organizing

Make Upcycled Bins From Paper Bags

Raise your hand if you have ever decided to “get organized” (<airquotes warranted) by going to the store to buy stuff to store stuff, and then you get to the store and the cute storage containers cost as much as a new pair of shoes, so you go over to the shoe section, then pick up a pair of espadrilles, try them on, then walk back over the storage container department and decide to buy the cheaper-but-uglier storage containers, then you come home with ugly containers and cute shoes and zero interest in organizing anything.

Yeah. Both hands raised here.

According to Marie Kondo, the best way to avoid this is to not buy anything fancy for organizing purposes, just simple and readily available stuff from the recycling bin, and you only do that after you do the hard part. Uuuuurgh. I hate it when they annoying people are right.

Anyway: Hello paper bags!

These babies are crazy easy to make, and a good excuse to ~~buy~~ use up all those cute and colorful tapes. Plus, you can customize the dimensions to fit an awkward space or a narrow shelf. And they look darn cute too, right? I don’t normally keep my yarn stash up on my bookshelf but I just might start. Easy grabbin’ makes fro easy craftin’ – and I am alllllll about it.

Want the directions? Pop on over to Etsy’s official blog and see what’s what!

Organizing in the New Year

by aunt peaches 9 Comments

Happy New Year!

It’s January 1 and like half the people I know, I am pledging to resolve to be more organized. I also resolved to live healthier but then I woke up and ate leftover potato chips with the Rose Parade so it’s not looking good. Let’s concentrate on the other stuff, shall we?

For me, the critical element to staying organized is to make ugly stuff look pretty. And while I love my art supplies, they are not exactly attractive mid-use. They always start out pretty but two weeks in the outsides get splattered and stained, half squeezed, totally-functional-but-unattractive. Time for something equally practical and pretty. Enter the drawer unit of my dreams….

If you have been to Michael’s in the last year you have seen these roller carts around. They usually retail for $80 but they are almost always on sale for $40…pair that with one of Michael’s 25% off any item (including sale items!) coupon, and it comes in $30 and change. That’s pretty swell for a storage unit.

I got it in a transparent white, but it also comes in pink and rainbow. I think it’s meant for scrapbooking supplies, but I like it for my studio to store paint, brushes, markers, office supplies, and receipts for all of the above (can you tell it’s year end and I have taxes on the brain?). And here is another thing on my mind: leftover Christmas trimmings.

I made these gift tags by slicing up a damaged watercolor painting (full tutorial next year y’all!) but I’m thinking any mail tags could be used for this.

I sliced off the tops, removed the string, and hung in between the knob and the drawer front.

So yeah. That was easy!

I could write the contents of the drawers on the tags but decided to match the match the artwork to the contents of the drawer…watercolor paint tag on the watercolor paint drawer, etc. This will not be obvious to anyone but me, but nobody is using it but me, so we’re cool.

So here we are. Fresh new year and I have a semi-cleanish studio. Not too shabby! If you are looking to jump start your organizing and don’t know where to begin, you can always take a look at some of the fun storage projects on Michaels.com or the other 49 makers’ ideas on The Glue String for tips on designing, organizing and decorating their favorite places. Happy New year!

An InLinkz Link-up

Upcycle: Pen Organizer

by aunt peaches 1 Comment

My pet peeve to end all pet peeves: When you can’t find a pen and then you do and the pen doesn’t work. Why doesn’t it work? Because ~~it hates me~~ I stored it tip-up in a coffee mug for seventy years and the ink settled to the bottom and now when I want it to write the ink is being disagreeable. Suddenly that simple fridge note to “buy eggs” becomes a rage filled rampage to carve scribbles into anything resembling paper goods.

Solution? Store all your pens, pencils, brushes, chopsticks, and whatever else your heart desires in an organizer like this!

