If you’ve got girls then chances are you’ve got a ton of hair accessories.  Bows, barrettes, headbands, clips – it’s amazing how many hair doodads we buy.  I used to store all their hair stuff in a plastic bin under the bathroom sink but I hated digging through it.  I could never find what I was looking for quickly.  And, because it was out of sight, my two daughters never seemed to remember to put things back into it.  I needed a cheap solution that would make it easier to find what I needed while simplifing the put-away process for my girls.

I found my answer in the closet/container aisle of WalMart.  I bought this clear, plastic shoe caddy for $9 and mounted it on the back of the kid’s bathroom door.  I wanted the girls to be able to find coordinating hair stuff easily so I organized it by color rather than type.  The more common colors – like pink, blue and silver have several slots.  The less common – like black, brown and red have one each.  The top rows are tough for my little girls to reach, so I devoted those slots to more formal pieces that we don’t use very often.  Basic pony tail holders and pony beads are used all the time so they’re stashed in the big bottom slots.

The great thing about this system is that it’s very kid-friendly.  For example, if my little 5 year-old is wearing a yellow shirt she doesn’t have to ask me to help her find something that coordinates anymore; she just digs through the yellow slot and chooses what she’d like – whether it be a flower, clip, or headband.    Because it’s on the door (and they have to look at it while they brush their teeth and get ready for bed) they seem to be much better at putting things away as well.  The benefits of the shoe caddy solution aren’t limited to just my girls either.  Its conventient location is handy for me too because it’s really easy for me to grab what I need with one hand and still hang on to my daughter’s pony tail, pixie flip or braid with the other.  I’m sure you Moms of girls will understand.  

It’s a simple and cheap solution that has saved me tons of hassle during the get-ready-for-school morning rush.  If you’ve got girls in your family I highly recommend you give it a shot.  Just thought I’d pass it on.