I'm looking forward to having some free time around the holidays and, along with some much-needed relaxation, I'm planning on tackling a long-overdue project: organizing my recipes. If this time-consuming task has been on your to-do list, here are some tips for getting your recipe collection in order, whether you're using printed recipe cards, iPads, or a simple binder. More

Treasured family recipes are priceless, which is why they can easily be transformed into special gifts with minimum expense and just a little time. From turning handwritten recipes into tea towels to making beautiful cookbooks for less than $5, here are our four favorite ideas for giving family recipes as gifts. More

Q: Almost two years ago, I lost my mother — she was 54 and I was 25. Many of her personal items were also lost during this time and I've always been heartbroken over losing her handwritten recipes and books. She was a wonderful cook, and especially loved to cut out recipes from newspapers and magazines. More

I'm an 'out of sight, out of mind' kind of person, so when it comes to my kitchen, I have a lot of open shelving to store my pantry items and various bowls and platters. I keep it as neat and contained as possible because at the same time, I also appreciate the simple, pared down look of a modern kitchen. There's always a bit of tension, though, with hodgepodge/chaos pulling on one end and sterile laboratory at the other, but I like to think that I strike a good balance (most of the time.) More

Q: Last time I was home, I noticed that my mom and my sister had piles of recipe clippings, and I thought a recipe binder would make a great gift for them. To personalize it, I wanted to get some nice recipe cards customized for them. Any recommendations on where to find those online? More

We love seeing our readers' kitchen organization projects! Here's the latest to roll in: a neat, cute spice shelf from reader Sabine. Here's how she lined up her spices with a little help from IKEA. More

Recently we shared a pro tip for using masking tape to label food and containers in the kitchen. Here's a similar tool that's incredibly useful for kitchen labeling and organizing: blue (or green) painter's tape! More

I absolutely love the look of this bookshelf. Don't you? A one-stop-shop bookshelf like this is helpful for a number of reasons: the top half is great for storing cookbooks, dishes, and serving ware, while the small cubby drawers on the bottom are perfect for flatware, utensils, linens, and other kitchen miscellanea. More

Low on drawer space in your kitchen? Repurpose a vintage card catalog into a handy kitchen storage piece! The drawers are perfectly sized for flatware and other cooking utensils, and you can even label them so you remember what goes where. Love this idea! More

The Thanksgiving food magazines have arrived in the mail, and my mom is already calling to see if we've booked our flights. For some reason this year, more than others, things are feeling pretty rushed. My first inclination was to hide the food magazines and save them for a time when I was ready to actually think about what we'd cook this year. Then I figured maybe that was just delaying the inevitable. So now I just stare at them on the coffee table wondering, when is the right time to start thinking about holiday menus? More