Organizing Ideas from Magazines...(Clutter Buster!)

I don't currently receive any magazine subscriptions, but I have received several gift subscriptions over the last couple of years. Add these to the few magazines I can't resist at the check-out stand a few times a year and those passed on by friends and family members, and it could be over-load!

I should mention that I am a very visual--I would much rather work from pictures than words! I usually read articles and books quickly, but pictures or very short notes are what I would go back to time and again.

I am in the habit of keeping a a file folder titled "house ideas", for lack of a better category, on my desk. When I see a project or picture in a magazine (or online) that inspires me, I chuck it in this folder. Periodically, I add the contents of the folder to a 3 ring binder where the ideas wait for action. My loose categories in the binder are: outdoor projects, indoor projects, outdoor decorating, indoor decorating, and food (usually recipes).

So...I'm hanging on to two years of Mother Earth News and Natural Home, but otherwise, I'm clutter-free in the magazine department!

Today I condensed an entire box of magazines into a one-inch binder, with room to spare!

Category: Outdoor Projects...keep a permanent marker handy to mark the project you wanted to remember!

Category: Food

Category: Indoor Decorating

~Leslie

Hang Those Bikes Up!

Needing to save some floor space in the garage? Try these ladder hooks from Home Depot. They are $5/each and work great for bikes (or sawhorses, or hoses, or extension cords, or ???). My husband says these are found in the aisle with ropes, fasteners, and hooks.

~Leslie

Framing Artwork

I am not an artist--I can't paint, draw, sew, or do much of anything crafty. I want to, but I have never dedicated the time to learning, and when I do have extra time, I usually want to get out and see something new or read a good book.

This year, each of our children was given the birthday gift of a room makeover! They got to choose a new paint color for their walls, a new comforter, and some decorations including artwork. My daughter Olivia chose horses, so my mom found a great book of horse paintings at Goodwill, and she cut up the book and framed some great pictures for Olivia. Iris just had her birthday, and she chose to decorate with fairies. We started with a great calendar ($14,Barnes and Noble) and some frames from IKEA ($2/each). By the time Iris and I were done, we had six great pictures for her room for about $36. You'll see some of my other projects (I am a repeat offender). I framed Georgia O'Keefe postcards for a bathroom after visiting Santa Fe, and the pictures with red matting are some cards by a Virginia artist that I liked when we lived there. Note--avoid matting non-standard sized pictures--it's costly!

~Leslie

Recycling Glass (and More) in Cedar Park

Effective 1/1/08, and in conjunction with a new garbage service provider, we were unable to recycle glass in Cedar Park. In its place, we are able to recycle cardboard. A parent at our school kindly shared that glass can be recycled at an Ecology Action site on 1431/Whitestone Blvd.

I dropped off my 3 huge bins (six months) of glass today, and here's what I discovered you can recycle there:

1. paper

2. green, blue, and yellow glass

3. brown glass

4. clear glass

5. aluminum cans

6. tin cans and metal lids

7. aluminum foil

8. #2 HDPE opaque plastic bottles (i.e. orange juice or laundry detergent bottles)

9. #2 HDPE translucent plastic (i.e. milk cartons, water bottles)

10. #1 PETE plastic bottles, any color

Even more (including all plastics numbered 1-7, cell phones, ink and toner cartridges) can be recycled at the location at 9th Street and I35 in Austin! That may be worth a trip once a month or so when you are in Austin to do other things. If you'd like to set up a tour and recycle with the kids, contact John Clement at 512-322-0000 or john@ecology-action.org. Tours available for kids "1 to 100".

For more information about this organization and directions from the Cedar Park/Leander area check out:http://www.ecology-action.org/who-we-are

NOTE that this location on Whitestone Blvd is only open 8-4 Thursday through Saturday each week.

Directions:
Cedar Park (1431 Transfer Station):
2665 Whitestone Blvd, Cedar Park (NOTE: Don't look for a road sign as this is a tiny dirt road on your right as you head weston 1431. Look for the Transfer Station set back from the main road)
From 183 and 1431:Go west 2.5 miles and it will be on your right, behind some trees. If you see HUR Industrial or the Driving Range or the Cartwright Bar-B-Que restaurant, you went too far (sigh).
From Lakeline and 1431:Go west 1.1 miles and it will be on your right, behind some trees.
From Jonestown:Go 3.4 miles taking Nameless Rd. east then left on 1431. It is on your left, behind some trees. If you see a self storage business off to your right, you went too far.

Self-Serve Healthy Snack Boxes for Kids

Leslie's children are almost 8, 4 1/2, and 2, and they are always hungry. To make things easier for the kids, she has established a snack box in her pantry and in her refrigerator. The snacks are healthy and in child-size portions. The kids know that they can get something when they need it, and mom knows they are choosing something healthy. These boxes also come in handy for packing lunches during the public school year.

A clear plastic shoebox is used for the snack boxes. Make sure the box in the refrigerator is at child level.

Some ideas for the refrigerator snack box

baby carrots and ranch dip

mozzarella string cheese or cubes of cheddar

yogurt cups or sticks (Gogurt)

small bags of leftovers such as homemade chicken nuggets and bean burritos, or a slice of cold pizza

washed strawberries

mixed fruit (pineapple chunks, watermelon, cantaloupe, grapes)

celery sticks, or celery sticks and peanut butter sold in the store

cucumber slices

pepperoni slices or hard salami and cheese cubes

pudding--make sure that the pudding doesn't contain trans fats

100% juice boxes--4 oz

small water bottles

In the pantry, larger boxes or bags of dry snacks are portioned into individual ziploc snack bags.

Some ideas for pantry snack box:

bags of Goldfish crackers, Triscuits, or Wheat Thins

cups of apple sauce, especially sugar-free berry applesauce

pretzels

Chex Mix

peanuts

craisins

raisins, small bags or small boxes

homemade snack mix (usually the end of boxes of dried cereal, prezels, Goldfish, peanuts, maybe a few semi-sweet chocolate chips)

fruit leather

Fritos

dried apricots

sesame sticks (from the bulk section of the store)

shelled sunflower seeds (from the bulk section)

pumpkin seeds (tamari-flavored are great in the bulk section)

Healthier Paints (by Leslie)

RecentlyI decided to try some of the new paint that contain no VOCs (volatile organic compounds) in the paint or the dyes. The paint worked great, and there truly was no smell! At about $12 more per gallon, this is a green choice that does not pack a huge financial punch!

I chose "Organic Garden" from the Freshaire Choice collection sold exclusively at Home Depot. There are 66 natural colors to choose from, and several finishes. I was pleased with the eggshell finish for the downstairs powder room.

If you call the number on their website, you can even receive 3 free samples in the mail!

http://freshairechoice.com/

Recycled Wine Bottle Soap Dispenser

We think Martha Stewart may have been our inspiration for this soap dispenser about ten years ago. Simply clean a wine bottle, and soak to remove the label, if you wish. Add liquid dish detergent, and top with a pour spout. Pour spouts are easy to find at Target and other retailers for a couple of dollars (http://www.barsupplies.com/tapered-metal-pourer-p-290.html). Leslie used a Texas wine bottle in this example. You actually use less detergent pouring with a pour spout!

The Best Fabric Softener Ever

The reason that our laundry isn't soft when we skip fabric softener or dryer sheets is actually because all of the soap residue hasn't been removed during the washer rinse cycle. We've found that the best fabric softener is actually vinegar! That's right--white vinegar.

Simply add about 1/4 -1/2 cup white vinegar to a Downy ball, or to the softener opening in your washer. You'll find that your clothes, especially towels, will come out of the dryer feeling fluffy. Don't worry--your clothes won't smell like vinegar! Vinegar is a healthy green alternative to fabric softeners that are full of chemicals and perfumes. When purchased by the gallon at under $2, vinegar is also economical!

Sorting the Unending Laundry

After trying many ways to sort dirty laundry without covering the entire pantry/laundry room floor, we stumbled on this easily modified system from IKEA. These pieces are part of the "Antonius" series (http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/categories/range/10364/11468/). Ours sits adjacent to our LG washer and dryer, and makes use of otherwise wasted vertical space. These bins, when full, hold an extra large load of laundry. They slide in and out easily for sorting and unloading.

The recipe for our organizer configuration, with part numbers and price:

One silver frame 700.200.23 $9.99

One silver frame 901.200.22 $6.99

5 Drawers, transparent 13 gallon 301.012.34 $10 each

Hanger, 6 knobs 400.584.47 $3

Project Total: $69.98

The labels, made with a Brother label maker, on each of our five bins:


1. Whites
2. Black
3. Colors
4. Pink and Red
5. Khaki, Gray, Denim