Saying Goodbye/Beverage Tub Makeover

Today, blogs and blogging provided me with a much needed diversion on a hard day for my family.

We had to say goodbye to this little lady.

Maggie turned 13 in August but had a rapid decline in her health starting around March of this year.

Prior to this Maggie was a cat who stayed kitten-sized and acted like one as well.

She always had a daredevil streak to her which may have stemmed from the fact that when we adopted her as a kitten from the Humane Society she had already fallen from a 14th floor balcony into a snow bank. She loved to be up high and would spend her time watching you from the top of the kitchen cupboards or her scratching post tower.

Even though I no longer live at home, I still think of Maggie and Buddy (my parents’ other cat) as my pets because I was there with them from the beginning. I will always remember Maggie being so small that her entire body would vibrate when she purred.

I have never met another cat like her and I’m sure I never will.

When I had my final visit with Maggie on Sunday night, I knew my parents had made the right decision and that her time had come. I’m relieved that she is no longer suffering, but it doesn’t make it hurt any less.

To quote my Mom, “Maggie had a happy life and a peaceful end, and we will love her forever.”

We miss you, Maggie!

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Now for what I had originally planned to share before life threw me a curveball . . .

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Throughout the summer I kept tabs on the price of this metal beverage tub from Lowe’s knowing that I could use it for . . . something. The outside looks like white enamel and the inside is galvanized metal.

When it finally reached a clearance price of around $7, I pounced after striking a deal with Mr. Mechanic that I would clean up the Laundry Room if we bought it.

The Laundry Room is still a disaster (shh!) but my tub looks adorable thanks to a quick and easy vinyl makeover.

I learned from this post that there is a free font {SL Wash} made up completely of laundry symbols.

You can download SL Wash here or by clicking on the image below.

I typed the letters that corresponded with wash, dry and iron in Silhouette Studio and resized them until they were all the same height.  Then I cut them out of black vinyl with my Silhouette.

Finally, I used a combination of transfer and painter’s tape to place the symbols on my tub.

I’m not going to lie, it was a pain in the butt to try to align them on a curved surface, but it was worth the aggravation in the end!

Wouldn’t you agree?

While the rest of the Laundry Room is still nothing worth sharing thanks to an on-going basement renovation, my kitchen towels and rags have a cute place to hang out until I accumulate enough to justify a load of laundry.

Thanks for sticking with me today!

P.S.  Don’t even ask about that chair. It’s a DIY Chalk Paint experiment that went terribly wrong. I’m starting to realize that painting furniture is not my thing.

P.P.S. If you like fonts you should check out my board on Pinterest for some great suggestions!

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I link up at: Serenity Now, I {Heart} Naptime, Under The Table And Dreaming, Nifty Thrifty Things, Simply Klassic Home, Home Stories A to Z, Craftomaniac, Skip To My Lou, Not JUST A Housewife, A Bowl Full Of Lemons, Alderberry Hill, I Should Be Mopping The Floor, A Diamond In The Stuff, Creatively Living, The Winthrop Chronicles, Clean & Scentsible, Oopsey Daisy, Lil’ Luna, Someday Crafts, Live.Laugh.Rowe, The 36th Avenue, aka design, House of Hepworths, 52 Mantels, Thrifty Decorating, Crafty Scrappy Happy, How To Nest For Less, Tatertots & Jello, The Grant Life, It’s Overflowing, Lolly Jane, Too Much Time, Six Sisters’ Stuff, Positively Splendid, My {Re}purposed Life, Unrefined By Design, Just Us Four, Liz Marie Blog and The Crafted Sparrow

Organize Receipts {Or Anything Else} With Custom Dividers

I spotted this box at HomeSense last year and it was love at first sight.

The pictures don’t do it justice.

It is a lovely, glossy yellow and white box with hinges. The yellow is the perfect shade that goes wonderfully with all of the other yellow accents in my office.

If we actually had some sunshine that lasted until the afternoon I would be able to show you my beautiful office because now, after a big organizing blitz, it truly is beautiful.

I’m so proud of it.

Everything has a home.

