Make Room Challenge

The Make Room Challenge Week 4–The Craft Room

- LMN Leave a comment

I’ve already shared my shame with the internet when I shared the state of our bathtub and the state of my dresser.  Ooof.  So what’s a little more online humiliation, right?

MRC_crafts1

This is my craft room… studio… office… whatever you want to call it, and yes it’s looked that pretty much since we moved in.  Sure it’s been slightly more tidy off and on, but it’s always returned to this state.  If you’re wondering where my computer is, it’s a laptop I keep parked in the living because this.  Awesome, huh?

The biggest culprit is probably my jewelry supplies.

MRC_crafts5

I got one of these bad boys for Christmas last year and it’s wonderful and stack-able, but a little pricey for as many as I need.  I picked up a couple more (1 tiny, 1 small–the “small” is what’s shown here) for smaller beads since it’s sooo nice to be able see them all at a glance.  The fancy case isn’t necessary for all my stuff–findings, wire, tools–so I picked up this guy last time I was at the hardware store.

Love the drawer sizes and adjustable dividers… not lovin’ the uber industrial look.  I already had some white spray paint on hand for my radiators, so I hit it with a few coats of that.

MRC_crafts3

If you think this and the container units are the extent of my jewelry supplies you are very, very wrong.  I have 4 full cubbies of my Expedit unit crammed with beads, wire, and tools and could easily use another 10 of the container units, but will probably work in more of these drawer units because they are WAY cheaper.

MRC_crafts2

Still a long ways to go, but better right?  The closet is still filled with boxes that I need to go through but I’ve also cleared out tons of stuff and rediscovered my floor so I’m calling this a success.  The room is going to be a long-term project for sure, but it’s at least no longer completely overwhelming.

 

 

 

The Make Room Challenge Week 3–Entryway

- LMN Leave a comment

Ooof… this one was badly timed…. although I suppose we currently have tons of room in our entryway.

MRC_week3

Heck, we don’t even have the door taking up space!

Mail is one of those areas that tend to get out of hand for us pretty quickly.  Usually every weekend we stare down at the small mountain of mail on our table, sigh resignedly, and sort through it.  Most is of it is junk mail and just gets tossed, but we still pile it back up every week.

Part of my goal with the entryway is to (hopefully!) streamline our mail system.  I’m thinking a wall sorter (his-hers-ours) and a trash can immediately on hand may help.

Our coat-closet-that-is-also-a-vestibule needs a little work too.  We already picked up supplies to add some shelving and I’ve resigned myself to purging my coat collection.

That’s all going to have to wait until after everything’s painted though so no After photos for you today.  I’m lame, I know.

Week 1–The Master Bedroom

Week 2–The Master Bathroom

The Make Room Challenge Week 2–Master Bathroom

- LMN Leave a comment

Last week I tackled clothing + accessories, this week was supposed to be accessories.  Oops… looks like I’m an over-achiever.  Because we don’t have a “master” bathroom (only 1.5 baths in the whole house) I don’t really keep my jewelry and whatnot in there anyway, but I do have plenty of other stuff I can organize and purge.

You’ve probably heard that everything in your bathroom has an expiration date, but, like most people, don’t really care.  If you’re trying to crack down on your household organization though, it’s time to care (added bonus is that you won’t have to worry about nasties growing in your toiletries).

The quick-n-dirty guide is as follows:

  • You haven’t used it in 12 months
  • It’s past the expiration date
  • It’s empty or nearly empty
  • You don’t need it any longer

Even if you’re still using it, my understanding of cosmetics is pretty much if it’s older than a year, it’s time to replace it.  Not too hard, right?  If you’re deposing of medication, try calling your pharmacy to find out what the disposal guidelines are.  I sat on some Vicodin left over from my wisdom teeth surgery for years because I had no clue what to do with it.  Another note about medication–if you can try and store it somewhere not the bathroom.  Lower humidity and minimal temperature variance tend to be better for just about anything with an expiration date.

MRC_week2_bath2

This is everything I did away with.  Daaaang it feel good!

MRC_week2_bath1

And I tidied up the bathroom closet because it was starting to get a little jumbled.  I’m working on our hallway closet too, but that’s still a little bit of a dumping ground.

I’ve also finally developed a system for quick and easy bathroom cleaning.  Seriously. You’ll still want to rotate in a deeper clean occasionally, but for for your average cleaning or oh shit my mother-in-law will be here in 5 minutes moments this is pretty sweet.

First I squirt some cleaner in the toilet bowl to give it time to sit and work its magic.  Next I spray some windex on the mirror and an all-purpose cleaner on the sink, tub, and toilet (or any other surfaces you may have in the bathroom). Then, working from cleanest to dirtiest (ie mirror, sink, tub, toilet) I give everything a good wipe-down with a micro-fiber cloth.  Toss that cloth in the laundry, scrub out the inside of the toilet bowl and BAM done.  All in around 5 minutes.  I have it ever so slightly easier because of the claw-foot tub (ie no tub surround), but even wiping down tiles or shower doors shouldn’t add a ton of extra effort.