Do you ever wonder if the state of your fridge can tell people about your personality? It will certainly spill the beans on your lifestyle; champagne and a carton of take-out slowly evolving into a new life form is almost definitely the fridge of a workaholic on a great salary, while a fridge stocked with fizzy drinks and cheese strings is likely to belong to a family with children (or a computer geek). All sorts of conclusions can be drawn about the lifestyle of the fridge owner, but can you really tell much by the state?

Personally, here at All Tidied Up, we think you can. If the crisper is full of cheese and the door filled with non-edible items such as nail varnish, a mouldy tin of beans and the television remote, we feel it’s fairly safe to conclude that the mind of the owner is neither organised nor food orientated. The state of the fridge and it’s contents, not to mention its cleanliness, can tell you much about the mind-set of the fridge’s owner; messy, absent minded, eclectic or control freak, it’s all there in the way the contents are arranged (or not, as the case may be!).

Unsurprisingly, we tend to fall in to the control freak camp! We’re big fans of creative ways to keep things tidy and one of our favourite items are Fridge Binz; a set of four, deep and shallow, clear plastic storage boxes designed to fit in your fridge that are ideal for organising drinks cans, packets of meats or cheese, or small condiments. Part of an entire organisational range for your fridge, these are modular containers that fit together to produce a storage system that will meet all your requirements. Easy to wipe clean, these are a sturdy and practical solution to a messy fridge so now you can give the impression of order to any visitors that go delving for snacks, even if the opposite is actually true!

But don’t just stop at the fridge, kitchen storage can help revolutionise your cupboards and work surfaces with innovative ways to tidy everything away but still make it all easy to access. From folding stackable shelves to over cupboard door shelves, there are designs and products to suit all needs. Maximise your cupboard space with the folding shelves, tidy up your utensils with one of Royal VKB’s stylish Lazy Lindas, keep your sink tidy with a saddle caddy or corner sink shelf, it’s all about the details. With so many clever and practical ways to increase tidiness and decrease the amount of time you spend looking for something, there’s really no excuse not to overhaul the kitchen and present an organised front for your home. Because you know what they say, a tidy home is a tidy mind. So find a place for everything and put everything in its place, and don’t allow your fridge be the one to let you down.

International Compost Awareness week begins on Sunday 6th May, the twelfth annual celebration designed to increase the general public’s awareness of the benefits of composting. Today’s society is a resource hungry one, and anything that can be kept out of landfills and reused can help keep dumping levels down. Not only that, composting your own waste can provide your garden with a source of nutrition for use on all your plants, planters and pots and helps reduce the use of peat-based composts. Peat composts threaten lowland peat bogs and the wildlife dependent on them and a homemade compost works just as well as a peat-based variety.

You’d be surprised at just what you can add to your compost heap; egg shells, food waste, the contents of your vacuum cleaner, all of it will break down into nutrient-rich fertiliser in around nine to twelve months. And it does it in such a way that very little methane is released as a bi-product, unlike the way waste breaks down when buried underground in a landfill site, due to oxygen having access to the waste.

30% of an average household’s waste is organic, just think how much rich composting material you’re throwing out when it could be better used helping you grow enough vegetables to feed your family, and keeping unnecessary waste out of the landfill. Recyclenow have a number of interesting facts and figures about composting on their website, chief among them is that if we composted all the suitable food waste produced by UK households we could avoid the equivalent of two million tonnes of CO2 emissions a year, a rather extraordinary fact that could help out our environment enormously.

Composting will also help your garden. By providing a nutrient-rich food source for your plants in the form of compost, you’re also helping to improve soil structure, maintain moisture levels, reduce disease and keep pH levels in check, creating a thriving environment for your plants to grow. Your rose bushes will love it, as will all your plants. If your garden isn’t big enough, or the amount of garden waste you produce large enough, then a wormery is a great alternative to a home compost heap. Small amounts of garden waste can be added to a wormery, along with some cooked food scraps, to produce wonderfully rich soil with the help of your worms, perfect for the garden.

