Getting Organized: To-Do Lists

Housework is boring. Cooking can be very boring. Grocery shopping can be boring. Unorganized crafting can be stressful. Pretty much everything that needs done on a regular basis, or something that takes more time than you have in one sitting, feels like a chore because you usually forget everything that needs to be done by the time you're ready to do it.

So what do you do in these situations?

I am obsessed with making lists. To me, it makes everything seem like so much more fun when I can cross it off my list when I have finished it. It is one of the reasons my house is clean, because I have a cleaning check list and I love marking things off as it's finished.

But one thing I hated about my to-do lists, is that I would always lose them. Or that I would get too many different lists in one place and not have an organized way of keeping them neat.

So when I found this on sale at Target the other day (only $3.98!) I jumped on the opportunity. It is completely awesome.

First of all it is a spiral notebook so it keeps all my lists together, and I can look back on old lists to see what I have accomplished in the past. I also never have to wonder where my list went off to, because it is always gonna be in this book. I love it!

Second of all, it has a great set up for organizing my lists. It has the cute little pink square at the top so I can write the title of the list. Then it has the huge section for the actual list which is awesome.

But it also has this nifty little sidebar which helps me categorize my list in larger groups if necessary! I love it!

Now when I'm brainstorming a new project, making a grocery list, checking for organizing efficiency,  or writing my to-do list for the day, everything is at my finger tips allowing me to focus on what needs to get done.

How about you? How do you organize your lists? How do you remember what needs to be done?

Cut Clutter - Make A Donation Bag

I live in a very tiny two bedroom apartment with little to pretty much no storage. So apart from only bringing the necessities with us, my husband and I are constantly looking for ways to cut clutter.

So I started brainstorming about some of the biggest things that cause clutter in our lives. And what I discovered was a pretty broad thing.

My husband and I are pack rats. We don't like to throw anything away in case someone we know or we will need it some day in the future. If it is still in working condition, or has no damages we try to find some justifiable excuse to keep it. Especially in the clothes department.

So I saw something on pinterest (I saw several versions of this and unfortunately I don't remember which one I found first.) about making a donation box. This completely solved all our problems! We could put clothes and other things in the box, and if sometime in the future we needed it we could just go pull it out and take it. And if we didn't need anything from it by the time it filled up, then we knew it would be time to give it away.

We plan on taking all our clothes in the donate box to Plato's Closet, a great store to trade in gently used clothes for cash or for other gently used name brand clothes. They're really picky about what they take so it is a great consignment shop. Anything they wouldn't accept and the rest of the contents of the box (kitchen appliances we don't need, etc) we could donate to Goodwill. Someone somewhere will get a good use out of our stuff that we don't need anymore so it doesn't seem like a waste but we still get it out of our hair. Yay for donating!

All we did to make this was grabbing an old sturdy bag (mine happened to be a huge one I had from a previous bookstore shopping experience) and started filling it up! However, now that we have this, its filling up pretty quickly so I may have to upgrade to a bigger bag!

What have you been doing to cut clutter lately? Have you ever thought of making a donation box before?

Making Labels From Vinyl

So, unfortunately for me, Christmas passed before I learned of the magic little label genie called the Cricut. Boy howdy do I want one of those, but until the day I find two hundred dollar bills laying around I probably won't get one. So I have to get a little more crafty in my label-making abilities.

(I had already done the flour one as a tester before I did the rest)

So, there are several things around the house I wanted to add a little flair to. The first thing was these kitchen canisters. I got them for my wedding, and so far they've just been sitting on the top of the fridge (I have the smallest kitchen known to man, literally only two counters) and they look incredibly boring. So I wanted to add labels and make them look a little more organized.

So the first thing I did was to write out exactly what I wanted the labels to say and look like, thickness and everything. You can see where I messed up on the s for sugar a few times.

Then you need to cut out your little drawings.

After mine were cut out, I took scotch tape, and taped it face down to the back of the vinyl.

All that was left to do now was to cut around the paper and through the vinyl so the letters were cut out and ready to be stuck to things.

So at this point all I had to do was peel off the back of the vinyl and stick it to the clean surface I wanted it on! Yay!

I did all three canisters that are in use:

My doggies water and food bowl. Can you see the rain drops for water and the doggy bone for food?

And I put a cross on our still in progress first aid kit!

Are those cute or what! I can't wait to find more things to stick my labels on. I paid $7.99 for two large sheets of plain white vinyl at Hobby Lobby and it is one of my favorite craft purchases so far!

I linked this project up with: Tatertots and Jello, Family Ever After, Kojo Designs, Naptime Crafters, Country Momma Cooks, and Marriage From Scratch!

Packing 101

So you're moving out! It's such a fun new exciting thing, or maybe it's something you've done one hundred times but it's always a hassle. One thing that will make it easier either way is being an organized packer.

