Quilted Tote Bags

I know it’s Christmas and believe me…I’m feeling the pressure to get things done on my Christmas to do list, but today is Anti-Procrastination day. That means it’s the day to do something you’ve been putting off. Of course, that is unlikely to be something on my Christmas ‘to do’ list!  Three of my sweet readers won quilted tote bags the first week of November on my Blogiversary (Yipes!), which means I need to quilt those bags…ASAP!  Thanksgiving kind of took over before I realized what was happening.  But I haven’t forgotten my winners! :o)

So today, before I head off to the Houston Blogger Meet Up this evening (7:00pm at La Madeline’s in The Woodlands), I’m going to spend the day finishing up those tote bags. I’m hoping to get FOUR in the mail tomorrow morning when I run errands.  I also need to sew a shower curtain for my friend Laurie, but I may not get that finished until tomorrow evening. 

        

Then I can work on our Christmas cards, family photo, and sleep bags for the nieces and nephews with a CLEAR CONSCIENCE! Sometimes, it’s so hard to really enjoy the holidays, because there is something sort of ‘hanging out there’ undone that we know is really important. So today, I’m stopping the ‘holiday train’ to do this very special task.  

Actually, I've been procrastinating much worse than this if the truth be told. Aunt Joan, Angela, and Nanamom..I'm so sorry that I'm still behind on your projects...but the antique quilt blocks, Great-grandma's postage stamp quilt, and the last couch cushion covers will have to be January projects. I AM going to finish your projects too. :o) I promise!  You'll be famous..IN January! Sigh..talk about procrastination! Yipes!

It will be fun thinking of my friends NannyKim, CountryMama and Cindy of RickRack and Gingham today while I work. 

After doing one for Linda of The Briar Rose Gate (which I’m sending in the morning) and my secret sister, I’ve finally found a better method for appliquéing the blocks to the bags. Practice always helps!

Is there some project you have been putting off that is keeping you from feeling like you have a ‘clear deck’ for working on holiday tasks? Let’s get it done today! There is plenty of time to do what you need to do. Just decide what is truly important and leave the rest to work itself out or not. 

What project do you need to do that you’ve been procrastinating on? I’ll be cheering you all the way!

Happy Homemaking!

Get Your Bathroom Sparkling Clean!

Sometimes I honestly think that the need for a sparkling clean bathroom is genetically predisposed towards the female gender. What do you think? How many of us cringe at just the thought of using a roadside bathroom while traveling, yet my husband assures me that the men’s bathroom is FAR worse! Horrors!

My daughter and her four teenage brothers shared one small bathroom for years. (She’s still sharing it with two teen brothers now.) She always took it upon herself to clean it, as their attempts to do so rarely lived up to her standards. How could I blame her? She was the only one who seemed to notice the dirt! So she is permanently assigned to that room and she feels much happier with the arrangement.

My father used to regularly entertain me with an unremitting litany of despair as the deacon in charge of  facilities at his church. He had the fun task of cleaning the boys’ bathroom at the Episcopal church school he was responsible for. He often asked me,

“What do little boys DO in the bathroom?”  

(Since I had four boys of my own, he assumed I was an expert on the subject.) He swore that he found evidence of messes far higher on the wall than most small chaps could ever reach and he could never figure it out.  Ha! He raised a family of girls, so no wonder he was in the dark!

I’ve heard from a certain male relative, whose name shall remain anonymous to protect the innocent, that he and his brothers once held a competition to see who could hit the highest.  End of that mystery…  I will never forget the day that I read Don Aslett’s wonderful tip for keeping the toilet clean when little boys are involved…  Turn off the water supply to the toilet, dry the inside, paint a red dot with fingernail polish and let it dry. Your troubles will soon be over. Boy we he ever right. Thank you Don!

I remember quite well attempting to clean our bathroom when all four of MY boys were little. It seemed a hopeless cause. No matter how well I cleaned, it seemed that I could not get rid of the smell!  But one of my first and favorite vintage homemaking books, How to Keep House by Mary Davis Gillies, assured me that if there was odor..than there were germs…somewhere! My job was to search and destroy.