If gardening is a passion, then producing a free source of compost is going to be a long-term, cost effective choice while helping you create a more eco-friendly attitude towards household waste. If you’re unsure what you can add to your compost bin, recyclenow has a comprehensive list on what can be added and how to go about setting up your own composting area. To help inspire you towards creating your own compost, why not take a look at our buckets and tins that can be used to help get your compost heap up and running, giving you a place to store those kitchen scraps until time to add to the compost heap.

Did you know it’s National Pet Month? Designed to raise awareness of the benefits of owning a pet, responsible pet ownership and the contribution working companion dogs bring to society, National Pet Month is a charity that works hard to ensure pets are treated well and is dear to our hearts. Here at All Tidied Up HQ we have one dog and three cats between us, and a frog named Roger (don’t ask), so the benefits of having pets is something we feel strongly about!

Let’s face it; owning a pet isn’t always easy; your dog will chew your shoes, your cat will leave dead birds as presents for you. Your snake requires dead mice stored in the freezer. The cockatil has taken up swearing. There’s always something, but it’s invariably outweighed by the joy your pet can bring you and the sense of companionship they give.

This month is the perfect opportunity to really show how much you care about your pet, perhaps get them a new toy, collar or cage. Dog owners might like to take a look at our Fatboy beanbag range for dogs. Oh yes, that’s right, they’re not just for humans you know! With a white bone motif on the front, these stylish bed options are available in a range of colours.

If you’re thinking about getting your first pet, there’s no better time. National Pet Month has ten top tips for responsible pet ownership that’s worth taking a look at but, most of all, research the animal and breed you’re thinking of purchasing to save you and your family a lot of heartache later. Choosing an animal that fits in to your current lifestyle is vitally important and helps keep animals out of the shelters. While some compromise in your daily routine will obviously need to be made, introducing a pet to your family can be extraordinarily beneficial. Just remember to get a clothes brush before heading in to that business meeting.

Talking of hair, if you’re thinking of a long haired dog or any kind of snow dog with heavy moulting scheduled in twice a year like clockwork, hair management is something you’ll need to look in to. Keeping your house, car and clothes hair free can be difficult but there are tools available to help keep it under control. Tape rollers for clothes are readily available from most supermarkets and pet stores, but unless you want to hoover every day during moulting season then alternative ways of keeping your carpet hair free should be investigated. Here at All Tidied Up, we use the Pet Hair Remover, a genius rubber product that lifts hair easily and makes keeping the house hair free a cinch.

Whatever pet you have and however you choose to celebrate them this month, just remember to take a moment to appreciate the benefits you gain from their presence in your life. They ask for so little and give back so much more, what better opportunity to spoil them than during National Pet Month?

Celebrate your desk and doing things by hand this week as National Stationery Day on the 24th April asks us to remember non-digital methods of communication such as snail mail, and the addicts love of a great pen.

Launched by the Stationery Show with the intention of getting more people putting pen to paper and writing by hand, it’s a great reminder that a handwritten letter is far more personal than an email. We also think it’s an opportunity to re-organise your work space, show your desk some loving and give it a spring clean!

J-me’s fabulous range of home office accessories can help make sitting at your desk a joy instead of a chore. Check out Rocky, our playful new desk mate. His coat is soft and smooth, made from non-slip black rubber, but his mouth is magnetised to help you keep track of all your paperclips. He can carry around half a dozen pencils and pens with plenty of room for smaller objects such as a rubber or pins on his back; a perfect desktop companion to keep everything in its place. Good boy!

If Rocky looks like too much of a handful, Lucky, Rocky’s younger brother might be the one for you. Capable of holding a pad of sticky notes in his mouth he’s just big enough to store five pens or pencils in the back. Made from the same non-slip black rubber, Lucky is weighted so once he’s sat somewhere he won’t move easily.

