn't uniformity pretty?! 😍 🤩

As awesome as the aforementioned products are, I've saved the best for last (this is my humble opinion, but I think I'll be able to convince you of the same).

Turntables are an under-appreciated product. Pretty much anything that can go in a bin can also go on a turntable, depending on your space and inventory. If you've got items in a bin, you might have to pull the bin out of the cabinet to reach what you're looking for. Easy enough, sure, and easier than digging around in a cabinet with no organization whatsoever. But if the items are on a turntable, you have only to give it a swipe and the carousel spins before your eyes, allowing easy viewing and easy access. The item is basically delivered to you. It minimizes that much more friction in regards to accessibility. Point: turntable.

Allow me to name a plethora of spaces and uses for this piece of plastic wizardry:

-In refrigerators for condiments.

-In pantries for granola bars and fruit pouches.

-In your baking area for sprinkles.

-In medicine cabinets for supplements.

-In the middle of your table for frequently used sauces, or by your stove for your oils and vinegars (find a pretty wooden one to elevate your countertops!).

-Under sinks for cleaning supplies (this one is the size of a large pizza! It's perfect for zones where you have limited vertical space).

-In craft rooms for...well...everything!! (Definitely go for the divided turntable here to help those small items sit upright.)

-In your mudroom for sunscreen and bug spray.

-In your bathroom for your nail polish and other treats you use during your spa-day-me-time.

I really could go on, but I think you get the picture. 😊

There you have it, our top five favorite organizing products. Truth is, though, there are plenty of other products we drool over. If we've piqued your interest and you think you may want to implement any or all of them, email us to schedule a consultation with Whitney and to begin down the road of your new obsession. We promise it'll be worth it.

Five products we LOVE 💖 💖 💖 💖 💖

#1-Drawer Organizers

#2-pan racks

#3-label maker

#4-slim hangers

#5-turntables