A Game of (Falling) Dominoes

That pretty much sums up how the work behind this post seemed like to me and it all started here.

We bought this bread box for our apartment in Brooklyn with it's hole in the wall kitchen.  It worked well there and in the apartment we had before we moved into our house.  Here it was just a big space hog and it took me almost 3 years to come to terms with that and another 5 months to do something about it.  Let the dominoes fall.

I knew I wanted to move the bread into the drawer under the stove, but before I could do that I had to move part of what was in there. Of course I neglected to take a before shot, but it wasn't that exciting. Just picture vitamins and ibuprofen where the bread is now.

Keep them falling.

Said vitamins moved here and the baking condiments that were in this spot moved to the cabinet with the spices.

There they are on the top shelf.  Luckily the spot was empty and nothing had to be moved someplace else. Which brings me back to the spot where the bread box use to be.

We have already come to appreciate the extra square inches of counter space. Plus, I finally got hang up my utensil rod.  Game over (for now).

“Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.”

- William Morris

Please visit Jules at Pancakes & French Fries for a lot more William Morris inspiration.

Almost

I am almost there or at least I feel a lot closer to being done than I did last week.  Which is funny because there is less than one (working) hour between the two.  In the previous weeks I spent hours sifting through Lego, Playmobil and the like and I felt nothing but overwhelmed and under accomplished. This week I moved some furniture around and I finally feel like I am getting somewhere.

This is pretty much how this side of Sam's room has looked since last August.  When Sam started school I got it in my head that he needed a desk and chair to do his homework (he does it at the dining table).   We bought everything, got it home, put it together and just kind of stuck it on this wall, which had previously had looked like this.  The EXPEDIT moved over to the wall on the left and it all ended up looking kind of indifferent, or better said "Meh."

The circles are off of the wall and the EXPEDIT is back.  Now all you have to do is imagine a world map above the desk.  It was hanging yesterday, but it fell down overnight.  That is what I get for keeping it rolled up for the past year and a half.    I plan on getting a chair or bean bag to put on the now empty wall.  Sam loves it and is not missing any of the things I purged over the past weeks.    I plan on doing another quick purge in the next weeks and there a still some things I need to hang, but I am almost there.

“Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.”

- William Morris 

 

Please visit Jules at Pancakes and French Fries for a lot more William Morris inspiration.

Not Done

Not done, or maybe I should title this post "I've Started", "Working On It" or something along that line.  At the moment, the title is more appropriate to how I feel about the state of Sam's room.

 

This is pretty much how Sam's room has looked since Christmas.  Sam is the only grandchild on both my and my husband's side and the only child under 18 for the rest of the family, so you can imagine the problem.  To be fair, my husband and I have not been totally faultless. We have reformed our ways though and have found that less is definitely more when it comes to the amount of toys our son should have.  I am still working on how to get the rest of the family to co-operate.
 

One of the first things I tackled was the contents of the art drawers in this cabinet. It had been awhile since I had gone through all of Sam's drawings, so there was quite a bit to sort.  What to keep and what to toss? Generally, I try to be quick and keep those that show progression.

The things I decided to keep went back in the drawer along with the Sam's completed school workbooks (which had been dispersed through out his room).  My thought is for us to review them at the end of the year so Sam can see his progress and then (to secretly) toss them.



The rest went into the recycle bin.

Next up was a purge of the drawer holding all the pencils, markers, scissors etc .

I know that it won't stay like this, but maybe something close.  Besides, it was good to go through it all and throw out the broken rulers, dried markers, and the like.

This picture is all I have to show for the major purge I did of his toys, books, and games.  I had a wonderfully huge (and to me depressing) pile of stuff in the basement all ready to be carted off to our local charity shop.  That pile stood there for a few weeks waiting for me to take a picture of it.  I am pretty sure it yelled, "Cheese!" every time I walked by it, but I never managed to take that wow shot for this post.  Then last week, in a fit, I schlepped it all to the car and brought it to the shop.

 

I know that there is improvement, but I still suspect that there is probably too much stuff.  If I consider the bags that I carted off, the room should be devoid of toys.  There will probably be another toy purge in my near future, but I first want to see how it goes with what is left. 

“Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.”

