Works for Me Wednesday :: Ikea Blue Bags
Posted by Alli on October 7, 2009
This week’s Works for Me Wednesday has the “cleaning tip” theme, and even though I often fail in housekeeping I can offer something that I think is an awesome tip.
I have seen the shows Clean House and Clean Sweep so many times, I can tell you exactly how it works. It always starts with clearing out the rooms/ house and sorting out the stuff and/or clutter. The family gets to go through everything and put it into three piles: keep, sell, trash. (Stuff that doesn’t sell at the yard sale gets donated to charity.)
The thing that has always bothered me about the shows is how they sort things into these plastic bins or baskets. The show provides a seemingly endless supply of these costly organizers. They can go for about $12 a pop. If you wanted to stage your own Clean Sweep, then you would need to figure out a way to sort the clutter and not shell out a ton of money to start.
Sure you could use cardboard boxes (recycling at its finest) or those plastic grocery bags (which aren’t very big), but those two option have drawbacks. For one thing, the cardboard boxes might not all be the same size and that feature of the plastic baskets actually helps in this kind of clean sweep. And the grocery bags are not big and often rip.
My cheap solution: Ikea Blue Bags.
Ikea Blue Bags are used for patrons to put their purchases in when they check out. Ikea charges 59 cents for each bag (usually found right at check out). The bags are plenty big, very sturdy, and are easy to move with their large handles.
We had two for a long time, using one to collect the paper/ cardboard recycling. Then one day I had an inspiration: I could replicate my desire for many, many sorting bins (a la Clean Sweep) for cheap and they didn’t take up a lot of room to store. And it would be a solution that was less than $10.
So, the next time we went through Atlanta, we stopped at Ikea and picked up 11 more (it was supposed to be 10, but I was using self check out and messed up the scanning).
I can sort paper clutter quickly and if I need to move my piles, I just stack them on top of each other in another room (keeps baby at bay). I have used them to sort the baby clothes and recently D used them to help pack for his trip with Fuller (it’s cheap Swedish luggage!).
We don’t live in a town with an Ikea, but there is one two hours away and another on the way to visit my parents in Ohio. If you aren’t near an Ikea, that’s ok, you might have connections with someone who is near one and can send them to you.
For more Works for Me Wednesday tips, check out We are THAT Family. The Linky has lots of them!
Stephanie said,
I LOVE this tip!!! You are right…I really wanted to try the keep/ donate/trash bins like the shows do , but the cost of the bins made it impossible. I’m in Houston and there is an IKEA here, so I am definately going to stop in and pick these up. GREAT idea! Thanks for sharing.
.-= Stephanie´s last blog ..My Favorite Cleaning Tip =-.
Michelle said,
I absolutely LOVED this tip! Great idea and the IKEA bags are also great to use at warehouse stores like Costco when you’re not using them elsewhere.
.-= Michelle´s last blog ..Keeping Wood Floors Clean – WFMW =-.
Jackie R said,
I LOVE those Ikea bags! They are SO CHEAP for the size of them. We use one of them for a laundry bag and it holds almost 2 loads.
Mara said,
That’s such a great idea! I love IKEA (my mom always jokes that we should send them pictures of our house, since all of our furniture is from IKEA!) – I will so be picking up some bags on our next trip! THANKS!
.-= Mara´s last blog ..Cleaning vs. Organizing =-.
Innkeeper Seely said,
I love my blue bags! The closest Ikea is in MA about 90 min. away so I always buy a few when I go. We keep several in each car for groceries and the box stores. We use them in the inn as tool/project bags so I can get in and out of a room when something needs fixed without leaving anything behind.
Eliza Welch said,
I just found your blog, and it’s wonderful!
I just started my blog and I would absolutely love it if you would stop by!
Eliza’s Blog
Rachel McFadden said,
The IKEA bags are the best, so big!! Great for shopping
.-= Rachel McFadden´s last blog ..Wordless Wednesday- Farm Visit =-.
Add A Comment