Inside: Read on for nine things professional organizers should never buy and likely you shouldn’t either.
Are you trying to organize your home? Chances are, you’ve got a few things on your Amazon wishlist to buy to help you achieve your goal.
But are you buying the right things?
While some home organization products can be helpful, there are plenty on the market that don’t add value and worse yet actually contribute to clutter in the long run.
They’re the things that professional organizers should never buy and you should skip them too. These products may initially seem appealing but they don’t last the test of time.
Not sure what you should avoid when shopping for home organization products? Read on for nine things that you would never find in a home organizer’s shopping cart.
9 Things Professional Organizers Should Never Buy
Years ago I became a professional organizer, but it wasn’t long before I changed my title to professional declutterer. I believe that the key to creating an organized space long-term is having less stuff to manage. Therefore, I focus my time and energy on decluttering.
Whether you work with a professional organizer or organize your house on your own, these are nine organization items to avoid buying.
1 – Excessive food containers.
You’ve seen them – the aesthetic, organized pantries on social media. Typically, there isn’t a single box or bag in sight. Everything has been removed from its original packaging and stowed neatly into clear containers.
While it certainly does have an initial aesthetic appeal, this isn’t the most practical way to keep things organized.
Many of the foods you buy are completely fine to stay in their original packaging – and for some things, you probably want to keep that packaging around.
How else will you know how long you need to boil that pasta? It’s also a health and safety issue; when products are recalled, you’ll need the information from the box to know whether you’ve been impacted.
Additionally, all of those containers are just more things that need to be cleaned and can create more waste. Keep it easy and stick to stowing your foods away in the boxes and bags they came in.
If you want to decant a few select items such as baking essentials, no problem. Just resist the temptation to turn your pantry into a showroom that won’t function practically. You don’t need them to have an organized home.
Avoid round and tapered containers as they waste space. And be selective. Otherwise, those extra acrylic bins eventually end up becoming trash in a landfill.
2 – Cheap storage bins.
When it comes to storage bins, there’s a pretty wide range in terms of cost and quality. You can pick up plastic boxes and bins at your local dollar store that may work ok for certain items. However, they don’t tend to last the test of time.
For storage containers you plan to use long-term, use quality, durable pieces with latching lids that’ll last far longer than their cheaper counterparts.
While there’s nothing wrong with buying a budget bin or two if you’re strapped for cash or need them for something temporary, valuable items like old photographs are better stored in well-made storage containers that will keep the elements out.
You’ll save money in the long run by storing items in containers where your items won’t get ruined. Additionally, cheap baskets and bins often end up in the trash when they break or storage is upgraded.
3 – Overly specific storage solutions.
Now, this one needs a little explanation – because some specific storage solutions are great. Silverware organizers? Yes, those are great. Jewelry organizer? Yes, please. How else would I keep my necklaces from getting tangled up?
But large, unwieldy storage solutions for things that can’t be repurposed? That’s a much tougher sell.
A few examples of these too-specific storage solutions include:
- Spice racks designed to hold specific spice bottles. You might switch up your spice brands at some point, or buy more spices than your rack can hold… and then what do you do?
- CD or DVD towers. They take up a ton of space and, frankly, aren’t too useful in the age of streaming media.
- Wrapping paper organizers. You use that wrapping paper once or twice a year. Do you really need a storage container built specifically for it? A general under-the-bed bin can work well for this and is flexible so it can be repurposed for other items later if needed.
4 – Non-transparent storage containers.
Whether you’re storing clothes, sporting equipment, or holiday decor, you want to quickly and easily identify what’s in a bin.
Sure, you can – and should – label your bins, but trying to include all types of items is time-consuming and tedious. Also as soon as you move an item or remove it the label may no longer be accurate.
Buying transparent storage containers is an easy way to let you see what’s inside from all angles. This allows you to quickly find whatever you need without sifting through endless boxes and bins. Labels fade and become inaccurate over time and see-through bins help to simplify things.
Clear storage bins and boxes don’t usually cost more than their opaque counterparts, so this is an easy one to embrace.
The goal of organizing is to create a sustainable system for your home. Being able to see what you’ve stored can help you do that.
5 – Shelves that can’t be adjusted.
A good set of shelves is one that can be modified to fit your needs. In many cases, it’s a relatively simple process to shift a shelf a few inches up or down, allowing you to customize your storage to whatever you need to hold.
While there are some nice non-adjustable storage options out there, you’d benefit from investing in something that gives you a little bit of flexibility.
Cube shelving is notoriously limiting for what items can be stored and often end up full of baskets where you can’t see what’s stored inside.
Unfortunately not only are these not flexible, but they can also lend themselves to clutter when it’s challenging to find what goes where.
6 – Filing cabinets.
Back in the day, filing cabinets made a ton of sense. We kept all of our records on physical paper and needed a place to keep them.
But now? Virtually everything from tax forms to medical records can be accessed digitally. And even if you receive an important document on paper, you can scan it and upload it to your storage solution of choice.
Most important documents you need to keep can be stored in the cloud making them easily accessible online.
There are some papers you’ll want to keep in print, but plenty of types of paperwork can be decluttered lessening the number of papers you need to hold onto.
If you prefer to store papers physically rather than digitally you can still skip the heavy metal filing cabinet. Opt for plastic see-through file containers instead. This also makes it easier to quickly remove important paperwork from your home should you need to.
7 – Plastic clothing hangers.
Plastic clothes hangers not only look cheap, but they also take up more space in your closet, limiting the amount of stuff you can store.