Correction. Everything has a pretty home.

Including my receipts.

I have struggled to maintain a system for storing my necessary receipts for years. I start off well, and then I develop piles. I’ve tried binder clips, accordion files, baskets, file folders etc. but nothing has ever stuck.

I even used this box at one point. . . I just didn’t use it the right way.

A little while ago, I had a receipt organizing epiphany. I do pretty well with maintaining a filing system for everything else, so why not create something that allows me to file my receipts in the same way?

Instead of clipping them together into piles, I needed to be able to flip through my receipts quickly to find what I need.

Also, I wanted a system where I could sort my receipts by the store where I bought something, not by a category.

My first thought was to use a photo storage box from Michaels. They come with dividers, but I wanted the receipts to span the length of the box so I made my own dividers using my Silhouette.

I labelled everything and filled it up with all my receipts.

Definitely an improvement, but to access it I have to pull it out from underneath my desk (I’ll show you that another time). Not very efficient. I saw more piles accumulating in my future.

So, I moved onto Plan B – the yellow box that had sat on my desk for a year without a real purpose.

First, it got a vinyl label to clearly identify its job.

The collage below shows how I planned the placement of my vinyl using painter’s tape and a combination square from Mr. Mechanic’s well-stocked workshop. The combination square is a great way to make sure that your spacing is consistent when transferring an image.

After I peeled off the transfer tape, it looked like this!

Now that the outside of the box was finished, it was time to make some custom dividers!

I originally made dividers using a shape that I bought and modified, but I was not happy with the final layout of the tabs.  This week’s free shape could not have come at a better time! It made the process so much easier.

Basically, I copied the tab overlay from this week’s free shape and pasted it into a new file. Then, I drew a rectangle and sized it to the dimensions of my receipt box (9.5” by 4”). I selected both shapes and aligned them on the left so that when I welded them together the first tab would start at the very edge.

Before welding the tab and rectangle shapes together I duplicated the tab five times to the right and then used the ‘space horizontally’ function to have them overlap slightly across the width of my 9 inch rectangle. The last step was to duplicate the rectangle 5 times. One-by-one I would align the rectangle with the edge of the last tab on the right. Working from left to right, I moved the next tab down slightly to overlap the shapes and then welded the two shapes together.

I did this five times but then I realized that you only have to do it three times! If you look at the image below, I have labelled and colour-coded the dividers to show that when you cut the same shape twice on double-sided paper, you can just flip over divider 1 to create what would be divider 5 and divider 2 becomes divider 4. Make sense?

I chose coordinating scrapbook paper with a postcard/travel theme for my dividers.

In a perfect world, I would have had lots of different yellow patterned paper on hand, but since I didn’t, I opted for a theme instead.

{Does anyone else find it hard to cut up a brand new piece of scrapbook paper?}

I cut three sets of 5 dividers and now I just need to label them and transfer my receipts from the photo box that I gussied up before I realized that this box would be better suited for the job.

I suppose you could also use your sketch pens to label the tabs if you were more patient than me!

If you don’t have a cutting machine, no problem! You could trace or cut down store-bought dividers to make your own filing system to fit any container size.

Is it weird how pleased I am to have a pretty container for filing my receipts? (If your answer is yes . . . don’t answer that!)

 

 

P.S. Since I’m linking up to the Silhouette Organizing Link Party why not also check out my great tip for storing extra die cuts?

 

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I link up at: Serenity Now, I {Heart} Naptime, Under The Table And Dreaming, Nifty Thrifty Things, Simply Klassic Home, Home Stories A to Z, Craftomaniac, Skip To My Lou, Not JUST A Housewife, A Bowl Full Of Lemons, Alderberry Hill, I Should Be Mopping The Floor, A Diamond In The Stuff, Creatively Living, The Winthrop Chronicles, Clean & Scentsible, Oopsey Daisy, Lil’ Luna, Someday Crafts, Live.Laugh.Rowe, The 36th Avenue, aka design, House of Hepworths, 52 Mantels, Thrifty Decorating, Crafty Scrappy Happy, How To Nest For Less, Tatertots & Jello, The Grant Life, It’s Overflowing, Lolly Jane, Too Much Time, Six Sisters’ Stuff, Positively Splendid, My {Re}purposed Life, Unrefined By Design, Dragonfly Designs, Just Us Four, Liz Marie Blog and The Crafted Sparrow

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Kitchen Update: Coffee Station

You’ve all heard about the power of paint to transform a space but what about the power of a basket?

