An Australian mum has offered a look inside her very well-organised home, and revealed which Kmart products she uses and where.
Stephanie Pase, 29, from Sydney, said the coronavirus isolation period is a great opportunity to organise and de-clutter your home, and while you might think this will cost you hundreds of dollars, you can do it on a budget.
‘Kmart is one of my favourite places to buy items for organisation,’ Steph said in a recent YouTube video.
The mother showed the items she uses in her pantry, fridge, under the sink, office and kids’ area to make her life more streamlined.
An Australian mum has offered a look inside her very well-organised home, and revealed which Kmart products she uses and where (Steph Pase pictured)
Steph Pase, said the coronavirus isolation period is a great opportunity to organise and de-clutter your home, and it doesn’t have to cost hundreds of dollars (her pantry pictured)
What does Steph use in the pantry?
The first area that many want to target in their home is the pantry, which is a key space for ensuring that mealtimes run smoothly.
‘I use the $7 pullout container for my bread and our back stock, so basically any foods we run out of, we know to look here,’ Steph said.
The mum-of-two also loves the $5 long narrow tubs, which she said will work in many spaces.
‘If you have a small and narrow pantry, you need to think small and narrow tubs,’ she said.
‘This will allow you to get all of the storage at the back and then just slide it out. We use these for small pantry items and they ensure we use every inch of space.’
One of Steph’s ‘favourite items ever’ from Kmart is the $5 Lazy Susan (pictured), which she uses both in the pantry and the fridge for her condiments and sauces to maximise space
Steph loves to keep everything in containers so that she can see where everything is; she also uses labels from Little Label Co so everything is organised (pictured)
Elsewhere in her pantry, the busy mum said one of the best things you can buy is the $5 Lazy Susan.
‘We use them in the pantry and the fridge, and they are great for your spreads and vinegars,’ Steph said.
She also loves the $7 foldable shelves, because you can use them on top of stored items in your pantry – thereby making the most of your space above items as well as on the cupboard surface.
‘You really need to think about utilising all the space you have by putting in more levels,’ Steph said.
‘I also love the $4 wine holders for storing all our kids’ drink bottles, smoothies and shakers. It keeps everything looking nice and organised and maximises space.’
‘I love the $4 wine holders for storing all our kids’ drink bottles, smoothies and shakers. It keeps everything looking nice and organised and maximises space,’ Steph said (pictured)
Finally in the pantry, Steph said she uses the $8 fridge baskets everywhere for lunchboxes, medicines, bottles and items.
‘I use this $10 flip lid container for snacks and shopping bags as it’s easy to have them all in one place. They’re also good for kids’ shoes,’ Steph said.
She swears by the $4.50 file holders for her Tupperware lids, stacking them vertically with the bases placed on top of one another so she can always see where everything is.
One of the more clever things that Steph uses is the organisational file holders to store all of her Tupperware containers (pictured) so she can easily see them
What does Steph use in her fridge?
If you’ve got a big family, finding space in your fridge for every item of food can be tricky.
But again, with items like Steph’s ‘favourite thing ever’, the Lazy Susan, she is able to store all of her sauces and butters and items with ease.
Again, Steph said she also uses the long and narrow tray to put her kids’ yoghurts inside, meaning she can get right to the back of the fridge without having to move things around and re-organise every time.
‘We also use these $8 containers for our kids’ lunches and snacks and the smaller ones for dairy and meats,’ Steph said.
‘Just having a few tubs from Kmart makes our fridge so much more organised.’
Steph said one of the most useful things you can do at home is always have a meal plan board up so you know what the family are eating (pictured)
What does Steph use under the sink?
Like the fridge, the area under the sink is another space that can quickly get out of hand, with shopping bags, dish brushes, spare cloths and detergents.
But with a couple of hooks and drawers from Kmart, everything can be neatly stored away with ease.
‘I love these old Kmart wooden drawers for our dishwashing tablets and dish cloths,’ Steph said.
‘They cost just $16 and with a few labels from Little Label Co, you’ll always know what is kept where.
