Quick note: for now we’re mainly seeing rain and a few gusts from Hurricane Sandy. Forecasts predict it will get rougher later today and tomorrow, so we may be without power for a while. We’ll post remotely when we can. Stay safe and dry.
Since pegboards have become my new favorite organizing tool, it was only a matter of time before I wrote another basement organization post that features them—along with a few other solutions for taming loose screws, nails, and small hardware.
Here’s how I breathed new life into the basement, which I recently began clearing out after a yard sale, a Bagster pickup, and some yard tool organization.
Next on the to-do list were our everyday tools. After years of keeping them in kitchen drawers we decided to move most of our tools to the basement. We’ll still keep duplicates of a few essentials—like hammers, nails, and caulk—in the sunroom for quick access, but consolidating the bulk of our tool collection in one spot (the basement workshop) made the most sense despite the occasional trip downstairs.
We started this phase by hauling everything down: drawers, a toolbox, and loose items. I spread it all across the work table to see what we had and to plan how to categorize each piece. Apologies for the mediocre photos—Sherry was using the good camera for another project, so I took phone snapshots.
Sorting the tools turned into a bit of a sentimental trip. I found oddball pieces left from past projects, like our old kitchen knobs and the clothespin chandelier we made years ago. I also found tools with stories attached: a Boy Scout pocket knife that belonged to my Papa and the first set of screwdrivers my dad gave me in high school. The old toolbox traveled with me through college and even to New York; it spent much of its life holding only a few items, but I kept it because my dad taped a family photo inside.
After a few hours of sorting—and a quick trip to Home Depot for pegboard hooks—we mounted the pegboard and arranged the tools. Everything finally looked as it should: tidy, visible, and ready to use. For those who enjoy a neat pegboard as much as I do, I took a few closer shots so you can admire the arrangement.
We didn’t move absolutely everything downstairs. Paint and craft supplies (glue gun, staple gun, and similar items) and a handful of frequently used items like picture nails, anchors, a hammer, and caulk remain in the sunroom where we use them most. Project-specific tools—plumbing or electrical bits—went into the toolbox so I have a predictable place to check when I need them.
Once the pegboard was set, another priority was tackling the drawer full of mixed screws, nails, and small hardware. I used a simple sorting process: empty everything onto the table, group similar items, then assign them to jars. I had some mason jars on hand from a previous project, and I picked up extra half-pint jars to accommodate the smaller items. The lids had been spray painted a nice midnight blue, so they worked well for storage.
After grouping the hardware into jars, I labeled each one and placed them on a shelf above the work surface that the previous owner had built. The shelf spacing is larger than ideal for half-pint jars, but it’s functional and keeps everything visible and accessible. For labels I used small Avery squares and hand-wrote the contents—simple and practical, and something I’ll actually keep up with.
Looking ahead, I plan to paint the pegboards and stain the shelf and work surface to make the workshop feel more intentional and less like an overlooked basement. I’m keeping the upgrades realistic and easy to maintain; for example, I decided not to outline every tool on the pegboard with paint because changing the layout later would be a pain. Chalk outlines were considered, but we dismissed them because chalk dust could get messy.
I’m happy that the items headed back upstairs are now clutter-free. Keeping frequently used supplies in the sunroom and the rest in the workshop just made sense once we thought about where we actually use each tool.
There’s still more work to do—the wall of paint cans and spray paint is a long-term project—but the pegboard, jars, and cleared drawers already make the basement feel more organized and useful.
So: who else has a pegboard obsession? Are you planning to paint or stain workshop surfaces for a cleaner, more finished look? If you struggle deciding which tools belong in the garage, basement, attic, or inside the house, try listing what you use most in each area—this made our decisions much easier.
P.S. We finally uploaded our apple-picking photos on Young House Life—spoiler: Clara was thrilled to find a caterpillar (she called it a worm).