Man Oh Man Command Center
Psssst… this post *might* contain affiliate links: see my disclosure here.
(Update: If you like this command center, then you’re going to LOVE my Command Center 2.0 for the new house!)
In my ongoing attempt to feign organization, we’ve adopted a shiny new command center for our new and improved kitchen.
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When our old kitchen island came down, so did the wee sized fridge. That now lives in our garage as Mark’s pride and joy beer fridge and we have this gigantor in a new location in the kitchen. I’m not going to lie, this refrigerator was a major purchase for us… but your stove and your refrigerator are the kitchen work horses so if you’re going to spend the cash, these are the places. And it’s already made this big family’s life SO much easier. I’m officially a housewife in love with her new appliance.
We opted for a counter depth refrigerator (24″) so that it will work when we go to renovate the kitchen in a few years. Because these units are meant to be “built in” to the cabinetry, the sides aren’t intended to be seen (and they need BIG TIME anchoring). Our builders had to create a frame for the refrigerator that we painted to match the current cabinets/ trim (the previous owner chose BM Spanish White for the trim throughout the house). Luckily this color also works well with my Craigslist Ikea sideboard.
Which left me this big span of space to work with! The perfect place for a little family organization. I looked at some other ideas for command centers, but ultimately brainstormed what sort of things I’d love to have readily available: pens/ pencils, a pad, white board and pockets to collect things like mail, receipts, etc. (Full source list at the end of this post.)
The white board
is from Amazon… The comparable white board was $30+ at places like Office Max and Staples. This one cost me $25 (free shipping) with Amazon Prime.
I scored at Homegoods when I saw these wooden pockets for $19.99 each. Not the cheapest, but I liked the clean lines and the durability. I couldn’t find these exact ones, but these are close: this one from The Container Store, this one from Amazon
and this from Ballard Designs.
My calendar is ultimately on my computer and iPhone, but I couldn’t pass up this dry erase calendar at Goodwill for $6. I’m sure it will come in handy for more immediate To Do items that come up.
I used this genius idea from Jenna for my pen cups and it’s super handy. Thanks to her suggestion, I hung these fairly high to avoid the slick fingers of the kids. (Materials needed: 1 hose clamp
and a mason jar.)
A plastic brochure caddy from Staples works great to hold little pads of paper for grocery lists, reminders, etc.
When I measured out the wall to see where everything would fit, it was clear I needed something above the pen canisters to help fill in the space. Too high for anything useful, I pulled out some 5 x 7 frames from my stash and cut out some pages from a vintage Better Homes and Gardens cook book I found at the thrift store.
Similarly, after I hung the white board, I wanted something above it. I framed a page of the state of Connecticut from an old atlas I had and it works perfectly.
I used some old Scrabble tiles
from our wedding (!) and superglued a little magnet onto each one for the command center white board. I also superglued an extra magnet to the white board eraser for simple storage.
A basket sits on the floor as an easy place to wrangle lunch boxes and snack bags.
This whole wall is maybe 2 feet wide and 6 feet tall, but it provides SO much organizational goodness. I love having multiple pockets in which to stick mail and magazines. A white board (and PENS!) right at my fingertips is amazing. And the calendar comes in handy when I need to jot down an appointment or playdate when I’m not on my computer.
Much to the kids dismay, the white board is off limits for now… their track record for keeping the dry erase markers contained is poor at best.
Make Your Own Kitchen Command Center
(Affiliate links included for your convenience.)
- White Board
- Wall Pockets
- Scrabble Tiles
- Hose Clamps
- Mason Jars
- White Board Calendar
- Pretty Note Pads
- Cute Pens
What are your strategies for keeping your family organized? Any tips or tricks?
For more posts on cleaning and home organization, check out my favorites:
• how I pimped out some basic Ikea shelves
and learn how to clean your iron!
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So how many wall pockets did you buy? Two or 4? Did they come on that wooden board already? Looks great. Love it. How much was the pamphlet holder?
Hi Jill,
Those are 2 pocket ‘units’… so 2 pockets per thing. And it came on the wooden board… I just had to screw into the refrigerator enclosure and hang. I think the pamphlet holder was maybe $5? Not under $10 if I recall… THanks!!
We need this soooo badly! I love your command center it’s so pretty. My way to keep us in order is to leave a rolled up note in the cabinet handle that my hubby opens everyday. Haha
Ha! We do that too.
I am loving your command center! After nearly forgetting/actually forgetting several things the past few weeks, I’ve determined that I need one pretty much yesterday. Thanks so much for sharing this wonderful inspiration!
Thanks, Katie! But I still forget things on a regular basis… 😉
Great use of space! Love your command center. I’ve been working on a tiny little corner in our farmhouse for bill paying/filing/etc. and this proves to be great inspiration! Thanks for sharing! P.S. love the last picture 🙂
Aww, thanks Lauren! Can’t wait to see yours! (I think I want a command center in every room now…)
This looks fantastic! Love love love this! I would love it if you joined and contribute your awesome posts at my link party at City of Creative Dreams on Fridays 😀 Hope to see you there at City of Creative Dreams Link Party
Thanks, Shanice!! I’ll go check it out!! 🙂
Having trouble finding a wall pocket does Wal-Mart or office depot carry them?