All you need is a collection of tin cans, a shoe box, and something to decorate the outside. It’s so easy, the hardest part might be the decorating. Don’t you love it when the fun part is that hard part? Makes me feel so accomplished. Get the details for this project (and more) over at Pentel.com!

DIY Desk Caddy

by aunt peaches 3 Comments

Now that I am paying good money to rent a studio for the specific purpose of working, I determined to stay organized. No, for real. I mean it this time. I know I have said that before, but I am on a new path. It’s new. That counts. And I have a new rule too: nothing is coming in this room that does not serve a purpose. Function before form.

For every item I ask myself, Does it bring me joy? Does is directly relate to generating revenue? If I can’t answer yes to at least one of those questions (preferably both) it never crosses the threshold. Bam!

This is a new approach for me so I am investing a lot of energy into keeping organized. Even boring stuff like bills and invoices are going to be kept to a minimum and contained in lovely, colorful fashion. And because my budget is slim-to-nothing, I thought an all-purpose desk caddy would be a good place to start.

It’s colorful. It’s functional. It brings me joy and it pays the bills. Literally. And it was made from stuff I already had in my recycle bin/junk drawer.

Want to make one too? Thought so. Hop on over to Pentel and see how it’s done!

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up

by aunt peaches 15 Comments

I have an unhealthy relationship with housework. Sometimes it is my greatest pleasure, while other times it is my worst nightmare. Despite my reputation for sequined lunacy, deep down, I am very orderly person. Nothing makes me more happy than walking into an environment where I know where everything is. That doesn’t mean it needs to be perfect or minimal, it just needs to be in order. I’ll bet a lot of messy people are like this — we love the feeling of an orderly space but we don’t always know how to get there. Well, my friends. This book might just be the answer.

Have you heard about this book? Images of Marie Kondo’s The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing started popping up all over my Instagram just after Christmas with the term “holy balls” attached in alarming frequency. Of course, I bought it immediately. Just like I bought the 30 other home keeping and organizing books on my bookshelf. I’m like that friend everyone has who compulsively buys cookbooks but rarely cooks outside the microwave. It just makes me feel better.

Well folks, that hype? It’s real. This little Japanese woman Marie Kondo is no slouch. The book is a long-term strategy, not a quick fix, but only 30 pages in you are going to start itching to clear out your cupboards. AND. Get this: she vehemently discourages you from going out and buying organizing supplies or hanging hanger things. Ever. All she gets you to do is examine the quality of every object in your surroundings and ask yourself one question; “Does it bring you joy?”

So simple, right? Doesn’t sound like much. But, honestly, after this book you’ll understand. When you pick up an object and ask yourself that question, if you cannot feel it in your gut, it’s time to move on. Thank the object for its time and service to you, then put it in a box to donate so that it can be of joy to someone else. Set the bird free!

Warning: If you buy this book, and you are serious about it, I suggest you clear yourself a weekend or at least a single day. Maybe a Saturday. Maybe read the first couple chapters of the book Friday night, then start work early Saturday. Her methodology will walk you through books, then clothes, and so on. She’s very particular about that. I’m making this sound easy but really it’s an in-depth boot camp. Even as a single-person-household, there is no way I could do my whole place in a single weekend, so I can only imagine how long it would take someone with a whole house. This is one elephant you have to eat one bite at a time. The good news is, once that elephant is good and gone, Marie promises zero upkeep. You just have to do the whole house properly one time and in the process your mindset for acquisition (ahem, hashtag: hoarders) will change drastically.

Confession: I ignore the rules and went about it backwards and started with my junk drawer with plans to do one small project a day, as that’s what most professional organizers will tell you to do. My mistake, but also my win. A normal clean out would mean getting rid of maybe 30% of the contents in that junk drawer. This time I got rid of 90%. Maybe more.

It felt incredible.

After the junk drawer I moved on to other areas. I have probably taken 15 bags of stuff to Goodwill, and don’t even ask what ended up in the recycling bin. Problem is, I fell off the wagon the last couple of weeks, which, Mary said would likely happen if I didn’t follow her *exact* method the first time (which I didn’t). So now I’m forcing myself to let things pile up, read it fresh from cover-to-cover and start again, this time, I’m doing it properly.

Stay tuned!

My Anti-Medicine Cabinet

by aunt peaches 2 Comments

Sponsored by Brother P Touch

I’d like to take this moment to come out against medicine cabinets.

Okay fine, I’m not against medicine cabinets like I’m against the holocaust, but I really dislike them. Sure, they made sense back in the day when people milked their own goats and a family of five shared a single toothbrush, but nowadays, even for the most frugal consumer, a teensy cabinet above the sink isn’t going to cut it. Uh-uh. I guess somewhere in the mid-50s residential builders started adding cabinets under sinks to provide “additional storage,” but you can tell that most 50s residential builders were dudes who saw little need for anything beyond deodorant and toilet paper (and that second one was questionable). Today, in the new millennium, at the dawn of a new year, when I’m joining the herd behind the third most popular new year resolution – to get organized, I’m going rogue. I have ditched the cabinet altogether and I have partnered with Brother P Touch to help me in the adventure!

As someone who lived in an old house with a small bathroom, adding cabinets or shelves wasn’t really an option. Luckily, I found this inexpensive kitchen rack at the hardware store (I think it’s meant to work as a pantry spice rack?), and a variety of clear plastic boxes and jars. Add some labels and BAM. More bathroom storage than I could ever need.

Yussss!

One Touch
As part of my post, the folks at Brother asked me to provide a list of organizing tips, but I’ll be honest, this is not an area where I can give advice. I’m not a naturally neat person. That said, even on my messiest day, I am always fairly organized because of these two words; One Touch. Nothing in my house can be taken out or put away with more than one touch. All I ever have to do is reach in a bin and pull it out. When it comes time to put it back, all I have to do is toss it in its spot. One touch. No shuffling or unboxing or unbuckling or putting lids on-and-off. One touch. This also means stuff gets taken out of it’s original packing; instead of keeping a bag of cough drops inside a box, I just remove the bag and the cough drops roam free –when I need one, it’s one touch to grab them. Same with bandaids, or rubber bands, or pill packs, or….whatever. And because everything is nicely labeled, it’s always easy to find what you need. If I had to deal with boxes with lids or zippered pouches or stacking stuff in place, the whole system would fall apart because I’m not fussy enough to deal with crap. Naturally neat people can cope with that stuff – it just doesn’t work for me. So I’m all about the one touch. Lots of labels, and one touch. I’m telling you, it’s a game changer.

One of things I like about massive organizing binges like this is you start to see patterns about yourself and your buying habits that you never knew. A week ago, I was at the drug store thinking I needed to buy mascara. Now I realize I already own 8 tubes of the stuff. So I can probably save that money and put it toward chocolate.

So, I don’t know if you have ever worked with label machines, but let me tell you something, they are crazy nifty. And they make it weirdly thrilling to start cleaning your house so you can reorganize and come up with stuff to label. Back in 2004 when I bought my first Brother P Touch (which is still kicking, btw) I got so excited that I started labeling everything in the house. There was literally a label on the television remote that read REMOTE. Did I think we were going to forget it was a remote control? Not sure. But it felt good.

As much I still love my original, this latest model is much more sophisticated. It does multiple fonts, sizes, capital and lower case letters, lines and boxes, even some cute little clip art. Muchos Niftotoes. For this project I stuck to the plain and simple, but I’m looking forward to the potential possibilities.

Also, I’m not sure when they started doing this, but it’s a big deal: the back of the paper is scored so you can peel away the paper and stick it down. Back in the day you had to mess around to try and peel it off, but now it’s super easy. This makes me want to label even more stuff. Don’t tell my remote.

