Get Organized Modularly

Wow! Pottery Barn has come up with a very cool modular system for what we at Clutter Diet refer to as the "Communication Station" for your family. It’s called the "Daily System," and it consists of a display rod that is mounted to your wall, with components that slide onto the rod as you see fit. Here are the components they have (photo from PB’s website):

• A recharge station for your cell phones and iPods! Cool! It’s combined half and half with a whiteboard.
• Corkboard
• Letter bins (not my favorite as these tend to become "nests"…but if you have a defined purpose for the bins they are great)
• Office organizer (ditto on having a defined purpose for these little compartments- Bonus: they have key hooks)
• Linen pinboard
• Magnetic chalkboard
• Magnetic whiteboard calendar
• Magnetic canister accessories for holding small push pins and the like

I actually bought these for my own house a while back, probably several years ago, but they did not have all of these components at that time. I have only the magnetic whiteboard calendar and the magnetic chalkboard.

What I learned: Don’t buy the magnetic canisters if there is any chance you might possibly brush by them and knock them down. (Don’t ask… argghh!!) And the magnetic whiteboard calendar works for our family really well, but if you want to have a "permanent record" of your family’s calendar to refer back to later, erasing this whiteboard calendar could be a problem for you. Also know you’ll have to write all the numbers in yourself each month.  And, as always, you need to measure carefully before buying so you’ll know if you have enough wall space.

Here is a great tip for any magnetic whiteboard situation: You can glue small round magnets to the lids of your whiteboard markers with E6000 Glue–let it dry for a long time. Then your markers can just be magnetically stuck to your whiteboard and stay out of the way.

And by the way, I am not a paid endorser for Pottery Barn on this, if anyone is wondering. I just like it! Cheers!