Well organizing the shelves didn't take as long as I thought that they would BUT I did run into a problem, lol. What to do with all the extra stuff that doesn't fit on the shelves? Well for now until I am finished organizing my house it is in a few boxes and extra homeschool books are in the bedroom closets for now, not the way I want it or will keep it. But my shelves do look so very nice and I will keep them the way they are.
This will be quite a lengthy post so now on to the next section that I need to tackle...
2. Electronics takes about 1 hour to do also. If you are like me then you don't have a huge flat screen TV or even a fancy , multi speaker audio system, but chances are your electronics are the heart of your family or living room. The collection of media and equipment- whether large or small is usually anchored by the TV. But you probably do have a number of peripheral devices that work with the TV, including the cable or satellite box, a DVD and/or video player, a video game system, the home stereo system, and most likely the family's computer. Add to all this the cords, cables, and bits and pieces that naturally go with them - CDs, DVDs, remote controls, video games - and the potential for massive clutter is obvious. All this often starts our disorder. Because we buy it with little thought about how it will fit into the space that we have available, or when we move sometimes we don't consider if the space is large enough. That's why TVs often wind up unsafe, rickety side tables or inexpensive TV stands that leave little room for other components. Bringing order to this often chaotic area will go a long way toward keeping the whole room tidy, and will make watching TV and listening to music much more enjoyable.
You need to start by looking at the equipment and media you own now, and think about what you are likely to add in the short term. Then it is just a matter of measuring and matching to find the furniture and solutions to contain your entertainment gear and to keep the room neat.
Entertainment Center: A key piece of furniture for organizing electronic media, an entertainment center must adequately meet your needs if it it to prevent clutter. The right entertainment center can range from the modest television stand to a wall-filling, adjustable shelf system with custom conduits for cords and wires. You'll find a mind-boggling array of options in stores, or you may decide to to adapt an existing piece of furniture (as long as it it stable and durable). Either way the first step in finding the right entertainment center is to measure your electronics - depth, width, and height. Next figure out what you want to store in the media center and what you don't see. This should give you need, which will lead you to the right choice of entertainment center.
Adapted centers can be almost any large standing cabinet or shelf unit. You can use an old armoire to an unused dining room hutch. That is not specifically designed as an entertainment center. If all you're looking to do is to stack a couple of components underneath the TV. A sturdy table with a lower shelf may be all you need. The main requirement in this is that the piece be deep enough to center your TV, with a shelf or support strong enough to hold the weight. Adapted entertainment centers should comfortably hold the electronics that work with the TV, an attached back must always allow for holes through which cords can be run, and the center must permit proper component spacing and air circulation to cool the equipment. If you are storing CDs and such you will need room either inside the unit or someplace on the outside for hanging storage. If you have a small house like me with the living and dining rooms in one, the CDs and such could be placed on your other shelves that you may have. But remember the closer the CDs and such are to your entertainment center the better. The common drawback is the positioning.
Store-bought stands and racks are excellent choices if you simply want something to put your TV, cable box, DVD player, and VCR on. Stands and racks are sold by the size of the TV. If choosing a stand you will also want to look at containers for storing CDs and such. Do not put a TV on a wall-mounted shelf. Not only are the regular cathode-ray TVs to heavy, they also are off-center balanced and it makes them prone to tipping when they are not properly supported. Flat screen TVs are also prone to tipping, but they can be mounted to the wall with special hardware.
Complete entertainment centers are a better choice if you want to store your stereo with your TV and include other components such as a video game console. These are only limited to space and budget. Now if you are on a budget like me you are going to make do with what you currently have. Rule of thumb though is to always look for slightly more shelf space than you need: Shelf space rarely goes to waste in the living room.
Separate Stereo: Sometimes it makes more sense to keep the stereo separate from the TV. The acoustics may be better in a different part of the room. Perhaps the electrical outlet near the TV can handle only the TV and video components. Or maybe you just prefer to listen to music in a different part of the house. Whatever the reason, if it is separate the unit should have enough room for all the parts of your stereo. A mini or shelf stereo systems can simply be placed on a sturdy shelf. Component stereo systems those in which you have an amplifier, tuner, receiver, and CD player are separate units and require a more complex storage structure. Stereo racks come with adjustable clips or special shelves and many have doors. Use speaker stands if at all possible to keep speakers off the floor (vibration through a floor can diminish sound quality) or you could mount them on walls with speaker brackets.
Video Game Systems: The new video game consoles do more than just play games. Most also function as DVD players, and low prices make them attractive even if you use them only for that purpose. You will also need to find a place for the video games themselves. Some have different shapes. There are special cases and containers for these games, which are a very nice option because a child can move the entire set of games instead of just one or two, but it's often cheaper and easier to just set aside a portion of shelf space like I did or even a drawer space near the game unit. The controllers require their own storage. If you have enough space in the entertainment center they can simply be put alongside the game console. If space is tight, buy bracket to hold the controllers on the side or front of the entertainment center. You can find appropriate brackets at large home centers. When controllers have a place to go, they are less likely to end up on the floor, causing problems underfoot.
CDs, DVDs, and Movies: Music and movie collections can build up quickly to a substantial number of CDs or DVDs. You may also have a collection VHS tapes. Stored in loose piles these become the worst kind of clutter. You need to organize your media to keep it from overtaking a room. Many entertainment centers include shelves specially designed to store the unusual dimensions of jewel and DVD cases. You can also buy custom boxes designed to hold CDs, DVDs, or VHS tapes , and store the boxes on available shelf space. Often though there is no built-in capacity to efficiently store music and movies. In this case you will nee to use special racks or holders for your loose media. There are two basic types of holders: standing and wall-mounted. If you are storing CDs and DVDs in the entertainment center, look for one that has adjustable shelves. Swivel console towers offer abundant storage in a small space and are easily accessible. You can choose from a small unit for on a shelf or in the entertainment center, or a larger unit that stands on its own near the stereo or TV. Select according to your budget and space that you need.
Vinyl Records and Cassettes: If you like the older stuff you probably have a collection of these. Keep your cassettes in special cassette organizers, or stack them on a narrow ledge shelves. Deep shelves provide to much space and then cassettes become a loose jumble. Vinyl records need to be stored correctly to prevent damage. Don't store them near a heat source. Don't stack vinyl records; stand them on edge wherever you store them. You can put them on shelves, but the best place is in a cabinet with a door that will keep the records away from dust, dirt, and moisture. If your record collection is to much of a hassle you can convert them to CDs for a moderate expense.
STORAGE IN STYLE
Binders, Keepers: Cd and DVD collections can grow surprisingly large in a short time. It's not uncommon to have a hundred or more CDs. In a house full of listeners, that number can grow almost exponentially. All those jewel cases will take up a vast amount of shelf space. But you don't have to be a prisoner to the jewel case. You can store your entire CD collection in a small, well-organized space by using a CD/DVD binder. These range from functional canvas or fabrics to sleek leather or funky colored versions. All come with pages that have pockets for CDs or DVDs, with enough room for liner notes or box covers, and they all zip up to keep dust away from the disks.
THE INSIDE SCOOP
Converting Memories: You may be reluctant to part with VHS tapes you've shot. But you can reduce clutter and preserve precious images for decades to come by transferring home movies to DVD format. DVDs take up less room than the VHS tapes do, and if properly recorded and cared for, don't deteriorate as quickly as tapes do. The conversion process is relatively inexpensive. Contact your local photo lab or camera store. If you have a lot of tapes to convert, you might consider a home conversion unit that allows you to transfer images yourself..
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