Fabulous Felt Food

I must confess. I love felt food!

These Twinkle Cakes started it all when I first saw them a year or so ago. Aren't they just scrumptious???!!!

There are so many delicious source of inspiration from Etsy moms who sell patterns for felt food items like these from Gulf Coast Cottage. Even McCall's has gotten into the act.

No worries....there are even healthy items like these Biofina toys from Haba and on sale at Kidsurplus--one of my favorite online stores for great deals on high quality toys.

The kids got these Biofina items in their Christmas sock this past year and really love them!! The petit fours are especially wonderful for playing with our many tea sets.

The ice cream cones are fabulous for playing store because the "scoops" can reverse to alternate flavors if you flip them upside-down.

If this isn't great motivation and inspiration to get rid of plastic toy food I don't know what is!

Fruit and Vegetable Storage - Decluttering the Fridge

The refrigerator and counters at our house really need to be organized!

We need to find ways to keep the fruits and vegies visible to encourage healthy eating but also to keep them fresh.

So I've been asking, "What's the best way to store fruits and vegetables?

• AZ sustainability guidelines via bohemian revolution for freshness
• Live green wear black suggestions for freshness
• Utah State Cooperative extension guidelines for freshness
• High-end funky storage ideas from the kithcn and Chiasso

Containers for common bulk dry food sizes

What size storage containers do you need?

To help find the right glass storage containers for bulk food items, these calculations might help.

Container sizes
8 fl ounces = 1 cup
1 pint = 2 cups
1 quart = 4 cups
1 gallon = 16 cups
2 gallons = 32 cups
2.5 gallons = 40 cups

Flour
1 lb bag = about 4 cups (32 ounces)
5 lb bag = about 20 cups (5 quarts, 1.25 gallons)
10 lb bag = about 40 cups (2.5 gallons)

Sugar (white/brown)
1 lb bag = about 2 1/4 cups (18 ounces)
5 lb bag = about 11 1/2 cups (92 ounces, 3 quarts)

Legumes
1 lb bag = about 2 cups (16 ounces)
5 lb gap = about 4 cups (1 quart)

Rice

1 lb bag = about 2 1/2 cups (20 ounces, under 1 quart)
3 lb bag = about 7 1/2 cups (60 ounces, under 2 quarts)
5 lb bag = about 12 1/2 cups (under 1 gallon)
10 lb bag = about 25 cups (1.6 gallons)
12 lb bag = about 30 cups (2 gallons)
25 lb bag = about 63 cups (4 gallons)
50 lb bag = about 126 cups (8 gallons)

Gallon jars in a file cabinet -- Am I crazy?

More indecision...

My latest brainstorm was to repurpose the 2 drawer lateral file (great deal from Smart Office Systems re-use showroom) as our "baking center."

Then I could store all the jars of dried goods in the drawer and easily pull them out for access. I wouldn't have to lift any heavy jars down off the shelf. And I could set the mixing bowl on the top of the file and scoop out ingredients from below.

Great....but the "Winning Jars" from my research, the 2 and 2.5 gallon Montana Jars are too large to fit in the drawer, although there smaller sizes available from limited sources.

So I'm back to thinking about those gallon "pickle" jars. On the plus side, they are lots cheaper. On the downside, the openings aren't as wide so it's hard to get a scoop inside. Plus, some lids aren't airtight and some lids are downright awful.

But here are some great resources for gallon jars and even some different types of lids.

Speciality Bottle Company -- 1 Gallon Jar (with lid) $3.25; 1/2 gallon Jar (with lid) $2.38

Freund Container Company -- 1 Gallon jar (with lid) $3.95; 1/2 Gallon jar (with lid) $2.99. (You can opt for a variety of lid types. And they explain the differences)

Containers and Packaging Company -- 1 Gallon Jars (no lids) - $2.85, 1/2 Gallon Jars (no lids) - $4.28. Add $.40 to .97 per lid depending on type.

132 ounce square cracker jar with lid -- $6.95 from Storables

127 ounce square cracker jar with lid -- $8.73 from Freund Containers

Decorating on the cheap from the hardware

I saw this idea on HGTV one time and always wanted to try it.



