Vintage Style Bins for Napkin Ring Storage Ideas

Welcome to the 377th Metamorphosis Monday!

Thanks so much for all your awesome suggestions and comments on Saturday’s post about my upcoming trip to Holland and Belgium! I’m so looking forward to sharing those places with you. I’ll be posting throughout the trip, I’ve heard they have good wifi on board so keeping my fingers crossed it will be able to handle uploading photos.

Be sure and follow Between Naps on the Porch on Instagram here: Instagram. I’ll be sharing photos there each day in the moment, so it’s the next best thing to having you there with me.

Metamorphosis Monday

Today I’m sharing a Metamorphosis that almost was but I don’t think is going to happen. lol See that china cabinet on the right in my dining room?

Check Curtains Draperies with French Pleats and Grosgrain Trim

 

The bottom two drawers are where I store all my napkin rings. I have most of the spring/summer napkin rings in the 2nd drawer.

Napkin Rings

 

Napkin rings more suited for fall, Thanksgiving, Christmas are in the bottom drawer. This system works okay but isn’t the greatest since I have to sorta dig through all the little baggies to find the napkin rings I need when setting a table. It’s also a bit hard on the napkin rings themselves.

Napkin Rings for Table Settings

 

I came across these bins in Marshalls this weekend and got an idea. There are my post caps still waiting to be painted in the background. For some reason they are just not painting themselves. Looks like I’m going to have to actually do it! 😉

Storage Bins for Small Items, Organization

 

So, this is sort of what I envisioned for the bins. I test filled them with my napkin rings. You may recognize some of these rings like the little pinwheels I made for a 4th of July table here: 4th of July Table Setting. You’ll find the tutorial to make those here: Tutorial for Patriotic Pinwheel Napkin Rings

Storage Bin for Napkin Rings

 

This bin is currently holding holiday napkin rings with Christmas napkin rings on the far left, Halloween spider napkin rings and black beaded napkin rings in the middle (along with Christmas reindeer) and wintery/snowflake napkin rings on the far right.

Wood and Glass Bins, Napkin Ring Storage

 

The third bin ended up with fallish napkin rings in the far left and center bin and summer napkin rings in the far right bin. After filling all the bins, I think I’ve decided they are just too big and take up too much space for storage. They are slanted so you can’t stack them and even if you could, you wouldn’t be able to open them.

Napkin Ring Storage Ideas

 

Maybe I need something like the little Pottery Barn inspired cubby organizer I built that holds “stuff” in my little workshop, except with bigger cubby holes and drawers.

Cubby Organizer Knock-off, Pottery Barn Inspired

 

There are quite a few “Parts” bins online that look great for storage, but they aren’t very attractive, and the drawers don’t look large enough on many of them. I may just go back to my zip-lock baggy storage and clear out the top drawer in the china cabinet to allow for a little more space so things aren’t so tight.

Check Curtains Draperies with French Pleats and Grosgrain Trim

 

How do you store your napkin rings? Check out how Bonnie stores her glassware, dishware, flatware and napkin rings in this previous post: Dish Heaven

Dish Pantry Storage

Looking forward to all the wonderful Before and Afters for this Metamorphosis Monday!

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Comments

  1. Have fun on your adventure! Looking forward to the pics.

    • Thanks, Sheila!

      • Maria Lombardo says

        I was born in Antwerp Belgium!! My parents and I moved to the US when I was only 5 years old in 1960. They left all their family behind to start a new life here in the U.S. I went back alone every other year for the entire summer starting at age 7 through 18 and stayed with my grandmother. It’s a wonderful country to visit with alot of culture, museums, cathedrals, artists houses, not to mention amazing culinary delights. Be sure to have their national dish…Mussels/Frite with mustard sauce. Also try the galette with syrup, waffles, and frites (french fries) with Tartare Sauce to dip in (not like our version). Holland is also a wonderful country. If you have the opportunity, go to Madurodam (a miniature moving village) and also find an Indonesian restaurant in Amsterdam that offers a Rijsttafel (approx 40 diff dishes). So delicious. Have a wonderful trip. I look forward to detailed posts of your travels.

  2. I hope you have a super trip, Susan…tulips…ah!! 🙂

  3. Definitely a winner (thinking inside the box!!) franki

  4. Susan, you are becoming such a world traveler! I’m so excited for you. I love that you can just decide to go out into the world at the drop of a hat. I’m impressed. Well, the bins were a good idea. Sorry it didn’t work out. My napkin rings are in drawers – 3 drawers in our game room of all places. I also have a small cabinet with one drawer and a door with bins behind it where I store some of them. I can’t buy any more unless I get rid of some. Thanks for hosting.

    • Thanks, Laurie! Making up for all those years I never went anywhere. 🙂 You have some awesome storage. I love those great closets you have for all your holiday goodies! 🙂

  5. Sounds like another wonderful trip, Susan! Love your storage idea!…Hugs…Debbie

  6. Now Susan, you got me all excited that my napkin rings were going to find a better home those same suffocating baggies- LOL. Have a super, wonderful trip. Porch caps can wait. PS. I saw another post where they used those type bins to store their k-cups and tea items- just an idea.

    • lol I know, the dreaded baggies! I’ll figure something out and will share when I do. I don’t drink hot coffee or hot tea, love iced tea and the occasional iced coffee. I wish I had an awesome butler’s pantry, they would be so cute in a room like that.

  7. What a fun way to display your napkin rings Susan! I only have one set that I store in a drawer in my dining room hutch. Thanks so much for the party. Have a wonderful week and take care, Tara

    • Many of the ones I have, I’ve made from shells, Christmas ornaments or inexpensive decorative things I’ve found in the dollar store. Then you have one-of-a-kind napkin rings! 🙂
      Thanks, Tara!

  8. Your trip sounds great. I imagine the pictures will be spectacular. I was thinking about your napkin ring baggies and wondering if you could hang your baggies on the pants hangers that have clips and then arrange them on a closet rod. Have fun on your trip!

  9. Brenda Lawrence says

    I was wondering how everyone stores their beautiful dishes, glassware and other goodies. I don’t have any beautiful things like this, but always love looking at tables settings and dream. Now it is good to see how they are stored and the idea’s other have. I do love those bins you got and sorry it didn’t work out for you. Wish I had a tip, but since I don’t own any of these things, I don’t. lol Have a wonderful trip and looking forward to seeing some pictures. Hugs, Brenda

  10. Linda Page says

    Well, dang it!!! I thought you had your napkin ring problem solved. Those bins are super cute, too. Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time, didn’t it? I have a lot of those ideas!!! Maybe a shelf system with drawers with glass at the front so that you could see the napkin rings inside would work. As for the post caps, I would return those suckers since they have done nothing towards painting themselves!!! lol. Are you packed? Diane went to Holland about 30 years ago and loved it. I know you are going to have an amazing trip. I can finally feel that my foot is getting better. No pain meds for 4 days now. Barely hurts after being up and around. I am still resting a lot but I am on the mend. Have a great trip. Love ya!

    • Excellent! Just don’t do what I would do and try to stay up and do too much. It’s so easy to feel a little better and then overdo it. No, haven’t even started packing. I think it’s going to be chilly over there so I’m taking warm clothing. I absolutely can’t stand being cold, so I’ll probably look ridiculous all bundled up. lol

  11. This cracks me up – all those napkin rings! I always wondered where everybody kept all their tablescape items. Bonnie’s is a dream, and I remember your coat closet turned dish closet, which I love and my Mr. nixed for me (hmph). I pretty much only collect the old silver and silverplate napkin rings, so this is one little area that I don’t seem to have an issue with. You could go to a hardware supply store and get one of those huge spinner bins, lol. Thanks for sharing and hosting.

  12. For your napkin ring storage, how about using one of those plastic divider they sell for underwear drawers. Multiple compartments and some are flexible that you can adjust the size to what you need. They’re usually open, so you can’t stack them.

  13. You need an old library card catalog with many drawers.

    • I love that idea! As a retired teacher/children’s librarian, I’m going to look for one!

    • Margie, I love seeing those repurposed. Having grown up using those and then working in my son’s school library just when they were phasing them out and going to having everything computerized, I really miss those.

  14. The age old problem of storage! One can never have enough! I’ve seen similar bins and thought they were so cute. I have great confidence you will come up with something brilliant! Thanks for the party Susan

  15. Susan, I don’t have near the number of napkin rings you have, but I recently organized mine in the buffet drawers using wire baskets from Container Store. I also added in all my different flatware sets. Not so happy with that decision. It takes up less room to store them in crocks or pitchers on a shelf. Think I’ll revisit this storage situation soon. ‘-)

    • Sarah, I store my flatware in those clear shoe boxes like Bonnie does and I love it, except for one thing. The shelf I have them on is up so high, I can see them that well. I bet they are pretty stores in crocks and pitchers. We need a big, big butler’s pantry, don’t we? lol

  16. Thanks so much for hosting each week!! Love those bins!!

    Hugs,
    Debbie

  17. Susan, I am so excited for you! You are just busy as can be seeing the world, aren’t you?! I don’t have many napkin rings but the ones I do have are stored in different canisters that I am not using. I have several sets of canisters so it works for me.