In this case, a yellow paper basket.

This basket was originally home to my hair dryer and other bathroom essentials. It had lots of storage capacity which ultimately ended up being its downfall. I kept adding more stuff!

One day, after learning about Krylon’s Oil-Rubbed Bronze spray paint from my friend Wendy, I decided that this basket would be a good test project for a new colour.

The result was so lovely that a ripple effect took place in my kitchen.

First, the microwave moved, which meant that this . . .

became this . . .

It’s not pretty but it’s a much better spot for an appliance that we do not use on a daily basis.

The microwave previously occupied a small countertop beside the fridge. The countertop was barely deep enough to house the microwave as well as a basket of frequently accessed snacks and cereal.

Now, that same countertop serves as a coffee station for our relocated coffee maker (a morning essential for Tim Horton’s addicted Mr. Mechanic) which is perfect because it sits directly below this . . .

My coffee sack cork board!

The basket keeps all of our coffee-making essentials in one place, frees up space in the cupboard and makes it look like we have more counter space in the kitchen – something that has always been an issue for us with the kitchen layout.

There’s a reason why you see that messy cord in the photo.

Not only does this made over basket house everything needed for brewing a hot coffee, it also holds my Magic Bullet.

The basket handle means that I can leave my Magic Bullet plugged in along with the coffee maker.

When I want to make an iced cappuccino protein smoothie, I just pull it out of the basket letting the extra cord feed through the handle.

Isn’t it amazing what a basket can do?

P.S. Want another idea for how to make over a basket with spray paint? How about a two-toned effect?

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I link up at: Serenity Now, I {Heart} Naptime, Under The Table And Dreaming, Nifty Thrifty Things, Simply Klassic Home, Home Stories A to Z, Craftomaniac, Skip To My Lou, Not JUST A Housewife, A Bowl Full Of Lemons, Alderberry Hill, I Should Be Mopping The Floor, A Diamond In The Stuff, Creatively Living, The Winthrop Chronicles, Clean & Scentsible, Oopsey Daisy, Lil’ Luna, Someday Crafts, Live.Laugh.Rowe, The 36th Avenue, aka design, House of Hepworths, 52 Mantels, Thrifty Decorating, Crafty Scrappy Happy, How To Nest For Less, Tatertots & Jello, The Grant Life, It’s Overflowing, Lolly Jane, Too Much Time, Six Sisters’ Stuff, Positively Splendid, My {Re}purposed Life, Unrefined By Design, Dragonfly Designs, Just Us Four, Liz Marie Blog and The Crafted Sparrow

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Washi Tape Pill Case Storage

A long, long time ago I shared the craft closet in my office.

In that closet, I have a shoe organizer hanging on the door to hold my paper punches and other miscellaneous or frequently accessed supplies.

If you look a little closer, you’ll see that I had everything for this project waiting for me in the pockets.

Technically, it’s not washi tape, but Canada is late to that party.

If you have access to washi tape 1. I’m very envious and 2. you can make this, too!

Anyway, last winter I bought a value pack of assorted scrapbooking embellishments from HomeSense and was pleasantly surprised to find that it had two packages of this fabric tape inside.

Many months later (I have good intentions!) . . .

I cut 7 pieces of tape, covered up each day of the week on the pill case and then filled each compartment up with my scrapbook brads. 

The tape was the exact same width as the raised rectangle so all I had to worry about was the length.

I love that I can still see what’s inside without opening the case.

So easy!

Now all my brads are in one place, and there’s a spot freed up in my organizer for more fun craft supplies!

What on earth was I waiting for?

Do you ever finish a project and think “what took me so long?” Next week, I’ll be sharing my longest crafting procrastination EVER!

