Organizing a "Command Central" Bookshelf

Recently, I did a post-homeschooling purge, and have reclaimed some space -- namely a bookshelf.  As we are no longer homeschooling, I was able to tidy up a 3-shelf bookshelf in our kitchen that was previously used for a lot of homeschooling materials, and turn it into a more organized space for my little home office area.  The shelf is adjacent to my desk in our kitchen, so it's handy storage space, and yet...  I wanted it to look nice, and not just be crammed with notebooks and paperwork.

I found a trio of metal baskets at TJMaxx for a grand total of $19.00.  Actually, I brought home one of the smallest ones to test it out. When I decided I liked it, and went back to get more, they only had one small basket left, so I ended up purchasing that as well as one of the medium sized baskets.  (I wasn't sure the medium size was going to work -- but I do like it better than I think I would've liked one more basket of the same size.  It's more visually interesting, I think.)

<<NOTE: I like the open-style metal basket rather than something with solid sides.  This way, I can see what's inside.  I'm an out-of-sight-out-of-mind kind of person, and if I store things (to be used often) in closed containers, I forget all about them, and end up buying duplicates.  NOT efficient!>>

I wish I had a "before" picture to show you of this bookshelf.  But, no.  Suffice it to say, there were a lot of things there that had been there a long time, and I have reclaimed the space!

The bottom shelf holds a receipt binder (more on that later), school supplies (some stored vertically in magazine racks), and smaller school supplies in a metal basket.

The middle shelf keeps our Bibles handy, and has a larger metal basket for some "whimpy" record-keeping notebooks that don't stand up well, as well as some larger 3-ring notebooks for insurance and school records.

The top shelf includes another metal basket which holds my stationary supplies (to help keep my birthday card commitment!)  The rest of the area is FREE SPACE consolidated into one area after all of the purging.  I decided to use that space (a luxury!) for our collection of favorite books that were randomly scattered around the house. It looks nice and tidy, AND by collecting the books here, I've tidied up a few other areas around the house!

Trust me when I tell you that this is a big improvement.  Yes, it would be nice to have some of this stuff hidden (behind doors, for example), but for now, I'm happy with the REfreshing change!

Tomorrow, I'll share one of the easiest things I do to keep our life organized.  It's an oh-so-simple tip, but one that has been so helpful for us.  Stay tuned...