Konmari make-up

I am yet another convert to the wonder that is the Konmari method of organizing, rather, tidying.
In a nutshell, you choose the things you love, give them their own special place, and bid farewell to anything that does not "bring you joy." Keep in mind, even mundane things can bring joy, it's just a matter of honing your ability to sense that joy by practicing in a certain sequence. It is the "tidying festival" that leaves your home a place that brings peace and true enjoyment.
It sounds kind of kooky, but halfway through it, I can speak to the wisdom of keeping only what truly brings you joy. I enjoy the spaces I am creating. They are functional, yet beautiful.
Enjoy some pictures...

Japanese-y Organized

Ok, I'm just really bad at taking before pictures, but fairly decent at re-organizing.

The picture above shows. The bathroom cabinet after I added some storage. There is a tension rod that holds the gloves, flatiron, and hairdryer. I used hooks with clips attached to hang the stuff. The shelf came from Aki-home's kitchen section. And the baskets are from Daiso. (Oh, Daiso...)


The other thing I finally got organized was the kitchen storage cart. The microwave cart we had was just missing something (adjustable shelves, more shelves...). Anyway, after the recent earthquake, with an epicenter within 2 miles, we decided to re-evaluate our kitchen a little. I've been feeling like I want to get B-chan a countertop dishwasher, but our counter to cabinet is about 4 inches too short. I digress. Back to the microwave cart that was no longer containing everything it needed to hold. We decided to replace it with a chrome shelf unit from Aki-home. It has more shelves and is about the same size as the microwave cart.


For once I took a before picture.


Here is the after. It is a work in progress because I still have to get some baskets for it, but I like that we can hang stuff from it, at least.

Not Bleach

The wonders of non bleach cleaning are amazing!

Unfortunately I did not take a before picture, but I can assure you that it was in desperate need of cleaning.
How did I do it? Well, I already use a hydrogen peroxide and lemon juice concoction as a bleach alternative in the laundry, so I just added a cup of vinegar to my normal mix. Then I just put the stopper in the sink and let it soak. After it was done, I used half a lemon and some coarse salt to scrub it clean.
Voilá! Clean sink. Note, though, that I do not recommend this combination for the laundry. Adding vinegar boosts the sanitizing power such that it will irritate the skin.

Recipe:
2 c. Hydrogen peroxide 3/4 c. Lemon juice 1 c. vinegar

The basic ratio is 1/3 c. lemon juice to 1 c. hydrogen peroxide. Increase as needed to fill sink.

Executive Homemaker Extraordinaire!

My Homemaking Binder

Lately I have been drowning in housework and trying to ignore a certain screaming Monkey during nap times. So, I decided to get myself organized so that I could do the things I want to do (like gardening and sewing), not just the things I need to do (the never ending mounds of laundry). Enter the Executive Homemaker Binder from TipJunkie by Laurie.
 Many of the pages are provided, but I did not like the layout of some of them, so I went and found ones that I really like. Also, some of the pages were suggested, but not provided.
Weekly/Family/Party
Mommytrackd has a nice meal planning list with a menu on one side and grocery list on the other. I also like the party planning sheet. I am currently using it to plan an afternoon tea event in late April. The weekly family calendar makes it easy to see what parents and kids are doing, as well as, see meals, too. If you have to leave your infant with a babysitter and you need more than a "phone number of where we'll be" babysitter info sheet, they have a infant specific babysitter sheet. But then, I also put together a 25 page handbook for any babysitter that comes to our house (complete with table of contents and index, can we say Type A???)
Budget
As for the financial section, I have not found another budget type worksheet that I like as much as the ones from Crown Financial. Keep in mind that this worksheet comes from a financial education course ( highly recommended, by the way) and is designed to work with other resources in the context of a class. The worksheet has the capability of recording amounts in different categories for each day and can really help you know exactly where your money is going if you are diligent.
Calendar/daily
For a calendar, I Google-ed a customizable yearly calender from Time and Date with a list of holidays for the next couple years from Cozi. Then, I used this monthly calendar from the Household Planner to help plan chores, as well as, monthly events. For my blogging, I use this planner by Beckie of Infarrantly Creative. I like that it is pretty. Also, to get the daily schedule under control I modified the excel file version of this one to have two columns. It is by Lisa Welchel and she offers other planning resources, as well. On the other hand, a general daily planning page like the Daily Docket looks interesting, as Lisa's link has changed. Find more useful forms here, at Simple Mom.
Goals/Cleaning
The long and short term goal sheet was not easy to find, but I found one here that has a column for each and even a medium category, and I wish I found, a little sooner, the weekly cleaning schedule that works best for me at TipJunkie. I started with a Housework planner by Tashia Calhoun. She offers some free printables, but the site is meant to sell you planning products. If you sign up for updates (which I did), you can get it for free.

Verdict

I have been using this binder for about a week and a half, and I have to say it has helped me be mindful of what I need to do. It also provides a way for my husband to see the areas in which I need his help. It has the potential to cut down on my stress level, in addition to decreasing my frustration with the amount of work I have to complete.

Thank you to all the websites and bloggers who created the resources that I have found. A special thanks to Laurie from TipJunkie for the idea for all this and making it available for free!!!

To my readers: If you stay at home, how do you stay organized? Do you plan your days and how do you keep track of events and schedules? What resources if any have you found? I would love to hear from you.

• Tash
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Trading books

Sewing machine buried under donations and stuff

So, I have these books that have been sitting around for years now. You may know what I'm talking about if you decided to keep your textbooks because you might "need" them in your profession. Well, I'm not quite the Art Historian I'd imagined I'd be. Now... what to do with that pile of books (and other stuff) keeping me from using my ultra-cool, retro sewing machine?

Here's the thing, I tried to do this about a year ago, but since I sat on my hiney for a year, my trade in values dropped. So, instead of getting the $70 I could have gotten, I have to settle for trading a pile of books for some sewing books I really want. I decided to use a site that gives store credit as opposed to cash, since I want a book anyway. Really, I'd rather have an e-book, but this particular title is not available as such. At the very least, I get to recycle my books so that a thrift store isn't the only one benefiting from the sale. The website I chose to use is ECampus because you get an additional 20% if you choose store credit.

The Sewing Machine Attachment Handbook

So what book is so great, you ask, for which I am willing to sell expensive textbooks at cut rate prices? Charlene Phillips is the author of this book (pictured), as well as, some others and her own blog The Sew Box. She seems to be an authority on using attachments for vintage machines to facilitate more advanced techniques. Follow the link below the picture to purchase it directly from her, and maybe even get it signed.

The other book is called One Yard Wonders, and has its own Facebook Page. I won't bore you with a picture, but I will tell you that I have paged through both these books. I consider them highly useful, otherwise I would go for the cash instead. I might change my mind on the second book since I have to wait for payment anyway.
As for the sewing table, it is a work in progress; a lot of progress required!