- William Morris

Please visit Jules at Pancakes and French Fries for more William Morris inspiration.

More of Less - Picture Gallery

I am not sure how, but another week has gone by and it is time for another post for the William Morris Project.  I have absolutely no idea how Jules did this every day this past October, but I am starting to suspect that super powers were be involved.

I have had a gallery of family pictures in all of our homes.  It took me awhile to hang them when we moved here (yeah, big surprise) and I was perfectly happy with the layout.  Then my brother-in-law had to go and get married last summer and it went to pieces.  I had the picture in the frame and all I had to do was add it. 

It should have been an easy task and yet before I knew it all of the pictures were off of the wall.  They ended up stacked on the stairs and there they stayed, let's say, awhile.  Naturally re-hanging the pictures made my list of things that I wanted get done.

I started off trying a few different layouts and thought that I had it with this one.  Once I started hanging them it just looked off and before I knew it I had moved two of the pictures into different frames.  Does anyone else always find dirt under the glass after their done framing something?  Is that just me?

After lots more shuffling I finally had all of the pictures up and I am totally happy with the layout. There is plenty of room for future expansion and I added an empty frame that I had on hand.  I am thinking of filling it with one of these.

“Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.”

- William Morris

More of Less - The Entry Closet

The entry closet should have been an easy (and quick) project for my next William Morris post.   Turns out it took me a little longer than I anticipated and I ended up spending the last few weeks in a sort of photo and memorabilia haze. 

Here is the culprit.  Looks innocent enough, right? 

Even with the doors open it isn't too bad, but kind of frustrating  because last January I posted about that top drawer.  It was kind of the beginning of my quest to a more organized home.  Here is the proof that I am still struggling with it a year later.

No use lamenting though, so back to the task at hand.  I followed usual purging protocol and started pulling everything out,  Yes, those are three lint rollers.  One for each of us? I also dug out three umbrellas, quite an assortment of mints, gum, tissues, charging cables etc.   The decision of what to do with this stuff came pretty easy.   Trash, relocate, keep here and I was done in under 30 minutes.

The real work started on the other side and it was all hidden in those photo boxes and art files you see on the shelves.  Instead of just pulling them out and putting them back when I was done (like I have been doing), I opened them to purge the contents. Pictures and keepsakes covering a span of over twenty-five years all "organized" into boxes.

 I sorted and then I sorted some more.  With each pass I became more ruthless.  No pictures were safe, not even wedding pictures.

I didn't like them, didn't care to keep them;  they ended up in the recycling container.  Thank goodness for the digital age is all I have to say.

 At first glance, the difference isn't huge.

But look at the empty hangers!  Now guests can actually hang up their coats instead throwing them on the stairs.  I also know that things are looking better in those boxes and drawers.

I had this container in another part of the house and think it will be good for the umbrellas.  It is also housing the lint rollers for now.  I will definitely weed down to one and may end up getting rid of that too.  During my purge I found a clothes brush that I brought from my grandmother's house (you can see it in the top right of this picture).  If it works well, the rollers are history.

“Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.”

- William Morris

The List

Week two of the William Morris Project and it is time for a plan.  Time to put all those things to be done on one list  - The List.  I have partial written lists all over the place (that is me, all over the place) and lots of items I would like to complete, but never dared to put on paper or just don't have the money for.  Jules wrote out her list by room and I have to admit that I had a bit of a "Ah Ha" moment when I read it.  A list by room, how totally elementary and yet it never entered my mind to do so.  I did a walk through of our house and property and here is what I came up with.  Feel free to skip to the picture of the roses my mom brought me from her garden last week (as in January).

