I have moved 5 times in 6 years. Only last month, we moved into our new house, this one is definitely a long-term deal. With the stress of packing, comes the fun of organizing, decorating and getting creative. This is the right time for my 'debut' post - 21 ideas that I implemented in my house. This list of 21 includes everything, from organizing, DIYing, decorating and face-lifting! I will try and keep the text to a minimal and let the pictures do the talking.
1. Saved by the Tray: I believe that a lot of clutter can be organized by allocating items with a fixed spot in the house. The trays I have used come in many shapes and sizes and hold many different things. I even used a ceramic kitchen plate to hold lotion and mouthwash in the bathroom.
2. Customize your furniture: Sometimes you need to call the shots on how you want your furniture to look and function. We needed something that could do triple-duty, mini-bar, pet storage as well as provide extra shelves for storing dinnerware. We customized this piece at Ikea (my heaven on earth), by selecting the shape, size, color and internal inserts. Unsolicited advice for shopping at Ikea- be patient and never shop hungry.
3. Don't be scared of prints: I thrive on color, especially patterns. I like to have a space that brightens up my day as soon as i walk into it. My husband took a leap of faith and allowed me to decorate with green and yellows in our living/dining room. Since it is an open floor-plan, we wanted to visually divide the space; area rugs, focal walls and accents allowed us to achieve that. We have 5 different prints in one big room (curtains, rugs, lamp-shades), but they come together because the backdrop is neutral and the bright colors are from the same side of the color wheel.
4. Pe(s)t Control: Mojo is our beloved 8 month old Australian Shepherd puppy. He is extremely high-energy and always wants to play. He is also a fast learner, so teaching him different tricks is a lot of fun. However, what is NOT fun is having his toys all over the place and tripping on them when you walk down the stairs. We have an organized system in place to ensure that toys, leash, medication, treats and even food and water bowls have a dedicated spot. Notice how the right side of the above cabinet stores all of Mojo's stuff, neatly behind closed doors.
6. See-through Pantry: This is my first time working in a kitchen that has a pantry! I do not even want to remember the days when I had one tiny cabinet to store extra foods. But now that I have the space, I wanted to make sure that I make it as efficient as possible. If you want to know your options, you have to be able to see them. These plastic containers from Ikea allow me to see what I am working with for each meal and know exactly when to refill. Furthermore, there are larger plastic/wired bins holding items that come packaged. Look for similarities in the items; I have one for 'all tea and coffee' and one for 'pasta and pasta sauces'
7. Wire-shelves made sturdy and pretty: My pantry shelves were not providing the best support for my vertical plastic containers and sometimes they just tipped over. I found an easy solution in foam board and gift-wrapping paper and gave my pantry a colorful and cheap upgrade.
8. Under the sink: With a million different surfaces, there are a million different cleansers. Also, when you buy lotions and body scrubs in bulk, you need to use every inch of available storage space. In both cases, you need to be able to see your items and reach them without breaking your back. The vertical space under the sink is ideal for that. You can find various solutions (stacked shelves, sliding shelves, etc.) to help you find the right fit for you.
9. Curb your small appliances: I needed something to keep my sanity while using the Magic Bullet. These small appliances come with so many different parts and if one goes missing, the whole thing is useless. I found a way to put these slicers, dicers and hand-blenders in dedicated containers.
10. This is a no brainer: If you have the option to double your shelves, why wouldn't you?
11. Let the furniture move with you: In our previous apartment, we had a bed with a headboard mounted on the wall. When we moved, this headboard was not the right size for the bedroom. So we decided to move it to the TV room and create a nice visual behind the TV. This centers the room, especially since the wall behind the TV is pretty long. It also provides shelves for photo frames. Win Win!
12. I call this my 'AHA' moment: The way the TV is placed, we have 1 electric socket for MANY different peripherals. Even though a power strip does the work, there were way too many wires behind the TV. We had a lamp, Xbox, Comcast unit, modem, router and TV coming together in one place. Hence I cut open a cardboard storage box and it swallowed all my wires and worries. This box sits next to the TV, like they were made for each other.
13. Split personality: Our TV room double duties as a gym. The sectional visually splits the room into 2 parts. Behind the sofa is all the gym equipment and a small storage unit that keeps everything contained. Sometimes you have to use furniture to split rooms by function, without losing real-estate.
14. Painting gets a face-lift: This painting was a part of our bedroom wall decor in the old apartment. It not only was a mismatch with the style of the new house, but was also badly bruised while moving. I loved the wide white mat and contrasting black frame, so I really wanted to save it. With 6 sheets of 12x12 scrapbook paper (3 silver, 3 black cut-outs) I aligned them tightly and mod-podged them together, making it appear is one seamless piece of art. This frame has transformed our stairway in a way I could never image.
15. Making sense of your book-shelves: I am old-school when it comes to book. I cannot swipe through an e-reader, I need physical books to run my fingers through AND I also hoard magazines. It is important to arrange your open shelving or bookshelves to find what you are looking for, without having to ruffle through every shelf. I have allocated shelves based on themes- design books and magazines are next to each other and so are scrapbooking supplies and albums.
16. For the 5-year old inside you: Leaving me alone in the 'school supplies' aisle of Office Depot can be dangerous! Sharpies are my absolute favorite and there are SO many creative things you can do with them (look up Pinterest for 'sharpie projects'). I used my markers to color on a white photo frame and also add an orange accent on a set of 3 frames that go in my laundry room.
17. LABEL LABEL LABEL: I have yet to invest in a label-maker, but someday I will gift myself one. Till then, I will continue to make my own labels and put them wherever I can. No, I do not live with a 7-year old, but I still need to label things so that washed, folded clothes can find their right way. I may not need this when I have a fancy California Closet, but for now we are happy with low-budget organization systems. Labels take the stress out of finding seasonal clothing and you will never be caught staring at your clothes when you cannot find what you are looking for.
18. Mark your territory: The dual sinks and large vanity have made things a lot peaceful in the bathroom. However, it is always helpful to go the extra step and arrange your personal items in a way that says 'I am a grown up'. We have our corners (notice the trays) and drawers that hold our own things. This way we are not in each others business!
19. 'Unconventional' is the new black: I bought this beautiful purple box a long time ago but never found a good use for it. It has an unique shape and does not really have a specific purpose. I finally decided to put it on my dresser so I can see it everyday. I filled it with make-up, which stays flat on the surface and allows me to find exactly what I am looking for.
20. Not every frame needs a photo: I am a sucker for photo-frames. Every room in my house has a bunch of frames, either in a wall-collage or on top of a shelf. However, I came across a beautiful carved metal frame, that was perfect for our bedroom wall. I decided to NOT put any picture in it, but use it as a starting point and build a collection around it. I inserted cardboard letters inside it, with our initials. This makes it a very personal and unique piece of art for just the 2 of us.
21. Go back in time: I save each and every hand-written card that was ever written to me. I love to go back and look at the beautiful words that someone had the thoughtfulness to pen down for me. But as my stacks of cards got bigger, I had to find a better way. So I made categories (wedding, birthday, graduation, etc.), punched a hole on the top left of each card and ran a ribbon through it. My favorite stack is the 'Wedding'.
That brings me to the end of my 21 ideas. I know that I haven't provided specific details about them, but if you leave me a question or comment, I can definitely walk you through it. I may even consider building separate posts for those that need that kind of narration. Thank you for reading through my 1st post...here's to many more to go!