Happy Weekend!

P.S. Want to know how I use brads? They’re not just for scrapbooking! Check out my paint chip balls!

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I link up at: Serenity Now, I {Heart} Naptime, Under The Table And Dreaming, NiftyThrifty Things, Simply Klassic Home, Home Stories A to Z, Craftomaniac, Skip To My Lou, Not JUST A Housewife, A Bowl Full Of Lemons, Alderberry Hill, I Should Be Mopping The Floor, A Diamond In The Stuff, Creatively Living, The Winthrop Chronicles, Clean & Scentsible, Oopsey Daisy, Lil’ Luna, Live.Laugh.Rowe, The 36th Avenue, aka design, House of Hepworths, 52 Mantels, Thrifty Decorating, Crafty Scrappy Happy, How To Nest For Less, Tatertots & Jello, The Grant Life, It’s Overflowing, Lolly Jane, Too Much Time, Six Sisters’ Stuff, Positively Splendid, My {Re}purposed Life and The Crafted Sparrow

Thank you to all the hosts!

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Jonathan Adler Dishwasher Tab Storage Update

[This post could have also had two alternate titles: Don’t Pull A Loose Thread! and/or Not All Spray Adhesives Are Created Equal]

When I first started blogging, I read that one of my favourite blogs, I Heart Organizing, was having a link party for pretty storage ideas. I wanted to participate so I transformed a cookie tin into a storage container for my dishwasher tabs.

For a month or so, it looked like this:

Then, the spray adhesive started to lose its stick which made the ribbon start to come apart from the can. It didn’t look great, but it was still functional.

Not all spray adhesives are created equal. 

If you want it to stick for good, go for the good stuff!

Finally, about two weeks ago I made the mistake of pulling on a loose thread that was sticking out of the cupboard.

Don’t pull a loose thread.

The next thing you know, my container looked like this:

Time for a new container.

Fortunately, Jen of The Social Home recently shared about her fun Jonathan Adler cupboard makeover.

I had seen advertisements for the Jonathan Adler Respect the Roll campaign but I did not really want to send away and pay the shipping for a toilet paper holder. However, Jen’s post mentioned that these could be purchased at Walmart, and since she is a fellow Canadian blogger, off I went!

I was (a little more) excited (than I should be about a toilet paper holder) to find that they still had one left in the pattern that I wanted: Clover Green. I later bought the Chevron Pink version, too.

 

I cut the same contact paper shape with my Silhouette and adhered it to my container lid. The Cottonelle logo is almost covered by this shape (see the bump?).

 

Even though it is stored in the cupboard under the sink, it makes me happy to know that this fun container matches the accent colours of my kitchen.

 

As an added bonus, the new container also holds more dishwasher tabs. I can put a full package of 48 tabs in the Jonathan Adler canister versus about 20 in the old one.

 

Wouldn’t you agree that this simple update is

so

much

better?

 

I would never in a million years use this as a toilet paper holder, but I’ll definitely be thinking of a way to use my chevron pink container!

 

Thanks for the great tip and the “pinspiration,” Jen!

P.S. I love that I originally posted about my first dishwasher tab container on February 25th! I feel like my blog has come so far in those three months!

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I’ll be linking up at: Serenity Now, I {Heart} Naptime, Under The Table And Dreaming, Nifty Thrifty Things, Simply Klassic Home, Home Stories A to Z, Craftomaniac, Skip To My Lou, Not JUST A Housewife, A Bowl Full Of Lemons, Alderberry Hill,  I Should Be Mopping The Floor, A Diamond In The Stuff, Creatively Living, The Winthrop Chronicles, Clean & Scentsible, Oopsey Daisy, Lil’ Luna, Live.Laugh.Rowe, The 36th Avenue, aka design, House of Hepworths, 52 Mantels, Thrifty Decorating, Crafty Scrappy Happy, How To Nest For Less, Tatertots & Jello, The Grant Life, It’s Overflowing, Lolly Jane, Too Much Time, Six Sisters’ Stuff, Positively Splendid and The Crafted Sparrow

Thank you to all the hosts!

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