Closet Organization

Much needed I might add.  Traci @ Beneath My Heart recently challenged readers to makeover their closets. 
She said “Next Monday, I am going to share with you how I organized THAT closet in my home.  You know the one…every time you open the doors to THAT closet, you say, “This closet is driving me crazy!””
When I read that I knew exactly what closet she was talking about.  My craft closet. {Dun dun dun}  The one that my husband hates to vacuum past as invariably there is some sort of thread or twine or yard peeping underneath the doors to get caught in the beater bar of the vacuum. 
When we moved into this much bigger than the house we were living in house, I dreamily thought that I would use the dining room as my craft room.  I would never have to put the sewing machine or ironing board away.  I would be able to leave uncompleted projects on the desk instead of having to clean them up to eat dinner.  And for a while it was glory.  But since this was a non-vital room, boxes that didn’t need to be unpacked immediately were put in there.  And Frank likes things put away.  To him put away means that he can’t see it.  So if there was something that he wasn’t sure where it went, it got chucked into the craft room. 
And there were the kids.  They were constantly hauling all their toys out to the living room to watch TV.  So I did the motherly thing and gave up my space to create a playroom.  But what to do with all of my crafty things?  I sew, quilt, cross-stitch, hot glue, Mod-Podge, paint and any other method of crafting seen in Blog land.  Lucky for me, this house has ABUNDANT closet space.  In our very loonnnnngg hall, there are 2 closets with bi-fold doors.  One turned into  the linen closet.  The other just had a few random things in it.  I moved them to more appropriate spaces and made my self a crafty home.
Fast forward almost a year.  I have become very busy with copying almost everything that see out there in Blog land.  My kitchen table now doubles as my craft desk.  But I shouldn’t can’t leave craft projects on the table all the time.  Once in a while we should eat together in the same room.  Right??!!  In my efforts to clean up multiple projects at once and rapidly, cramming became involved. And my Craft closet became this:
(Don’t judge these pics.  There is a solid wall across from the closet and the is no Earthly way to get a full frontal shot of the closet. 

Since my under the sink challenge didn’t take very long, I decided that today was the day for the closet.    As soon as I put Miss G on the bus, I brewed a cup of coffee, turned the radio up loud and started unloading the closet.  This is a good sized closet, but I truly had no idea how much stuff I had shoved in there and how long this was going to take.  I am so glad that today happened to be a day that Frank has a FD meeting and wasn’t home for dinner @ the normal time.

To illustrate my point, here are a couple during shots.

I found decorations from Valentines, Easter, Halloween and Christmas.

I found lots of these: 

A box of these:  (they are gift card tins that I bought on clearance to decorate ala  A Girl and a Glue Gun.  Christmas gifts for next year are already taking shape)

Even a basket of these: I can’t even remember what they are/were for.  LOL  But Miss G saw them and thinks that they should be adorning things aplenty.
I moved these decorations down to the basement where are empty rooms of space to store my holiday decorations. (Which means that I can make as much as I want, Right??!!)

I threw out this. Just the bags, not the puppy.  He was my only company during this ordeal.  Not that he could get anywhere near me.  There were times that I couldn’t see him as I sat in front of the closet.  My darling husband is going to have kittens when he sees the amount of trash that I put out.

So all this build up, do you want to see the results??

Here we go…I am once again able to hang my rotary ruler and mat as they deserve.  Every spool of thread that I found I put tape on so that it won’t unwind all by itself.  I skewered every spool of ribbon I found on my tension rod after I put a rubber band around said spool to prevent unwinding.  With it stored this way, I can slide the rubber band to the side, unwind what I need and cut it off. 

All of my general crafty stuff lives on this shelf.  White string and twine now live in recycled jars.  The lids need to be spray painted and holes punched in them to thread the string/twine through.The silver can that needs to be twinefied holds glue sticks.

All my paint now has a home of it’s own.  I know that there are several more tubes and cans of this loveliness in my house somewhere.  And there is plenty of room here to store it now.

Cross stitch books and boxes of floss.  Those boxes are next on my organization list.  They are all in # order but I have a bunch  more that need to go in so that means that they will all have to come out, the new ones added to the lineup and then re-stashed. 

And Finally all my sewing stuff is grouped together.  The feet and attachments to my Grandma’s 1950ish Singer.  All the little buttons and hardware for creating.  Bobbins and spools of thread where they should be.

