I found this little wooden desk organizer at the local thrift shop about 6 months ago. I put it on our bookcase, on our desk, in the craft room, & back on the bookcase. It just didn’t fit our decor. But what to do with it? I liked it, but brown wood just doesn’t fit in our home. It was sitting on my desk, and I was just staring at it. I knew it would come to me, eventually. Then it hit me. It needed painted…. and mirrors. This is the before & the after.
And this is how I did it:
Here’s another peek into my world. Like I’ve said before, this is a very tiny room. It’s only 6′ x 7′. In order for me to get everything into this room, it has to be organized. The room is divided into 2 main sections. One side of the room is for sewing, and the other side is for my crafting. This is the crafting section of the room. It’s still a work in progress. I’m still searching for the right cabinet or shelving unit for the left side of the window.
Each payday, I would buy another piece for the room. I knew what I wanted, but I knew that if I wanted to finish the room without it emptying my bank account, it would take some planning in advance. I went with items from ClosetMaid. Continue reading
As I’ve said before, I’m a very visual person. And I’m always getting ideas for new projects. I have a huge stack of index cards, full of ideas. But they’re filed away in a file box. I’ve found that when I have an idea that I want to get started on right away, putting the index card on a memo board keeps me on track. When the idea is filed away in it’s ‘proper place’, I can forget about it. Because of that, I’ve made 2 memo boards. One by the sewing machine, (this one has a side that is metal to use magnets & the right hand side is cork) and one by the crafting area of my room (all cork). Besides that, plain brown cork just doesn’t go in my sewing room. 
And I’m not a fan of brown. Purple or lilac is what it had to be to go in my sewing room. (Remember, this is for my room. You can chose any color that goes in your home)
This is how I made them. Continue reading
I love these cabinets. They hold so much & keep the sewing area of the sewing/craft room organized. We searched for a long time for a 54″ overhead cabinet, but they were either too expensive or didn’t come in white or the size we wanted. We went to home improvement stores, IKEA, and searched on line for several months. We actually found exactly what we wanted at Walmart.com http://www.walmart.com/ip/SystemBuild-54-Wall-Cabinet-White/17470884
We had it delivered to our home for a very small fee. When it arrived it came in a large, flat box.
It only took a couple of hours to put it together. Much faster than I thought it would. Getting the doors on was probably the most frustrating for me, since they rely on pictures, rather than words to explain what to do. I fought with those doors like crazy. Then hubby came in, took one look at what I was doing, and fixed it in about a minute. Now they’re hanging over my sewing desk & they hold more than I thought they would. I’m so happy with them!
What’s inside tells the whole story. The far right hand cabinet holds most of my patterns, both bought & my own.
The middle part of the cabinet holds the rest of my patterns, shoulder pads, & all of my zippers.
It’s so nice being able to open up two doors & see all of my patterns at a glance.
And finally, the left hand side of the cabinet holds all of my little drawers & boxes for sewing.
And there’s still some room for another box or two!
The cabinet is organized, easy to see & get to.
We still have to add a shelf underneath to hold my DVDs, but that will come a little later.
Hope you enjoyed my organized sewing/craft room cabinet!
I’ve had this desk for years. It used to be my daughter’s when she was little. It’s the perfect size for my sewing machine and all the things that I need while sewing. (Including my purple TV) Now that the Sewing/Craft room is almost complete, I’ve been spending lots of time organizing everything. The desk was no exception.
I was playing around with thumb tacks today. Since I’ve recently made a couple of new memo boards (tutorial coming soon) I wanted to make the thumb tacks match them rather than the plain white ones available in the stores. Since the theme to the new sewing/craft room is in white, lilac & purple, I wanted the thumb tacks to blend in. And naturally, they had to have some sparkle. These could be used in a home office or kitchen as well. Continue reading
I love glitter, especially the fine glitter. I can’t help it, I’m hopelessly addicted. I’ve tried to stay away from it, but the sparkles just call to me. To say that I was excited when Walmart got a new 12 pack in, is putting it mildly. The colors are glorious. I’ve already used the green for the St. Patrick’s Day T-Shirt!