Did you know January is National Get Organized month? This is to cater to people like me who hoard office supplies and look for new and exciting ways to use post-its! The folks at Brother P Touch are celebrating the occasion by giving away a label maker every day this month with a chance to win $2,000 to overhaul your space.

More creative ways to use labels…

An InLinkz Link-up

Mercury Retrograde

by aunt peaches 21 Comments

Want to see an impressive eye roll? Start talking to me about astrology.

Look, I know Yoko Ono won’t get her hair cut unless the stars are aligned in her favor, and that is a valid opinion, but I do not share it. Not even for Yoko. Not long ago I heard someone on the news, who was actually a credible reporter, explaining that the Bashar al-Asad, Asyrian president and overall genocidal tyrant, was doing the things he does because he was born in September, and as a Virgo, he has “extreme control issues.” Honestly. WTF? He was born in September because his parents had sex in January. That’s how human gestation works. It’ not a Virgo thing, it’s an asshole thing.

And hey! Guess what? I’m also a Virgo. Surprise.

Anyhow. Despite the fact that I do not believe in astrology, I wholeheartedly believe in the concept of Mercury retrograde. A lot of people understand, conceptually, Mercurian retrograde is a time of upheaval. Bad luck. Chaos. Astrologers explain it as the universe’s way of reminding you that you are not in control, and to surrender to the forces of sacred things that never wear deodorant. Scientists explain Mercury retrograde as a blip in the cycle. Most people have heard of it but few understand what it is, so let me explain it in a nutshell; both the Earth and Mercury orbit the sun, but at different rates. Mercury walks a little faster. Eventually that slight extra speed creates a noticeable distance, so a few times a year, Mercury sees the Earth has fallen behind and takes a quick break in rhytym wait for his pal the Earth to catch up. In that brief period of time, there is a sort of catch-up thing that happens and everything in the universe notices that the pair were briefly out of lock step, and it’s awkward. Really awkward. And while I do not believe in astrology, I do believe in physics. I believe in energy. And believe in the immeasurable domino effect that is created when something as BIG AS AN EFFING PLANET decides to quit marching along with everyone else.

It’s like, have you ever been driving along and someone in front of you suddenly slams on the breaks, so you slam on yours, and even if you don’t hit the person, it scares the crap out of you and you can’t think or do much of anything for a couple minutes? You know that lingering feeling of fear and chaos? That. That is Mercury retrograde.

I hate it. And guess what? Mercury has been in retrograde alllllll week.

So if you have been having a crappy week, good news, it’s be over on Saturday the 25th! And let me tell you, I cannot wait. This week has been a goat rodeo. I have surrendered all control. And while I will not bore you by complaining about everything that has gone wrong this week, I will say that yesterday, just as I had settled in to what needed to be my most productive work day in months….THE POWER WENT OUT.

Thanks, Mercury!

The power company estimated a 2 hour blip, then 2 hours came and left, then it was 4, then it was 6. All is fine now, and I’m thankful for this luxury that we call electricity, but yesterday, when I was freaking out, I needed something to do. This went way past the point of stress cleaning, and since I didn’t have any ice cream in the house, and it was too early for decent liquor, I went with the next best thing: rhinestones.

I organized my beads, sequins, crystals, confetti, and anything else that came in a tiny cup. It started as total chaos, but I took control, and not because I am a Virgo, and whipped this mess into a thing of beauty.

Tangent: Why can’t bead/sequin/notions manufacturer up their game with packaging? Could they not take a hint from the shredded cheese people and sell things in clear resalable bags? Would that be so hard? Would it? Think cheese!

So. Lucky for me, Menards sells these bin organizer tackle box situations. I have seen similar tackle box things in stores before, but usually the drawers are really small. This model offers a mix of big and small drawers, so I have room for growth. Which is important when you have hoarding issues.

Before this, I was keeping everything in a Tupperware full of ziplock baggies. And most of the beads are still in that set-up in a drawer, just a lot more organized. There is something so cathartic about sorting through sparkly things. I don’t know how to explain it, but it might be better than therapy.