    • I’m trying. 🙂 I want to take at least two trips each year, preferably one in the spring and one in the fall. I have a really bad case of wanderlust!

  18. Keep napkins in bags and “file” the bags by season or color. The best thing I ever did was organize the closet by color – all red and pink shirts & jackets together, all yellow and orange, all black and gray, etc. Very easy to find things – I just go to the section that holds that color rather than searching the whole closet.

  19. Great storage idea Susan. Looking forward to hearing about your amazing trip. Have a fabulous time. 🙂

  20. Do you have a rrely used door you could install hooks &’hang your bagged rings from, like Bonnie?

  21. Betty Anne says

    The clear plastic show box storage container is what I use for some of mine.
    Diaper wipe containers are also good containers to use for just a few napkin rings. I use the small slim baskets from the Dollar store to store some in a drawer. The small drawer unit from the Dollar Store that has 3 pull out drawers can also be used, and can be stacked on a shelf. Glad I found this site.

    • I was thinking about that today. I wonder if the pockets are big enough. Wish they made one of those where the pockets didn’t slant and stayed big all the way down. Thanks, Susan!

  22. But the bins are soooo darn cute! At least keep one and use it somewhere for something. I’m really good at encouraging others to spend money/shop. I’ve been known to see someone in HomeGoods with an overflowing buggy full of stuff and give them a big ole “Atta girl!” Does my heart good to see serious shoppers out there. Ha!

    Enjoyed this post on storage ideas, Susan, even if it didn’t quite pan out as you had hoped.

  23. Jill from Southern New Hampshire says

    This is a topic I’ve been thinking about too lately! (By the way, to me, those bins scream utensil holders for a cookout or buffet, lined with colorful napkins if needed for food safety, if the lids stay open, or cool organizers for stamps, gift toppers, etc. in your office. I’m sure you’ll come up with something fun.) We just have the one drawer in our china buffet, which was designed for flatware, so I stow my off-season tablecloths, tons of placemats and napkins in a large storage bin in the attic and rotate them seasonally – but keep anything holiday-specific with the rest of the decorations for that holiday up there, (so my poinsettia napkin rings live up there with my Christmas decor, etc.) Our narrow hallway linen closet upstairs is home to a handful of year-round tablecloths, placemats, napkins and napkin rings plus whatever I’m using for that season. Despite my rotation plan, it’s always very full, especially with napkins and rings, which I’ve been keeping in small rectangular wicker baskets. But they don’t stack well, so I think I’m going to go the clear shoebox route, and group them by color, and label them. It’s a work in progress but that’s half the fun. Happy organizing!

  24. Have a wonderful trip, Susan! It sounds amazing! Thanks for hosting~
    Lynda @ Gates of Crystal

  25. Susan, your upcoming trip sounds awesome as well as its price … ☺. I guaranty you will love Holland! Changing the subject regarding storage of your napkin rings perhaps you could use pocket shoe bags as its amazing what they will hold. (Most come with a hook for hanging.) -Brenda-
    P.S.: I use clear plastic shoe bags for holding my threaded sewing machine bobbins, artist brushes, paint pens etc. In other words anything that they will accommodate other than shoes when I think about it … ☺.

  26. The bins are great for the napkin ring storage!…I store mine in a plastic bin in the pantry…your storage idea is such a pretty solution! Thanks for hosting Susan!

  27. I love those bins Susan. You did a great job organizing your pretty napkin rings.
    Thank you for hosting dear.
    Have a wonderful trip and I’m sure you will pack perfectly!
    Blessings.
    FABBY

  28. Cyndi Raines says

    Really like the bins, too bad they didn’t work for you. I store my napkin rings in the cupboard drawers below the silverware drawer, but I’m running out of room. Hope you come up with a good idea for all of us! lol Have a wonderful time in tulip land — can’t wait to see the pictures!

  29. I store my many napkin rings in sandwich zip lock bags, place as many as I can in the plastic shoe boxes and then they are stored in the pantry.

    Have a wonderful trip!

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