New Kitchen Storage and Mabel’s Labels Giveaway!

Feb
26
2013
31 Comments

Since mid-January, I’ve been going through closets, cabinets, drawers, and our pantry to weed out anything we don’t use, give everything a thorough cleaning, and re-organize as necessary. It’s always a big job, but I love how fresh and airy everything feels when it’s done.

Although our pantry was fairly well organized, I was tired of food in bags and boxes falling over and going stale when they weren’t properly closed (not pointing any fingers!). The same thing was happening in the fridge, and I needed to come up with a better food storage solution.

 

Food Storage Labels by Mabel's Labels

 

Coincidence or not, around the same time I was reorganizing our pantry, Mabel’s Labels contacted me and asked if I’d like to try their new household labels. Being the organizing enthusiast I am, I immediately jumped at the chance since I love to label everything! These labels are not only stylish, but they’re also dishwasher, microwave, and UV safe. I’m on board with anything that’s low maintenance and makes life a little easier.

 

Household Labels by Mabel's Labels

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Filed Under: Contests & Giveaways, Fab Finds, Organizing Tagged With: , , ,

Organizing Tips on Living Savvy

Feb
15
2013
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Hey everyone! Today I’m soaking up the sun with my family (Hallelujah!), but I wanted to pop in to let you know my friend Tiffany is hosting Organizing Month once again. As you may recall, I participated in last year’s and I’m back again to share some of my best ideas and tips for organized living. This time I’m focusing on how to stay organized after you’ve gone through all the effort to get there.

Organizing Ideas and Tips

While you’re at Living Savvy, also be sure to check out Tiffany’s tutorials including paint, sewing, and craft projects. She’s definitely a talented gal!

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Everyday Made Easy {Back to School}

Aug
29
2012
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It’s that time of year again when the kiddos are heading back to school. My son is in grade 12, so he’s pretty self-sufficient. Over the years, I’ve stepped back more and more, allowing him to share a bigger portion of the day-to-day responsibilities that come along with getting to and from school and everything else in between. Basically, if I keep the fridge and pantry stocked with healthy food, he’s good to go!

Although we’re at the far end of the spectrum in our house, I realize that many of you have younger kids and school days can be complicated. While I was reading a few blogs and magazines this past week, I came across a variety of smart ideas that may work for you to get things running a little smoother at your house.

Jen over at IHeart Organizing has gone over and above to make sure getting her three small kids off to school is undemanding. I love how clothes are planned out for the week on Sundays and lunch and snack baskets are kept in the fridge for easy grabbing. Very clever!

Organizing Kid's Clothes for the Week {IHeart Organizing}

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Playing Catch Up

Aug
23
2012
7 Comments

This week I spent hours getting organized and playing catch up. With back to school around the corner, I was feeling the need to shift into high gear. Between our basement renovation and summer holidays, paperwork, recycling, mending, gardening, and other to-do projects have really piled up. I dedicated this week to tackling most of everything, but I underestimated how far behind I really was. Does this ever happen to you?

To keep from feeling overwhelmed, I like to create a list of tasks and estimate how much time each will take and list them in priority. Then I set aside blocks of time in my schedule, starting with the most important and filling in with others that take less time where needed. There are several free printables online, including this running task sheet I like to use.

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Filed Under: Life, Organizing Tagged With: , ,

Everyday Made Easy {rearranging for simplicity}

Apr
19
2012
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I was reading Julie Morgenstern’s book Organizing From the Inside Out and I came to the realization that, although my home is quite organized, there were many changes I needed to make. I’ve always had the idea that ‘like’ needed to be grouped with ‘like’. Julie challenges this notion with her smart, but obvious suggestion of putting things away where you need to use them. Sounds simple enough, but when I thought about the daily tasks and activities that go on in my household, there was some rearranging I could do to speed up and simplify the process.

