5 Easy ways to clear clutter from your fridge
Gone are the days that the kitchen is a little room tucked behind a wall.
We live in the world of open plan houses that you can see the kitchen from the lounge room, back entertaining area and in my case from the front door. Well-designed picture frames are becoming a precious commodity on the limited wall space we have
5 yrs ago we purchased the worst house in a pretty great location.
The house was so bad most people would have screamed and ran the other way. In fact some wouldn’t have let their dog live in here. So in all honesty I didn’t really care very much that the fridge was covered with clutter when the rest of the house looked even worse.
The fact that it was a 25 yr old fridge that was once white and now yellowish also made me want to cover it in arts, crafts and paperwork.
My 3 kids would stick all sorts of stuff on the fridge from artworks, an almost empty piece of paper that was supposed to be a rainbow, school newsletters, awards and the occasional photo.
The fridge was so full that each time you went to get something out there was a challenge to get into the fridge without a million things falling off.
Fast forward to today, we have renovated the entire house and the kitchen and the fridge is the very first thing you see when you walk in our front door. We purchased a very flash silver fridge that looks amazing and I was so excited to finally have a nice looking home.
All things were looking great until my daughter brought home her first brightly colored od-shaped school award for excellent behavior.
She automatically grabbed a magnet from a draw and put it on the fridge. I had a heart attack. It looked hideous. As soon as you walked in the front door it was the first thing you saw.
Something had to be done……….
1. The Sorting
Lets face it our little darlings are always bringing us the most amazing pieces of art. Sometimes it is one line on a piece of paper that is supposed to be a tree in a field of flowers or other times it is quite clever.
With every piece I ask the kids, is this a special piece that we need to display or is it a mummy only piece that I can keep special in my draw.
Of course when they were little I would gently push them to make the correct answer but as they have gotten older they are pretty good at deciding what should be displayed and what maybe doesn’t need to be.
The other items we tend to stick on our fridges are school notes that need to be signed or reminders of upcoming events. But we will get to that.
2. The Eliminating
Yes we are all very good at holding onto clutter. Those artworks that look great and are a bit sentimental, the newsletter that had a photo of our child in it, the school excursion note.
But we need to sort them out and in my case create calm.
So the best thing to do is actually take the time when you receive the note, art or excursion letter to decide do I really need to keep it and if not can I recycle it.
A great thing to do is to cut up the newsletters into strips and keep them as note paper for shopping lists or when you need to write a quick note.
But other than that if you don’t need it or love it then chuck it !!!
3. Picture Frames Display
I am sure we have all seen that gorgeous Pinterest house that has beautifully designed wall art picture frame collections and those interior decorators that encourage us to change our art all the time but let’s face it who has time?.
Life is busy, if it isn’t a quick solution and looks great we don’t want a bar of it.
Now is the time to introduce a Brilliant Frame. The front opening magnetic whiteboard picture frame.
It is so easy to create a wall collection with matching frames.
My favorite collection is 1 x a3 and 2 a4 in my kitchen (like this) on the wall and then each child has their own a4 frame above their bed.
This picture frame is so easy to use. It can hang either horizontal or vertical and you simply open the front and use the supplied magnets to put in your artworks, certificates, newsletters and photos.
It couldn’t be easier. You can change it in a flash.
Not only does this give your children great pride to see their artwork hanging in your home, but they are a quality picture frame and therefore still make your home look fantastic.
Total Winner !!!
4. But what about school newsletters and power bills?
I am hearing you. School letters don’t look super flash on the wall and perhaps not something you want to display so here are three great options:
a) Use a bulldog magnet (available on our website) and put the notes in the frame and a piece of cool art in front. Like this
b) Or, take a photo of the newsletter on your phone, set a reminder of the activity in your calendar and then file it in a draw.
c) And powerbills – just pay them and file them – they have no place to be on display
5. After the art and crafts have been on display?
So once you have done all the right things and displayed the artwork, certificates and photos and it is time to change the frame contents, what next?
One great option is to photograph it, store the photos in a folder on a hard drive and work towards getting one printed photo book every year.
Keep an eye out for my next blog on how to photograph artwork correctly and turn it into a photo book.
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Brilliant Frames & Co
After 15 yrs in the custom picture framing and photography industry we have designed these unique and gorgeous products with you in mind. Our unique picture frame concept means it is easy for you to have a beautiful wall display showcasing artworks, certificates, photos, medals, memorabilia, vision boards or just a wonderful way to write and store your to-do list , menu plans or favorite recipes. We live right near the great barrier reef so we designed these frames and have had them made using sustainable recycled materials.
No tree has been harmed in the making of our frames.
You matter and the environment matters.