My Favorite Small Storage Tip: The Pencil Box

While the pencil box is a staple for school supplies, you might not realize how very versatile it can be for storing small objects. Whether you are organizing your suitcase or makeup drawer, consider purchasing a few plastic pencil boxes to store smaller items.  They're inexpensive (especially during Back-to-School sales), stackable, reusable and easy to store.  I stocked up on them a few months ago when they went on sale - 10 boxes cost me just over $3.00.

 Here's just a few ways I've used them to organize and store small items for travel, as well as around the house:

1.  To store decks of cards and dice. (The box pictured holds two decks of cards + dice.)
2.  To organize lipsticks and eyeliner pencils.
3.  To store ketchup, sugar or other condiment packets.
4.  To pack toothbrushes and toothpaste.
5.  To store hair pins and barrettes.
6.  To pack just enough Legos to keep your little one busy at a restaurant.
7.  To store small craft supplies.
8.  To store Barbie or other doll accessories.
9.  Make a mini first aid kit for your car.
10. To organize your junk drawer. Corral loose keys, batteries, birthday candles and more.

I bet you'll find at least five more ways to use them in your home, car or travels!

From Fussy Babies to Stressed Out Adults - Tips for Restoring Calm

The Holidays bring excitement, fun, parties...and for many, stress or depression. Here are a few articles that can help you restore the calm during the Holiday Season (and the rest of the year too!)

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photo credit: sxc.hu/claudmey

Recycle and Reuse This Holiday Season

Make it a point to recycle and reuse this Holiday Season. It's good for the environment, easy on the wallet, and encourages lots of participation from the family. Need a few ideas to get started? Check out some of these:

Save this year's Holiday greeting cards to reuse next year. An easy and frugal way to reuse: Cut off the front cover and use next year as a Holiday postcard. Simple draw a line down the middle of the back of the card to separate the areas for address and message. You'll save on postage too!

With Holiday cooking comes lots of opportunity to recycle and reuse food containers. Glass jars can be recycled and reused to make your own herb infused oils ( a great gift idea), and plastic milk containers can be used for crafts, storage and gardening, among other things.

Here's a tip for recycling/reusing wrapping paper:
Save the cardboard tubes from your wrapping paper this season, and use it to store the paper that is salvageable after the family has opened their gifts. Trim off torn areas, then roll the used paper onto the cardboard tubes to reduce wrinkles. It's easy to store, and saves you money on next year's Holiday Season.

Now IS the Time to Remodel

I received a voicemail message from my client on Saturday... in a nutshell she was THRILLED that her Powder Room remodeling project was moving along smoothly and quickly. My client lives in a coastal community here in Orange County, where 12-18 months ago a 2-4 month wait was the "norm" for just about any type of remodeling work - from painting to plumbing.

This project by the way, was a major "rush" -- literally 6 days to schedule carpeting, painting, and plumbing upgrades ready in time for Thanksgiving dinner!  A feat to be accomplished with no less than three different contractors schedules, not to mention juggling delivery of fixtures and carpeting.  Usually, I would not lay odds that it could be accomplished in such a time schedule (unless of course you have the Extreme Makeover team handy...)  However, it seems the Recession/down economy has freed up some schedules of many local contractors, and has "hungry" vendors willing to go the extra mile to find products, even if that means driving it in from another warehouse 30 miles away.

Last Wednesday, after the wallpaper had been installed (that unfortunately was the one item we couldn't seem to rush), we went to a "wholesale to the public" store that sells bath fixtures available for pickup by the plumber in a 1-day turnaround. We then picked out an eco-friendly sea grass carpeting that was installed on Friday, picked up a fabulous 5 ft. mirror at another store, and scheduled the painter and plumber...all agreeing to be done by Tues. at 5 p.m.  Can't wait to hear what the Thanksgiving guests think!

If you are currently thinking of remodeling a room or rooms in your home and have the budget, there's a good chance you may be able to get your project done on time and without going over budget.  It's a win-win proposition for homeowners and local businesses that have seen a drop in their sales.

Some tips:

• If you can, pick up fixtures and hardware yourself, and pay on the spot. You'll save the contractor's markup and can be assured necessary items are in stock or can be pulled from another location.
• Stick to the schedules you arrange for delivery and installation.
• Make sure your contractors know you can pay in cash at the time the job is completed.

There's Centerpieces...and Then There's CENTERPIECES

I recently wrote an article to share some of the inexpensive Holiday centerpiece ideas I've used over the years. Having budget-friendly options seems more important this year, when so many are scaling back on seasonal entertaining.  

Creating an inexpensive holiday centerpiece for your Thanksgiving or Christmas table can be easily achieved with a few items from your garden or pantry.  With a little creativity, you can create works of art for your holiday table, with little or no money spent. 


Now, having said that...I also want to showcase a cake designer on the East Coast that makes incredibly creative cakes for all types of gatherings, from birthdays to ... yep, you guessed it -- cakes that create a spectacular centerpiece for your Thanksgiving or Christmas table. Check out the Thanksgiving Cornucopia centerpiece cake from PinkCakeBox.com.

Whatever your Holiday budget - I hope you are inspired to create a beautiful centerpiece to share with family and friends.  It's all about the options isn't it? As a side note: I am REALLY thankful that PinkCakeBox doesn't offer shipping to the West Coast! ;)