An organized space is a visual demonstration of peace and serenity. A clutter-free, ordered, beautifully decorated space makes me feel inspired, happy and energized. I am probably a little OCD, and I am probably a little Type-A personality. I am also probably a little controlling of my environment.
I have been able to let-go a little bit and ease up on the compulsion to organize and accept that life can get in the way of even the best laid plans. Nevertheless, I am still endeavouring to create order and beauty where I can.
You may recall I was reclaiming my basement from all its clutter during the month of June. Well, that project hasn’t gone away, but another project moved up the priority list to first place and I am proud to say it is done enough to share with you.
We just finished a complete landscape re-do project in our front yard. We did all of the labor ourselves, and spent only about $750 on materials and equipment. When we moved into our home two years ago, there were three HUGE shrubs out front with a mulched, natural stone boarder. The shrubs were so huge, we couldn’t see out the window. So we ripped out all the plants and started over.
This is what we started with (after plant removal).
This is what it looks like now.
To give you an idea of the price of our space:
1. I loved these black urns that were $40 each, but decided to get the plastic terracotta pots and some black spray-paint and make my own planters for a fraction of the cost.
Plastic Pots: $4 ea X4
Black Spray paint: $6
Garden Soil: $3.50 per bag
Rocks for Drainage: from our property
Red Grass: $8 ea X4
Asparagus Fern $5 ea X4 Purple Petunias: $3.50 ea X4 Total $91.50
2. We widened the walkway with concrete mortar-set pavers on a concrete footer and we created the step-ups by using concrete blocks and slate stone platforms.
Concrete Pavers: $1.20 lrg X24; $1 sml X40
Mortar: $6 per bag X4
Cement: $4 per bag X6 Steel Rebar: $2.50 ea 4′ X6; $2 ea 2′ X8 Total: $147.80
3. We laid a 4-course dry block retaining wall for the beds with a natural stone returns on either side
4. And we planted a blue hydrangea (I was so excited this one) azaleas and balloon flowers
Blue Hydrangea Bush: $40
Magenta Azalea Bush: $25 ea X2
Lime Green Low Cover: $10 ea X3
Balloon Flowers: 2@$5, 1@ $8 Pine Bark Mulch: $2.20 ea X4 Total: $146.80
Finally, to do the job we had to acquire a bunch of equipment including:
Safety Glasses: $15
Chip Hammer: $25
Morter Trowel: $12
Pointing Trowel: $8
Rock Chisel: $15
Work Gloves: $25
4′ Level: $15
2′ level: borrowed
Ax: borrowed
Pick Ax: borrowed
Metal Rake: already had
Shovel: Borrowed
Wheel Barrow: Borrowed
Gardening Trowel: Borrowed
Garden Hose: already had
Garden Spade: already had
Garden Hoe: Borrowed Small Toddler-Sized Shovel: $10 Total: $125
The Grand Total for our Landscaped Space: $710.30 so far.
We still need to:
mortar and set the top step slabs of slate stone
lay sod
lay stone in the beds on either side of the stoop
finished mulching
select potted plants (my husband wants tall topiaries) on either side of the stoop to mask the bins
and replace the outdoor light with a larger one that is black.
I was inspired by natural rock hardscapes in my neighborhood and the orderly look they brought to the outdoor landscape. I wanted to create an entryway that was functional, substantial, and beautiful. I also wanted to plant cutting flowers to also beautify the inside of my home.
Already this space gives us a sense of order and warm beauty as we pass by it every day. The hours and hours of research, budgeting, planning, and labor to create this organized and beautiful space have really paid off and I am now proud to say this is my home. Does organization bring beauty into your space? If so, share your inspiration and thoughts here for other readers to enjoy.
Be sure to scoot on over to The Nesting Place to see some other wonderfully inspirational and beautiful spaces. Happy Organizing!
I am taking a week-long blogging break and be back, Monday, June 29th. We are working on some home projects (a bunch really, and the blue hydrangea…we are putting one in our front yard landscape project), Tyler is going to pre-school summer session (a huge schedule change), and I need some time to re-group and just write freely.
This blog has come so far in only 5 months. It has been a ton of work, but I still love writing, researching, and sharing my knowledge and expertise about organizing all aspects of life. Organizing-Life isn’t going anywhere, the author is just taking a short break. If you haven’t delved into the archives here, grab a cup of coffee (or lemonade) and click on a category button to the left to take a stroll through my blog.
