Kitchen organization ideas

This weekend a good friend came to visit and she brought the most fragrant lilacs from her garden. The flowers brighten up the kitchen (SMILE). Wish you could smell it too. Hope you like it as much as I do. (AND IT DID NOT COST ANYTHING AT ALL!)



Since I am on the subject of kitchens, I would like to share with you some kitchen organization ideas and tips from my own kitchen.

1) Multipurpose use of a bookshelf
The window would have been wasted space and so, place a shelf or small bookcase in this small nook. The bookshelf is now a place to keep recipe books and also display some kitchenware such as cups, bowls, plates and stemware. So, be creative & use what you already have in your home.



2) Containers
You can store your pasta, rice or cereal in air tight containers and display them. This way, the food will be kept fresh while adding some visual interest in this little nook. Here, I have pasta, rice, walnuts, dried mushrooms in containers. I also added a basket to make it more interesting. You can arrange some recipe books on this shelf as well. The options are endless.

3) Other stuff
What to do with all the tea bags and sugar packets? I found these boxes with built in dividers to organize them. Keeps it fresh and neatly organized. No more rummaging through drawers or boxes.



I hope you'll find these organization tips useful! I would love to hear your ideas and comments.


Happy organizing.... Just remember to Keep it Organized, Keep it Simple!!

More colors, please......

A continuation of my obsession with painting the insides of a bookshelf. You can even do it with kitchen cabinets. Here are more examples. LOVE IT!!

Just a little pop of color!

A SIMPLE way to make a ordinary bookshelf look custom and give the room a pop of color is to paint the back wall. You can also add wallpaper or even just tape your favourite wrapping paper to the wall. Cut the paper to size and tape it in place. SIMPLE, right? And the best part is that it does not cost a lot. I have done it with my bookshelves and LOVE IT! Here are some examples I found....

From Baby's room to French Country retreat....

Believe it or not, this room was a baby's room with bright Winnie the Pooh yellow and bright blue (YIKES!). It was great for a baby but not great for a grown-up's bedroom. So I set out to create a relaxing space. I was going for French country. Found the toile bedding at Target with matching window treatments (HUGE SCORE!).

Also, built some bookshelves above the radiator. It draws your eyes to the high ceilings and adds height to make the small bedroom feel airy.

Total cost was under $200 (I got the comforter set on sale!)

Dining Room: Before & After

Here's a case where a little touch of design and organization brings a dining room to life. The dining room was a good size and had the beautiful detailed moldings of an old Victorian house. However, it felt cold and uninviting. I wanted to bring in some warmth and create an inviting ambiance. In this case, the basics were there but it just needed some key pieces and re-arranging to give it a cozy and inviting feel.

BEFORE
Too many chairs cluttered the space.

The walls were bare and felt cold.

The clutter on the fireplace did not showcase the beautiful fireplace.

The picture above the fireplace is too small and is lost on top of the fireplace.







AFTER
The large mirror on top of the fireplace brightens up the space and focuses your attention on the beautiful fireplace. The scale of the mirror is appropriate for the large fireplace.

The dining table and chairs are centered in the room.

The rich color of the rug warms up the space. The rug is placed in the center of the room to define the area.

A small bookcase is placed in the corner. Makes good use of the space. The bookcase was brought in from another room.

Above it some beautiful artwork fills the empty wall. I found the artwork at an antique store (wasn't expensive at all)

This project took a little time to find the right pieces to compliment the space but the end effect was fantastic! I LOVE IT! When it came time to sell, I added two BIG topiaries on the fireplace (one on each side of the fireplace), and also a screen for the fireplace. The cactus next to the fireplace had to go... bad Feng Shui.

Just remember to Keep It Organized, Keep It Simple.

How to start your closet organization project

It's finally SPRING and what better time to start SPRING cleaning than now. Time to switch out the sweaters and boots for tank tops, shorts and flip flops. In Boston apartments, the closets are tini-tiny. What's a girl going to do?



Here's how to get started:

STEP 1 - Remove all clothing items and shoes from your closet. (Yes, I mean EVERYTHING!)

STEP 2 - Sort all clothing items into three piles - 'KEEP', 'TOSS', 'DONATE'. Go through every piece of clothing. A good rule of thumb is that if you have not worn it in the last 6-12 months or if it has holes, it's time to let it go... 'DONATE' it. If it is torn and can't be mended, 'TOSS' it.

STEP 3 - Next, take a good look at your shoes. Honestly, do you really need THAT many pairs? I say, Quality vs. quantity. Stick to the classics but once in a while, throw in a trendy pair.

Step 4 - Once you have sorted through everything in your closet, it's time to put it back in its proper place. ONLY the clothes in the 'KEEP' pile will go back into the closet. First, organize by season - Fall/Winter and Spring/Summer. Since it is spring, only the SPRING/SUMMER clothes will go back into the closet. Put way the sweaters and coats. Keep them in a box and label it.

Step 5 - Now for the 'DONATE' pile. Place the items in a box or bag, and take it to your local Goodwill or women's shelter.

Step 6 - As for the 'TOSS' pile, dispose of it.

Just remember to 'Keep It Organized, Keep It Simple'.

My (inexpensive) closet project

The front hallway closet in my Boston apartment is small but it still has to hold all my shoes (yes, I love shoes), coats, jackets, gloves, scarfs, boots & all other stuff. I completed this project when we moved in about a year ago. I did want to spend a lot of $$ on custom built-in but I still wanted it to look organized & attractive. I LOVE how it looks now.....

Here's how I did it:

• COATS & JACKETS - Replace all wire hangers with wooden ones. Return the wire hangers to the dry cleaner. They will love you for it. Plastic and wire hanger may not hold the weight of your winter coat, or it may distort your garment


• SHOES - Use a shoe organizer. I found this one at IKEA ($9.99 each). Here I have two hanging on each side. You can hang them side my side as well. I like to arrange the shoes with one facing out ad the other facing inwards. This way I can see the front of the shoe and the heel.




• BOOTS - Line them up at the bottom. To keep the boots from falling over, I stuff them with a rolled up magazine. This helps keep the shape of the boots for next fall/winter season.




• GLOVES & SCARFS - I found matching drawers at IKEA what fits into the shoe organizer. Brilliant, isn't it? They were a steal for $4.99 (pack of 2). I placed one drawer in each organizer. The drawers are great for storing gloves and scarfs. I also store shoe polish or wax.




• ALL OTHER STUFF - Again, I found this matching box from IKEA ($14.99 each). You can get a few and line them up on top. I didn't have much space so, I just have one. I also stack the shoe boxes of new shoes that I just bought on top.

Let's break it down and see how much this project cost :

Shoe organizer (2x) - $19.98

Drawers - $ 4.99

Box - $14.99

The total came up to $39.96 (plus approximately 2 hours of organization)

HAPPY ORGANIZING. Just remember to Keep It Organized, Keep It Simple!

A Blog is Born

Today is the start of my new blog. I am combining my love of organization and design into something that I hope will help you find inspiration in organizing your surroundings and living in elegance. I live in downtown Boston where every square inch is a luxury. So, I have learnt to be creative and very organized. I use my home as an experimental lab to test different ideas. My desire is that you will find inspiration in my work as I share with you my organization tips and ideas, and help you simplify your life.

I am not sure what else will be included this blog but I look forward to hearing your comments and thoughts.