Did you ever make rubber band balls when you were younger? If so you might appreciate Rafael, a perfectly designed little man crafted specifically to store the darn things in one, easy to access place. We have no idea just how big his head can get, but we think it’ll take an awful lot of rubber bands before he runs out of room!

Creating a place that’s harmonious, easy to work from and has everything you could need within reach is key to being productive and achieving your daily goals; as the saying goes ‘a place for everything and everything in its place’. Desk storage is about more than just somewhere handy to store your pens; widen the scope and decide if more storage is needed for things like printing paper, envelopes and reference materials.

Wall mounted storage options can be used as an extended filing system or simply become your in-trays if you prefer a clutter-free desk. Our mesh wall-mounted magazine rack would be perfect for this, giving you an in, out and pending tray within reach but keeping your desk clear.

If shelving is already in place above or near to your desk, think about adding more storage through the use of hanging baskets that sit under the shelf. Normally used in the kitchen, these are just as useful in the home office environment and offer additional space for tidying away smaller stationery items such as boxes of staples or pens.

But if ultimately all you’re really wanting is a little help keeping your pens in line, a J-me desk tidy, shaped like the iconic biro pen lid is a quirky option. Made from durable plastic, it comes in four different colour choices to suit your workspace.

With the average person spending over 5 hours a day at their desk in a typical working week we hope we’ve inspired you to think about your desk and consider some new accessories to raise a smile while you’re working away. Maybe you’ll also take the time to write someone a letter by hand, they’ll certainly appreciate it!

For more inspiration and our full range of Home Office storage ideas.

This week is National Gardening Week, making this the perfect week to re-organise (or just plain organise!) your garden, shed and garage. If you’re anything like us, your shed spends most of the winter being stuffed full of everything from the garden that can’t survive the winter rains, so that when the warmer weather comes around you can’t find a single thing. And the garage isn’t any better off, chockfull of everything that doesn’t have a proper home. So why not take this opportunity to clear it out and tidy it up for the coming summer. Make sure you can get to that barbecue and find those garden shears. To help you, we have a great range of storage solutions that can help you utilise the space in your shed or garage to the maximum potential.

Give your car some breathing space with our single bike rack. It provides a handy shelf for cycling accessories such as helmets and gloves but folds away flat when not in use. To help you out, it even comes with all the fittings required so now you have no excuse not to get your garage in ship shape condition.

With storage racks for your tools, now you can tidy away your gardening implements safely and easily. Our Tool Rack in green (pictured) is an innovative design, you can add more clips to the rack if needed, and the clips can be moved along the rack to accommodate bigger or smaller tools. Pair it with our wall mounted garden tool storage rack, great for long handled tools, and complete with a handy basket for the smaller bits and pieces and your shed or garage will be spotless in no time!

Our Sussex style wooden trug has been handcrafted using traditional methods to provide you with the perfect thing to collect your garden’s harvest. Plus we have natural hessian sacks for storing your root veg over the winter, a simple way to stop your homegrown root vegetables from sweating and rotting until you have room on the menu. So now you can clean up, store your produce and keep your gardening tools safely cleared away until needed. With storage racks for your bikes, tools, wheelbarrow and so much more, there’s no excuse not to give your shed or garage a quick spring clean. Check out our entire range of shed and garage storage solutions for more brilliant ideas on tidying up.

The Articulate frame range was designed by husband and wife team, Eona Craig and Colin Gilchrest, and brought to the attention of the world through their appearance on BBC2’s Dragon’s Den. These innovatively designed frames have caused a nationwide revolution, making it simple and easy to show off your child’s artwork without consigning it to the front of your fridge.

The Articulate range has been designed to allow you to simply slide the new artwork to be displayed in to the open fronted frame without the need for backing. The open front gives you the room needed to frame the extra special 3D pieces of artwork kids come up with (our favourites!), so nothing need be left out. You can switch and swap the artwork displayed as often as you like, rotating through every drawing or just highlighting those the artist is most proud of.

