Why Everyone in Your Home Needs Their Own Basket

The key to this organizing method? Baskets. We know, we know, they’re not some groundbreaking tidying solution. They’re a tried-and-true way to corral toiletries in the bathroom, pantry staples in the kitchen, and throw blankets in the living room. But these aren’t the only uses for baskets around the house. TikToker and professional organizer Megan Golightly (aka @go_simplified) has a genius life hack that makes maintaining an organized home attainable — and gets your whole family involved in the effort.

The Basket Organizing Method

To keep household clutter in check, give each family member a designated basket to collect their scattered items and return them to their proper places. (Depending on how you do things at home, you can either round up the clutter yourself or have everyone tidy their own belongings.) This organizing method not only makes cleanup easier but also fosters accountability in children, teenagers, and even messy adults by encouraging them to pick up what they leave strewn about the communal spaces.

Giving each person their own basket makes it clear which belongings are theirs, so they know what they are responsible for putting away. It also gives them an easy way to distribute these “go-backs” to their designated spots — be it their bedrooms or a playroom — and makes for more efficient organizing efforts.

To try this method, designate a basket for each person in the household. You can choose from baskets you already own (if you’re anything like us, you have quite the collection), source some cheap baskets from a local thrift store, or purchase matching ones, such as this set of four from Amazon (they even come with labels and a chalk marker). For upcycled baskets, you can use pantry labels to add each person’s name, or to help small children differentiate between the baskets, opt for a set with various colors or add some ribbon.