Our Brady Bunch era ranch house has oddly wide windows. Funky proportions.

It's next to impossible to find drapery hardware that fits, especially without having to use those extendable rods (yuck! curtains get stuck on the "hump") or without spending a fortune.

So check out these easy fixes for this problem using steel conduit as a drapery rod!!!

Great instructions and photos from shelterrific.





And an interesting bracket from diggs magazine!


Check out Thrifty Fun for finial ideas and using copper pipe as well as spoons and other household items for curtain hangers.

I wonder if this kind of bracket from Lowes would be the right size for one of the steel pipes.

And while you're working with steel pipe, here's something else you can do with it, courtesy of the Friends of Burlington Gardens. Go ahead, get a jump on spring and start an indoor garden!!

Thimble Garden

This thimble garden from ressurection fern is just too cute for words! Thanks to www.heavypetal.ca for the link!

Radical transformations

It must be the spring weather approaching, or maybe cabin fever finally sent me over the edge, but I'm itching to do something creative in creating our vision of a beautifully organized house.


Of course, I have to get organized first so that I can have the space to be creative!


Just take a look at this radical transformation from a very cool "IKEA hackers" blog. (Those DIYers do amazing things with IKEA products. I loved how one guy turned his shoe cabinet into a laundry bin.)



Some creative folks used IKEA materials like this:


To end up here with some time, decopage and paint:

Play Kitchen

Gotta organize the play kitchen while we organize the grown-up kitchen too, ya know?

Here's a cut little DIY kitchen from stuff around the house from ApartmentTherapy.com's kid's section "ohdeedoh". Check out ApartmentTherapy's other winter jump-start projects submitted by creative DIYers.

MMMMmmm...delicious inspiration for making that pink kitchen Rosalie wants.

Can I start with something like this from (above) and end up with something like these kitchens (below)?

They're cute, bute expensive and made from particle board as I understand from the disappointed consumers/reviewers.

Left to right: KidKraft retro pink kitchen (different retro styles in red and also in silver!), KidKraft pastel kitchen.

Glass pitchers with sealed lids

In our quest to rid ourselves of plastic we've been without a pitcher for some time now. I have couple lovely pitchers that were grandma's but they don't have lids.

But here is a beautiful one from Lehman's store for simple living in Ohio. This pitcher holds 64 ounces, has an airtight lid, and is even made in the U.S.A. It's $14.95. Check them out for all sorts of great products that don't rely on electricity!!

This 67 ounce slim version is available from Storables stores for $12.95

DIY Shoe Storage

I was ready to get the economical shoe storage racks yesterday, but I convinced myself I could save that money for other storage projects.

So I've got to deconstruct those free MSU salvage hutches and rebuild them. Of course, the outdoors is the only place large enough to work on that project.

So today's sunshine and spring-like weather is nudging me to consider this project a real possibility in the near future. Too bad it's supposed to rain all weekend :(

Basic DIY

Here are some great tips from builder, Tim Carter, on building a cubby with pigeon holes:


Cubby hole sizes:

• 9" wide x 6" high x 11.5" deep (works for shoes, slippers, etc.)
• 10" wide x 12" high x 11.5" deep (works for work boots, roller skates, etc. though they may stick out of the front)

Materials:

• 3/4" plywood
• 3/4" wide x 1/4" thick screen stop molding to hide the coarse plywood edge of each divider

DIY for everyone!

Here are more DIY ideas from Domino magazine depending on your level:

(Get it quick! March 2009 is their last issue!)

• Beginner: repurposed bookcase
• Intermediate: demi closet
• Advanced: shoe built-in

More shoe storage inspiration

J-me shoe rack

Ikea trones storage boxes

Bo-Concept shoe cabinet

Reconfigured IKEA Sandnes shoe cabinet

Another repurposed IKEA cabinet.

Apartment therapy.com shoe hallway inspiration

Inspired by J-Me

Make your own shoe rack for $20

Square glass containers!

After counting up the dry goods, I realized I would likely need 20 jars ranging in diameter from 6" to 10". That's a lot of shelf space since they don't stack.