Entry

• Find the perfect round mirror and hang by door
• Hang exit sign
• Organize and purge closet

Powder Room

• Sew ribbon on towels  (couldn't resist)
• Replace trash bin (I dream of this)

Living/ Dining Room 

• Purge books
• Replace IKEA Bookshelves with custom built-ins
• Purge CDs and DVDs
• Finally decide on window treatments, buy and install them (yup, three years of living here and not a single window treatment is up)
• Install that missing piece of floor moulding
• Buy a new TV cabinet
• Minimize all those cables
• Move outlet by couch
• Paint that stool
• Artwork (I need something big by the couch)
• Replace IKEA unit with a proper buffet
• Replace crap knock-off Eames DSW with real ones (maybe one at a time)
• New floor (yes we have only lived here 3 years, but ours drives me crazy)

Kitchen

• Purge and organize front bottom drawer
• Hang knifes
• Hang utensil rod
• Re-organize flatware drawer
• Get rid of bread box and find a different place for bread
• Buy kitchen clock (dreaming of this)
• Re-organize lazy susan cabinets
• Move outlet by coffee machine
• Repair or replace built-in waste receptacle
• Clean under, behind and top of refrigerator

Upstairs Hallway 

• Re-hang picture wall

Sam's Room

• Purge & organize toys
• Purge books
• Purge & organize IKEA cabinet
• Purge & organize closet
• Decide on window treatments, buy and install
• Remove the circle appliques 
• Hang map

Bedroom

• New mattress
• Decide on window treatments, buy and install
• New chairs for balcony
• Paint silent waiter
• Figure out what to do with my Grandmother's mirror
• Clean, buff etc. Eames (?) ottoman
• Purge handbags
• Replace bedside cabinets with ??
• Replace bedside lighting with wall mounted fixtures

Master Bath

• Finally buy lighting fixture for above mirror
• Wallpaper  side & back wall

Office

• Purge cabinet
• Hang pictures
• Decide on window treatments, buy and install

Extra Room

• Sell or give away bookshelves

2nd Bath 

• Have tiling finished (it is actually "done", but I decided to add some more. I think)
• Have bathroom fixtures hung
• Buy wall mounted cabinet (something like this)
• Decide on lighting fixtures, hang
• Buy shower rod & curtain, hang

Basement

• Desk back to my Aunt
• Sell or give away bookshelf
• Purge shelves
• Rod/Shelf system for diving equipment 
• Wood to garage
• Re-paint floor

Pantry

• Cabinet for refrigerator
• Purge & organize shelves
• Re-paint floor 

Garden 

• Plant white rose (maybe Claire Austin)
• Plant hydrangeas along garage
• Plan/build water feature
• Re-design herb/kitchen garden
• Expand plant bed by magnolia
• Add plant bed by pergola
• Hang wrack system for garden tools in shed
• Paint garage back door
• Paint garden shed doors
• Install threshold to front entry of garden shed 
• Buy/Install Deck Parasol

No particular room

• Finish Sam's baby album (I am such a loser)
• Remove all of those finger prints off of the walls
• Replace thermometers (if I win the Lotto it will be these) 

Next week one of these items will have a line through it and I hope to find an exciting way to write about it.  At the moment I am thinking of tackling the entry closet.  Exciting stuff for sure.

“Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.”

- William Morris

Those Little Things (That Nag)

Sometimes it is those little things that just never get done. You know, those things that don't deem important enough to be put on a to-do list.  These are the things that end up nagging me tenfold the amount of time it would actually take to just get them done.  Enter the hand towels in our guest bathroom.

Like the towels, the towel loop not so much.   When a loop came off of one of the towels I knew I would have to do something, eventually.

Eventually came a few months later when I found this ribbon while Christmas shopping.  The picture above almost makes it look like I know what I am doing, but I don't really. 

I winged it and am hoping the ribbon holds the strains a seven year old will undoubtedly put on it.  This is going to be one of the things that I will add to my to-do list just to have the self satisfaction of crossing it off again.

Speaking of lists, I have been working on a major one.  Jules from Pancakes & French Fries is continuing The William Morris Project with a post every Thursday and a link up.  She created an awesome list describing her intentions for each room with all the things she would like to accomplish.  A list broken down by room is exactly what I need to keep me focused.  I will be joining her Thursdays with something that I have accomplished.  Most of the time it will fit under the header of my (slightly withered) More of Less series, but sometimes it will be just be something that I needed wanted to get done for our home (like today).  So, here goes.

Replace loop on guest towels

I am still tweaking my list and will be posting it sometime in the next week.  Today I plan to spend a good part of the day over in the comment section at Jules and visiting all the blogs that have linked up.  Should make for an inspiring day.  Thanks Jules!

“Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.”

- William Morris