DVD Organization

A few weeks ago, I finally finished one of the projects that I had been working on.  "Technically" it's not really done, but I'm done for now.

Studio Reveal! The Details

Yep!  The studio reveal gets another post!  Today is all about the details, so be prepared for lots of pictures.  (You can check out the studio reveal here and "the plan" here).

Studio Reveal! The Plan

Previously, I shared my Studio Reveal - I'm so glad it's finally done!

Studio Reveal!

I'm officially unofficially done with the studio!  Thank goodness!  (I say "officially unofficially" because there's still a few things left to do, but they won't get done for awhile, so I'm calling it done for now).

 

Jewelry Display

Hey there!  I've been slacking a bit with posting - life has been eventful in many ways and keeping me on my toes...So, I actually debated on whether or not to share this project.  I'm not 100% happy with how it turned out, but it will work just fine as a temporary solution until my master bathroom gets its makeover.

Even though I don't really wear much jewelry on a daily basis, I like to throw on a necklace or ring for when I go out on the weekends.  I've seen lots of cute jewelry displays made from cork board and have been really wanting to make one.  My non-crafty friend even made one and I was so proud of her!  In an effort to use my abundance of craft supplies, I decided not to buy anything for this project and use what I already had on hand.  Here is what I ended up with!

Studio Project: Map Wrapped Boxes

Oh. my. word.  Have I really been working on my Studio since July?  Geez louise.  In my defense, I had to wait to get this awesome Vittsjo shelf from Ikea, did some garage organization, reorganized my pantry, reorganized my linen closet, finished a complete bathroom overhaul, and had to deal with the holidays, so at least I did manage to get some things accomplished.  But, the main reason I haven't finished the studio is because the leftover things that need to be organized is all the piddly stuff that don't have "homes".  So, this is why this last part has been a struggle.  I accomplished some things in the room last week and finally came up with a game plan, so *hopefully* that will get done very soon.  

Some of you may or may not know, but I loooooooooooove maps.  Love them.  Always have and always will.  I used to stare & study them and daydream about where I wanted to go.  And since I'm a lover of maps, I've managed to gather a good collection of them (and they were all free! You can get them from your hotels, when you get a rental car, AAA.  I just grab them when I see 'em).   Anyways, I had some old photo boxes that had a nice palm tree pattern on them.  They were still in good condition and although the palm tree pattern isn't bad, it just doesn't fit in with my decor.  So, the boxes were just sitting around, not being used to their full potential.   

So, I grabbed a couple of maps and used them to cover the photo boxes.  On one box, I used Mod Podge, which was a bit of a pain to get the air bubbles out (they never completely came out, so it's a good thing maps have lines - helps hide the bubbly bits) and the other box, I used double-stick tape and a bit of Mod Podge on the edges.  This 2nd process was much easier, by the way.  I just cut the pieces for each side (the maps weren't big enough to wrap the boxes like you would a gift - I figured that you don't ever see the bottom of the box, so I left the bottoms "as-is") and stuck the pieces on.  The boxes already had the metal plates on them, so I used an Xacto knife to cut the paper around it.  Then, I slapped on a label and called them done. 

Now I can use them for much-needed storage, all while they sit there looking pretty awesome.  I'll just have to try not to stare at them & daydream and actually get some projects done.

Originally posted by Adventures in DIY

Garage Organization: Inside the Cabinets

My garage organization has been a work-in-progress for the last couple of years.  I work on it when I'm in the mood - mostly because it is a huge project and I didn't want to get overwhelmed and totally abandon it.  In the beginning, I made a list of what needed to be accomplished and broke it down into smaller projects so it would be easier to get done.

I previously mentioned in other posts that I was able to get some organizing done over the holidays and this was one of them.

What a great "before and after", right?!

Linen Closet ReOrganization Part 2

One of the other spaces I reorganized last month was my linen closet.  Last year, I shared how I reorganized it here.  It was only temporary - I knew it would need to be reorganized after I remodeled my hall bathroom (I had a white storage cabinet with white baskets in there and part of the plan was to take it out of the bathroom for good).

Pantry ReOrganization

Last month, I took the time to reorganize a few of my spaces.  I started with my pantry - it was already pretty much organized, but there were a few problem spots that needed to be fixed.  My pantry is really deep, which in a way is good for storage, but at the same time it's not because it makes it hard to access stuff in the back.  Because it's so deep, using baskets & bins was going to be my best bet.  Throughout the last year, I bought baskets & bins from the Dollar Tree, knowing that I'd be able to use them in various spaces around the house, including the pantry.

