Some of it is my own doing, not having a battery recharger for my camera, not having anything to say really, ya know??......and life getting in the way of plans, but I'm back and I do hope to be posting more often again.
I have been busy learning, and honing my skills and talents. Some days are better than others as you all know.
But in this post I want to share some pics of my organizing. Lots of pics coming......
I have wanted to live in a place that has all the space, storage and closets that can store everything we need for life, but alas, I live in a house that has only one closet 36" wide, thats it. The. one. closet. No basement, no garage, no shed, no attic to speak of, nothing else. Sooooo, we have to be stringent and frugal in the spaces we use and how we use it, keeping everything looking neat and organized at the same time. I do not have the house I want, but that doesn't stop me from being as organized as I like to be.
Recently I did the fridge and under the sink. I was sooooo inspired by this woman Nikki from youtube......who is off-the-charts organized and classy in her taste and style.She fired me up.
This video and seeing her fridge drove me crazy! lolol, I just had to have this. Her advise was really good and I've incorporated a couple of her ideas. I am not this good, but I am good enough for me. :D
She does own way more stuff than I do, but I still was so inspired to organize and beautify even those areas that typically don't look pretty. Well they can look pretty :D:D:D.
I also couldn't stop looking at her Under the Sink video,
which I also organized rather quickly. I just love her house in general especially her kitchen.....omg.
But I will just share some pics of what I've done.
First the fridge:
I took stock of what needed changing, what containers I needed for what then went shopping.
Then I took everything out, composted things we don't use, then cleaned the fridge from top to bottom, till it was squeaky clean. I washed with a vinegar and water mix, then scrubbed, then washed again with an essential oil blend, till it was shiny. We took out the shelving and racks, took them outside, and cleaned and scrubbed and bleached what we had to and rinsed with the hose and left to dry in the sun. When all was dry again, we put them back in.
I bought some shelving liner cause I wanted it pretty and I thought this was my own idea and it was, but I had later seen some pics online with some who use it, lol. I bought a couple of things I knew I wanted to change like the cheese container. I was using a simple basket but our cheese collection out grew it and I wanted something bigger that would hold it better and pull in and out, like a drawer.
So I took stock of my specific needs for the fridge and the freezer, made some mental notes, and went to the Dollar Tree for some containers, which they do have quite a collection. Normally I do not do plastics but I felt in the fridge there would not be much of a plastic scent and so far so good but I do keep those cheaper plastics reserved for the freezer. I also browsed through Bed Bath and Beyond for ideas and picked up a few things there. It did take some tweaking as to specific things but everything worked out great. I found what I needed in both stores, including a few things from walmart, like the beverage containers and shelving paper and a box of 1/2 gallon mason jars for $10 ! to store greens in as I found they do store better in glass.
When coming back in from shopping and hauling all those huge bags of containers and shelving etc, I panicked and wondered what the hell I was doing trying to organize and minimize and bringing INTO the house all this STUFF! ?? I worried about this for a bit but then pursued it until I was done and saw that organizing indeed, paradoxically does create more space and appear more organized and neat and all those things I brought into the house makes mundane tasks simpler and more efficient and prettier! Indeed!
I am not the best photographer people, so forgive these amateur pics, but you get the idea.
Fridge emptied and cleaned sparkling.
I have noticed that when the door opens and closes some things move around so I got some shelving from Dollar Tree to place in the door areas to keep things in place. I also found in Bed Bath Beyond some place mats with matching coasters which I used for certain things.
I love the containers in all sizes and colors that are available, but for the fridge I only wanted either clear or aqua which is a fresh color. Some containers can be found in the vanity section of Bed Bath Beyond, and in bathroom section or shoe storage, one must look at everything for a perfect fit.
Shelves back in and the shelving paper in with place mats on the middle tier.
The rubber shelving does keep things from slipping in the door and the containers keep things tight.
I have glass jars and glass containers for most everything. Now when I buy something I remove the packaging, and recycle it, reuse it or trash it, contents go into clear glass, unless they have colors that match the fridge like these coconut waters :D:D:D But olive, pickles, most things go into a glass jar and I label everything with Dissolvable Lables
which are a dream cause they simply dissolve in the water and there is no fighting with them. I love them......found in the mason jar sections of Walmart or Target. I do not label what is obvious, only what cannot be easily seen. I do use them alot.
I keep my homemade daily fermented kefir on the left with the 1/2 gallon mason jar filled with fresh organic milk behind it to refill.
Then I keep my bottled water which has a bit of herb extract and wet dose arnica for pain in it to drink throughout the day. I even keep a fresh flower arrangement in a jar for prettyness, can you see it? In the celadon ceramic I have homemade Hazelnut Butter to add to my faux coffee if I need it or to add to make my new love Hazelnut Coconut Cream, OMG people! All natural creaminess and so healthy you can eat as much as you like.....I'm having it with peaches :D:D:D
The middle shelf gets the Cheese container which I got from Bed Bath and Beyond, it is a drawer. Next to that are two egg containers, one is kept with hard boiled eggs for quick meals and Provence Salad, and the other is uncooked. Next to that are my Fermented Tomatoes with garlic and basil, and next to that is my Beauty Mineral Broth with Seaweed which I love love love and is my morning or evening drink. When I am done with the contents of these beverage jars, I wash them and put them back in the fridge, remember I have no other space to store them, and in the fridge it is easy for me to access them when I made another juice, broth, or tea, the jars are there and I never use up more space than I have. Next to that is a blue spray bottle for those awful hot flashes in this summer, I spritz myself with the cool water then use a hand held fan.
On the bottom shelf I keep enough space free to store leftovers and other things which get moved around. In this case I have Apple Juice on the left, then I have leftover kimchi veggies which we are using in a fried rice dish, then some leftover Provence Vinaigrette, then a round glass container with those lovely peaches with a container of the Hazelnut Coconut Cream on top of that which is my latest breakfast and dessert, then some more fermented Heirloom tomatoes, and a jar of Strawberry Lime Kombucha in a small mason was left over.
In the bottom drawers I keep my veggies like cauliflower and juicing veg.
This is the freezer door. I got some containers to keep things held in since that bar going across the top level doesn't do a good job, one for, *ahem, cough cough*, candies, and the other for those odds and ends the housemate brings home from Whole Foods. And the lower part got two containers, one for frozen bananas which I use for smoothies and the other for frozen veggies, which is not much cause I eat mostly fresh. In between them I keep the Organic Spelt bread I've been enjoying grilled with butter and avocado and dashes of tobasco, a new love :D
The freezer....... got those cheaper plastic green bins with covers from Dollar Tree, a dish container from Walmart, and shelving from Walmart. Each is labeled with those Dissolvable Labels you can find in the mason jar section of Walmart or Target. Shelving critical for creating double space. There are a few empty bins for things yet to come. The middle is full of frozen fruits and berries for Kombucha and smoothies.
Then I did under the sink......again, everything taken out, cleaned out then shelving paper added and two more place mats just like the ones used in the fridge. bad pic bad!
Got bins from various places, but my favorite is the metal mesh drawer I got from Bed Bath Beyond. John picked up two behind the door racks which we cut off the part that hangs as I thought it looked ugly when the doors were closed and they moved a bit....then we affixed them to the doors with hooks so they don't move around. Everything I need fits in here neatly and like a puzzle. In the middle I have extra storage containers which match the fridges' aqua colors :D.
I make all my own cleaning products, but then John will bring home clorox wipes, and not just one but a 3 pak!......which I do not like but since he got them, I will use them up until they are gone but no more, I do not like so much waste in disposable things and chemicals to boot! I make my own cleaners with either vinegar and water and essential oils or with alcohol and water and essential oils, that is all. Then I make a spray bottle with more essential oils to spritz the counters with at the end of the day. I've been doing this for decades. Recipes can be found all over the internet if you google DIY cleanings recipes etc.
A brilliant thought came later when I realized I don't have good lighting but wanted a cheap and easy way to light up dark corners, including my bedroom closet..... so I went to Lowe's and bought the cheap 3 pack puck lights, which are working like a charm. I originally preferred and tried the moving sensor ones which you have to wave your hand in front of to turn on, but all three of them expired within 2 weeks. Puck lights it is now. 3 pack for $10.00.
In this side of the door, I keep the mix of Lemon Spritz to finish the counter cleaning with, the cloth, and large stock bottles of peppercorns and salt.
In this side we keep the saran wrap and foil. John hated wrapping things because he had to always bend down and dig into the back of the cabinet so he didn't do it, so I figured if he didn't have to bend anymore he'd wrap things properly so I told him to get these door hangers and we'd keep those there. He loves not having to bend!!!!
Bravo to you if you lasted this long lolol.....sorry, its been so long since I posted and I just got lost in this, but also wanted to show you how lovely it is to have things neat, organized and pretty, working efficiently and properly. I don't have time nor patience for inneficiency so this had to be done. Now things work smoothly and even for John, who knows where everything is and is feeling rather proud.
Next week I hope to be continuing, with no more jokes from the Grand Universe, my Beautification Series. It will be about a homemade cream made with Niacin and it works!
Till next time, blessings of Beauty and Health!
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