Ahhh, all is well in my crafting world again.  Almost!!  Tomorrow I am getting my hands on a label machine and am going nuts.  And I think that I am going to put some sort of sign in the closet to remind me to keep it looking like this and how long it took me to clean.  Some witty phrase to order in vinyl. 
Any Ideas??

Organization Pt 3

Day #5 of A Bowl Full of Lemons 21 day Organization Challenge.  Once again the are that was chosen was an area in which I need a lot of help.The cabinets under the sink.  In this house there is infinite storage.  There is NO!!! reason for my disorganization.  After living in the last house which was so dinky I realize how blessed I am.  And I am going to start using the blessing.
My Undersink Area consists of 3 Cabinets.

Here is the ugly before:






The narrow cabinet on the right is my “cleaning ingredients” cabinet.  I make my own multipurpose cleaner and laundry soap.The cheap dishsoap for making bubbles is also in there.  So those things are in there as well as stuff that I don’t use any more but keep just in case.  Such as floor cleaner.  We have a steam mop now so we don’t use it.  Pledge.  I switched to Method cleaners so I don’t use the pledge.  I only have a couple of this type of thing so I don’t consider it a hoarding situation yet.   
Took everything out and wiped the cabinets down and removed empty bottles and boxes and sorted what needed to go where.  I had a DUH! moment and moved the dishwasher tab thingy’s to the left hand side so that I can get to them when the dishwasher is open. 


Here is the after:



Since I was already sitting on the floor, I took care of this nastiness. 

Since this cupboard is right below the sink and the dishwasher door come down right in front of it there are obviously splatters on it.  Little Method Sweet Almond wood cleaner took care of it, lickety split.
I think that on my next errand day, I will invest in the door racks and some contact paper to pretty up up a little.  I also plan to get a basket to keep my rags in.  I would also like to figure out how the make the false drawer fronts those tip out things for cleaning utensils and scrubbies.
Just for fun, these are the things that I took out and moved elsewhere.  Mostly to the garbage and tool box. The canisters were a failed attempt at homemade dishwasher soap.  Gonna clean them out and re-purpose them else where.


Honestly, I think that we need a 365 days of organization.  My house would be clean.  Can tomorrow be the kitchen table???

Linking here:

Getting Organized Pt 2.

Today was Day #4 of the Bowl of Lemons 21 Day challenge.  Today’s Mission was the linen closet. 

 

Definitely a mess.  There are sheets for 3 beds, spare comforters, a sleeping bag, bath towels, hand towels and wash clothes.  This was another area that needed work.  That big ol wadded up blanket on the floor was making it hard to get the door open.  I refolded and sorted sheet sets by person and type of sheet so that grabbing sets would be easier.  The beach towels were put on the top shelf so it was not tempting for the youngin’s to use them for bath/shower time.

 

 

I have about 5 sets of sheets per kid and I know that is a lot but until they quit puking in the middle of the night, I am content with that amount.  It’s not really so many as they each have 2 sets of flannel sheets which is mandatory for Michigan winters.  Frank & I only have about 3 sets and no flannels.  Frank is Italian and would sweat to death on flannel sheets, but we do have a heated mattress pad and that makes me happy.  LOL

The flannel sheets and blanket on the bottom of the closet can be used for filler in lightweight quilts. 

Wonder what the next challenge will be.  I think that she has been peeking in my windows.  LOL

Silhouettes

No, not the dream machine that I have yet to win in Blogland.  I would seriously love to have one though.
Today the silhouettes I am speaking of are profile shots of wiggly kids.  I remember doing silhouettes in Art class in Middle school.  I sat perfectly still in front of a bright light while a classmate traced my shadow onto a piece paper.
A couple years ago, I tried this method to make a Mother’s Day gift for my mom.  The kids were about 2 & 5.  Needless to say, I was in tears by the end of the afternoon because they just could NOT sit perfectly still for that amount of time.  Then my Wonderful Man suggested just taking pictures of the kids instead of doing the silhouettes.  Not what I wanted but then his idea combined with mine to a beautiful result.

Instead of tracing the kids, I took profile mug shot style photos.


I printed them out in BW on the most ink conserving setting I have.  I then lay contact paper on top of the pictures and traced the outline. 
Instead of using canvases, I went with my cheap love.  Plywood.  I am able to get a 2ftX2ft piece of plywood for about $3 at my local Mendards.  Using my trusty had saw, I cut in half lengthwise and then cut each half in half so I have 4 1X1 squares.  I sanded them down so they were nice and smooth, then painted them the color that I wanted the face.  I think it was Rustoleums Heirloom white.  When it was dry, I cut out my contact profiles.  I stuck them in the center of the squares  and smoothed out all the bubbles and pressed the edges as much as possible.  But since there is always the threat of paint bleeding, I sprayed the edges with the same cream base color.
When that was dry, I sprayed them with an Espresso color.