She said that many times, young homemakers try to hide smells with scented candles and air fresheners but that the best way to make a house smell good..is simply to clean it.  Diapers, urine, spoiled food, pet accidents that haven’t been thoroughly disinfected, and even vase water all cause odors caused by germs. If you don’t remove the culprits, and thoroughly clean the area, you will have bad smells in the house that no amount of air freshener can remove.

When I began to regularly clean the WALLS beside the toilet and behind the toilet and even higher (Yipes!), the smell was gone. It was not enough to clean the toilet or even the surrounding floor.  Years later, we found that the men’s bathroom in the school where we hold church once a week was beginning to smell very badly.  As a deacon chairman’s wife, I felt it my God-ordained ‘duty’ to ferret out the cause.  Of course, you know where I started…walls..plain and simple.  (I guess the custodian couldn’t figure it out either-Ha!) Voila! No more odor!

Here is Mrs. Davies instructions for…

How to Clean a Bathroom

Feel free to ignore anything that seems excessive, but here were her instructions from 1948.

1. Using a disinfectant and brush, clean toilet bowl. Wash the top, bottom, and hinges of the seat, clean tank, metal fittings, and base. put a few drops of disinfectant in bowl; a pine scented type is pleasant.  (I use Pine Sol.)

2. Polish all metal faucets and parts. Dry to prevent water spots. (Use windex or alcohol and water.)

3. Scrub sink, tub, and shower with comet or baking soda.  I use soap afterwards if scrubbing with soda. Wipe off strainers with a paper towel.  Flush with hot water. My favorite products are Showers and Stuff or The Works. Try lime-away for very hard water, but don’t use on stainless steel.  Be careful if you have unusual metals involved.  Use a pumice stone for the worst build up.

4. Wipe off windows, mirror, and light fixtures. (Again, windex or alcohol and water are great for this job.)

5. Wash down tile or marble walls with soap and water or all purpose spray. Use a soft brush on painted and wall papered walls. Dust frames and backs of pictures.

6. Scrub floors; wipe off bathroom scales. (I spray floors with 409 and wipe with paper towels or you could use a mixture of a tablespoon of Borax, a few drops of Dawn dish detergent, 2 T. vinegar to a spray bottle of water.  This is just basic all purpose cleaner. You can use it in the kitchen too!) Jeff Campbell of Spring Cleaning by The Clean Team suggests using paper towels and just spray and wiping the floors. I’ve done this for years. Most bathroom floors aren’t that big!

7. Replace towels.

8. Empty and replace wastebasket.

9. Clean and replace rug or carpet. (I wash them weekly.)

Now…light a nice smelling candle or burn a scented oil. The bathroom will not only LOOK clean and SMELL clean..but it really will be Sparkling Clean!

Click HERE to Print the List.

This week, those of you who follow Flylady’s monthly decluttering routine, like I do, will be decluttering the bathroom, so I thought this list of cleaning tasks would be helpful. I plan to thoroughly clean my bathroom this week..and work on decluttering 15 minutes a day.

If you’d like to get in on the fun and join us on our weekly cleaning adventures,
just drop by FlyLady’s website.

Happy Homemaking!

FlyLady Tips: Transforming the Masterbedroom and Closet~Zone 4 (Step by Step Tutorial)

This week, we Flyladies, are working on Zone 4, the master bedroom and bathroom (and closet). I didn't want to do this, I can tell you. I didn't believe that I actually could do it!  I took the BEFORE photos with a firm belief that since I had been putting off this job for THREE years, that taking photos wasn't going to motivate me to truly declutter my bedroom. It meant a lot of shuffling, giving away stuff, and going through buckets and boxes.  All stuff that I just didn't want to do.

before

The best way to transform the appearance of any room is simply to put away the mess of course. That goes without saying. And I just can't believe that I'm going to take the plunge and show you REAL before photos of my bedroom. I have a huge list of excuses..but, really, you know how crazy life gets around here sometimes. So I think you will understand why I took advantage of a closed door to stash a bunch of stuff in my bedroom.  I'm certain that none of you have ever been tempted to do this..right?  Of course not, so just enjoy the smug feeling that comes from never letting things build up by looking at my mess. Tee-hee!

