Okie dokie…I am still waiting for more volunteers for the Reader Spotlight! Several of you are working on things but I’d love to have more of you guys volunteer so that when Thursday rolls around I will have great things to share. I know I LOVE to see what other people do. I love looking at pictures and just hearing things from another point of view. So send me your info–remember it can be about anything related to shopping, saving, coupon organization, tips, gripes whatever you want to share!!
I get so many questions about my stockpile I thought it would be easiest to just show you guys 🙂  It would be impossible to show you everything but I think this should give you a good idea of how I keep my stuff organized.
I would like to pretend that I am the queen of organization…but it is just not true.  I have good intentions and do a fair job of keeping things organized. BUT–with my two boys running around destroying as fast as I can pick things up–the majority of my time is spent just keeping things tidy!   I would love to win the lottery and pay a professional organizer to come to my house and go crazy with baskets and bins and labels everywhere!   Hey– a girl can dream, right?!

Many of the things I use are where you think they would be–my laundry items are in the laundry room, diapers and wipes are in my 2 year old’s closet and I have what most people consider a pretty typical kitchen pantry.  I try to keep enough items where they are easily accessible.  I keep 2-3 extra items of shampoo, conditioner, shaving cream, lotions, toothpaste, razors, toilet paper, tissues and such in the bathroom cabinets. 

As you can see my pantry is full and not as organized as it could be…but I can get to most things I need pretty easily. 

While I keep a small supply of items where they are easily accessible I also have a very large closet up in the guest suite that I turned into a stockpile pantry.  The room is upstairs off the family room so it is easily accessible.  Now when I run out of something rather that having to throw everyone in the car I just grab a bag and shop upstairs. Here are some pictures of that room:

I have wire shelving on the short walls and two very large shelving systems that are super sturdy to hold all the canned and other heavy items. Of course I also had to take advantage of the floor space too!

 

I try to keep things grouped as much as possible.  It seemed odd to have shampoo next to the ketchup so I had my husband add several rows of wire shelving so I could separate the stuff as much as possible.

As you can see some things are a bit more organized than others 😀

The reason I chose this as my stockpile pantry is that it is a really big area. I think it might be larger than the bedroom in my first apartment!!

 

While I realize this method is not for everyone–it totally works for me and my family!! I am sure I will get comments telling me that I am a terrible person who hoards and should be ashamed…but I am actually not ashamed at all!  My stockpile has come in handy on numerous occasions.  A friend lost her house to a fire–I had a box packed and ready for her within minutes and it did not cost me a dime.  I was told of a family in need…more boxes packed and shipped out with nothing out of pocket!  Every Christmas I make friends and family goodie baskets full of things that they need and use.  Each year they tell me these are the best presents and how much they look forward to them.  After all,  getting $100+ dollars worth of necessities is almost like getting a fat $100 bill as a gift. 

I really think people who complain about stockpiling just don’t understand the basic principle…I buy things when they are super cheap or free so that I don’t have to pay full price when I need them.  No–at this moment I do not need 15 bottles of glass cleaner–BUT I will over the next year!  I was able to buy all 15 bottles of glass cleaner for approximately 15¢ each so I was able to get a year supply for what an average person might pay for one bottle!!  So you tell me which method makes the most sense!

I have also learned quite a bit over the last few years about my family’s consumption rate and can usually buy accordingly.  The great thing about overbuying is that there is always a food bank or church pantry that will happily accept my extra items!

I had a reader email me and ask if I would be able to point out items in the weekly ad that are priced at a buy it now or stockpile price.  I thought that was a pretty good idea.  I always spotlight the deals that are not to be missed in the Super Deals post but often there may be items that are a really good deal that just don’t make it over to the Super Deals post.  So from now on when you see this check sign  you will know that the item is at a stockpile price! 

I hope you liked seeing a bit of how I organize and maintain my stockpile!  Now it is your turn to share.  Email me at contactiheartpublix@gmail.com to be part of the spotlight!!