I hung them in our LLLOOONNNNGGG hallway between our bedroom door and G’s.  Instead of doing an eyeball job, I took the time to measure the space and figure out the right number to have an equal amount of space in between the tiles and the door frames which really makes the display in my opinion.  I just stuck them to the wall with 3M Command velcro strips instead of putting a sawtooth hanger on them and pounding nails into the walls.  Our walls are plaster instead of drywall and pounding in 1 nail results in the plaster falling off the wall in an inch around the nail. Since we are renters, this is the best option for us.




I am linking to:

Getting Organized Pt. One

I am a great cook/baker but I need a recipe to follow.  I can’t make up my own. 

I love to sew and craft, but I am not good at creating original item.  I tend to base my stuff on someone else’s projects.

In short, I am a follower.  Of recipes, patterns and instructions.

So it is a good thing for me that A Bowl full of Lemons is telling me what to do to organize for the new year.  I am  a little behind though.  And am doing it a little out of order.  But that’s Ok since I am getting it done and that is all that matters.

 

The Day # 3 Challenge was the Tupperware cupboard.  Mine needed setup needed some serious help.  I keep my bowls in a cupboard and my lids in a deep drawer that I have nearby

 

 

 

 

 

As you can see, the bowls just get put in the cupboard and the lids just get tossed into the drawer.

 

The main issue with the cupboard is that it isn’t square.  It is a weird parallelogram type shape.  And it is so deep that I can’t reach in an touch the cupboard doors on the other side.  And since I don’t really ever use the doors on the other side things get lost and shoved into corners that I can neither see nor reach.

 

So as I was told to do, I took everything out of the cupboard and the drawer and wiped them both down.  And then the most important step in my house.  Making sure that I had a lid for every bowl and a bowl for every lid.  Our bowls are mainly used for Frank to take leftovers to work for lunch the next day so I do end up with more of one than the other.  Or Frank with force a co-workers lid on his bowl thinking that it is his.

 

If I found something without a match, it went into the garbage.  If I found a matching set that I didn’t really use, I put it in a grocery bag.  I am cleaning out my craft closet so I might have a use for them but if I don’t find an alternate use by the end of the week, then they will be donated.

All the cupboards in this house have adjustable shelving which I love.

I messed around with the shelving and found some Dollar Tree baskets and this is what I came  up with.

 

 

AFTER:

 

 

I am now able to store my Great-Grandmothers China which my Mom gave me this Fall as she no longer hosts family dinners and I do Easter, Thanksgiving & Christmas.  I wanted to keep it in the kitchen and accessible as I am a big believer in not keeping things for “good”.  My grandma is 80 & I firmly believe that we will be sorting through many decades of stuff that she has kept for “good” but never used. 

Ideally, I would have liked to put the china on the middle shelf so it isn’t so accessible for the kids but it weighs much more that the plastics so I wanted it on the stronger bottom shelf. 

The top shelf is reserved for the teacups and saucers as well as the teapot, sugar bowl, and creamer that match the dishes.  We haven’t used those with our family dinners so they can be less accessible .

 

I sorted my lids by round and not round and put them in baskets in the drawer.  This left enough room to store my potato ricer and my Vidalia chopper in the drawer without having to dig for them.

 

The kids are super excited that I have uncovered the popsicle molds.  Even though I buy boxes  upon boxes of popsicles to get us though the summer months.

I am so glad that is was one of the organizing challenges because it was desperately needed here.

Hello Gorgeous!!!!

A New Year.  A New beginning.  As always I plan to be thinner, smarter, healthier and generally better by the end of the year.  But as 2010 closed, I was no thinner or healthier.  Maybe a little smarter.

As 2011 opens before me like a blank piece of paper on which to write my story, I can only imagine the possibilities.  I have been shopping for the perfect planner, organizing system, work-out system, purse to perfect me.  But I obviously will never be perfect.  There is only one person who ever walked the Earth who can claim Perfection and He never would. 

So this year, I am taking things a little slower. I am letting go of the perfection that I think I need to achieve.  In the past I haven’t been able to clean out the closet or my desk because I didn’t have the perfect tools.  I haven’t been able to build the furniture I want/need because I haven’t been able to afford the lumber and paint that I need all in one swoop.  I haven’t lost weight because I couldn’t see the results of yesterdays work today.

