the little things

procrastination.. over!

My mission for today and tomorrow.. the pantry.

Our pantry started off beautifully when we moved into this house.. it was actually my mom who is responsible, she organized everything into baskets.. jars, you name it.. it felt like a little store when you walked into it.  It was glorious.

Then it became this.. for which I am responsible.  It is a disaster.

So sorry mom.  I promise to restore it to it's organized glory.  The shelves actually aren't that bad, just needs a little tweaking, we have restocked our pantry since moving in.. so things are stuck here and there... but the 'bones' of that organizing is still good.  See mom, not all of your hard work has been buried in mess.

It is actually what is below the shelves that concerns me.

Oh my gosh.. no words.

I had this vision of a row of wooden crates along the bottom/floor.. full of the kids craft supplies.  Easy for them to pull out to use at the kitchen table.. should be great right? Well.. time to make it a reality.  We have been here since March and the only thing unpacked is their crayon jar.. only because it was never really packed in the first place! The colouring books you see here are new ($1 each at Michaels!!).. cardstock came from my stash.. the box is full, and there is another box and bag downstairs.. waiting to see the the light of day once again.

Today.

I found these bins and baskets at Winners.. I still hope to grab a wooden crate or two to mix in.. but these should hold the bulk of their craft stuff... and play food etc.

It is a wonderful pantry.. huuuuge, and a walk-through from the garage door.. which is just genius in my opinion.  If you can walk through it that is.. it is kind of like an obstacle course these days..

So.. why am I blogging this?  To hold myself accountable so I actually get it done!  Those bins.. been sitting there for over a week already.  Plus.. summer vacation is finally here.. and seems to be the month of never ending rain, so we need some crafting time darn it!

A few months ago, James and I got ambitious and made a 'family organization centre' on the one wall.  With a basket for incoming mail.. chalk board for grocery list.. bulletin board for newsletters etc... oh my gosh, I can only bring myself to share this one picture..

That is supposed to be just 'incoming mail' ..you know, where it all goes before it gets dealt with and filed properly.  OUT.OF.CONTROL ..seriously ...seriously!??

Must come up with a system.. maybe make it a late night project and open up one of those bottles of wine up on the top shelf!? ha ha!

OK.. going in... NOW!  ..wish me luck.. ;) 

a little closet makeover.. curtains for a door

The master bedroom closet is set up a bit differently than we were used to in this house. Our last house had a walk in closet, that had a regular bi-fold closet door off of the bedroom. This house has a smaller 'walk in' off of the en suite bathroom.  With no door.

Which is fine, if your closet is gorgeous, and all the clothes hang just perfectly.. you know, all matchy matchy with the decor (rolling eyes).. soooo not the case for us. 

Here is a before..

Can you say clutter? lol  It stressed me out daily.  Didn't bother James one bit.  I envy him sometimes. ha ha!  I tried to leave it as is.. I really did, but the vision of a nice soothing bubble bath looking out at the closet.. was enough to drive this basket case a little crazy! ha ;)

Since the closet has a pretty arch way entrance.. a regular door was out of the question.. didn't seem right for this space anyway.

So we hung some curtains! 

Better, yes?

When we planned this out, we thought that having to pull aside curtains (they split in the middle) to get in and out sometimes might be a pain.. especially when we are in the 'try a million things on' mode.. me, not James (ha ha)... so we added some curtain tie back hook thingies (what are they called!?) on the inside.. to hook them out of the way.

They do the trick wonderfully..

I still have dreams for this closet.  It might include fun wallpaper, or wall colour.. a chandelier (surprise?) ..and of course built ins ..oh, and wooden hangers ....oh oh oh, and dream wardrobe of course.  OK.. there might be a reason that this image is just in my head, and not being shared on the blog ha ha!  Baby steps right?

This closet almost seems like an afterthought when it comes to the floor plan.  We loooooove that it is off the bathroom, to us.. that just makes sense.  But the space is definitely lacking.. not so much storage, but is still definitely workable.. the 'walk in' aspect though, not really there.  More like walk in a step and scooch sideways to get to the rest.

Oh well.. it is just a closet.  We will make the most of it.. by making it super pretty of course! hee! ;)

curtians.. Jysk, curtian wire.. Home Depot, holdbacks... Home Depot

crazy boy

This boy is four now.  To me, that is just nuts.. it was just yesterday that he was my little baby.  Right?

This boy is a dare devil.

This boy likes to glide his run bike down the driveway in the pouring rain, and splash in the puddles at the bottom.

This boy has his mom standing at the bottom of the driveway (in the pouring rain) to make sure he doesn't glide right onto the road.

This boy got a bike with training wheels for his birthday.. but still likes to pull this one out of the garage so he can just ..gliiiiide. 

This boy was soaked.

This boy has dimples.. that can scare me to death and melt my heart in the same instant..

This boy is trouble. 

This boy, at the age of four.. has me scared to death (see a recurring theme here?) of the the stunts he is going to pull when he is a teenager.. since he will likely grow up to love motorized toys as much as his daddy.

