We are BIG readers in this house. I bribe the librarians with donated books so they let me take more than the standard 6 at a time. Now you know there’s nothing I won’t do for books.

I’ve shared before how I am weak when faced with book sales but for the most part, I buy non-fiction and get fiction from the library.

This little table is next to my main desk in the study.

My stuff is on the left and Dion’s is on the right.

1. When I get home from the library, I unpack the orange bag and stack all the books on the top.
2. As I finish reading, the books go back in the orange bag. The idea is that by the time the books are due back, all of them are back in the orange bag, ready to go.
3. Of course that never happens but at least I know immediately which ones I have to renew and which can be returned.
4. This system works beautifully for me!

As for Dion’s pile, I have no idea what his system is Incidentally, we bought his bookbag (folded under that blue book) at a bookstore called Collins at the Sydney airport for AUS $2.

Do you take books from the library? What do you do to organise your books?

I have a 3-drawer wicker thing just inside our door.

1. Now it’s summer here (south africa) so we have caps in there – the sun is potent and whenever we go outside I like to be protected – and of course, our individual umbrellas (they are the small ones).

In winter, I keep gloves, scarves and woolen caps.

One drawer each and an extra for miscellaneous of the same type (extra umbrella, or extra gloves).

I put the 2 gloves together and turn them inside out so they are little balls (hope this makes sense) so there’s no hunting around for a missing glove.

2. I keep my church Bible on top of the wicker thing.

3. My office in a bag and our gym bags are also there, as well as any errands that have to be run.

So before I leave the house, I grab my handbag, work bag on the other side of that wall, and then anything else from this little station.

It definitely works for me!

How do you remember what to take with you?

I’m working smart today and making this my Works for me Wednesday post!

Jo has left a new comment on your post “Fall Y’all bloggy giveaway – a virtual organising …“:

Here’s what I sent Jo in an email but I’d love you all to also pitch in with your ideas.

1. If you know HOW to organize (have systems and so forth), then I’d get some highschoolers in, pay them minimum wage and get them to do it according to your specifications.
2. Can your relatives help?
3. Advertise on your blog for someone good at organising/ professional organiser to come in and help you – maybe do an hour or two free and you can do a nice testimonial for them.

If you want to answer some more questions , visit http://rocksinmydryer.typepad.com

Now that I’m making these beaded bookmarks all the time, I needed to have a cheap solution that took up very little space and kept things organised.

I took a box and used 2 ice-cube trays from a set of 3, and used the partitions to keep all the beads and my other bits and pieces separate. The box is quite deep so I can easily put another layer or two of trays on top of a piece of project board as I get more and more beads (although I am not keen on just buying and buying).

BTW, if you look on the left of the box, you’ll see the gorgeous purple ones that I (almost) don’t want to sell. I am crazy!

For the moment, this really works for me. I can see at a glance when I’m running low and I can see which I need to make more of

I actually need to declutter as well (don’t laugh) because I bought some big bags of assorted beads and I can see I’m not really into some of them so will donate to my friend’s daughter.

I am so excited to tell you about this favourite tool of mine – the Sunshine Organizer. This calendar really works for me.

I was given mine as a gift and I had hardly walked in the door when Dion put it up on our wall and started filling it in. I had a small one up already but we both love this one so much because there is A LOT of space. And it’s yellow/ orange so it makes me happy!!!

This is perfect for a family with kids, or any busy family (like ours). There’s enough space for Dion’s stuff and for my stuff and best of all, neither of us has to scrunch up our handwriting to make it all fit

The features of the calendar include:

1. 14 months (starts in Nov 2007 and runs through to Dec 2008)
2. Large blocks to write in
3. Lined blocks to write straight
4. See your month at a glance
5. Starts with Monday so you have Sat and Sunday together ( shaded)
6. Emergency Numbers

When you open it to hang on your wall, cupboard, etc, it looks like this. Look how much SPACE there is!!!

back of calendar with instructions for use, emergency numbers, space for telephone numbers, etc.

this is a page in use – see all the writing, stickers, etc. Lovely!

Because I love this Sunshine Organizer so much, I offerered to put a link in my store so that you, dear blog readers, can also get your own one. Scroll down the front page just a bit to view the details.

It only costs $18.95 or R130 which of course, includes packing and postage. Please note there are two buttons so please choose International or South African. International readers, it will get to you within 3 weeks and South Africans, it will get to you within a week. Or if you’re really desperate to get yours, you can collect from Debbie, the creator of this gorgeous product, in Randburg.

Buy your copy now.

I recently came across this two-in-one dust pan and bathroom bin at Pick & Pay for about R15. They had them in lime-green (pictured), hot pink, yellow and blue.

I love it because when it stands upright (like in the picture), it is a bin and when I want to sweep the bathroom, I just turn it on its side and it scoops up the dust. I also like that it can fit into my small bathroom’s awkward corner so I use less space.

I’ve had this for a few weeks now and it certainly works for me.

I’ve been really bored with my same old, same old recipes so I went looking to my favourite book haunt, Exclusive Books, and found this:

This has 30 delicious recipes and the whole thing is packaged so beautifully. All for R97 (divide by 7.37 for US $).

The best thing about this unique recipe book is the format of the recipe card – on one side you find a picture and the ingredients and on the other side there are step-by-step instructions to make the meal. Did I mention pictures?!!!

So when I’m cooking, I stick this card to the kitchen cupboard with Prestik and

1. my hands are free
2. the recipe stays clean
3. I have more counter space

This definitely works for me!

This is something that definitely works for me – it keeps my hands clean!