A couple of notes:
If you are interested in being featured as a Featured Creative Organizer, or are interested in writing a guest post about a unique organizing topic (that hasn’t been published elsewhere) please do e-mail me!
I will still be peeking at my Google Reader this week and I can’t wait to spend some time exploring your blog!
Thank you again too all my readers. Your comments, support, and encouragement mean so much to me! Have a great weekend, and a wonderful Father’s Day. Happy Organizing!
This is an unpolished experiment of sorts, but I thought sharing with you a personal introduction and a live tour of my pantry might give you a better idea of who I am and a better demonstration of some of the organizing tips I wrote about in a recent Pantry Organizing post. I hope some of the tricks I use to organize my food storage space will help you save time and money! Enjoy and Happy Organizing!
Last week was a little hectic, and yes, I feel a bit behind. I am finally going through my reader and posting some of the best organizing links this week…and whew, here they are.
Organizer Thoughts:
This post written by Sherri of Serene Journey is entitled On The Concept Of Friction. I just love this interesting take on procrastination, productivity, and all the organizing philosophies I live each day. Also be sure to read her post Household Shortcuts And Handy Hints. I particularly like her tip about how to handle the dryer-monster-that-eats-your-socks-challenge!
I stumbled upon a wonderful free download on Just Something I Made. The author Cathe, is a graphic designer and offers her readers a wonderful set of vintage-style printable labels. To do this craft all you need is some pretty colored paper, a printer, and some spray adhesive, and of course, something that needs a label!
Yard sale season is here and The Nesting Place put together a great tip list entitled How to Yard Sale to help prepare you to bargain hunt like the best of them!
Okay, this random set of pics has nothing to do with organizing, just a little to do with family genology maybe. Being adopted, I never saw anyone who looked like me. Then I had children and finally, I know someone one this world who looks like me. Well, this is actually my son looking like my husband.
Now on to organizing. I’ve been reading again. Since I had put off checking that Google Reader over the weekend, I had that good old 1,000+ unread number blinking at me. Yikes…here are a few of the best organizing tips, tidbits, and resources. Happy reading, and happy organizing. Have a wonderfully fun filled weekend.
Sara from On Simplicity writes about Five Ways to Make Laundry Day Easier!! (Speaking of laundry, we bought a new washer and dryer last night at Sears. Our days of hang-drying all of our clothing in humid weather will be gone shortly. Yay!)
Garage Sale Success!! TipNut.com posted a wonderfully informative article about Garage Sales and tips for your success. This comprehensive guide is sure to put the cash in your hand.
If you have a great organizing post you’d like to see fully featured here on Organizing Link Friday, send me a note at abbieipark at gmail dot com! I’d love to help you share your idea with others!
Summer is almost here! I wanted to share with you a few of my summer organizing tasks I noted in my planning binder. (Now that I am writing this post, I am realizing that these items are so suburban-living. Some days I miss my country-living-childhood!)
Plan a weekend trip to go fruit and veggie picking at a local farm. (I am also planning time that weekend to do a little jam-making and canning. A little container of homemade jam makes a great holiday gift!)
Plan summer travel and look at flights, car rentals, and hotel availability now. Be aware of festival or motor race events at your destination that might make your stay a bit more difficult to book.
Place mail-orders for summer items! (I buy our sunscreen, sneakers, and Crocs mail-order.)
Check that you have up-to-date sunscreen, bug spray, first-aid kit, and insect bite medications. (I am allergic to bee-stings so I always check the expiration date on my Benadryl at this time of the year and make sure I have an extra packet in my purse/diaper bag when ever I go out.)
Note the weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, baptisms, and other special events that are coming up in the next three months and start shopping for cards and gifts now. (When I get items ahead-of-time, I wrap them, label them, and place them in an accessible storage spot.)
Purchase your family pool pass at your local community center and sign up for swimming lessons.
Make sure your lawn mower, edge trimmer, and hedge clippers are tuned up and gassed up.
Compile a list of local parks and note opening/closing times, admission fees, amenities (Burke Lake Park has a choo choo train ride), and other special items.
Check spring clearance sales on kid-clothing and buy for next year.
Check that your landscape maintenance service contract is current.
Clean out and tune up campers/camping/hiking/biking, and other summer recreational equipment. (Don’t forget to fit little growing heads for new helmets!)
I hope this helps you ease into your summer fun! Do you have other summer organizing tasks on your to-do list? Leave a gentle reminder comment here for other readers! Happy Organizing!
