Except that you will forget to remove anything but the keys and the clutter will grow exponentially…or is that just my bowl/key catch all???

I would love a catch all with a lid. Something somewhat big and sculptural that can be displayed nicely, while holding all the junk I carry on a daily basis. Maybe a porcelain cat or frog?

Got one since the day I was fed up to loose track of my keys, profesional and national ID, etc. I opted for a simple IKEA flowers pot cover (cache-pot). It is very convenient and small enough to prevent me throwing in everything else (and it has a special little design I like).

Notavictorianlady, mine is the same way! Keys, phone, change, receipts (omfg the receipts!), lip glosses, and so on. :facepalm:

We installed a narrow ledge with a mirror above to create an entryway on a narrow hall. On the ledge is a cast iron tree on which we hang our keys, a tiny bowl to catch pocket change and a decorative plate (that's all that can fit). Receipts get taken care of at the mail station, and phones get charged at the computer.

I dont have this in my entrance but I do have it in my home office. i have a small collection of coordinated ceramic and glass dishes on my desk, one for my wallet, one for my keys, one for phone/headset and one for everything else (change, chap stick, gum etc).Nearby is a box for receipts, in going/out going mail, my to-do pile, recycling bin etc. Its the first stop I make when coming in the door with stuff and in most cases it ends up where it needs to be the first time.

To me it makes a TON more sense to do this in the office. Then all these tasks and stuff to do is away from the relaxing part of my home!

Oh, man, yes. One next to the door (keys/wallet/ipod/cell phone/mail/etc) and one on the dresser (earrings/watch/cards/glasses/pocket contents). Saving grace.

Even if stuff stays in there longer than it should, frankly, I'd rather have the mess contained on a plate (I use a small terracotta tagine, so there's a lid to hide the clutter, at least!) rather than spread out all over the entryway (where, let's face it, it would be anyway...)

I need one of these! or at least something wall-mounted. My front door leads straight into our rather small kitchen, our keys, wallets, etc end up on the counter perilously close to the food prep space!

Vide poche is French for Maxwell's "landing strip". Ever since I started reading AT, back in the day when it was all new and shiny, and the first AT book, I've been trying to put the LS idea into practice and every year I get better at it. Recently, due to the purchase of a gorgeous metal-clad Parsons table from WE, I was able to give my SO his own landing strip. With two landing strips in operation the lost keys-BART ticket-chapstick scenario is becoming a thing of the past. He has a simple wooden MCM tray and I have a gorgeous cement tray from Culinarium. This year, as part of my New Year's resolutions, I'm emptying my pockets and then hanging up my coat or jacket every time I come in. It. Just. Works.

I keep an extra housekey in a bowl next to the front door, for those occasions when I just want to dash out for a few minutes. It has been enormously useful over the years.

I love that the bowl-o-junk on my window seat has a fancy French name. :-)

I need this one to the hall

Love this idea but unfortunately, it just looks like a mess. I like to hide my catch all in the closet on a shelf to get it out of sight. If it was a box or something with a lid that would be ideal.
xo
E
http://www.urbanchiqueness.com

I have an antique wooden "caddy" that sits sits on a high shelf in my entryway beside my front door. It has several dividers; and it is deep so you cant really see too much unless you are up close. It holds sunscreen, keys, extra parking pass, gum & spare change for the teenagers (you would be surprised how much gum and quarters these kids need these days), matches, headlamp, lip balm, post it notes and pens, as well as some other "important" items. Yes...it can get full sometimes. I usually try to clean it out once a month or so. But we have a small house and no extra drawers for a "junk drawer". This works great.

Bowls and parking tickets would not appear to have much in common, but in my case they do. I live in a row house, which means that in order to put my car in the garage I have to drive down the block and through the lane. If I'm running in and out during the day it's a pain so the car stays on the street until the evening. I often used to forget that it was on the street, and, as you need an permit to park on the street overnight, I wracked up a lot of tickets.

Here's where the bowls come in: I have one at the back door, which I access through the garage, and one at the front door. When I'm locking up for the night I check to see which bowl the keys are in. Back door bowl? Bedtime. Front door bowl? Time to pull on the boots, venture into the snowy darkness and drive the car round to the garage.

* a permit *

I have tried this without success for my husband, who spends hours each week looking for the keys, wallet, phone, etc that he's strewn about the house. Any suggestions on how to convince him that using a vide poche - a lovely bamboo bowl by the door, just for him - will help reduce his daily frustration?

We have a little Indian style box with a lid for all my boyfriends pocket stuff, just above where we keep our shoes, you might be able to see it in the bottom picture here: http://madeinmorningside.blogspot.com/2012/02/few-wee-updates.html but he fills it up with other junk so quickly he ends up piling stuff on top or next to it. Getting there though!!

@JLTEX: Just keep trying. It has taken 10 years, but I have finally got my boyfriend to put his keys in the key bowl by the door 90% of the time. (He was/kinda still is a notorious key mis-placer) My process was this: find his keys anywhere in the house, put them in the key bowl. When he asked where his keys where, ask "Did you check the key bowl?" even if I already knew they were somewhere else. It finally sunk in. Finally. Man it was harder than it should have been!

I would also ask for his keys when walked in the door together so I could put them in the bowl...that helped. He got used to handing them to me to put in the bowl and when I wasn't there to hand them too it caused him to think that hmmmm, what happens to my keys when I get home, oh yeah, in the bowl. I repeat, it was harder than it should have been.

Mine is simply a wood bread bowl.

I don't know, the only people I know who have these are also the ones that are always misplacing their keys, phone, iPods, etc.

I think they think that they'll use them, but they're the types who are always finding their keys in their washing machine or their phone under the couch cushions.

I have a tiny bowl that my extra sets of keys live in, but otherwise all this assorted stuff just stays in my purse. If my phone isn't directly in front of me or on its charger, then I know it's in my purse along with my wallet and my keys.

We have these on each of our dressers so the clutter is separated by person and in bedrooms rather than near the front door. We clean them out once a week while doing laundry.

They have things for this at some stores. I got one for my husband for Christmas this year. It's called a "valet" (I've also seen them referred to as "men's pocket changer"). It has a built-in dish for change, and the top opens up to reveal a velvet-lined interior where he can put his watch, transit tokens, keys, etc. There's also a drawer underneath it where he keeps cuff links and his dressy watch. Looks very neat and tidy sitting on the shelf in our entryway.

For me, I just let stuff pile up in my purse till it gets too heavy and I clean it out. :)