Some of the bloggers that I follow, namely the Nester, instead of creating a slew of unrealistic resolutions decide on a single word to apply to their daily life.  I have thought about it for the last couple days and searched for a word that would define everything that I am looking for.  The work that I have decided on is Health.

Health–noun    1.the general condition of the body or mind with reference to soundness and vigor: good health; poor health.

I won’t say that this is the Perfect word because I am not going for perfection.  I will say that this word does pretty much fit the bill of everything that I am going for.

Physical Health:  I am classified as obese by my BMI.  I am tall and carry well, but my knees, hips and high blood pressure tell me that they won’t be able to carry it well forever.  I am not going on some crash/fad diet.  I am simply going to eat less calories that I burn a day.  That will involve planning and forethought on my part. I put tons of thought into what I will serve my Vegan son and daughter in-law that will be corn free to accommodate her allergy.  I deserve to treat myself with the same consideration. I will weigh my portions and keep track of what I eat and how it makes me feel.  I won’t eat simply because I am bored.  I won’t get calorie laden specialty coffee just because I think that I deserve it.  That “treat” completely sends me over the limit on my calorie budget.  It surely won’t keep my stomach full until the next day.  It also means that I will remember to take the vitamins that are up in my cupboard.

Spiritual Health: My church is currently in a search for a new Pastor.  Our previous Pastor followed a call to a new church in a new state.  I truly feel sorry for anyone that tried to follow in the huge footsteps that have been left.  I have never had a teacher like the one that has left us.  I felt challenged and invigorated as I left church.  I need to take charge of my own Spiritual education.  That means reading the Bible on a daily basis.  I will follow reading plan to read it in 90 days.  This means that I will read the Bible 4 times a year.  I have already missed the 2 days but I won’t let that keep me from getting started.  I will find a different time of day to read, because @ night in bed doesn’t work.  I am too tired and cannot concentrate and that defeats the purpose.

Family Health:  In my mind, the health of my family starts with the health of my house.  My Dear Husband gets frustrated and feels unloved when he walks into a messy house that I have been in all day.  When I can’t find things due to to the fact that I haven’t put them away, I get short with my kids.  When we have to dig through baskets of clean clothes to get ready, we are then running late and I get even more stressed.  I feel like I can’t take pictures of the kids because of the mess that would be in the background.  I need to unplug from the internet when the kids are home and be more present with them.  Make sure that homework gets done when the kids are not tired and still have the patience for it.  Make sure that dinner is made and served at a cleaned off table before we are all so hungry that we are nasty to each other.  Make sure that clothes are folded and put away so that there is no yelling that there are no clean socks in a drawer.  Make sure that the house is a relaxing place for my Adored Husband to walk into each evening so that he knows how much I love and appreciate everything that he does for our family.

Financial Health:  This means that I will balance the checkbook every evening and I will create and stick to a budget.  We will not eat out just because there are a few extra bucks that should be applied to a bill the next pay period.  This means that if I have to buy part of a project one pay period and the rest the next, then I will.  I don’t need a fancy saw.  My hand saw works just fine and I burn more calories using it.  We don’t need the latest and greatest.  As long as our basic needs are provided for, we are good.  If I don’t have money left in my craft budget, then I should use what I have or go do some laundry.

 

If anyone is still reading this, then Thanks.  If not, well then that is OK too.  I mainly wrote this for myself.  To layout my goals for myself for the upcoming year.

Crayola Heaven

My 8yo son is a budding artist.  If I want a quiet day, all I have to do is to hand him a ream of paper.  He will draw and draw all day.  However, he favors certain color schemes.  My husband is a fireman so often D’s drawings have fire in them.  And since he is an 8yo boy, military and Army guys are also popular. 

This results in the cry of, “I can’t find a Red crayon.”  “My Black crayon is too small for me to hold onto it.”  I have often wished that I was able to buy a box of red crayons.

On a whim, I visited the Crayola Store website this morning.  And what did I find you ask??

You able to create your own custom 64 box!!!  You can choose up to 4 different colors per box.   In my box that equals 16 reds, blacks, brown, and olive greens.  Although this box is $10.99 + shipping, this is totally worth it to me.  You are able to choose from 136 different colors, including Metallics, Neons, and some colors that were never in my box of 64 including Purple Mountains Majesty and Outer Space.

So if you have a crayon artist in your house, this is for you.

 

** this is not a paid endorsement.  Crayola has no idea who I am but if they want to hook a Mom up with some Crayolaness, I wouldn’t object.  Just sayin’**