This is what I found:
I was immediately in love when I turned the box over.
There was purple, lilac, pink, red, blue, green, black, white, turquoise, gold, silver & copper. All in a fine texture! I had to have it! Continue reading
In the previous post, I told you about my Winter Emergency Kit that I keep in the back seat of my car and how I organized it. That one is kept there to make it easily accessible in case of emergency.
This is part 2. The Winter Emergency Kit for the Trunk of the car. I’ll show you what I keep in my trunk all Winter long & how I organized it.
What I use:
Salt (in case you’re stuck on ice)
Shovel (mine is a small folding shovel that can be found in the camping section )
De-Icer (I can not tell you how many times my doors have frozen shut, but my trunk will open)
An ice scraper (not only does this scrape the ice & snow from windshield, but will help to make a ‘channel’ around the door for the De-icer to do its job)
Fix-a-Flat (Emergency Flat Tire Repair)
Reflective Triangles (or road flares)
I put the bag of salt into an empty kitty litter container to keep it dry & I’m always afraid that a plastic bag will tear & spill.
(I also keep one by the front & back door of our home)
And for the crafty section:
Empty Cat Litter Jugs (I have cats, so I’m always looking for new uses for the empty containers instead of recycling them). If you don’t have a cat, I’m sure you have a friend or neighbor who would be more than willing to save theirs. (or you could use a box, bucket, tote etc..)
Cutter (Razor Blade or Exacto Knife)
Ruler
Sharpie Marker
Empty a cat litter container & Remove the Label:
Now, lay out your supplies to judge the height that you want the container to be:
Mark the container with the Sharpie Marker. Measure the height that you’ve chosen all the way around the container using the ruler & Sharpie. Mine was 5 1/2″ high. Connect the dots all the way around.
Using the razor/cutter, cut the container on the solid mark you’ve just made. The cutter is sharp. Please be careful.
Label the container, if you wish. (I’m a little obsessive, so I label it)
Pack the container:
It’s an easy kit to put together & something that could keep you safe or save your life. I honestly think that every vehicle should have one. (There is also an extra blanket & a set of booster/jumper cables kept in the trunk)
Winter is beautiful to look at, but can be dangerous. Stay safe out there.
Happy Creating everyone!
I’ll be joining:
When I made this Emergency Kit for my car, my son laughed at me. He wasn’t laughing when he broke down in 7 degree weather and his car had no power for heat. At 21 years old, boys men think they’re invincible. It could never happen to them. It was going to take AAA 3 hours to get to him. Luckily, his Dad made it in 20 minutes. By the time his Dad got to him, he was already seeing his breath in front of him. Organization is key to your Winter Emergency Kit…. I’m making one for him.
Winter Emergency Kit
This box stays behind the driver’s seat, on the seat, so it is easily accessible. There is also a universal cell phone charger kept in the glove compartment.
This is what I put into my kit:
Plastic Tote (to put everything in)
Hat, Gloves, Scarf
Fleece Blanket
Mylar Emergency Blanket (keeps the warmth in & the cold out)
Flashlight, Glow Sticks (in case the batteries die out)
Whistle (to alert passerby’s if the car can’t be seen)
Hot Hands & Hot Hands Foot Warmers
Red Bandana (to tie to outside of car)
Knife (God forbid that the seat belt gets stuck)
Hard Candy & Power Bars (to keep energy up)
(we always carry a bottle of water with us when we travel anywhere)
The one that I’m making for my son will be in a back pack. A tote isn’t as ‘manly’ as he would like.
I also have a small Emergency Kit for the trunk, which I will post tomorrow.
Snow is beautiful to look at & walk in, but winter can be very scary & deadly. Stay safe out there & be prepared.
I’m joining: