Preparing for Thanksgiving Day Dinner

One week away before its Turkey Day (corny, I know)…

Is the panic starting to set in yet?

Are you freaking out trying to get it all together?

Or maybe you haven't even given it a thought yet…

until now that I've brought it up!

A Renovated Cabinet

Way back in August, when I was taking a road trip to Atlanta with my daughter, Kelly...

while she was busy working...

I was busy shopping (with one of my sisters)...

who knows all of my favorite shops near her house.

And that's where I found this little guy....that I knew right away... was coming home with me.

Other than a little broken tip on the bottom.....he was in pretty good shape (on the outside).  

 It had this contact paper that I ripped out and was left with lots of old glue to sand away.

After sanding and painting and sanding and painting....I decided it was just too plain solid white so, using painters tape, I added some color to the doors and top.   I used the same "Zen" color that matches my desk and wall.

For the top, I placed a piece of tape at the edge and then a second piece right next to the first piece.  Then I removed the first piece which left me with the areas that I wanted to paint "Zen".  When I was painting the stripes on my office wall, I learned a great tip from Melissa @ The Inspired Room that keeps your lines crisp looking.  Simply paint over the edges of the tape with the base color that you are painting before you paint your accent color.  It seals the edges!!!

I also added a few Command Hooks on the inside of the doors to hold my "go to" umbrella and a couple of other items that I always seem to be looking for.

I moved the white organizer from my desk which frees up much needed space for me but is still easily accessible on the new cabinet.

The handles were replaced with coral ones that match my credenza.   This time they were on sale at Anthropology for $2.95 each.

Love when I feel like I got a deal!

I just love the way adding a little cabinet...

all the way from Atlanta....

completes me....well, my office.

Supplies Purchased to complete this project:

Second hand cabinet $30

2 door handles $6.43

Total cost = $36.43 

Supplies already on hand:

White Paint
 "Zen" Paint
 Painters Tape
Sander
Hooks

P.S. I was not compensated in any way by Command Hooks or Anthropology.

October Challenge Reveal

Does anyone remember....

            way back in late September....

                     I announced that October's makeover challenge was Guestrooms?

If you feel like that was light years ago...you aren't alone.

It doesn't matter how super organized you are, sometimes life is going to throw you curve balls and you have to stay calm and know that everything will be right where you left it...

no apologies necessary....

just waiting for you to come back and share some love.

Even Mr. Bumble Bee is welcoming me back with open arms...or wings...

I was having so much fun filling the room with things that make me smile...like this photo of a heart shadow reflecting on an old tree that my daughter, Katie was inspired to shoot.

And then...

here's where I left off...

The lovely shots of the umbrellas on the beach (courtesy of Better Homes & Gardens) are actually suppose to look like the DIY chevron patterned one in the middle.

well...and maybe a few personal photos instead.

For now...I will enjoy it just the way it is...open wings and all!

A Heavy Heart

First, I want to say thank you to my loyal readers who are still out there reading this and have been wondering where the heck I have been.

I'm back, but with a very heavy heart. 

Unfortunately, we lost a true angel since the last time I was here.  My husband's, mother passed away on October 16th after an illness that required surgery.

She was recovering well and all indications were that she was going to be fine.  However, much to our surprise (and the doctors), in the early morning hours on the 16th, her heart gave out and she was taken from us.

It has been a difficult time for all of us, especially for my husband, Calvin, as this was his last living immediate family member.  He lost his sister and his best friend (his dad) about six years ago within months of each other.

His mom taught us a lot about many things, but mainly about love.  She would often say "love is about putting others needs before your own."

So please bear with me as I will be spending a lot of time taking care of her affairs but also supporting my husband, Calvin.  I will try to post as often as I can, but can't make any promises in the immediate future.

Having now lost both sets of our parents, we find ourselves in somewhat unchartered waters.  As I venture through this next stage of our lives, I hope to share little bits of her with you just as I have done of my own mother.

I was blessed to have known such an angel and so thankful for all of her love and wisdom.

Kim

Fall Home Tour

Grab a cup of coffee and a slice of pumpkin bread and join me as I take you through part of my Fall-filled home.

Many holiday traditions are made in this dining room.  I usually pull in another table and chairs so that we can all dine together in the same room.  One of my many traditions is party crackers.  They are usually filled with paper crowns and small trinkets that entice lots of smiles and laughter.

The glittered leaf napkin rings were a gift from my daughters.  They add just the right amount of sparkle to the table.

I filled my white pedestal bowl with faux gords and pomegranates that I purchased from Hobby Lobby several years ago.

 Placing a fall floral stem on my DIY burlap wreath added color I was looking for to pull the table together.  The little red cardinals on the small pumpkin won my heart and had to come home with me.

Last year I decided to let go of my decorations that I had for the fireplace mantel and I opted to go simple this year!  