So I made another effor to find square glass storage jars. I never thought of square containers being more space efficient, but this is something recommended by professional organizer Rita Wilhelm of Cluttergone.

Lurking in the corners of the internet were these square storage containers that have silicone-sealed lids that are BPA-free and phlatate-free!

Unfortunately, their largest size only goes to 88 ounces. But that would probably work for the 2lb bags of light, dark, and powdered sugar.

These are from Kinetico's Go Green Glasslock line. Go White. Apologies to non-Spartans.

More food storage help

Cool bags -- More ways to avoid plastic

Make your own re-usable fruit/vegetable bags to take to the grocery store to eliminate even more plastic bag use!!! These are so pretty! I love how they coordinate with the produce.

And this re-usable salad sac is made from 100% cotton to keep your vegies crisp. Seems like it would be an easy sew-it-yourself project too!

And take those old tank tops, sew them at the waist and have a handy-dandy grocery bag to go along with the vegetable bags!

Growing your own food in a small space

Here is a site to help you maximize your garden plantings in a small space




Or get inspired here...

We're also looking at some fruit trees you can grow in containers from Stark Bros. who was apparently a trendsetter in developing miniature fruit trees.

More fun with vertical gardening!!

Shoe storage options

Ikea shoe cabinet -Not as polished as other cabinets but functional and less expensive. ($49.99 for 76" shelf space - 66 cents per inch)





2-Shelf Storage Stacker - Seems to have all the qualities I'm looking for. ($14.99 for 62" total length of shelves - 24 cents per inch)

 White Mesh Stacking Shoe Shelf - This could work if it doesn't rust. I would want to put a cleanable solid surface on the mesh to prevent dirt from falling down on the shoes below. ($14.99 for 31" total length of shelves - 48 cents per inch)

Closet shoe organizer slots - Seems efficient but I'm not sure about the sturdiness factor. They are made from polystyrene. ($83.99 for 56" shelf space - $1.50 per inch)

Tall plastic/metal rack - This is the size/dimension that I want, but this one has terrible reviews since it falls apart easily. ($38.99 for 29' shelf space - $1.34 per inch)

25 Slots with doors - Very compact and concealed, but you have to squish two shoes in one slot. Not practical. We would end up putting one shoe in a cubby, making this a 12.5 pair shoe holder. ($199 for 12.5 feet shelf space - $1.33 per inch)

Shoe rack with casters - It has nice solid surfaces so small shoes and dirt don't slip through to the level below. It somewhat conceals the shoes. ($64.99 for 6 feet shelf space - 90 cents per inch)

2 Tier Shoe Cabinet - This might work. Each family member would need one tier. I wonder if kids' sized shoes fit or if it holds shoes without heels. I don't think it accomodates taller shoes/boots though. ($94.99 for 15 feet shelf space - 53 cents per inch)

3-Tier Shoe Cabinet - Same as above with one extra tier. ($125 for 22.5 feet of shelf space - 46 cents per inch)

Finding the perfect shoe rack

With the phone crossed off the list, the next organizing item is a shoe rack. It could also be a unit that also has room for our accessories that end up by the door.

With Sam's Asian background and my germophobia we're both happily accustomed to having shoes left at the door. It also makes sense...no one would ever get their shoes back into their closet anyway.



Data analyst geek that I am, I've measured our shoe collections to find out how to store the most amount of shoes in the least amount of space.



Being Michigan, it never seems to work to rotate coats, shoes, or accessories by season. It can be any season at any given moment.



So considering, shoes, boots, rollerskates, sandals, water shoes, backpacks, briefcases, sports bags, gloves, hats, keys here's what I'm looking for:

• 24 feet of storage with 7" height between shelves


• 14 feet of storage with 14" height between shelves


• Sturdy construction


• Makes use of vertical space


• Concealed if at all possible!

The stand-alone shoe storage can fit in an area that is 3 feet wide. The shoe + accessory unit can span an area that is 8 feet wide.



