organization | Like a Saturday - DIY, Crafts, Recipes, Shenanigans

May 13, 2013
by likeasaturday 11 Comments

Craft Caddy : Fun with Washi Tape

Did everyone have a great weekend and a happy Mother’s Day? May always seems to be a month full of celebrating! Graduations, birthdays, weddings, Mother’s Day….so many festivities!

Are there any other washi tape addicts out there? It makes me a little nostalgic of my Lisa Frank days. It’s just so much fun.

{side note : I still have my trapper keeper with this dog and cat wedding on it. It does not get anymore 90′s than that. Lisa Frank? Check. Trapper Keeper? Check. Full of my elementary school drawings and hopes and dreams? Double check.}

{source}

I tried washi out for the first time this past Christmas and added a some red and green tape to our Christmas card envelopes. It was really cute and added a little something special to the plain white envelopes. I hadn’t ever really thought much about washi beyond stationary and gift wrapping, but there is so much you can do with it! I bought a pack from Pick Your Plum a while back, and now I’m trying to washi everything. It’s a disease.

I snatched a metal utensil caddy from Target a few weeks back, thinking it would be a perfect caddy for craft supplies {They have them with the summer picnic supplies in the kitchen section. They had a few other colors as well.}. I’m a mobile crafter. Sometimes you’ll actually find me working in our office/craft space, but more often than not you’ll find me on the couch, on the floor, at the kitchen table…whatever works, yunno? I’m also a messy crafter. It’s pretty much incredible how quickly one spot can explode with hot glue and felt and paper scraps and buttons. And then, suddenly, it’s midnight and my eyes will.not.stay.open and the mess stays while I slip off to dream.

I needed some kind of caddy that I could keep items that are often needed, and also my work in progress. This utensil holder fit the bill perfectly! It is a really good size – it has 3 smaller spots to keep scissors, pens, etc. and then a larger area to keep my masterpiece in progress. I could easily throw my things in here when calling it a night or moving to a new spot.

It just needed a little pizazz! Enter : washi tape. I wanted to add a few stripes of washi around the middle to give it a little color. I started by taping of the top section with masking tape. I did this to help me keep the washi tape straight.

I decided on colors and a pattern and went to town taping, using the masking tape as my guide.

Once I was done taping, I removed the masking tape to reveal my final product.

The entire thing took me no more than 7 minutes, and that was only because I had a dog in my face the entire time. Washi taping is a really quick way to add some quirk and color.

A caddy like this would also work really well for kids’ art supplies or for a homework station. It could easily be stocked with what each child needs and moved out of the way when needed. Colors could be personalized to each child’s preference, and would even be a fun project for them to work on!

Are you a mobile crafter, too? Or do you stick to your desk or kitchen table?

May 8, 2013
by likeasaturday 5 Comments

DIY Garden Hose Hanger {Pinterest Challenge : Spring Edition}

Hi there! I’m excited to be participating in the Pinterest Challenge : Spring Edition with Sherry, Katie, Emily, and Renee! It’s all too easy to pin a million things and never get around to doing it. The Pinterest Challenge is the swift kick in the pants I need sometimes to get to gettin’!

We’ve been doing a lot of work this spring to spruce up the back yard. One thing we were missing was a place to store the garden hose. It was usually stretched over the lawn until it was mowing time and it got tossed on top of my newly planted flower bed. Not cool. I was definitely in need of a solution.

I had pinned these two ideas forever ago. The first from Thistle House and the second from Mini Manor Blog. I was inspired to build my own garden hose hanger. I loved the idea of having a free standing post. I thought it would be prettier than the usual hose holders you can purchase from a home improvement store, and would take up less space.

I stopped by The Home Depot to gather my supplies. I bought a notched 4 x 4 post and a post holder spike deal {that’s a technical term} to hold it in place, and some white spray paint. I already had some double hooks that I bought on clearance from Ikea. They probably wouldn’t be large enough to hold a standard hose, but I ditched my heavy garden hose and bought a pocket hose! It’s one of those “as seen on TV” deals that is actually completely awesome!

I spray painted the post and top of the spike thing white, and then drilled the hooks onto the front. I hammered the spike into the ground and then placed the post. Voila!

I also hung a small galvanized bucket from the bottom hook to hold all of my small hose attachments. I used to just keep them on top of the a/c unit, but they were always getting knocked off and I’d have to dig for them.

It’s so much better than having to pull the hose out of the flower beds! And the light weight, expandable hose has changed my life! I still just need to find a solution to hide the ugly a/c unit.

Ok – Now it’s your turn! What have you pinned that you need to get on already?

April 30, 2013
by likeasaturday Leave a comment

April in a Nutshell

Um….April totally got away from me. It was one of those months that was so busy, I don’t feel like I got much done. I did finish a couple of larger projects and got a ton accomplished in our back yard.