In most cases, grouping similar items together still holds true. However, this organizing principle falls apart when the items are an integral part of the day-to-day. For instance, most mornings I make a smoothie for breakfast. It requires quite a few ingredients (protein powder, chlorella, chia, hemp seeds, almond milk, frozen fruit, etc.),  measuring cups, a blender, drinking cup and a straw. Every time I would make one, I’d dash around the kitchen gathering all the items up, wasting precious time. It finally dawned on me that if I kept everything grouped together as much as possible, it would make the process a whole lot simpler- duh!

I thought about other everyday tasks I could simplify. I placed a canister of assorted teas right beside the tea kettle instead of having them all in the pantry.

Keep Teas Near the Tea Kettle

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Favorite Home Organizing Tips {A Curbly Feature}

Mar
29
2012
5 Comments

How is your day going? I’m knee deep in boxes and covered in drywall dust, primer and paint. I’m working on getting my office put back together after a week of interruptions. It turns out that I needed to add a little more support to the existing shelving in the closet and my simple paint freshening has become a bigger project than first anticipated! I’m taking a quick break to let you know that this week, along with some of my favorite bloggers, I’m being featured on Curbly.

For the month of March, my lovely friend Tiffany from Living Savvy rounded up a few of us ‘organizing types’ to share some of our best tips for keeping our homes in order. Earlier this week, she was asked to pick some of her most-liked to share on the Curbly DIY design community. Fortunately, my tips made her list! You can check out the feature here.

 

Organizing my home has made the day to day tasks so much easier. The effort required to set up any organizing system, big or small, has always paid back huge dividends.

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Organizing With Living Savvy + Project Crunch Time

Mar
8
2012
2 Comments

I have a lot of pep in my step. Today we’re supposed to hit the double digits (in the 50′s for my southern readers) and that’s a big deal. I equate warm temperatures with snow melting, bulbs finally having a chance to start their growing process, lightening and brightening my decorating, and being one step closer to turning my project focus to the outdoors. I know that old man winter will still have a few kicks at the cat, so until he finally parts ways, I’m pushing myself to finish up some projects I’ve left hanging for the past couple months (no more shiny objects for me). Hmm…where to start?

{via 79 Ideas}

One of the projects I started a couple months ago was getting my teenage son’s room better organized. We weeded out a tonne of stuff and figured out what we needed to purchase, but that’s as far as we got. This weekend I’m going to focus on finding storage bins, hangers and a few other items to finish up that project. I’d also like to choose a paint color for our ensuite which is in desperate need of a freshening.

If you could use a little inspiration getting your home organized, my friend Tiffany over at Living Savvy is dedicating the month of March to tackling her own space. I’ve been following along and today I’m sharing some of my organizing tips at the end of her post. I’d love for you to check them out!

If you find that paper clutter (mail, flyers, school papers, etc.) continue to be a clutter problem for you, be sure to grab a copy of the guide I wrote called Conquering the Paper Trail. It’s a system I use on a daily basis that takes the guesswork out of how to deal with the flood of schtuff. Get your free download by entering your info in the top right hand box of this site. (Oh, and I’ll never spam you and your information is kept private, as mentioned in our general policies. The Design for Living ezine is sent out only once per quarter.)

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Organizing 101: The Pantry

Oct
20
2011
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A pantry can be the storage savior of your kitchen. However, without a sound method for organizing, it can quickly become an out of control mess that is difficult to navigate. Following a few simple steps will help you to reclaim, reorganize, and maintain your pantry.

Organized Pantry

{via}

1) Take Stock

Pull everything out of your pantry onto your kitchen table, island or countertop. Leave an area open to sort items later.

As you pull items out, set aside anything you no longer use or items that are broken. Toss any food items that have passed their expiry date or have been in the pantry for quite a while and are questionable. Donate any other food items you no longer want to the food bank.

2) Group Items

Divide the items you have pulled out of your pantry into themes such as small appliances, body & health, beverages, vinegars & oils, baking, sweet snacks, salty snacks, canned meals, canned vegetables, canned fruits, breakfast, seasonings, etc.

Give each theme a name that makes sense to you and your family.

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