Gift Ideas for the Home Organizer

Many people don't like getting gifts for the home on the holidays. They like their presents to be more personal or luxurious. But chances are, if there's a stay-at-home mom or a home organizer on your list, a pragmatic heart beats beneath that apron. Perhaps you can lighten the holiday mood by giving gifts that will make life easier for those who run a household. Here's a list of possible gifts for the home organizer.

Swiffer Sweep + Vac. For less than $30, you can revolutionize the way someone cleans his or her kitchen. This is effortless, one-step cleaning, and there's no catch. The Swiffer Sweep + Vac is a rechargeable electronic sweeper that vacuums up large particles while an electrostatic charged sheet wipes fine dust, dirt, and pet hair off the floor. It's better than a broom, and it's better than a vacuum. It doesn't require any bags; just empty the cannister. It doesn't require cleaning; just toss the sheet away when it's dirty and slip on a new one. Because it's both lightweight and cordless, you can literally dance around the kitchen as you use it. Give this gift for the holidays and not just the floors will thank you.

Flexible Laundry Baskets. If there's a home organizer on your holiday list, you've no doubt seen him or her balancing laundry baskets on his or her hips while trudging up and down the stairs. This holiday season you can lighten the load, and make this household task easier and safer. How? By purchasing a Flex n' Carry hamper to give as a gift. These baskets are designed to collapse at the top so that you can grip both handles in one hand. That's convenience! Good luck wrapping this one though - you might need a very big bow.

A Timer. The most efficient way to organize a home is fifteen minutes at a time. Thus, a handy gift for the home organizer could be a small timer. Make sure that the timer can stand on its own, clip onto clothing, or stick to the fridge via a magnet. You can buy these anywhere, but shop for this gift first on Ebay. Or you can splurge and buy the Flylady's timer. It makes a great stocking stuffer, and will help a home organizer allocate his or her time.

A Label Maker. The key to organizing is knowing what's in the folders, bins, or baskets. And what better way to keep track, than with a label. Home label makers are now affordable and fun to use. If you give this to the home organizer on your list, don't be surprised if he or she starts labeling everything not nailed down.

Wooden Hangers. If the closet has an untidy appearance, it's likely do to mismatched hangers. Wire hangers are particularly damaging to clothes, and plastic hangers are only second best. To make a truly orderly closet that affords easy access to coats, blouses, and slacks - wooden hangers are the only way to go. Luckily for you, you can buy a pack of wooden hangers for the home organizer on your holiday list for a very reasonable price at Target or Bed, Bath and Beyond. (If you're trying to give them the gift of an organized wardrobe, at least forty hangers are needed. If you're trying to give the gift of a straightened front closet, you won't need more than twenty hangers.)

Scrubbing Bubbles Automatic Shower Cleaner. An automatic shower cleaner may not be a romantic gift, but it will definitely get you a kiss! Nobody likes scrubbing showers, and thanks to this invention, we may not have to. This system helps keep a shower clean little by little every day. It'll give time back to the home organizer on your list, and make the job a little easier. It actually works. Best of all, since you can refill the bottles with homemade solutions, an automatic shower cleaner really is the gift that keeps on giving. (Word to the wise though, this system sells for almost double online. You're best bet is buying it at Target or the local home repair shop.)