This boy keeps me on my toes.

This boy can glide on his run bike all he wants.. cause it means that he is indeed still only four.

*sigh*

home tour: the 'kids' bathroom

Hello everyone.. Is it too soon for another little home tour?  I hope not!  

I had snapped a few pictures of the kids bathroom on the same day that I did the laundry room.. (they are side by side and were both surprisingly clean!) ha ha!

There used to be a towel rod above the vanity, but the kids had to climb the toilet to get to it (which was pretty silly).. so we took it down and hung this cute little hook instead (used to be in our old playroom as well).  Much more practical for the kids.  And besides, doesn't having to climb the toilet to get to the towel kinda defeat the purpose of washing hands in the first place?  No matter how clean I could manage to keep the toilet.. that is just ew. lol

I have a soft spot for these little woodland creatures..

I could put them in any room. hee!

Oh, and can I just say how much I loooove that there is a window in this bathroom!?  It looks out right at the neighbors bedrooms though, so I bought one of those film/overlay kits.. and it has a nice frosted glass look now, all the light and privacy too!  

Some of this artwork is covering nasty holes left by the old towel road ha ha...

Canvas was bought at Winners, wooden frames are from Ikea (bought forever ago).. squirrel print is made by me, yellow deer is from this 2Peas digital kit (by Jennifer Pebbles).. and word art is from a VOL 25 overlay set (so fun)!

Hambly butterfly overlay, which I just slid under the mirror clip..

Adds a bit of fun to an otherwise simple frameless mirror!

This is another room in the house that pretty much got entirely 'new' decor.. I went 'shopping' from our hall closet, where most of our pictures and 'wall things' are living at the moment.. yes, still.. most of this was from our old playroom (we don't have a playroom in this house).. shower curtain was used years ago and was found in the back of the linen closet when we were packing (not a lie.. forgot we even had it! ha)... the little animal figurines were used for Laine's birthday party last year.  Can you tell that I have been loving using stuff we already had in a fresh way?

Yes.. refreshing, perfect way to describe it.  I am looooving this part of the moving process, getting to decorate and set up home all over again! hee heee!  We all knew that I would though right? ;)  

home tour: the laundry room

Does it seem like these house shares are coming in the most random of orders? lol  Well, they probably are I suppose.  So far I have shared the front entry, my craft space/office, Laine's room.. and now the laundry room!?  Ummm.. what about the living room and the kitchen dining rooms? ha ha!  I dunno.  Those rooms are just too much pressure I suppose. Probably because they are never perfectly clean.. or I still want to change out a few lights.. or hang more pictures... or or or... ha ha!  

Laundry room = smallest room in the house, which = usually clean, which = easiest to take photos of at this moment in time. hee.

I love love love that our laundry room is upstairs with the bedrooms in this house, makes the process of laundry sooo much easier.  Since laundry is my least favourite thing to do in the whole entire world.. this is a good thing.  Our last house had main floor laundry, which was the same floor as the bedrooms then too.. but it was at the opposite end of the house, and for some reason just didn't work as well as this one in this house.  

Because this room is right at the top of the stairs, it is the first thing you see as you are going up to the second floor.. I wanted to make it pretty.  I didn't want to always be shutting the door to hide it, since it has a fairly large window and brings in so much light and air flow.  I wanted to keep the door open, but still have it feel like the rest of the house.

Simple things like open shelving and a light switcheroo really helped with that.. in my opinion anyway.  Oh.. and the nice oversized basket that holds (and hides) the laundry soap and other such things (paper towel, stain remover, iron..) ..I use the same products over and over anyway, so I really tried to simplify which things I actually needed to keep on hand.

See.. laundry left in the dryer.  I took these photos a few days ago, and I think that same load is still in there.  Don't judge. ha ha! ;)  

I scored this mini chandelier 50% off at Canadian Tire of all places!  Yes, all non Canadians are probably thinking "a tire shop!?" lol ..it is kind of like a mini Walmart ..sort of, they have all kinds of home goods.. but do focus more so on automotive and camping/outdoor stuff.  I have found a few gems there in the past though. ;)

Is a chandelier in a laundry room weird? ;)

Our kitty (or should I say Laine's kitty) eats in there on top of the dryer.  The reason.. the dogs have no manners and chow down on it as soon as nobody is looking.  No manners at all. Jeesh.

Oh.. and gotta love $3 Ikea rugs...

Shelves and curtains are from Ikea too.. you probably figured that though huh!?  Laundry really does feel like less of a chore now.. who would have thought?  

This is definitely a room on a budget (other wise this little makeover probably wouldn't happen.. cause really, it is just a laundry room right!?) ..so so worth it!  Here is a bit of a breakdown on spending (not including washer and dryer though.. which we brought from our last house)..

• shelves $17 each for a total of $34
• brackets $2.50 each for a total of $10
• rug $3
• curtains ..can't find them on the Ikea site, but I think they were $40
• light $50 (got it half price, regular $100) 

SO that makes a grand total of $137.. not too bad for shelving, curtains, a rug and a cute little chandelier right!?  Everything else we already owned, and was used in other areas of our last house.  When I packed up before the move, I deliberately packed all decor items together.. instead of what room they had come from.  I knew that I didn't necessarily want things to go back where they were.. like the clocks were in our last living room and in my old office, but look super cute as collection all on their own.. in a random spot like the laundry room!