Mrs. Squirrel is all dressed up and waiting patiently for some yummy fall acorns to drop at the harvest. 

This year I found a Gathering Squirrel Scented Wax Warmer along with some fall scented wax melts like "Crisp Fall Leaves" and "Warm Baking Spices" (from Wal Mart) to fill the room with fall scents.  Isn't it funny how a certain aroma can remind you of holidays spent with family and friends?

Thanks so much for taking my Fall Home Tour with me.  I hope you enjoyed it and maybe got a jolt of inspiration to decorate your home.

Kim

linking up to Katherine's Corner

October Challenge

It's That Time Again!

Time to get ourselves organized in another area of our home and for the month of October, I have chosen:

Guest Bedrooms

(p.s. If you don't have a guest bedroom, you are not off the hook!)

Choose an area of your home that you have a tendency to put off organizing!  One of my guest rooms is definitely that area for me!

In particular, the closet...yikes!

As you can see, this guest room closet gets quite the variety of items thrown into it.


So pick your guest room or spot and challenge yourself to really clean this room (or other area) really good. 

Before you get started, take pictures please for your before & after!


Get boxes for Trash/Keep/Donate/Sell.

Remove everything from under the bed, nightstands, dresser drawers, closets and any other storage/cluttered area in the room.

Purge the items into one of the boxes.

Ask yourself if these items are really worth keeping.  After all, how long have they been tucked away?  Did you even remember they were there?  Can you live without them?



Remember one key to keeping your home organized is having a place for everything.   You may want to consider adding shelves in a closet or on a wall if there are items that you want to keep. 

Now that you have the room cleared, give the room a good cleaning.

Wipe down the baseboards and windows.  Clean the fan blades and light fixtures.

Clean the linens (including bedskirts).  This is a great time to flip the mattress.

You might want to change the paint color or add a fresh coat.

Maybe it's time for rearranging the furniture.

Once you have completed the cleaning, then have fun reorganizing and decorating your room.

After your done, it's picture time again!

If you want to be featured on my blog, please email your before & after pics to me at oisfororganize@gmail.com and tell me how you completed the process.

It will be so worth it when you're finished!

Happy Organizing!

Kim

10 Minutes to Happiness

Do you ever have days where you feel so overwhelmed when you come home from work or school or running errands (for some of us it's all of the above) to a bit of chaos?

And, it's everywhere you look...

...the bathroom still has stuff out from this morning because little Johnny had a boo boo on his finger that needed Momma's attention that only she could give, or...

...that load of clothes you put in the dryer (yesterday) haven't magically folded themselves and been tucked away.

 Even though it might look overwhelming, it's pretty neat (pardon the pun) what 10 short minutes will do for you!!

Today, I chose my desktop and inbox in my office.  You can choose any small project that YOU would like to tackle.  Just make sure it's a small one!  The goal here is for YOU to find a little happiness in 10 short minutes!

Don't try to tackle the entire room.  You will get such a huge bang for your buck if you just keep it small!  

There will be plenty of other days to tackle the bigger picture.

So....look around...

            go ahead...

              finish that snack...

                  put down the techno...

                         choose YOUR spot...

                               set the timer...and  GO!!!

Be sure and come back to tell me what you did!

You are already AWESOME!

Happy Organizing!

Kim

Master Closet Reveal

For as long as it has taken for me to post my reveal, I should have a completely renovated closet with built-ins and chandeliers!

Not so much!

I've just been super busy in other areas of my life and my blog has been neglected.  So thank you for hanging in there and coming back!

Moving on to the reveal....

I was so excited to redo my closet that I forgot to take before pics but trust me when I tell you it didn't look anything like this!

  

The center shelving unit originally only had five shelves.  My awesome sister, Pege came in town a few years ago and helped me install four more shelves which now holds my pants.

About six months ago, I purchased this blue & white contact paper for another project and ended up not using it.  I love how it brightens up the shelving unit and the closet.

My everyday shoes used to sit on those shelves that now hold my pants.  I added this "over-the-door" shoe rack which works much better.

This is a shot of the right side.  This side holds my dresses, robes & scarves. 

 Winter hats & gloves are stored on a shelf in one of the clear containers along with boots and larger scarves in the other two.

I put rarely worn hats on the top shelf because I need a step stool to reach them!

The two beige and cream containers on the floor hold my purses and small travel bags I use for toiletries and jewelry.

 I love this idea I found on Pinterest for hanging scarves and had to incorporate it into my closet. 

Here's a look at the left side of the closet.  This side holds all of my tops & blouses on the top rod and sweaters and jackets on the bottom.  There is a shelf in between that I lay my overnight travel bags on.

The shelf on the top has baskets that hold small hand bags and less frequently used shoes.

So, it's certainly not Oprah's closet but I am thrilled with the changes!

Since September is already halfway through, I will start the monthly challenge up again for October!

Happy Organizing!

Kim