With a choice of four frames currently available, the macro frame (pictured) is the newest addition to the Articulate range. Designed to showcase artwork in both landscape and portrait views, you can slot up to four separate pieces of art in to the large frame to be displayed proudly on your wall. Each frame is A4 in size, which means that all of your child’s creative genius can be on display as it was drawn to be seen. Combined in to one easy to hang setting, this frame will brighten up anyone’s living room wall. Made from MDF and painted in a non-toxic Antique White lacquer, the entire range has a clean and classic look to suit any style decoration from traditional to contemporary.

A great choice as a gift for every member of your family, a personalised gift will always be well received and there’s no better gift than the creative output of a child. Now you can send artwork to grandparents, aunts and uncles, safe in the knowledge that the frame will protect the drawing and showcase the pictures to perfection. Watch your child’s face light up when visiting relatives as they see their own pictures proudly frames on the wall. So make someone’s day and send them an Articulate Frame complete with your child’s drawings.

Lightweight, versatile and functional, these innovative frames come in a variety of sizes from single to macro. Until recently, the double Articulate frame was so popular we ran out of stock but we’re pleased to announce the entire range is now fully stocked up and ready to be sent out!

This week is National Gardening Week, an event launched by the Royal Horticultural Society to get the nation out in to their back gardens and growing. Encouraging gardeners the length and breadth of the British Isles to get involved and celebrate their gardens, events are being held by communities and organisations across the UK, offering advice and demonstrations for keen gardeners. Growing your own source of fruit and vegetables has become increasingly popular, particularly with today’s economic climate, and if you want to get started, what better time to start than National Gardening Week!

To get you started, take a look at Gardener’s World Weekly and their handy tasks by week checklist. Each week it will list the tasks you need to do to maintain your garden and keep your plants and veg in tiptop condition. Did you know that according to Gardener’s World Weekly, next week is the perfect time to start planting tomatoes in grow bags? There’s nothing quite like seeing your first crop slowly ripen on the vine, but those unsightly grow bags are an eyesore in your garden, so check out our willow and coir grow bag hider. Transforming your grow bags in to stylish planters, the willow is a durable material and weather-proof, so your planter will last for many crops of tomatoes to come. Supplied flat packed, these are easy to assemble and fit any standard size grow bag.

Keep everything you need to help you out in the garden in one easy to find place with our greenhouse storage caddy. Designed and made by Burgon and Ball, these guys have been manufacturing tools since 1730 and the quality and style are gorgeous. A bright, funky green, the caddy is divided in to two and has a useful carrying handle. Big enough to hold your secateurs, twine, gloves, seed planters and labels, you’ll never have to search the shed for anything again!

So what are you waiting for? We’ve made it quick and easy to get yourself out in to the garden and growing. Take the opportunity to visit one of the National Gardening Week events and learn about the potential in your backyard. And with stock fresh in ready to be delivered, you can get your garden up and growing before the end of Gardening Week!

With the weather set to get even hotter over the coming weeks and months the people of Britain are heading outside to top up their tans, tidy the garden and relax.

For those wanting to spend their bank holidays, weekends and evenings without the hassle of building furniture or shuffling in and out of the house, leading online home storage and gift company, All Tidied Up have selected a number of must have easy-outdoor products for the summer.

The Union Jack Inflatable Drinks Chiller is the easiest drinks holder on the market, inflate with the included foot pump, fill with ice and drinks then sit back and relax in the garden or park. Holding up to 35 drinks friends and family can gather round the Union Jack adorned drinks bucket and enjoy the day. Also great for the Olympics to get in the patriotic mood. Simply deflate and pack away for next time saving time and space.