after

before

Meanwhile, for the rest of you, I thought I'd share a few tips for how I cleaned this ridiculous mess. Step 1 is simple enough--straighten the room.  I put away the laundry--obviously..and the movies, junk mail, shoes, clothes, glasses, tissues, and other misc. items. That was the easy part. While I was at it, I cleaned the room too. I dusted, emptied wastebaskets, and vacuumed all the dust bunnies out from under the bed. Did I tell you that I hate laminate flooring? It drives me crazy!  This is the stage where most of us usually stop. We've gotten used to the excess stuff that has temporarily housed itself in our bedrooms. But not today!

after

before

Step 2 was to throw away the junk. Honestly, it's amazing how many things I just needed to throw away. I don't know why I saved boxes for shipping or shipping peanuts! So I threw away all the obvious stuff that could be pitched. Old craft projects had to go too!

after

before

Step 3 was to put away stuff in other rooms where it belonged and deal with it in THAT room. This was a biggie! The photos needed to go in the living room, not in our bedroom!  I knew that meant making space in the living room in a hutch I have, but fine. That's what needed to happen.  Cushions,  fabric and items to be shipped to blogging friends or family did NOT belong in our bedroom or closet.  (Christmas presents are fine. :o)  Luggage goes in the closet. And so does the vacuum cleaner and the board games for Christmas gifts. I hate to say it, but this hutch was storing a lot of stuff that should have been in my closet. And there was the problem.  The closet was full of junk that  just shouldn't be there.

Our closet ....after.

 Our closet...before

Step 4...Declutter the dreaded CLOSET! I had to do this, or I wouldn't have a place to store things that belonged there. They would STAY in the bedroom, keeping me from having a pretty room.  I've been putting off decluttering this closet for YEARS. But the day had come and if I wanted a place for blankets, luggage, and seasonal clothes, I was going to have to remove the boxes that got piled in my closet from the last move. I had to remind myself of what the purpose for the closet really should be. Then I would know what should be removed.  I decided to force myself to pull out EVERYTHING and go through it one bag or box at a time.

  

 Closet shelves...After

  Closet shelves..before

 Most of it could be thrown away or given away. We filled many many bags and boxes with stuff. It had all been put in the closet 'for now'.  Then I only put back what NEEDED to be there..like clothes, shoes, blankets perhaps, and yes, Christmas gifts. I culled my clothes out and boxed up the spring and summer things for next year. That way I only had fall and winter clothes hanging. This helped a lot since dear hubby and I share a pretty tiny closet!

after

before

Step 5 is  VERY important and perhaps PAINFUL. Get rid of furniture that takes up too much space. Accept the space you have and work with it. Ebay or Craig's list it or just take it to your local thrift store. Or give it to a friend who needs and could use your stuff.  I removed the TV on the stand--sniff!..and the matching end table. It all went to the truck. (Thanks son!)  That allowed me to move my gold chair and rearrange the furniture a bit.  

Step 6--Load all the giveaway and drive to the thrift store. Finish purging any left over piles.  We will be having quite a bonfire this weekend because we had LOTS of old papers and records that need to be destroyed and school papers we don't need any more either.

Yes, I still have stuff left over that needs to be decluttered, purged, and given away. But it's not in my bedroom closet. It's in a tame little pile. I left it in the way ON PURPOSE because I knew it would bug me.

 click for larger photo

Step 6...is painting the room. Now that  my bedroom is beautiful, all it needs is PAINT.  And Maria Killam of Colour Me Happy chose just the right shade of green for this room.  If you want a great color consultation for the whole house, she's the one you need to visit. It's worth every single penny. How I wish I had time to start painting right now, but the estate work is still taking up most of my time, not to mention THREE birthdays this mont, family visiting and a square dance convention. Some things are just going to have to wait. But maybe...this November!!

It feels so spacious now!

A Note about Babysteps..