Not sure, Desiree. Our Homegoods ALWAYS has something like that. Office Depot/ Staples should have wall pockets but no telling how nice they’ll look… 🙂
I absolutely love you use of space and it has actually inspired me this morning to finally get the products needed to complete ours as well. Thank you so much for sharing.
Yay! I’m so happy you got some ideas here, Kangelia! Good luck! And thanks!!
I need to know where you got that basket! I’ve been looking.
Hi Mikayla! The one on the floor that holds the lunchboxes? Homegoods… and it fits perfectly!
Looks fantastic and has definitely helped inspire me to finally tackle our similar wall. What did you use to hang everything? Our space is made of a thin wood so curious if you went with 3m stripes… Thanks!
Hi Erica, This is a thicker wood to enclose the refrigerator so I just used brad nails. The shelves are pretty heavy so command strips might be tricky, but it all depends on what you want to attach! They would definitely work for the calendar, etc. Good luck!
I love this whole organization center, but especially the framed pictures of the BHG book. I am always seeing old cookie books at antique stores and Good Will. I would love to do this with them. Thank you so much for the inspiration to get my kitchen organized!
Thank YOU for the sweet comment! I feel the same way about these old books… too good to get rid of, but… probably not something I’d ever use again. I dream of using old pages as wall paper one day… but will take the right space. 🙂
What did you put as labels on those wood wall pockets? I’m a young new house owner and am not to familiar with mail and filing organization.
Hi Hilarie!! Sorry for the delay… you caught me mid-move so I’ve been distracted by ALL the cardboard boxes, etc. 🙂 I think those were labeled with the kids’ names, but… I also have a system that has labels such as “mail”, “to file,” “kids,” “response needed,” and “bills.” A lot is personal and depends on how you organize best. I don’t typically have lots of mail kicking around because I try to follow the one-touch rule… when I get the mail I immediately throw out the junk and am left with only the stuff I need! Good luck!!
Hi my name is Margaret and I’m a writer at “MiniOwls blog”. I just wanted to let you know that I really like your blog.Your command center is one of my favorite ideas. I loved it so much that I decided to feature it in one of my posts. To see it simply follow this link: https://miniowls.com/1/post/2015/07/my-favorite-command-centers-that-helped-inspire-me-to-create-my-own-organizer.html
How did you get everything to stay up?
Hi Dana, I was able to predrill and then screw everything right into the wood wall. Hope that answers your question! Best, Charlotte
Hello! Could you tell me the brand of the refrigerator in your command center entry? If I’ve missed it in the comments, so sorry! Thanks!
Hi Vicky! No worries… that’s a counter depth SubZero. SO big and great. We have the GEMonogram series in this new house which is the same size and like it a lot. Thanks!
How did you attach the clamps holding the mason jars in the wall?
Thanks
Jay
Hi Jay! I actually just used regular ol’ picture hooks. I pinched the hooks closed a bit, but was able to simply hook the clamp on the hook. Hope this makes sense!
Wonderful system for storage of bills, etc.. But whatever you do, don’t leave cash money in those particular compartments for say, gas, electricity, water, council rates etc.. They are just a magnet for home intruders. If you need to put cash aside for various bills that come with, unfortunately regularity, put that cash in envelopes and HIDE. That’s what I have done since I started working at 18 yoa. Now that we are both retired, I do it for the ‘insurance’ account – ie 2 cars for comprehensive car insurance, green slip (this is what we have in NSW, Australia to help victims of car accidents-tho’hopefully the Green slip insurance will come under review as it is getting more and more expensive. You cannot register your car without it!!!), house and contents etc.. I worked out how much we need each year, and put that monthly amount aside in a SECRET place. Never on display. I keep an ‘old fashioned diary’ – ie paper) and when bills come in I put that particular bill in the section of the diary when it is due – ie if a bill is due 20 March, I’ll put in the diary say around 15 March to remind me!. Well, it works for me.
Great tips. Thanks, Gabrielle!
Wow, so wisH i had a wall to do this on. SOlvEs so many little problem. Great job and great idea.
Thanks so much! It’s one of the best projects I’ve done… we use it ALL the time!
Great project.
Only thing you need another mail slot with 5 kids. Not only do they not take all their stuff the first couple of times they leave but you keep getting their mail.
Hahaha. True.
I love this! totally feeds my organization habit. I have the calendar and am looking for the pockets. Are those 5×7 frames used for the recipes?
Yes, exactly! I’ve recreated this in our new house and it gets used ALL the time!!! Usually overflowing mind you… 🙂
This blog was… how do I say it? Relevant!! Finally I’ve found something which helped me.
Thank you!
Haha. THank you so much!
Thank you for this nice sharing. Great post.
Thank you, Emily!