Guest Post: Looking After Outdoor Furniture During The Winter Months

I've got another guest post for you all today! I don't know about you, but here in Southern California we are still having summer-like weather (it's been slowly cooling down, though - yay!). But, with school back in session and since Fall is officially here, it's time to start thinking about winding down the outdoor activities.  Amy is guest posting today with some ideas for looking after outdoor furniture during the winter months...

We all love spending time outside; there’s something about those late summer nights, the sound of crickets chirping and that summer night-time smell that brings back a plethora of memories. But caring for our outdoor furniture can be another matter entirely. Just thinking about it can be a drain but caring for your patio or garden furniture doesn't have to be inconvenient or difficult. Taking a bit of time throughout the year and at the end of summer can save you a significant amount of money, and make your outdoor furniture last for years. Below, is a little guide to the maintenance and storage of your outdoor furnishings.

Guest Post: 10 Easy Ways To Get Organized

Hello all!  I'm slowly getting back into the swing of things and enjoyed my little break.  I have some things I'll be sharing soon, but they're not quite ready yet.  ;)  Today, I have a guest post by Katie on behalf of Hefty sharing some really great & cheap organization tips...

10 Easy Ways to Get Organized

Finishing up a major home project can be enormously satisfying. Getting a room cleaned, organized, or looking prettier than it began with is normally a huge weight off of any homeowner or renter’s shoulders.

Garage Workbench

Hello all!  Today I'm sharing my garage workbench.  A few things to note: 1)  I did not build this myself .  2)  This was done a few years ago.   And 3) Please excuse my poorly photoshopped pictures.  I'm still experimenting with Photoshop - this was the best I could do, but the purpose was served!  ;)

Here is how my garage started out.  The previous owners had white cabinets installed on that wall and some great lighting all throughout the garage.  They also had some electrical outlets installed in that empty wall space below the cabinets and also inside some of the cabinets.  But, that empty space was prime real estate for a workbench!

I bought pegboard to fill the wall space below the cabinets.  Not only does it give it a cleaner look, but it's also great for storage.

As you can see in the pictures above, there was a lot of wiring going on at the right side of the empty space.  It's a Verizon box and although I don't use them,  I didn't want it completely covered in case I needed access to it at some point in the future - this way I wouldn't have to take part of the peg board down.  The picture below shows the cut-out for the box for easy access.

Here's the finished workbench and pegboard wall...

I'm still working on getting the garage organized - there's a lot to do, so I'm doing it all in small steps, but I've made some good progress.

Originally posted by Adventures in DIY

Contact Lens Calendar

Ok - I know I'm not the only one out there that does this, but I'm very bad at changing out my contact lenses.  I'm supposed to change them every 2 weeks, and well, it just doesn't happen when it's supposed to (I won't admit to how long, mmmkay?).  Anyways, after my last eye appointment, I vowed to be better at changing out my contacts (it helps that I have a friend that works for my eye doctor and she gave me a friendly lecture reminder about changing my contacts on time).  But, I quickly realized the main problem as to why I would always change them out too late - by the time I leave the bathroom after putting in a new set, I would forget to write in on my calendar.  I know how my brain works and I have to write stuff down or I will forget.  So, this idea popped into my head and I'm hoping it works in the long run...

This next picture should explain much better just why it should help me remember when it's time to change out my contacts.

BAM!  Yep - it's a magnetic miniature dry erase calendar on the inside door of my medicine cabinet.  Dry erase marker included.  Stroke. of. genius.  Ok, ok, maybe not genius, but man it's the little things that get me excited sometimes.

I took one of those magnetic plastic picture frames that I already owned and found a free yearly calendar online.  I printed the calendar to the size of the frame (mine was 4x6).

(Please excuse the horrible, night time picture)

I also had this pen with an attached holder from a magnetic dry erase board that I already had.  I wasn't using the pen for it, so I repurposed it by hotgluing it to the back of the frame.
***Update #1***  When I originally tested the dry erase marker on the plastic frame, it wiped off easily with a tissue.  However, after using it for about a month now, it's not wiping off with a tissue anymore. A quick fix?  Rubbing alcohol!  Just dab some rubbing alcohol on the tissue and it will wipe right off.

For some reason, the magnet on the frame wasn't strong enough to hold onto the back of the medicine cabinet door (this was before I added the marker.  It worked just fine where I was using it previously - weird).  So, I had to hotglue a ton of the small, round magnets on the back.
***Update #2***  After using the hot glue to add the extra magnets, I discovered that the hot glue (since it goes on thick) made the height of the magnets un-even.  I ended up taking them all off and used superglue instead.  This worked out way better!