Well, I hope this little 'demo' helps get you going on your master bedroom and closet. I want to add just a little bit of extra info here. Nannykim made a very good point. Flylady, encourages us to work on our zone in babysteps. The reason I pushed all the way through here, was to give you a 'vision' for what the transformation can look like. What will the end result of your efforts be? In this post you can see where you are headed.  But don't try to do this all at once. Work on Step 1 the first day, so your room will be clean for the week. Then spend the rest of the week on Steps 2 and 3. Next month, tackle the closet for the week...etc. I've left links to my major posts about the rooms on my sidebar so you can come back to them.  Unless you just have a big 'break', like I got this week, you may not be able to do all of this, but that's OK. Just keep working on it and in a few months, all of your rooms will be lovely. :o)

And don't forget to join my giveaway. I'll be announcing the two winners on Nov. 1st.  Let me know if you have any questions or need advice about your bedroom. :o)

 
Happy Homemaking!

FlyLady Tips: How is Your Sewing or Office Storage doing?

This week would be a great time to straighten the office. Don't you think? I spent several days last week doing just that. I hadn't actually intended to declutter the sewing cabinets and office stuff (both in the same room). But when a dear friend offers you a fabulous new desk but needs it out by Saturday night, well, guess what you're doing? That's right.

One fringe benefit of this lovely desk, was that I could now have all my precious homemaking, sewing, organizing, and crafting books, plus lesson planning and devotional material in one easy to reach location. Pinch me--is it real? 

Boy, is it ever true that you have to make a mess to clean a mess! And if you want to rearrange furniture in this room...well 'mess' is an understatement. In order to get that beautiful desk into my sewing room, we had to not only re-arrange all the furniture, but also empty every piece out and re-organize it. 

Originally, we had the boys on two computer desks, which were portable tables (2 x 4') and I also had a big  folding worktable in the middle of the room. I have to tell you, that  my knees got weak and my stomach started churning just thinking of the amount of time and brain-work that would be required to make this transformation.  But oh, was it ever worth it!

Of course, I 'volun-told' (a Marine term) the boys to help. We had to unplug and reassemble THREE computers and all accompanying accessories. Yipes! The boys were just thrilled of course. "Certainly, Mother--anything you ask! Our pleasure!"  (I'll spare you the actual response. Ha!) Thank goodness, those desks and table could all be removed.

Now we had to empty both mine and Rebekah's sewing desks and give them to the boys.  One fringe benefit is that all the boys'stuff' was removed from the file cabinet under the printer, which could now be used for files. That emptied a few drawers of my desk. Which made room for patterns and Rebekah's projects. 

The worst chore was taking everything from both the huge Ikea cabinet and the 'sewing' cabinet, declutter it all and re-organize both pieces of furniture in some semblance of order.  It took half a day to do it, but now ALL our sewing stuff and ALL our office and school materials are paired down and stored properly.

And the IKEA cabinet is now full of sewing supplies and fabric. It's organized in five general divisions based on frequency of use: Quilting at the top, then craft supplies, applique, yarn, and sewing.  The lower drawers all have fabric bolts and quilting and cutting boards.

While I was at it, we converted the 'laundry sorter' shelf which we never used, to a current projects shelf. (Oh my! I think I'm in trouble. That's an awful lot of current projects. Perhaps, I don't quite understand the meaning of the word 'current'. Hmmm..)

 

Now, if only I was done.  But alas, we still needed to give Rebekah a place to sew. I had removed half the stuff from my 'desk' including my files to the little file cabinet under the printer. My computer and all the rest of the stuff was waiting in piles in the bedroom to be put into the new and larger desk. 

  

I was like a kid in a candy shop watching my dear hubby assemble the desk. I must admit that he was VERY skeptical that we would ever be able to squeeze it in. (Actually, he told me later he just did it because he loves me. What a sweetie!) When life hands you a desk...you gotta make room--and I did!   My sewing and computer are all on the same desk.  Now I can lesson plan, pay bills, sew, and blog...all at once. It's a multi-taskers' dream (or nightmare).We'll see...

Are you ready for some decluttering and re-organizing? What state is your office or sewing storage in?  I hope you are inspired to take the plunge and get rid of a few things. Let's adopt the Sidetracked Sisters' motto and "Dare to Dump It!"

Happy Homemaking!