Organizing Ideas

Hello friends! I hope you had a nice weekend and a celebratory Father's Day. I wish I could say I had a relaxing one. Sigh. You see, there was a leak in our bathroom, and water found its way in our closet floor. Um, our closet floor is carpeted. I was more afraid of mold and smelly carpets over water damage to our possessions. What a blah. The TADA! part of this experience was that our apartment's maintenance team quickly responded by fixing the leak, and bringing in industrial fans to dry the carpet. They also put fresh padding before securing the carpet in place. 

We spent the weekend returning our stuff in the closet, and vacuuming like crazy people {the industrial fans spread dust everywhere!}. The damage was minimal -- just a soak under the sun to make it all better {very happy that the sun was out and it's summer; just imagine if this happened in winter!}.  

I'm also grateful that I organized our shoes last year. I put them in plastic shoe boxes similar to this one: 

via The Container Store

It's an organizing tip I've seen in many magazines. My initial reaction was, "Who does this?" I thought it was too much work, and depending on the number of shoes you own, you'll need A LOT of these boxes.

via The Container Store

 But I finally succumbed and realized what a good solution it was. Here's why:

• It keeps shoes protected from dust, and in my case, water
• Because the boxes are transparent, you can easily see what's inside {makes getting dressed/picking shoes easier}
• The box sizes are uniform making them easy to stack or pull out

Take a peek at my version:

I got the boxes from here and here, and I even printed photos of the contents. It's a TADA! investment, when considering both time and money. I know for sure that my shoes will last a long, long time.

More organizing ideas all this week!  

For Dad

Here's another idea on how to turn a box that was once filled with tea bags from blah to TADA!

 A pretty tea box...

 ...but it's empty! 

Allow box to air out for a few days to eliminate the trapped tea aroma. Paint it white for a clean slate.

 To embellish the box, I'm taking these neatly folded dress shirts from an old catalog.

 Cut them out with a pair of scissors.

 Then glue them onto the box. 

 Here's how it looks like from the back.

 And how it looks like from the top.

Use this to wrap a present for Father's Day. Top with a ribbon and heartfelt message on a card. That's sure to make any Dad/Husband/Grandpa smile from ear to ear.

Have a fun weekend and Happy Father's Day to all the Pops out there!

Tea Box to Gift Box

In the past few days, we've turned empty tea sachets into cute envelopes. Today, let's see what we can do with the box that those tea bags called home.

blah: empty tea box

I really like how the flap opens and how it "locks" itself to the rest of the box when it's time to close it. 

Air out the box for a few days to get rid of the tea scent. Then give the box a make-over with several coats of paint, inside and out. 

To add color and whimsy, I tore this page from an old magazine.  I'll use the playful illustrations to decoupage.

 Cut-outs of girly things...they remind me of paper doll dresses.

Randomly attach the cut-outs to the box and seal with a layer of Mod Podge. 

 Finish with a cardboard handle {use hot glue to attach it}.

TADA! Doesn't it look like a lady's handbag?

Tuck in a gift like a scarf or make-up for your bestie or some hair accessories for your little niece.

Don't be surprised if this box gets used over and over again. Well, because it's adorable... and because that's what recycling is all about. TADA!

Something for Father's Day

I hope your week is going along superbly.

I have yet another idea on how to 

recycle tea sachets.

Mind you, this isn't a plug for this tea brand.  I happen to like different kinds of tea. This one is readily available and the packaging is ideal for crafting -- it has a flap and is made of matte paper. 

It makes paint easy to adhere to it -- all you need is two to three coats. 

 Here are the white-washed tea envelopes.

For today's project, my inspiration is this iconic I Love NY t-shirt. 

Write "I Love Dad" on the tea envelopes. Or "I Love Pop", "I Love Daddy", "I Love Papa" -- whatever you call your old man.

Then on a separate sheet of paper, write the many reasons why. 

 Do this on your own or enlist the whole family.

After which, tuck the "reasons" inside the envelopes. 

Attach these to a place where dad will surely notice -- the bathroom door, the fridge, on the Sunday paper, or around his frequently-used computer or tablet. 

Make sure to shower Dad with lots of hugs and kisses on Father's Day. That would totally be TADA!

Something for my Journal

I drink a lot of tea. It's very soothing and studies indicate that tea is healthy. I acquired a new collection because of this daily habit:

...lots of empty tea envelopes! 

They have the potential to turn from blah to TADA!, as I've demonstrated the past few days.  

With just a little bit of paint... 

 ....and some hand decoration -- it's now an uber-cool 

secret keeper.

Write your thoughts or blessings on the inside flap. 

Then slip in a souvenir from your day. 

 Attach this to the pages of your journal or 

date book with glue.

Apart from your journal entries, you'll have something

tangible that helps tell the story of your life. TADA!

A Time Capsule

How was your weekend? I hope it was both spectacular and restful. I must say mine was quite productive, completing our home office {more streamlined and less cluttered than our former one} and checking off items on my errand list.

Queen Elizabeth II is celebrating her Diamond Jubilee this year, plus London is hosting the Summer Olympics -- thus the tea-themed crafts last week. Well, I have a few more ideas to turn tea envelopes from blah to TADA! this week. You don't mind, do you?

blah: empty tea envelopes 

 Give them a few coats of paint.

They now have a whole new look. TADA! 

I'm using this special craft punch {Martha Stewart, if I must name drop} to give the flaps a lace-like look.

And why not invite the ink and rubber stamp to the party? 

Then label with the years of your life.  

Glue these envelopes onto a scrapbook {or an old catalog so it's even more blah to TADA!} to make a time capsule.

Make a few tags {I used another kind of craft punch} using scrap paper or an old plain box. Decorate the tags however you like.

Assign a tag to each year envelope. Write down the highlight of the year {ex. a wedding, a big birthday, a new job, a baby, graduation, etc.}. Of course, you may add more tags because you're allowed more than one highlight per year!

Go ahead and add tiny printed photos or mementos like fabric swatches of your wedding dress, a lock of hair from baby's first haircut, or a copy of the key to your first home to your envelopes. I promise you a rush of emotions when you flip through the pages while strolling down memory lane.

Have a nice, nice day everyone!