Remember those great free hutches from MSU surplus that I was going to use for this project? Well, it turns out that there is too much wasted space between shelves to be efficient. I'm thinking of dismantling 8 of them and reconstructing them into the configuration I need.



I would love to work on that project, but just keeping up with laundry is more than enough of a project in this phase of my life.



So, let's see what existing products might do the trick!

Cordless Phone - DONE!

I think we can cross this item off the to-do list!

We're charging up our five AT&T SL82558 DECT 6.0 phones. Even the packaging was well-designed. I have a good feeling about these. I hope I'm not disappointed.

Search for cordless phone **UPDATE**

**UPDATE** Now we're comparing two models available from Sam's Club, both energy star compliant:

Panasonic KX-TG6323 PK ($69.73/3 handsets, expands to 6)

• PROs: Uses rechargeable AAA batteries instead of expensive batteries. Shows time/date on display.
• CONs: Only 5 hour talk time, but you can keep handset on charger all the time without harming batteries. Have to scroll through menu to change ringer volume or to turn it off and need to refer to manual. Less than excellent sound quality.
• Ratings:
  4.1/5 (9 reviews Sam's Club)
  3/5 (1 review Amazon reviews)
  69-73 Consumer Reports for other KX-TG models. Consumer reports reviewed other models which can be compared to this one at the panasonic site.
  3/5 (13-15 reviews, Consumer report users reviews for both of those other KX-TG models.

AT&T SL82558 - ($99.74 /5 handsets, expands to 12)

• PROs: Intuitive to use and change settings without manual according to users. Had best sound and range of consumer reports models reviewed.
• CONs: No time/date display reported by users. Only con reported by consumer reports was that it has no auto talk but that's a good thing for our house.
• Ratings:
  4.5/5 (14 reviews Sam's Club)
  4/5 (9 reviews Amazon reviews)
  78/100 Consumer report reviews (highest rating in it's category!)
  4/5 ( 20 Consumer report users reviews)
  4.5/5 (33 Reviews Best Buy Reviews)

We brought the Panasonic model home since Sam's club was closing...but it looks like we'll be taking it back tomorrow.

The AT&T model really looks like the better phone for us. Yay! Another step toward a functional house :)

Searching for a cordless phone

Next step in creating order out of chaos....finding a new cordless phone set.

We only have two functioning telephone lines in the house and neither are in convenient locations.

So we need one of those cordless phone sets that allows you to plug into the one phone line and have cordless sets scattered about the house.

We always had horrible luck finding a good cordless phone, but mom and dad got us a super set one year for Christmas. It was a V-tech and lasted forever and had great voice quality. I bought some additional handsets from Overstock and it was a great set-up.

But alas, the phones are on their last leg. I know mom and dad have been through 2 or 3 phones themselves during this time and haven't found any they like.

So I'm on a quest for the perfect phone! Here's my criteria:

• Expandable up to 6 handsets
• Doesn’t interfere with wireless network (dect 6.0 is supposed to be good)
• Shared phonebook across handsets
• Shows when you have voice mail message
• Quality (range, reception, volume, etc.)
• Speakerphone
• Mute and/or hold
• Base has no ringer or ringer can be turned off
• No answering machine or can be turned off
• Can block other extensions if you don’t want them to listen in on your call (e.g. Uniden DECT 2060-2)
• Can press redial on a caller-id without having to manually add “1” if out of area code
• Caller ID with name and number appearing at same time
• Caller ID backlight appears without having to take handset off cradle
• Can "name" each handset and assign to a particular location in the house
• Can search for handsets lost in the house
• Energy Star compliant

So as always, I got to Consumer Reports first.

I'm intrigued by the Panasonic Dect 6.0 KX-TX models. Consumer reports recommends it and Amazon customers give it 4 out of 5. Overstock has a 6 handset model of this one for $150 so that seems like a good deal.

I am also looking at the GE Cell Fusion Cell Manager DECT 6.0 Phone System. This is a phone that integrates your landline and cell phone. I thought it could be a money saver in that maybe we could keep local landline (for emergency use) and use cell phone for all long distance through a regular phone that might be safer than cell phone. But I'm not sure it's ready for prime time yet.

The hunt continues....