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Too Many Cups!! {How we finally organized the chaos on our kitchen counter}

January 7, 2012 19 Comments Holly & Nat

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Does your kitchen counter ever look like this??

Well, mine does ALL THE TIME!! There are only 4 of us home during the day, and by dinner time no one can seem to find their cup, yet there are about 15 cups sitting next to the sink 🙂 I’ve been trying to think of a way to organize our cups that works for our limited counter space {and looks cute too!}
The other day, I found this on clearance at TJ Maxx for $12…
Does anyone know what this is? I was thinking either an old milk bottle carrier, or something for wine bottles?
I don’t know, but either way, I knew it was perfect 🙂 The brown metal was kinda blah, and didn’t look great on my brown counters/backsplash. It just blended in too much.
I chose a nice color of grayish-blue from Martha Stewart {Cloud}, and painted the entire metal frame {except the handle.} I thought it would look more “vintage” to keep that part original.
You can’t really tell from the pictures so far, but I decided I needed to add a removeable “base” to go under the cups so they would be raised up enough for my kids to grab them easily. To create this, I grabbed 2 birch plywood boards from Michaels {1/8 inch thick, 4×12 inches in size}. I sanded them a little, then painted one coat of the same color on the top and sides of the boards.
I added a Matte finish spray coat to protect everything from spills and lots of little fingerprints 🙂
Here’s how it turned out:
I added some wooden monograms with magnets on the back so I can remove them,
or switch them around as needed.
To make these, I purchased 4″ wooden letters at Michaels, then painted them with white craft paint and added a little black glaze. For the back, I just used the cheap magnets you get by the roll.
Once the magnets were in place, I added our new cups {have you seen these in all the stores recently?}
And our cup organizer was complete!
I had a vase of flowers out in the kitchen and as I was taking pictures, I realized that the openings were the perfect size to fit those round glass vases everyone has! So I thought I would see what it looked like…
Ooooh, now I had to see how many of these vases I could round up in my cupboard. This would be such a fun way to display fresh flowers for a party!
And if you added the tray back in, with some mini trifle dishes – voila! You could create a candy bar, ice cream toppings, or serve snack food for your guests in a unique way. OK, my last idea is streching a little 🙂 But if you have older kids and keeping track of your cups is no longer a problem, use it as a media/cell phone charging station…
The tray is really nice for smaller cups too, and right now we’ll be using it for my baby’s sippy cup 🙂
Here is one more Before and After:
Happy Friday!

Linking to:
I'm Lovin' It at TidyMom Chic on a Shoestring Decorating The Shabby Nest shabby creek cottage Thirty Hand Made Days Bubbly Nature Tip Junkie handmade projects  Home Stories A2Z Momma Hens Coop Positively Splendid Visit thecsiproject.com

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Filed Under: DIY, Organization, Upcycle

About Holly & Nat

2 Sisters. 2 States. Sharing our latest creations keeps us close. We are moms, wives, daughters, friends, creative souls, singers, living room dancers, Jimmy Fallon fans, & consumers of dirty Dr. Pepper.

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Comments

  1. Megan says

    January 7, 2012 at 2:01 pm

    Such a great idea! i love the letters on it!

    Reply
  2. Mique says

    January 7, 2012 at 4:35 pm

    I LOVE projects like these. TJ Maxx is the best! You created something so fun and practical. Thanks so much for linking up to my Pity Party. I just pinned/tweeted this. Happy weekend!

    Reply
  3. Rachel Rockwell says

    January 7, 2012 at 11:54 pm

    What a cute idea!!! It looks really pretty too!!! 🙂
    I have a linky party going on if you want to join… http://www.bubblynaturecreations.com/2012/01/vanilla-bean-iced-coffee-and-project.html

    -Rachel @BubblyNatureCreations.com

    Reply
  4. Leasa says

    January 8, 2012 at 12:43 am

    Awesome idea. I think I need to copy you. Just so you know I saw this on Pinterest.

    Reply
  5. TidyMom says

    January 8, 2012 at 2:52 pm

    so cute!!

    Thanks for linking up to I’m Lovin’ It! I featured your post in my wrap up http://tidymom.net/2012/great-ideas-10/ Have a great weekend!

    Reply
  6. The Autocrat: Haley says

    January 8, 2012 at 10:33 pm

    Super cute idea!

    Reply
  7. Beth says

    January 9, 2012 at 12:23 am

    I love this idea! We have cups galore everyday….what a great way to cut down on dishes and clutter!

    Reply
  8. Lisa says

    January 9, 2012 at 6:03 pm

    Such a great idea Hol! Now our TJ Max better have these :)! Love it!

    Reply
  9. Susan says

    January 9, 2012 at 9:32 pm

    Cute! But you know what? If it was where the kiddos could reach it, the magnetic letters would disappear in my house, because the 2-year-old would steal them, lol!

    Our solution to the cup thing is each child (we have 4) have their own cup color. I know at a glance whose cup is whose. ;0)

    Reply
  10. Ellie says

    January 10, 2012 at 10:05 pm

    Love it! I’ve been looking for something like this for awhile now. Guess I know where to go now! I love that you made it over to work with your style and colors. Great job!

    Reply
  11. Laurel @ Ducks in a Row says

    January 10, 2012 at 11:03 pm

    I’m always amazed that our family can go through about 20 cups a day when the kiddos are home! Love this idea!

    Reply
  12. cookies and cups says

    January 11, 2012 at 1:02 pm

    Love this idea! My counter ALWAYS looks like that 🙂

    Reply
  13. Chris says

    January 13, 2012 at 7:43 am

    Hi Holly, it looks like something the milkman would use many years ago to carry the bottles of milk from house to house. You did a lovely job in transforming it. Thanks for sharing. I have recently found your blog and am now following you, and will visit often. Please stop by my blog and perhaps you would like to follow me also. Have a wonderful day. Hugs, Chris
    http://chelencarter-retiredandlovingit.blogspot.com/

    Reply
  14. Jennifer says

    January 18, 2012 at 6:59 am

    Love it! My sister needs one of these so bad!!
    Thanks for sharing at Show & Share!
    Featuring this in tomorrow’s party!

    Reply
  15. Ashley says

    January 22, 2012 at 1:44 am

    GREAT idea!!! I was just getting frustrated with all the cups on our counter!~

    dancingwithashley.blogspot.com

    Reply
  16. Vicky says

    January 22, 2012 at 4:31 am

    That is a fabulous find! We have that same cup problem and it drives me crazy. I like this solution. I am stumbling this post. I am a new FB fan visiting from I Heart Naptime. Vicky from Mess For Less

    Reply
  17. Ashley says

    January 22, 2012 at 6:04 pm

    Great idea to keep all the cups organized!! Cute! =)

    Reply
  18. Melissa @ LoveBugLiving says

    February 3, 2012 at 1:42 am

    You could also use it for parties to hold utensils and napkins!

    Melissa
    http://www.lovebugliving.com

    Reply
  19. TADVR says

    January 20, 2013 at 7:53 pm

    Have got to find one for my van!! when it was modified for the wheelchair they removed the center consol and the middle seats,so there is only 1 in the front and the ones in the very back. this would work great for road trips. Now to find one online! thanks

    Reply

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2 Sisters. 2 States. Sharing our latest creations keeps us close. We are moms, wives, daughters, friends, creative souls, singers, living room dancers, Jimmy Fallon fans, & consumers of dirty Dr. Pepper. Read More

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