More function, less clutter

A couple of areas in our bedroom that needed some improvement were our bedside tables and the changing table. Yes, we currently share a bedroom with our baby. That is one of the reasons why we want to de-clutter and hopefully move somewhere with a third bedroom! It has been convenient having him in our room, but it is definitely not a permanent arrangement. Our second bedroom currently serves as a guest bedroom for our frequent visits from grandparents and an aunt, as well as an office for my husband since he works from home.

I unfortunately don't have any before pictures for this post because I just started organizing these spaces in the middle of clearing off the bookshelves. I was on a roll! So, I'll have to describe the befores.

Previously, my bedside table had a horizontal stack of books on the shelf below. This was a pain because they would all fall everywhere if I tried to pull one off that wasn't on top. And they wouldn't stand up vertically because of the open sides.

The top of the table had a bunch of mail, papers, and pens. My cat, Ashtyn, was constantly knocking things off of it!

First I took everything off and dusted it. The books got moved onto the bookshelves now that my jewelry relocated and made room. What a brilliant idea, right!? I stacked two pretty boxes on the self. One holds my recently trimmed down greeting card collection and the other contains inspiring design samples I collect for future reference. A spiral notebook rests on top of the boxes.

The only things I left on top of the table are my lamp, alarm clock, and a post it pad in a clear plastic holder that also has room for two pins. The paper clutter got moved to the guest bedroom or thrown out. I love that I now have room to set something on the table temporarily, such as a glass of water. The slippers have now relocated to the closet too so it looks even tidier. The drawer was already organized so I left it as it was. It holds things like my eye mask, lip balm, lotion, bookmarks, and earplugs.


My husband also cleaned off his bedside table so that it is less cluttered. A lot of his books moved to the bookshelves in our bedroom. Some of his random odds and ends went into clear plastic bins for storage. I don't have an after picture of it yet, but it is definitely improved.

The changing table wasn't too bad, but it still had a bunch of random papers on it like instruction manuals for baby gear and print outs from our baby registry. On top of it we keep our diapers and other frequently used items in that fabric bin. Wipes are behind it. Our baby is getting long enough that the wipes will soon relocate to the window sill and the bin will move down to the shelf below.

The second shelf has an extra changing pad, bath toys, a high chair cover, and another bin with various baby toiletries. A lot of them including the medicines will need to relocate once he is pulling up and walking.

The bottoms shelf holds a pink tub with extra wipes. It's pink because it just came in that color from the hospital. We have at least three now and they really come in handy! The bottom shelf also holds diapers, trash bags, and the diaper bag. The diaper bag goes in the empty space. Daddy and baby were out running an errand while I took these pictures. I LOVE our diaper bag! It is this one from Land's End and it really helps us stay organized on the go.

There is definitely some room to grow on these shelves, so it will evolve. I would love to get some matching bins or baskets, but for now this works!

What do you keep on your bedside table? For those of you with kids, what do you store below your changing table other than the usual diapers and wipes?