Additionally, mismatched plastic hangers of varying colors can make your closet look cluttered.
If you have a lot of clothes to hang up or simply don’t have a ton of closet space to leverage, they’re not the best option.
Opting for uniform slim hangers can help maximize your space and improve the aesthetic of your closet.
8 – Bulky countertop organizers.
It sounds like an organizer would help you get organized. But oversized ones that take up too much space may not actually help keep things tidy.
If your desk or countertop has a large organizer with a number of items in various cubbies in it it can make your home look cluttered and take up too much of your usable space.
Look especially at ones designed for desks, mail & papers, the kitchen and the bathroom. In most cases you’re better off trying to store most of those items in cabinets or drawers anyway.
Most of them are also designed with very specific cubby sizes that may not work well for your purposes, which brings us to the last item that professional organizers should never buy.
9 – Drawer organizers with specific compartment sizes.
There are a lot of great room organization ideas out there, but they’re only helpful if they work in your specific space.
A drawer organizer for cutlery makes sense as they tend to universally work for silverware. However, other specific drawer organizers may not be a great option for keeping your things organized.
Junk drawer and make-up drawer organizers with specific compartments often limit what you can put where. Some spots may be too big or too small for your needs, not to mention that they don’t necessarily fit in all drawer sizes.
A better option would be more individually sized containers. This allows you to create your own drawer organization system based on your actual items.
The beauty of this setup is it also allows you to move things around more easily. Additionally, they’re more flexible should you want to repurpose them later in a new space.
Final thoughts on things professional organizers should never buy
While people often think they need to get more organized, what many truly need is to declutter more. When you have fewer things you’re constantly managing, it makes organizing much simpler.
In addition to choosing flexible storage solutions that work for your home, creating tidy habits will help you to keep your home clean and clutter-free.
What things do you think professional organizers should never buy? Leave a comment and let me know!
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I definitely love reading the various blog posts through here, but take them all with a grain of salt and consider them to just be advice worth considering.
Some of these make sense for me, but others do not.
I keep my paper documents in file boxes because I like the tactile sensation of touching papers and it’s an organizing system I already have a habit of using without having to put much thought or effort into it. I also have a large house, so storage space isn’t an issue most of the time, especially for small stuff that’s easily contained.
Non-transparent storage containers are my preference for most things, too. It’s visually cohesive to have sets of the same color of containers for each category of things and my I like making cute labels. It makes me smile to open a closet and see the opaque boxes neatly stacked with labels facing me, and isn’t smiling when you look at what you have the goal of simplifying what you have?
If breaking a “rule” makes you happy and costs you no money or stress, then make the exception!
I completely agree! I really dislike clear bins. I like color coordination which keeps me sane. Something about all th things in bins being visible adds to my feelings of clutter.
My husband really loves them though. So our attic storage is all transparent for his ease.
One reason to keep dry food in plastic boxes is out of concern for insects or mice. Many household insects (and of course mice) can easily chew through cardboard boxes. That being said, you may still want to cut out the instructions, expiration date, and product codes and keep them in the container with the food.
Yes, that’s definitely true if you live in an area where insects and mice are prevalent.
Hey Julianna,
This is one of the best reads I have had from your collection! I am happy and have picked a new and very important lesson- organizers may not necessarily imply that you are managing your spaces!
Thank you!
I’m so glad it was helpful 🙂
I think this article is excellent and I agree that it is far better to de-clutter than buying organizers to house all the ‘stuff.’ Spending money needlessly on organizers gives permission to keep accumulating and never addresses the real problem. That is having more than one needs and always results in clutter. Even labeling opaque containers still begs the question: “Why do I need so much? And how much money has been wasted? I am a senior citizen so I have been around long enough to learn the ‘hard lessons’ And I can honestly say: Less is better! De-clutter and then buy wisely to avoid repeating the same mistakes! Thank you Julianna!
I m grateful for the information it’s helping in saving money time de cluttering
As we are in the midst of a complete renovation of our master bedroom, bath & closet, all of the stuff has been crammed into my home office. There’s enough room left that I can close the office door… but that’s it! When I put the last “stuff” in my office and closed the door my mind said “you need to purge before the putback!”
I like the clear containers idea for our new closet. In fact, I’ve already purchased some for my shoes. Also, plastic hangers… my hubby still uses them, and I hate them. I just informed him he’s getting new hangers, grey velvet ones, and he will use them because the plastic ones are headed to Goodwill!
Great ideas as usual thank you!
You’re welcome, Marcella. I’m glad the tips were helpful!
Should have read this before I got every one of these items.
Donations are in order.
I don’t agree with the pantry info. Last winter we were infested with mice, killing over 25, mostly in my pantry. I BOUGHT storage containers, after I threw out several hundred dollars of otherwise good food. This week I had help to clean it again, and it makes me feel clean and safe to have nearly everything labeled, in clear mouse proof containers. So far no more mice, had to use sticky pads to catch them, and several cans of “mouse proof foam around all outside access points”. The whole episode cost me over $500. But I sleep now at night not hearing mice eating. And not being in fear of getting haute virus and dying. (It has a 33% death rate!). Horrible experience.!
Best item I have ever purchased are adjustable drawer dividers. Make folded clothes very accessible. I bought mine at Bed, Bath $ Beyond, cost a lot, but are SO Worth it. I get a good feeling every time I use the drawers they are in. (I bet Amazon has them also.)
Yes, Amazon has the adjustable drawer dividers, 5 for $21.95 I think. Love them!