Remember the gold magnolia wreath I made for Kiki a couple years ago? She gave it back!

And now it’s all done. I have my power back, and I can see all my sparkly stuff at once. This makes me want to make gem sweaters for every day of the week. Not this week though. If you need me, I’ll be holed up at home waiting for Mercury to get his butt of retrograde!

DIY Dry Erase Board

by aunt peaches 10 Comments

This shop is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group® and Office Depot, but all my opinions are my own. #pmedia #inspirestudents http://my-disclosur.es/OBsst

Some women are crazy about shoes; I’m all about the school supplies. Give me a pencil sharpener and a box of crayons and I’ll show you a happy girl!

Granted, I don’t have kids to send off to school, and it’s been a while since I have been in a classroom, but, I am in the middle of starting my own business. This means late nights, lots of paperwork, and a few emergency trips to Office Max. So what if I was looking for an external hard rive? Did you see the pen situation up in here?

Crazy pants.

Pro tip: If you spend more than $20 on any combination of PaperMate, Expo Neon Window Markers, Sharpie, Uni-Ball, or Mr. Sketch you get $5 off. Yal: that’s a lot of pens!

So I stocked up.

Now. I wanted to make a dry erase board to keep stuff in one spot without ten berjillion sticky notes. I find it easier to keep track of things when they are in compartmentalized spaces, so I decided to mark off four distinctive plots. The process could not be easier, all you need to do do is grab an old picture frame and paint the back of the glass. Bam!

Step 1: Remove glass from picture frame.

Step 2: Use white craft paint to create four distinct rectangles on the back of the glass. Allow to dry. You may want to consider a second coat if the white does not appear opaque.

Step 3: Fill in any gaps with splotches of colored paint. This can be done in one swoop or several stages.

Step 4: Flip glass over and put it back in the frame, smooth side out.

Step 5: Get going and make some lists. Some notes. Some stuff. Get down to business!

…Or not. You can also use it to draw out a storyboard of last night’s True Blood episode.

Just sayin’.

Thank you Office Max. Don’t miss weekly savings from (Aug 24-30): Select PaperMate Flair 4pk’s: $4, Sharpie 12CT Asst Fine & Ultra Fine Asst: $6, Sharpie Dozen Box Black Fine & Ultra Fine: $6.

School Supply Makeover with Tape

by aunt peaches 12 Comments

Hot and bothered, August is known as the only month without holidays. What’s up with that?

As a kid that bugged me. Could they not come up with a holiday for August? Were they waiting for someone to die so they could be commemorated? Why would there be no big hoopla August holiday? As an adult, I’m over it. But, when you think of it, there are more important things to celebrate in August than any other month of the year. For example:

–Left Handers Day
–National Middle Child Day
-Davy Crocket’s birthday
–National Rootbeer Float Day
-The 147th anniversary of Thomas Edison’s patent for his Kinetoscope
– Prime time television no longer sucks
– Back to school supplies are dirt cheap

Yeah, baby! August has a lot to celebrate.

As part of Michaels Makers back to school challenge, I decided to make over my school supplies using some awesome tapes with nifty colors and patterns. Because, honestly, even if I have long out-grown my Lisa Frank Trapper Keeper (YOU GUYS – IT WAS SO COOL!)…I am still using binders and notebooks on a daily basis. Why should they not be decked out and snazzed up? Who says adults have to miss out on the fun?

A couple weeks ago I bought a bunch of duck tape to make this desktop organizer using old cereal boxes (FYI: it came out pretty rad) and I have been on a tape kick ever since. You will find all sorts of tapes at Michael’s big honking duct tape in crazy patterns, colored masking tape, as well as tiny little rolls of washi tape. Mix them altogether and pair with your favorite school supply, you are ready to rock and roll!

