Even though I’ve been out of school for many years now, when fall starts to roll around and back-to-school displays pop up in the stores, I can’t help but want to get organized. Fall seems to be a busy time for everyone — whether you’re managing hectic schedules of school-aged children, getting ready for a busy Q4 and holiday season at work, or just craving a reset at the start of a new season. So today, I’m sharing some of my best organizational tips to get yourself feeling fresh for fall.
Treat Yourself to New Office Supplies
If your desk is anything like mine, it accumulates a lot of clutter throughout the work week. To top it off, throughout the year, I run out of key office supplies like sticky notes, my favorite pens and highlighters start to run out of ink, and everything is generally just in a bit of disarray. As such, I like to take advantage of the back-to-school supply sales and use this as an opportunity to refresh my desk and treat myself to a fresh batch of my favorite office essentials.
To help keep my desk organized, I love using simple plastic desk organizers, which you can easily find at The Container Store, Home Goods, and TJ Maxx. They make all the difference in keeping your office supplies easily accessible and visible in desk drawers. Before I reload them with fresh supplies, I like to take everything out, wipe down the containers, and throw out any supplies that have reached the end of their life.
Then, I inventory what I need to restock on, make a shopping list, and head to Target and Paper Source — my favorite places to shop for office supplies. I always grab the most colorful Sharpies, highlighters, notebooks, and Post-It notes I can find — I love how they look in my desk drawers and they make getting all my work done a little more fun.
Clean Out Your Drawers
Since fall is such a busy time, I like to make sure that my junk drawers, kitchen drawers, and bathroom drawers are organized so that when I’m rushing in the morning to get ready, get breakfast made, and get out the door on time, I know where everything is and am not spending precious time looking for whatever it is I need.
For me, my kitchen drawers tend to get the most unruly, so heading into fall, I like to take a similar approach to my desk by taking all of my kitchen utensils and tools out of the drawers, ensure everything is clean, wipe down the drawers, and inventory what I might need to refresh. I recently grabbed bamboo organizers for my kitchen drawers from Target and they have been a game changer in helping me stay organized in the kitchen — and as an added bonus, they look great as well.
My favorite place to stock up on any kitchen utensils and tools I need after inventorying my collection is West Elm — they have an awesome selection that are both beautiful and practical. (I purchased my everyday gold flatware from there nearly a decade ago and it still looks just as good as the day I brought it home!)
Get Ready to Meal Prep
One of the best ways I’ve found to keep myself organized during the busy fall season is to meal prep on weekends. This ensures I have quick, healthy snack and meal options on-hand throughout the week, and I’m less tempted to swing through the drive-through on the way home from a busy day at work.
The key to great meal prep, I think, is having the proper containers to store all your food in. In addition to more practical glass tupperware and airtight OXO containers you can find at TJ Maxx, Target, and The Container Store, I love the more aesthetically pleasing containers you can find at Anthropologie — like their ceramic berry containers and egg holders. They’re stunning — and make meal prep just a little more fun.
Katie Urban is a lifestyle blogger and hosts A Touch of Teal. Read her blog to find the perfect desk-to-drink or weekend outfits, travel guide for your next adventure, home decor ideas—and cocktail recipes for when you have people over, a new book to read, or just reflections on life as a millennial living in DC.