‘I also use the removable hooks for towels and bottle brushes. This means it doesn’t have to look cluttered when you first open the cupboard.’
Shopping bags are one of those things that no one likes to store, but Steph said these $10 flip lid containers are great for them (pictured), as well as kids’ toys and shoes
What does Steph use in the office and to store kids’ items?
Lastly, the mum-of-two showed around her home office, where she uses the $4.50 magazine holders as a simple way of storing her manuals, warranties and kids’ drawing books and activity books.
‘The $3 carry cases, designed for travel, are also great for kids’ puzzles,’ Steph said.
‘You can find them in the stationery section and they help to make the kids’ area look a bit tidier.’
When it comes to her organisational tips, Steph (pictured with her two children) swears by a cleaning schedule that includes daily, weekly and monthly tasks
What are Steph’s top organisational tips?
Steph (pictured) also likes to prepare meals ahead of time in the slow cooker when she knows she has a busy day
* SET A WEEKLY CLEANING SCHEDULE: Steph has tasks she will complete daily, weekly and monthly, and uses the Tody app, which reminds her how urgent different cleaning tasks are getting.
* PREP FOOD AHEAD OF TIME: Steph likes to use a Sunday to chop lots of fruit and veg for the week and pre-prepare breakfasts. Then, no matter how busy the weeks get, her eating will always be under control.
* PLAN MEALS AHEAD OF TIME: Steph likes to plan for up to a week ahead.
* USE YOUR SLOW COOKER: If she knows she has an especially busy day coming up, Steph said she’ll start dinner first thing in the morning.
* SCHEDULE A LOAD OF WASHING FOR FIRST THING: If your washing machine has the functionality, then schedule a wash for nine hours after you go to bed and you’ll wake up to a completed wash ready to be hung out.
Steph previously shared her top time-saving tips and tricks that she relies on each week to manage her increasingly demanding schedule.
‘Whether you’re a mum, a student or work full time (or even mix of all of these) I have some handy time saving hacks I do and swear by to help you out,’ Steph said.
‘Some of these may seem obvious; but start implementing them and see how much more productive you become.’
The first thing she said she likes to do is set a weekly cleaning schedule:
‘I like to set daily, weekly and monthly cleaning tasks to complete so I never have to think about what needs to be done around the house. It also helps me keep on top of those never-ending tasks like washing,’ Steph said.
‘Personally I like completing small cleaning tasks each day so I don’t have to spend a whole day each week doing a huge clean.
‘So besides the daily tasks (wiping kitchen bench, basic tidying, clean up toys etc.) I set two tasks a day. This could be mop floors, wipe down glass, clean showers, clean oven etc.’
Steph said she uses an app called ‘Tody’, which uses metres to help her visualise how urgent certain tasks are getting.
Steph (pictured with her family) likes to use the schedule button on the washing machine when she goes to bed, so a wash goes off first thing so she has clean laundry to hang out
The busy mum also preps food each Sunday for breakfasts, so she doesn’t have to think about it for the rest of the week.
‘By prepping certain meals, servings and even pre-chopping fruits and vegetables for the following days it can save you so much time!’ Steph said.
‘I like to pre-chop carrots, capsicum and zucchini for example. Food preparation can take up a huge chunk of your day, so think where you can save time with this.’
The 29-year-old also plans her meals well ahead of time and devises a menu for the week, and if she knows she has a busy day ahead of her, she’ll get ahead on making dinner by putting it all in the slow cooker and letting it simmer away all day.
Finally, she likes to schedule a load of washing for first thing when everyone is getting up.
‘A couple of times a week, the night before I throw in a load of washing and set the delayed start so it starts washing in nine hours,’ Steph said.
‘Then soon as I get up, before the kids wake up, I hang out the washing and that’s done for the day.
‘If you don’t have a delayed start function you could still pop your washing powder in there, ready to go and then just turn it on before you head off to the park and once you’re home its ready to be hung up.’
To read more from Steph Pase, you can find her on Instagram here.