For the month of June my goal is to reclaim our basement! We have a very nice finished basement that includes a wet bar, a storage room outfitted with utility shelving, a laundry area, and a large living area. The sliding glass door opens to the back of the house and there is another large window. The is a big space perfect for lounging, entertaining, or kid-play. It is just neglected now and not organized well, okay, at all.
So, I plan to:
Clear out the clutter and get rid of a ton of stuff like baby clothes, books, papers, and unused kitchen items.
Finish projects with materials stashed down there (we need to install the crown moulding in the kids rooms that is just piled at the base of the stairs.)
Design a functional space and draw-up a budget.
Regardless, some needed renovation items include: install better lighting, hang appropriate window treatments, replace the washer/dryer units (which are on their last legs or not functioning at all!), move around existing furniture and create better storage. I think we may install a TV down there too.
So, do you think I can get this done in one month? I’ll keep you up-to-date on my progress weekly. A touch of accountability usually gives me a big kick-in-the-you-know-what to get going and it also staves off procrastination!
Do you have a summer-month home project? Share with other readers what you plan to tackle and how! Happy Organizing!
Tuesday I wrote about when to pitch that paper, and yesterday the theme article was about when to toss that makeup. Today is a list of pointers about how to know when food stuffs and spices in the kitchen should go out with the trash.
:: Food “expiration dates” labeled sell by, best before, best if used by, use by, all mean different things. The “sell by” is more a guide for the store to know how long it can display a product for sale. The “best before” or “best if used by” date refers to food quality and flavor. “Use by” works more like an expiration date and eating it after the date is not recommended.
:: Consume or freeze within 2 days of purchase to prevent bacterial illnesses. (Ignore the sell-by date which indicates how long the store can keep the meat for sale. Their refrigerator temperatures at 30 degrees F are lower than home fridges and safely keep meat safe to consume longer.
:: Never re-freeze thawed meats. Doing so can enhance the growth of bacteria that can cause illness.
:: Canned items should be stored in a cool (below 85 degrees F) dry place up to a year (or check the package use by date). After 1 year canned items can be consumed, although their quality may have diminished. Toss badly dented cans and cans that show signs of rust.
:: Dry items: white rice – 1 year; brown rice – 6 months; pasta – 2 years; dry cereal – 1 year; cake mixes – 6-9 months; cookies and crackers - 2 months.
:: Those baking staples in the pantry: pure vanilla extract – 2 years; white flour - 1 year (whole wheat lasts about 6-8 months in the fridge because of oils); granulated sugar - 2 years (10X sugar – 18 months, and brown sugar stays fresh for 4 months); baking soda – 2 years or until it looses it’s “fizz”; baking powder – 18 months or until it looses it’s rising power; yeast – toss by the package expiration date.
:: Whole spices can stay fresh for up to 2 years. Ground spices only keep their flavor and quality for about 6 months.
:: Refrigerated eggs-in-shell can last up to 4-5 weeks. Butter can stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
:: Use your nose and your eyes and if anything looks or smells bad, it has gone bad. When in doubt, throw it out.
Other Notes:
To add to yesterday’s post pitch sunscreen products, bath and body products and over-the-counter medications after their expiration date.
What is the item you seem to waste the most? In my home, I like varied snack foods, so there are always 5-10 items open at any given time. Then we can’t finish them all before they go stale so the last bit in the package always gets pitched. Any suggestions for me? (Okay, besides the obvious, finish one before opening another.) How should I keep crackers, cookies, and those shrimp chips fresher longer? Leave a comment here and let others know what your waste challenge is in your home! Happy Organizing!
The theme this week is “how long do you keep that?”Yesterday I covered When to Pitch That Paper and tomorrow I plan to cover food-stuffs. So stay tuned!
Cosmetics have a finite shelf-life. Bacteria can grow from introducing applicators from the skin back into the container. Pigments and oils can separate and become rancid, and the consistency and quality can can diminish with time. It is better to toss that last bit of expensive lipstick than to get a skin rash from bacteria on its tip. Sounds pretty yucky right? Follow a few of the “cleaning tips” at the bottom of the list to keep your make-up items bacteria-free, fresh and beautiful!
A couple of tips to keep your make-up items clean, fresh, and beautiful:
To prevent bacterial contamination don’t share cosmetics with other people.
Wash your hands before applying makeup products and don’t moisten products with saliva. The saliva can get mixed into the product where bacteria can grow and spread infection.
Don’t use cosmetic products after using it on broken or infected skin. Toss the cosmetics that may be infected with bacteria and open new ones. Also replace eye products after an eye infection.