For me, I am simply packing up my childhood bedroom at my parent's house and moving into my first little two bedroom apartment with my growing family. It's a lot easier for me because all the appliances we have are still in their original boxes, taped up, just like they were given to us at our wedding, ready to be used. This may not be the case for you but either way, I hope these tips help.

Tips:
Start packing early. Pack up things that will be going into storage or things you don't use on a daily/weekly basis when you find out your moving that way you only have the important things to pack when you're so busy later.

Clean up first. I didn't do this, and I wish I would have. Packing creates a ton of clutter, and that on top of my dirty room clutter really stressed me out.

Try to get some free boxes. I paid $3.00 for each of my boxes (I may have cried a little), and if I was more prepared I wouldn't have had to. You can go to your local grocery or dollar store after they received a delivery and usually they will have no problem sending the broken down boxes your way since they are just going to toss them anyways. Its a little awkward to ask, and usually the sales associate gives you a weird look, but it is a good way to save a little money in the moving process.

Use garbage bags to pack your clothes. There is no reason to have your clothes in a box. Can you think of one? No. And since moving is a very messy process, and odds are you won't have went to the grocery store moving day, you can unpack one of your clothes bags and use it for a garbage bag. Just make sure you label it clothes, so it doesn't accidentally get tossed.

Use every container you have to pack other things. I bought a bunch of storage boxes from IKEA to store different craft and computer things in, and they were never filled to the brim, but you can bet they are now with little knick-knacks that really had no place and my 4x6 pictures frames that I didn't feel like putting in a box.

Come up with a packing plan. Sit down and right down several packing projects you want to get done each day. You'll be getting a lot accomplished without feeling overwhelmed and it also gives you a lot to be able to check off on your to do lists, which is one of my favorite things to do. This is how I broke down packing my room:

Day One: Go through and get out the garbage
I don't know about you, but I'm a mini-hoarder. If I think I may need something someday, I will find somewhere to stick it until that day comes. Sometimes this really pays off and I'll have something I have no idea how to find right on hand. Most of the time, this just causes me to have a cluttered room.

So go through and get rid of all the junk you've been saving for a 'rainy day.' Moving into a new place is one of the only chances an adult has to start over, and make a shiny new life for themselves. Go through stuff you have stuck in boxes or around the room and ask yourself if that is something you want to be in your new life. If yes, keep it around. If you're just trying to wait for an excuse to use it or you don't think you'll need it, toss it. This will make packing a lot easier.

Day Two: Pack up the closet.
This consisted of me going through my clothes, deciding which ones I needed to take with me and what could stay behind in storage. Just make sure you leave out clothes for you to wear until you move. (My parents are luckily not trying to transform my room into a yoga room or anything, so I can leave literally anything I want behind to grab later.)

When that was done I went through my shoes and took out the ones I actually have worn in the last year or so and put the rest in a laundry basket on the floor.

{Anything I don't come back for in the next 6 months is going to Plato's Closet or Good Will. This way I don't get choosey like, well what if I DO need that sometime?}

I also cleaned out the top of my closet which was normally where I kept things for storage, so the majority of that went right into a box. This left a lot of room open for me to put large things I didn't know if I would be coming back for or not, and if not, it too would be put into a box for actual storage.

Day Three: Clean off Walls and Under the Bed
I had a ton of stuff hanging on my walls that I really didn't think fit the look or feel I was going for, so most of this went straight into storage boxes. Other stuff I decided to take with me. It really isn't that stressful when I broke it down as only removing the things on my wall instead of trying to tackle a floor to ceiling area like I had been dreading.

Cleaning out from under the bed wasn't so bad either when I looked at it as one goal. It was mostly empty shoe boxes or lost socks.

Day Four: Pack up the books
To some people, this probably isn't a huge task. You may have that one To Kill A Mockingbird that you had to read for English shoved under magazines and games on your desk. But for me, this was a huge challenge. The last time I counted I had over 450 books, and unfortunately for me, besides furniture, books are the hardest things to move. They are so heavy, so you need about 1,000 little boxes to put them all in.

I boxed them all up and left them in my room so each time I went to my moms house I could grab a couple instead of trying to figure out how to get them all out at once. If there is something you have a large quantity of like this, I definitely recommend moving them in increments to save your back the stress.

Day Five: Pack up the rest of the knick-knacks and clothes/linens
Yep, it's finally that time. Time to pack up everything that you want to take with you. I took the time to launder my remaining clothes and bed linens (no washer or dryer in the apartment) and finally packed them all away, except for what I'd need for the next day.

Go to your bathroom and pack up all your toiletries and make sure you put them in a box you'll be able to find easily. Morning breath never has an excuse, even if it is moving day.

