Pegboards for Every Room

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Using Pegboards to Organize a Home Office

The Strategies

Put frequently used items toward the bottom, saving the upper reaches for fixtures, like a clock.
If a constantly disappearing stapler or ruler is the bane of your home-office existence, tie a colorful piece of ribbon to it, designate a hook, and let it dangle.
With a metal pegboard, add magnetic accessories to tack up reminders for meetings or to hold paper clips (or jelly beans, for a p.m. sugar rush).
To control a jumble of wires, consider installing an extra pegboard behind your desk, almost to the floor. Anchor the cords with a row of hooks.

The Gear

Wall Control EZ Wall Organizer Panels (16 by 32 inches), $45 for a pack of 2 panels.
To buy: wallcontrol.com.
Shelf Assembly, $12.50 (16 by 4 inches) or $21 (16 by 9 inches).
To buy: wallcontrol.com.
Lipper International See & Store Canister (for paper clips), $10 for a set of 5.
To buy: target.com.

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The Strategies

Arrange your morning-routine items neatly and visibly to avoid wasting time riffling through drawers and cabinets.
Create a mini–dressing station, with a mirror next to your necklaces, a pocket for moisturizer, and a small shelf for lip gloss, so you can check yourself before stepping out. To give your spirits a lift, display a souvenir from your last vacation.
Hang favorite earrings and other accessories from hooks to keep them from getting tangled.
Place trailing items, such as scarves and belts, on the bottom, so they don't block smaller items, like a collapsible umbrella, up top.
Avoid extra-long pegs in shallow closets. They can catch on hanging clothes.

The Gear

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The Strategies

Position detergents and other laundry products on a shelf to the side so you won't have to reach over the washer and dryer.
Keep seldom used but easily misplaced household items, like a flyswatter and a flashlight, on the board, too.
Clear the path around the machines, reserving floor space for in and out laundry baskets.
Employ two-inch pegs to hook an ironing board by its feet and support a shelf that holds bottles of cleaning products.
Clip rubber gloves together and hang them to dry.
If you want to paint a pegboard, use spray paint rather than a roller. That way, you won't clog the holes.

The Gear

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The Strategies

Hang all the gear that would normally be tossed on the floor or a dresser, so gadgets like iPods and headphones aren't crunched underfoot or under a textbook.
Present the pegboard as a way for your child to express herself, then let her design it. As her tastes evolve from American Girl to Abercrombie, she can replace what's on the wall.
Consider a checkered combination pegboard and magnetic Wipe-Erase board. Frame the entire board to finish the look.

The Gear

Style Tile System, $174 for 16-inch square panels (set of 4), a frame, and 10 hooks.
To buy: pbteen.com.
Mallen basket with handle, $4.
To buy: ikea.com for stores.
Three by Three Seattle Spot-on! Mini Magnet Hook, $9 for 4.
To buy: fridgedoor.com.
Oxo Good Grips Magnetic All-Purpose Clip, $7 for 4.
To buy: oxo.com.