I even had to add more of the magnets after I took this picture.  Hey, whatever works.

I added washi tape to the top and bottom to add a bit of color.  Then, cut the calendar to size and slid it inside the frame.  Easy peasy!

You just have to make sure that the frame will clear any of the shelves or items on the shelves.  Otherwise, when you try closing the door, it won't stay shut.  I had to rearrange a couple of things on the bottom shelf, but it wasn't a big deal.

Since the calendar is pretty small, I just mark a black dot on the date that I change my contacts.  So far, this is making it much easier for me to keep track.

Originally posted by Adventures in DIY

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Linen Closet Reorganization

One of the projects on my 2013 list was to re-organize the linen closet in the hallway.  For the most part, it was decently organized, but some things still needed a bit of tweakin'.   Also, whenever I finally remodel both bathrooms, I knew some things would need to be moved into the linen closet, so I needed to make a bit of room in there.

Since I recently bought and installed this 5 tier metal shelf in the garage, this kick-started how I would be able to re-organize in a few different areas of the house & garage.

I started out by taking a look in the linen closet and deciding what didn't belong or what I could move out of there.  Even though bed sheets are technically linens, I decided to move them out of the closet.  I only had one set in there anyways - all the others are in my old armoire that is in the guest room closet.  Also, there were some office supplies in there, house decor not in use, utility type items (lightbulbs, etc).  I decided that all of those would get a new home in a more appropriate spot.

Then, I went through all of the items and got rid of anything that was expired or that I hadn't used in a long time or that I would never use.   Everything else that I knew I would keep, I put them into like categories and got to organizing.

***Please don't mind the bad pictures.  The hallway that the closet is in gets horrible lighting (which resulted in having to use the *gasp!* flash).   It's also in a small hallway, so hard to get straight pictures (you can see in the pictures below how the wall across from the linen closet is very close, so it's hard to take pictures).  I really, really tried!***

Before:  Some baskets and bins helped to organize the space, but I needed more.

I also used wire shelving to allow for more use of the space.  But, as you can see on the 2nd shelf in the below picture, it was hard to get to the sheets under the towels because of the legs on the wire shelves.  Such a pain to get to them!

After:  I moved the beach towels & summer gear to the top shelf.  They get used, but not as often as most other things in the closet.  I also moved one of the wire shelves to the 3rd shelf to fit more items there and not have to move all kinds of things just to get to the items.   I left the home decor basket on the 2nd shelf for now - it will eventually get moved probably to the garage, but there is enough space left right now, so it stayed.

I also made a label for my basket of medicines/first aid stuff.  You can see how I made these labels here.  And yes - I'm aware that "MEDS" is crooked and looks like it's walking down stairs.  :)

The top shelf of the bottom cabinet held all of my candle & Scentsy items.  I had some in a shoebox and the rest were just sitting out in the open on one of the wire shelves - it made it tricky to get to things without knocking other things over.  I had some extra wooden handwoven baskets, so I used two of the smaller ones to put all my good-smellin' stuff in there - it also makes it easier to just pull out the baskets and grab what I want.
I also travel a lot and all of my travel items are right next to the candle baskets on the top shelf.  I just grab it and go.

On the 2nd shelf, I stacked all of my bath towels on the left.  I utilized one of the wire shelves for all the smaller towels - hand towels and wash cloths.  Since it's used for the smaller towels, the towels are easy to get to without the wire shelf actually being in the way.

I have lots of little items that I've gathered over time that would come in good use, but I never used myself - toothbrushes & floss from dentist visits (I prefer specific brands), lotion, shampoo, conditioner from hotels, etc.  I gathered all of these items together and put them in a box for guests (bottom shelf)  - this way it would be easier for guests (and me) to find in the closet without them having to dig through everything.

Here is a quick before & after...

BEFORE (top cabinet)

AFTER (top cabinet)

BEFORE (bottom cabinet)

AFTER (bottom cabinet)

It's not super cute like other linen closets I've seen online and on blogs, but it serves the purpose and is very functional.  I was aiming not to spend money and use what I already have - mission accomplished!  I'm sure that I will eventually find that the linen closet may need more tweaking, but for now these have been very useful changes for me and will save me a bit of time and frustration.