Wash or toss disposable sponges and brushes once a week with warm soapy water and allow to air dry. (Make sure the item is completely dry before replacing it in a compact to prevent mould growth.)
If the item has a funny odor, toss it.
Keep your cosmetics away from sunlight and heat as this causes swift deterioration.
Natural cosmetics that don’t contain preservatives should be thrown out sooner than the guidelines above.
Keep cosmetics in their store packaging until you need to use them. This will extend their shelf life because they aren’t exposed to air.
I hope this helps you organize your make-up stash. Do you have any cosmetic/toiletry organizing tips? Leave a comment here and share with other readers!
UPDATE: for a free printable download version of When to Toss That Make-Up, click here.
This weekend my husband and I went to Detroit, Michigan to attend a wedding for one of his co-workers. We had a wonderful time at this multi-day-Indian-affair complete with beautiful saris embroidered with gold, the groom’s entrance on a white horse, fabulous Indian cuisine, and traditional raas garba dancing. The best: the kids were at home with halmony and halaboji (grandparents) and we were able to sip cocktails and talk with other friends freely. Congratulations Purvesh and Sajel!
Even though the weekend was a great getaway, I have to admit, I did feel a little weird not organizing.
So, this week the theme is “how long do you keep that?” I plan to cover; food stuffs, cosmetics and toiletries, and today, paper!
So how long do you keep that paper? Piles of paper clutter can be a fire hazard and of course can hinder your productivity when you are searching high-and-low for that latest bill. I admit I love saving paper just-in-case. But I am running out of filing space in my home so I need to pair down. I have stacks of paper in my basement to file but do I really need to keep everything in those stacks? Here are a few bits of my brain on parting with those beloved pieces of paper.
:: Pitch the books you haven’t read in a year, magazines you haven’t cracked open in 6 months, and newsletters that aren’t current. All of this information is accessible for free or for cheap at the library, used-book store (for cheap) or on-line. That Martha Stewart crown-rib roast recipe you meant to try is on her website. The Mass schedule for those holy days is on the Diocese website. Keep the childhood books you would like to give to your grandchildren, the ones signed by their author, and those that deserve display. If they are beautiful to you, irreplaceable, and you have roomto store them, keep them.
::Keep very important documents separately in a fire-safe place.By important documents I mean birth and naturalization records, passports, life insurance policie(s), social security cards, will(s), power(s) of attorney, deed(s), and marriage license.
:: Purge paper regularly (at least annually.) Limit your space.This makes the job easier each time you tackel it.
I never remember when to pitch what so I have compiled a basic list here so you, and I, can remember how long to keep that paper record! (As a general rule of thumb, I keep that bill, statement, financial record as long as the tax law says I should, or for the life of the policy.)
Banking Cancelled checks – 1 yr (or 7 yrs if support tax filings)
Certificates of Deposit – after matures
Check statements – 1 yr
Credit Card statements – 1 yr (or 7 yrs if support tax filings)
Loan documents – after repay loan
Loan discharge notices – never (keep in safe-deposit box)
Pay stubs – 1 yr (balance year-end stub with w-2 tax form)
Estate (keep these items in a safe-deposit box and leave a copy with the appropriate attorney, accountant, physician, or other designee.) Health-care proxy – when updated
Will – when updated
Power of attorney – when updated
Insurance
Annually renewed insurance policies – after renewal
Permanent life – never (keep in safe-deposit box)
Term life – after it expires (keep in safe-deposit box)
Investments
Brokerage statements – after sell the securities and then hold with your tax return for 7 years
Savings bonds – after matures
Personal documents should never be thrown away and should be held in a safe-deposit box
Birth certificate
Death certificates
Marriage license
Military-discharge papers
Social security card
Product Purchases
Car title – after you sell the vehicle (keep in safe-deposit box)
Receipts – after warranty expires and after 7 years if needed to support tax returns
Warranties – after expires
Retirement
Employer defined benefit plan communications – never
401(k) statements – when you get a new one
Social security statements – when you get a new one
Tax
Personal state and federal tax returns and supporting documents – after 7 years
I hope this helps! Happy Organizing! How do you handle your paper pieces in your home? Leave a comment and help others manage their paper piles!
I am a 35 year old mom to a 4 year old son, a 3 year old daughter, a son born in May, and a wife to my life wonderful. I write in this space when my crafty inspiration strikes or when I get to pondering about how we can live more simply and better connect with the earth around us. We are a family surviving the suburbs, contending with commercialism, and getting to a greener lifestyle. Welcome! ~Abbie