One of my favorite projects, and the one that has seen the most use, is the cinder block benches. We’ve had much more comfortable weather in Texas than usual {aside from the crazy thunderstorms we had this past weekend!}, so we’ve spent several evenings on the back porch. These benches have been surprisingly comfy, too!

I also tackled my little office nook. I updated the shelving, painted my desk, and re-styled a bit. My chevron chair is happy to be seen with such good looking counterparts now. I do still have something up my sleeve for this corner…and I am so excited!

I shared a quick, easy tip on how to clean up your yarn wreaths, or the like, that you hang outdoors.

Perhaps my largest undertaking this month was throwing my sister a bridal shower. It was such a fun party!

I shared a few decor details, including the chalk painted flower pots….

…and spilled my secret strawberry cake and cream cheese frosting recipes.

I kick started the master bathroom makeover by frosting the shower door {and I can’t wait until it doesn’t look so yellow in there!!}.

And lastly, I shared some tips on how to keep a small pantry organized.

I guess I got more done than I realized! We are officially in wedding countdown mode {!!!}, so this month should prove to be another fast and crazy one! After that, summer will be here and we’ll be kicking it into high gear and making progress indoors {cause it’s way too hot in Texas to be hanging out outside}.

Have an awesome week!

April 25, 2013
by likeasaturday 6 Comments

How to Organize a Small Pantry

In our little kitchen, we have a tiny little pantry closet. I mean tiny. I won’t complain, because I have friends who have even smaller pantries or none at all {!!!}. Ours also has nice, wooden shelves instead of those annoying wire ones. Since it is so small, it is important to keep it neat and organized.

I made over the pantry in my pre-blogging days, so I don’t have a before picture…but I do have lots of afters!

1) Do a deep clean and paint it a fun color!

After I dumped everything out of the pantry and onto my kitchen table, I gave it a good scrub and then a few coats of red paint. I like having a darker color on the walls inside the pantry since it hides scuff marks. It seems like the previous white walls were always marked up. Also, it’s fun to have a splash of color greet you upon opening the door! I’m always more inclined to keep things straight and organized if I have a pretty space to work with.

2) Categorize and Prioritize

Divide up all of your goods into categories and think about which items get the most use in your kitchen. I like to keep those items on the easiest to reach shelves. The items that don’t get as much use go to the higher or lower shelves. It’s not so bad to have to climb a stool or squat down to get something if you’re only having to do so occasionally.

3) Contain!

Baskets and containers are my best friend when it comes to organizing in a small space! I keep almost everything in a container of some sort in my pantry. It helps to wrangle each group of items into categorized bins to minimize clutter. It is also so easy just to grab whichever basket I need, and then throw everything back in the basket before returning it to the pantry when I’m finished.

4) Take advantage of unused space.

Stacking baskets have proven to be invaluable in my quest for organization. I bought my baskets at Target, but have been sad to see they are no longer selling them. I hope they’ll change their minds and bring them back! I have seen other kinds of stacking bins and baskets at other stores, even the Dollar Tree. Using stacking bins allows me to use the unused vertical space. I always stack the basket of the most used items on top. I also love my stairstep shelf for canned goods. It’s helps me see what I have available to use and again uses some of that vertical space.

I also LOVE these hanging baskets that I bought from Amazon to store saran wrap, foil, baggies, etc. I was able to free up an entire drawer in the kitchen {a big one, too!} just by taking advantage of some unused space.

5) Label, label, label!

I’m an obsessive labeler when it comes to organizing. You know exactly what is in which container without having to think too had about it. This is especially important if you’re not using see through bins. I borrowed a trick from Julie at Less Than Perfect Life of Bliss and made chalkboard labels out of wall plates and chalkboard spray paint. {Is that a genius idea, or what??}. I used bakers twine to attach, and a chalk pen to label with.

Keeping pretty much everything in baskets and labeled has helped me to keep the pantry neat and organized. Of course, life happens and things tend to get shoved in there from time to time, so I just do a quick clean out every couple of weeks or so to keep it all looking nice.

I also have several hooks on the inside of the door to hang lunch boxes, aprons, and my bag o’ bags.

What is your favorite way to stay organized in the kitchen?

April 11, 2013
by likeasaturday 9 Comments

How to Clean Your Yarn Wreaths

Happy almost Friday! Thank you all for your kind comments this week. Y’all are too sweet!

I have an easy “how-to” tip for you all today. A couple of weeks ago I showed you my springtime yarn wreath I have hanging on the front door. Well, since then our pollen count has sky rocketed and we’ve had a lot of really windy/stormy days. All of that adds up to a lot of pollen and dirt being blown onto my wreath and sticking in the yarn fibers.

Blech. Gross, right? I think a lot of people are hesitant to hang yarn or fabric wreaths outside since they will inevitably get dirty. Not to fear! All you need is a can of compressed air that is used to clean out computer keyboards.

Make sure you have the little straw-like object attached to the nozzle and then spray away. It will gently clean off and dirt or pollen without causing any damage to your wreath.