Originally posted by Adventures in DIY
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Reorganization: In Progress

Hello and Happy March!  (How in the world is it March already?!?)  I had a super busy February, so not much got done around here as far as projects go.  But, I'm back into the swing of things!  In between other projects, I've been in the process of re-organizing.  For the most part, I'm usually pretty organized, but there are lots of things that can use a bit tweaking.  I don't have a ton of storage space, so it was a matter of figuring out where to start.

A couple of weeks ago, I saw that Target had their 5-tier wire shelving units on sale, so I snagged one up.  I instantly knew that this would be my "starting point".  Once I got that up and installed in the garage,  I could move some things out of the house and out into the garage and therefore freeing up storage space inside the house.  This way, I could also store things in more appropriate places and where it makes sense for them to be.

I got this puppy up over the weekend and now am in the process of re-organizing the linen closet, cleaning closet, and pantry.  Once I have this done, I'll be sharing more here.  It may come in small stages, but stay tuned!

Originally posted by Adventures in DIY

Reorganizing Under the Kitchen Sink

Oh boy - all of my project plans went out the door this weekend.  I've been fighting a cold, so didn't end up getting much on my list done.  I did manage to get a small project done - I reorganized under my kitchen sink, which was spurred on by my idea to "reorganize" my trash & recycle bins.

For the last few years, my trash & recycle bins have been living right here in the kitchen, next to the archway that goes into the dining room.  This was the only real "free" spot for them in the kitchen and while the trash can is nice, the recycle bin isn't.  They weren't in the way too much since the archway was big enough, but sometimes they managed to get in the way.

Then, I discovered this.

Via Bed, Bath & Beyond

It's exactly what I was looking for, but with a $179.99 price tag (even with a 20% off coupon, it would still come out to be just over $145!), there was no way I could justify shelling out that much money for it - there's just way too many other things that I could buy with that!  So, I started thinking of alternative ways of placing my trash & recycle bins.  I had previously thought of putting the recycle bin under the sink, but for whatever reason, I didn't.  It's possible one of the reasons is my ant problem.  I considered  this again and decided that in all the time I have had the bin out in the open, I've never seen ants in the trash (KNOCK ON WOOD!!!!).  I'm always really good about rinsing any soda cans out and most other things that go in there are cardboard or paper or bottles with lids.  So, I decided to give it a try.

But, first things first - if I was going to put it under the kitchen sink, that meant reorganizing under there.  This is what it looked like "before".

Not too bad, but definitely no room for my little recycle bin.  So, I took everything out and wiped the bottom of the cabinet clean.

Since I already kept it pretty organized under there, I didn't need to do much purging.  However, the black watering can & red hummingbird feeder got the boot.  They will be moved to the garage with the other garden stuff (that will get reorganized once I put together the metal shelving unit I bought - that was supposed to be my other project this weekend, but I didn't get to it).  I first put the recycle bin in the only spot that would fit - the only spot without pipes.  Then, I put everything else back.

I bought that big lazy susan at the Container Store years ago for the sole purpose of using it under the sink and it's worked out perfectly.  You can see that there's a piece of black wood in the middle (between the doors) and the lazy susan is perfect for the spot behind it because all I have to do is turn it to easily reach what I need.  That bottle of bleach will mostly like get moved to garage once I rearrange my laundry area in the garage.  Baby steps, people.  Baby steps.

Also, I've had the recycle bin under the sink for a couple of days now and so far so good - no ants (KNOCK ON WOOD!!!).  I'll continue to rinse out any cans and keep as much non-food & non-drink residue out of there.  That's the last thing I want to do is clean up a bunch of ants under the sink where it's hard to get under.  Ugh.

Once I moved the recycle bin, the trash can was all by it's lonesome.  I decided to move it next to the dishwasher.  Yes, it's blocking that little bottom cabinet, but I don't get in there that much.  I do use 2 appliances in there sometimes, but when the pantry gets reorganized (baby steps, remember?) at least one of those appliances, if not both, will get moved to the pantry.  I do use that little drawer often and it still opens without hitting the trash can.  Also, I can open the dishwasher without hitting it either.  Score!

So, here's a before & after (let's face it, these aren't the prettiest pictures, but it'll show you the difference a quick rearrangement will do):

BEFORE

AFTER

BEFORE

AFTER

BEFORE

AFTER

I think this post took me longer to write than to actually do it.  Seriously.  And it's an awfully long post about moving trash cans and stuff under a sink.  But, it's nice to have those out of the way now - gives the kitchen a cleaner look.  Thanks for stopping by and I hope everyone had a great weekend!

Originally posted by: Adventures in DIY

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