Forget the uncomfortable, ugly plastic garden chairs of time gone by. This summers must have for any garden is the Fatboy Headdemock Hammock. Freestanding and available in over 10 colours, the Fatboy Hammock holds up to three people. The hammock itself packs down into easy carry bags making it the ultimate in mobile party gear. Take it to the beach or to friends houses or store it away when the weather turns, as it so often does in the UK.

Summer can only mean one thing to many families around the UK, the chance to get out into the great outdoors and camp or picnic. For many the word ‘camping’ resonates sleepless nights and bad backs, luckily Dutch company Smooff have come to the rescue with their foldaway lounge cushions. Smooff come in an assortment of sizes and colours and foldaway neatly to be easily carried or packed away. The perfect fold out bed or cushion, it’ll make the summer outdoors comfortable and hassle free. Doubling as a fold away guest bed all year round, it’s great value for money too.

All Tidied Up stock an assortment of easy outdoor products, designed to make life easier, simpler and more fun.

When it comes to interior design, sometimes you just don’t have the time to strip a room and start from scratch. You might not be able to decide on a theme or how you want the room to look, just that it needs to be different. Well, here at All Up and On we may have the answer for you. Wall Stickers! You can apply wall stickers to any smooth surface really easily – without damaging your walls. You can create all kinds of look in a few minutes by applying one of our fantastic wall stickers.

Living Room
Use a wall sticker in your living room to create different zones within the room, or use it to create a feature wall. Use wall stickers such as birds to show off a painting or picture and give it an additional frame. Try bamboo wall stickers to add some jungle flair or even a world map to remind you of adventures past and future. Our favourites have to be the lovely bird cage wall stickers, perfect for adding a focal point to a room and give it some extra character.

Office
If plain white walls and a desk is what is waiting for you in the office, then why not try brightening up those walls with a wall sticker. We have a really fun and quirky reusable calendar wall sticker that is perfect for any office, use post it notes or chalk to write your messages for the month and book in your meetings.

Children’s Bedrooms
You’ll find a number of different brightly coloured stickers, perfect for a child’s bedroom. We stock designs including owls, trees, animals, buses, trains and butterflies to name but a few. Our favourite animal tower wall sticker comes in a range of colours and has a handy height chart on it too! Not only can you brighten up a room, but also use it to show your kids how tall they are.

Kitchen
We think all kitchens need a little something special, including the walls. Wall stickers can create a feature in a room or cover some unsightly paint easily and quickly. They are so easy to apply you’ll feel like you have a whole new kitchen in a matter of minutes. Our favourite is this kitchen wall sticker that has wine glasses, pots, pans and utensils.

To see our full range of Wall Stickers, click here.

It’s almost time to dig out those decorations once again, to sift through the drawers of paper and pull out all the festive wrapping paper and to climb into the loft to get out everything Christmas. If you are one of those people that has different colours for different rooms, or different bags of lights and tinsel then you’ll be only to familiar with that feeling of confusion when you come to open up your decorations again, only to find them all mixed up and in knots. It’s a mystery to most people who come to open up those black bin bags from the attic after being put away so carefully, only to find them in a jumble! Well, fear not as here at All Up and On we have some brilliant storage boxes that are perfect for all those Christmas decorations, and even a fabulous box that is the perfect size for all those rolls of wrapping paper.

Wrapping Paper Storage Box with 2 Trays
This wrapping paper storage box comes complete with two trays for all those labels, pens and sticky tape rolls that usually get lost whenever you need them. It holds several rolls of paper and has handles for ease of carrying. The box is clear so you can see exactly what is in there, meaning no more pulling out boxes and boxes of stuff just to get to what you wanted.

Christmas Decoration Storage Box with Organiser Trays
Perfect for storing everything from baubles to those strings of beads found on trees across the nation, the Christmas Decoration storage box comes with handy compartments to help stop getting things tangled up. It also has handles making it easier to lift in and out of cupboards. Complete with 2 trays, you can fit all sorts inside throughout the year.

 

To find out more about all our really useful storage boxes, click here