Binders are super easy…

The edges can get a bit ragged so I cover them up with a single vertical line of gold tape on the inside. It lends a special touch and will increase durability for years to come.

If I was still in school, that inside flap is probably where I would tape down my class schedule. As I am not in school, this is where I would insert coupons for unglamorous things like mouthwash and tampons. So beat that, Lisa Frank!

And this is where I keep my pencils. All you need is a plastic baggie with a slide lock closure.

Tip: Getting the tape to stick to the bag nicely is much easier when you lay it on a flat surface.
Another Tip: You can add a 1″ flap of of heavy duty tape to the bottom of the bag, then punch three holes in it and keep it in your binder. COLOR ME NIFTY!

I’m not sure what this is for but I made it out of the cardboard tube leftover after I finished off a roll of tape. Recyclin’. Haayy.

Are you looking for more tricked out school supplies? Check out Michaels’ Back to School Pinterest Boardto find project ideas to kick the year off in style!

Check out these creative ideas from some of the other Michael’s Makers.

An InLinkz Link-up

Postcard From a Hoarder: Hanging Necklaces

by PEACHES 16 Comments

Last week I posted this tip about getting knots out of necklaces, to which Maggie replied in the comments, “What I want is a way to store them without them getting all knotted together.”

Good question, Maggie. And while I am no organizing guru, I have a serious case of sparkle tooth, which gives me some self-appointed authority on storage concerns. Go me! In my closet, the accessories take up more room than the clothes. By a lot. It’s not that I don’t like clothes, I just find it easier and more economical (read: fun) if I concentrate on addressing the frosting instead of the whole cake.

I’m really good at frosting.

So. Hay. This is my closet. Let’s just take a sec here to say it is THIS is how it looked this morning. Yes, I have a thing for striped cotton shirts. And yes, I have a lot of crap. No, it’s not styled up like the Container Store catalog where three pairs of earmuffs takes up a whole shelf, so don’t be making comparisons. I could have tidied up a bit more but sometimes we just need to keep it real. My sparkles are bustin’. And I love it that way. Every inch of this closet is getting some mileage. One day maybe we will do an in-depth tour, but for today we are talking about necklaces…
For a long time I tried to keep my jewelry bits in little baggies in boxes (and if you look in the drawers of that pink dresser you’ll still see plenty of that), but for stuff that gets used more often, which is usually the cheaper stuff, I just like hooks. Lots and lots of hooks. Hooks on the underside of this shelf, hooks along the side of the wall, hooks on the back of the door. I’m a hooks type of gal.

No color coding, no clasping, no special arrangements. I know myself too well. If it takes me more than a single arm movement to put something away, I won’t bother. And that makes a mess. So, while this might look a little “hectic” to some, it keeps things accessible and visible to me, which means I don’t waste time trying to put away stuff, or finding it next time around. Hooks are my all-occasion solution to minimizing mess.

There used to be a tension bar for hanging clothes under this shelf – I just ripped it out and put up necklace hooks. Cost me about $5 down the Home Depot. I painted the background green and trimmed the shelves in stripes to make is sassy (here is what it looked like before). The shelf is now sagging a little, but it gets the job done. If you don’t have the space for a spare under-shelf in your closet, it’d be pretty easy to install a bracket shelf (like this one from Ikea) somewhere in a bedroom or dressing area.

Or if you don’t have space for a shelf, just hang some nails on the wall and go to town. This works especially well for hanging necklaces with delicate chains, or super chunky necklaces that take up too much hook space. Small nails prevent me from piling them on (my natural tendency) which is helpful for keeping things untangled. Plus it doubles the underspace. Plus sparkles create their own kind of art. Plus if you see them more often you’ll wear them more often, and that just benefits everyone. So really, this isn’t so much about necklace organizing as it is a service to the community.

So, I’m guessing I’m not the only one who outgrew their dinky jewelry box a long time ago. How do you organize your sparkles?

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