Expanding on the time saver "don't look"

I recently posted some ways to save time during your week.

I wanted to expand on the idea of "don't look" as I only gave a few quick examples in the previous posting.
 
My husband always seems to be looking for something- his keys, wallet, a receipt etc. Sometimes he wanders around the living room looking on shelves or in drawers and I'll ask what he is looking for "Nothing" he says " just practising". LOL but I figures he probably spends 5 minutes a day looking for something.
There is a great organisational idea that everything in your house should have it's own home- the place this thing always gets returned to. Now I don't have a home like that, all the surfaces covered in 'homeless' things tells you that. But I do subscribe to the idea that 'home' is where they are needed.
Maybe the disinfecting wipes tucked away on the counter beside the fridge doesn't enhance the decor but when I want to do a quick wash down of the counter they are only steps away. I keep a container of these wipes in both bathrooms as well for quick cleanups while the kids are in the tub.

 *Hey I found recipes and directions for making your own wipes and I will post about these on Friday- My frugal inner me is jumping up and down in glee here*

-Sawdust stored near the laundry sink where my oldest cleans her guinea pig cage

-an extra stain removing stick in the kitchen for when I need to rewash something that didn't get clean the first time(I fold clothes in the living room and have a hamper in the kitchen)

Have you created homes for things that seem unconventional? Do you have a way to store these things so they don't stand out in their chosen home?

 

 Another way I "don't look" is my bag system. All those reusable bags that come into our house now have a use beyond going shopping. Any activity that happens outside the house now has a bag assigned to it.
For swimming lessons there is a towel, swimsuit, extra underwear( for the ones that always seem to get dropped in a puddle) and a snack. These bags go into the laundry room when we get home from lessons and then get refilled after things are washed and dried, then put back in their rooms (hooks behind the door).
Same goes for Chinese school, preschool and any other activity we do that requires us to take stuff to. No more looking for soccer socks on Saturday mornings before the game.
This is also helpful if you are not the only  person who may be taking your child to their class. The kids can just grab their bag and they are ready to go.

 
How often do your kids come to you asking you to look for something? My kids use to do this all the time. A quick glance around and "they can't find it". I would then stop what I was doing to go look in their bedroom and find it in a quick minute tucked under something. Now I don't mind helping them look for something but I wanted them to put some effort into it before coming to me for help. I started telling them that I would help look but if I found it first I got to keep it for 5 minutes. Usually whatever they were looking for they wanted now so needing to wait for 5 minutes to get it was horrible. They would then go off and make a real effort to find it. No more "looking" for me and maybe they learned to put their things away so they can find it easier next time.

I am all about faster and easier and my "don't look" philosophy is just that.