Pack up all the stuff you haven't felt like you'd need to pack yet, because guess what, you do. And throw away or make a donate box for anything you might not need.

Get all your boxes and bags in organized piles to make it easy for your movers (or more likely you) to move and unload. Example: All the kitchen boxes together, all the bedroom stuff together, etc.

And then sit around and wait for the big day to come! There are so many good things and negative things when it comes to moving. What are some things you do to make packing up for a big move less stressful? Have any of you moved recently?

Happy Organizing! ♥ Jess

D.I.Y. Dry Erase Weekly Board

(Sorry the pictures are absolutely awful. My hubby has the good camera and I have terrible lighting in my bedroom. New apartment couldn't come soon enough!)

What You Will Need For This Project:

• Some sort of frame, the size depends on what you want to put in it

• Dry Erase Markers (Not to make it, but to use it!)

• Scrapbook paper

• Scissors

• Scotch Tape

• Either your own, or printed off copies of my weekly to dos, grocery list, and cleaning checklist

So I have been seeing people use papers out of their family binders (I am currently in the process of making one, but I don't want to do a tutorial until it is complete and put to use) on a weekly basis. Each week they'll print out a new grocery list, or a new weekly calendar, but I haven't seen anyone actually find a way to reuse these papers so they can save paper and ink. Until... duhn duhn da daaah: my weekly dry erase board.

This started off as a cheap frame that I had lying around with old photos in it, so all I did was take the pictures out and I had my starting point.

After I had this, I began by picking out the scrapbook paper I wanted to use. It took me three sheets of the larger sizes scrapbook paper. I had two decorative ones, and then I cut a plain colored one in half to make it all fit.

Then, taking your handy-dandy scotch tape, you tape the pieces of paper onto your surface. (I taped mine directly onto the cardboard, which I completely regret doing because I accidentally taped it upside down. ::Facepalm::)

Repeat with all the papers until the background looks how you want it to look. Don't worry about making it too perfect, because you will be covering most of it with worksheets anyways.

Now it is time to print off the papers you would like to be able to use each week. Have you visited our free printables post yet? It includes the papers I used in this project like the weekly outlook, the grocery list, and the cleaning schedule.

After printing them out and setting them on the board, I realized the computer paper was too thin, because the colors of the scrapbook paper were showing through, so all I did was tape another blank white sheet underneath to keep it looking crisp and white.

Then, place the worksheets on the board and play with them until you have them how you want it to look finished.

When you are finished, tape them all down. Now at this point, you can be done if you want to. You can put the picture back together and start using it. But I added a little extra decoration with some of my scrapbook stickers.

And now, after assembling the glass or plastic frame back together, you are finished! You can write on it (with a dry erase marker), erase things, mark things off your cleaning checklist, whatever you want!

Happy Crafting! ♥ Jess

I Linked This Post To: Tatertots & Jello Weekend Wrap-Up Party and Family Ever After.

Making A Planner With a Spiral Notebook

One of the key things I've come to discover, from many hours spent searching through Pinterest, is that the best way to be a good housewife/crafteer is to be very organized. And what is the easiest way to start getting organized you ask? Planning things out in advanced. If only there was some object that you could use to jot down any information in a calendar-like format. OH WAIT! There is! It's called a planner!

Now, I have had my fair share of planners. I have had Domo planners, plain planners, school agendas, and days where I would just print off a calendar and try using that. But for some reason, none of them stuck. I would end up not using it because it was annoying to tote around or just plain forget to use it. So, this time, I wanted to figure out a way to have a planner where I didn't have to go spend any money on one in case I ended up abandoning it again. So I thought of the spiral notebook. I had a couple extra left from classes, so I decided to try to turn one into a planner.

Now, this isn't the most elegant of ways, and it certainly isn't the prettiest. But I wanted to see if I would even use it before I went all crazy on it, and I'm sure there are a lot of you out there who feel the same. I figure if I keep it with my family binder that I am working on creating, me or hubs can jot down any important information.

Okay, so first, I decided to finish out the month of January without an actual calendar since there are only a few days left. I wrote the day of the week, and then the date, and I left a few lines in between each one. Incredibly simple.

Then I created a calendar for February. At first, I simply drew out a calendar, but that didn't really make me want to use it since it wasn't the prettiest thing I've ever done, so I created one really easily on Excel. If you guys are interested I would be more than happy to post it for download.

 Then I simply cut it down small enough for me to tape into my notebook. I also left the back of this page empty so we can write down any numbers or information we may need more than once.

Then I went through like I did for the end of January, and wrote down each day in February with about four lines in between each day so I could have room to write in any appointments or things I have to do that day.

So let me know you what you think! To download the calendar you see in this post, or to see what else we have available for download, check out this post!
Happy Crafting! ♥ Jess