Who says a laundry room can't be pretty!? hee heee!

pink inspiration

I have been meaning to do a post all about inspiration for Laine's bedroom.  You see, I blame Pinterest.. somebody really should have warned me! ha ha  Kidding.. no way could I do without a little daily Pinterest in my life now!  

I have made a pin board for each of the kids rooms.. all of our rooms and many other boards too in fact! ha!  Here is Laine's pin board.  Some of the images are things she already has.. and some are colour inspiration.. or DIY projects to try.  Just plain inspiring! 

Like here is some artwork that I would looove to work in to her room sometime..

sources.. clockwise from top left... growing horns (leahduncan), antler drawing and flower photograph (kariherer), my heart to your heart (leahduncan), and small bear art print on wood (dolangeiman)

Also in love with quirky elements like these trays on the walls (we even have one like these in her room already.. sitting on her desk!).. and white painted tree branches, I am thinking a DIY jewelry stand someday?

photo sources.. trays (here) and branch (here)

And then, of course there is the abundance of crafting and DIY ideas.. seriously inspiration overload.  Every time I turn around, there is another idea or project that I MUST try. 

sources.. adorable stuffie patterns from little dear (must get one.. or a few of these hee!), lampshade from anthropologie (sorry anthro.. I might have to do a DIY take on this one), hanging hearts (under the sycamore), lights (the cherry blossom girl)  

You were probably thinking her room was done right?  Yeah.. I was kind of thinking so too, until I went on to her Pinterest board where I have stashed all these inspiring images.. and all of a sudden I am thinking to myself "oh yeah! I wanted to do that.. and that and that and that!" ha!  Oh my.. is it ever really done?

Anyhoo.. as you can see, I finally put together a post about all things pink.. what do you think of these favourite images and art work?  Pinterest is a dangerous dangerous place.. but ohhhhh so gooooooood!

stitching elements (carina gardner at 2 Peas)

probably should have been doing something else..

Yes.. many things I should have been doing this morning... like.. vacuuming, or walking the dogs.. anything really... but instead, I found myself making a cute little keychain!(???)  

Random right?

Harley and I ended up on a lazy 'no point' shopping trip yesterday.. and of course, one of our stops was Michaels.  We were going through the aisles when I spotted the 'Vintage Groove' jewelry line by Making Memories.  Until then, I had never seen it in person.  They had very limited selection.. and most of it was on clearance!  Crazy!

So I bought a few pretties.. some chain, and some other random jewelry stuff and brought it all home... spreading it all out on my desk within 30 seconds of being in the door.  I kid you not.  

..and it sat there until this morning, when I was desperately looking for a reason not to go get the vacuum out. ha ha!

And then after that.. I might have made myself a necklace too... and it might match the keychain (kinda) ..which is probably weird, probably one of those fashion no no's, huh? Like seriously, who matches their necklace with their keychain!? hee!  Oh well.  

I see a new addiction coming on! ..do I need another!?

home tour: miss laine's room

Ready for an overdose of girly!? 

Things really came together in here these past few days.. I *thought it was all finished, took photos.. got them on my computer, and then decided to switch out rugs.. hang a different picture, add new scrapbook paper to a few frames.. blah blah blah!  

The rug used to be in our living room, but we had switched in a new grey shag.. so this was rolled up waiting to be put to use.. it is perfect for in here!  "So grown up!" ..that is what Laine yelled when she saw it. :)

The light.. looking kinda little. ;)  Still thinking I might add another garland to it.

This might be my favouritest pillow ever.

On of my desks that got repurposed into her room when we moved in.  She loves loves loves that she has a desk now.

Her current curtains are from the children's department at Ikea.. she has been hoping to phase out all of her 'little girl room' stuff, so when we spotted these ones from Anthropologie while perusing the internet one day.. we both thought they would be perfect. Price tag.. not so perfect. lol  We might need to keep looking. ;)

Yeah.. there are a lot of photos. hee!

We love Michaels for random things like pink feathered birds that we can stick in lamps. ha!

In Laine's world.. everything needs to be pink (including her Blythe doll).. so sneaking in things like yellow birdhouses, well.. it has to be just that.. snuck in! hee!

Pom poms are Martha Stewart.. except the brown one, which I made from scratch.

Lot's of pink and all things girly.. the walls will probably eventually be painted.. a soft pink with grey tones.. or would it be grey with pink tones?  Honestly, I kind of like the colour it is now.. balances out all the colours nicely, we'll see.  It will be a winter project if it does happen though, too nice outside to be stuck inside painting! ;)

The one thing that is a must.. a very near future MUST... blinds!  It stays light until almost midnight here in during the summer, we neeeeeeed blinds!  

Okee dokee.. gotta run!  Busy afternoon ahead!