Category Archives: Organizing

Flea Market Finds: Linens

22 Monday Apr 2013

Posted by in Organizing, Vintage

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

Linens1 Linens2 Linens3
One of my usual searches at flea markets is for vintage linens in good condition.  I get especially excited when I find unused vintage Irish linen napkins with the original label still attached.  Linen lasts forever and washes beautifully in the machine.  For tough stains I pre-treat with Dr. Bronner’s liquid soap.  We use the cloth napkins at mealtimes and the dish towels for drying the dishes afterward.  I find that if we have paper towels and napkins at our house that we use a ton of them.  The linens save paper and make dinner seem a little fancier.  I found these napkins and Ireland dish towel at the Brooklyn Flea this weekend.  The booth owner even washed, pressed and tied the napkins with twill tape.  All 11 napkins and the towel came to $20.  Bargain!  Ebay has some pretty vintage napkins here and dish towels here.

Charcoal Water Purifier

12 Friday Apr 2013

Posted by in Likes, Organizing, Vintage

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

PitcherCharcoal
I have been trying to escape our habit of keeping a Brita pitcher on the counter.  It makes our water taste better, but the unattractive plastic container hurts my eyes.  I came across this Kishu Binchotan Charcoal at Dry Goods in Brooklyn last weekend.  (See my post about my new favorite store Dry Goods here).  This charcoal is actually just a piece of ceramic-like burned wood, charred at super high temperatures.  The charcoal absorbs impurities in the water and makes it taste much better.  The Brita and many other filters use the same charcoal technology.  But these Binchotan sticks look better and don’t come ground up and housed in disposable plastic.  (Technically NYC water is safe to drink without a filter, and we had ours tested to be sure there is no lead in our old pipes.  But I grew up with well water and I like ours to have that similar taste).  I boiled the Binchotan Charcoal for ten minutes per the directions, dropped it into my vintage ice tea pitcher and let it sit for a couple of hours.  I was thrilled to find that the taste is as clean, and even better than water from the Brita.  This glass pitcher is a welcome addition to our countertop.  Ebay has a great number of inexpensive vintage glass pitchers here if you want one of your own.  Cheers!

Spring Cleaning: Wooden Cutting Boards

03 Wednesday Apr 2013

Posted by in Organizing, Projects

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

Board1 Board2 Board3 Board4 Board5 Board6

It is that time of year.  Time to tackle all of the little projects that show themselves in spring’s light: Window Washing, Quilt Airing, a good Floor Cleaning…I like to give our wooden cutting boards a good scrub with lemon and salt.  The lemon removes odors and the salt helps scrub away stains.  To clean your own wooden cutting boards you will need:

*Salt

*Lemon

*Baking Soda (For tough odors)

1. Cut lemon in half.

2. Sprinkle salt on lemon.

3. Scrub and squeeze lemon on board to make a paste.  Add more salt as needed to cover the board and rub in a circular motion.

4. Allow salt and lemon to dry in the sun.

5. Wash and repeat if odors still linger.

6. For really tough stains or smells, add baking soda to the salt mix and scrub.

7. When boards are clean, allow to dry in a sunny window.

Now on to the windows…

You may also enjoy these cleaning posts:


MirrorBrooms1

Gram’s DIY Scrapbooks

21 Thursday Mar 2013

Posted by in Inspiration, Organizing, Projects

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

Gram11 Gram10 Gram1 Gram2 Gram6 Gram9 Gram8 Gram7 Gram13
My Great-Grandmother made these amazingly obsessive scrapbooks for us when we were kids.  She cut each image out of newspaper and constructed the pages from more newspaper sheets.  There were six great-granddaughters in our family and she made a thick volume for each of us.  I worked with Woodside Press in the Brooklyn Navy Yard to construct an archival box for our book.  My Gram lived through the Depression as a widow with three children, yet she was the most loving and giving person I knew.  She could not pass a yard sale without bringing home treasure, (I think that is genetic).  She would give away anything she owned if someone admired it.  Gram used to save string from her teabags and egg boxes for our chicken eggs.  Here is her wool blanket – (one of my favorite things).  I wrote about my own scrap books here last week.  When I get a free minute to do them, my paintings are collage – no doubt from her influence.  I strive to find beauty in the humble and to appreciate the simple joy in daily life.   I hope to teach my children to be thankful for their good fortune.  But I don’t think I can compare to Gram.

Crayons For Little Hands

11 Monday Feb 2013

Posted by in Organizing, Projects, Shop

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,


CrayonsThere is nothing quite as perfect as a pristine box of Crayolas, but little hands tend to snap the thin crayons quickly.  Josie will sit for an hour peeling the paper wrappers off of Ada’s crayons, (thus instigating a big fight).  This is our little kid crayon box – the shapes and sizes work better for smaller hands and they are all less breakable than the classics.

*Crayon Rings  ($5.99 for 6)

*Short Crayons (Similar to ours – $5.99 for 12)

*Stubby Crayons (Similar to ours – $7.99 for 18)

*Animal Crayons ($11.49 for 12)

*Crayon Necklace ($10.50)

*You may also like these kid art supply posts:


Ada'sSketchBookClayBeads3TapeHouse1

Keeping House: Flowers

17 Thursday Jan 2013

Posted by in Organizing, Projects

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , ,

Flowers1Flowers2Fresh flowers make everything better, in my opinion.  These Casa Blanca lilies are one of my favorites.  Casa Blancas are fragrant and will last for more than a week.  We get ours for $5 a stem around here.  I like to buy lilies when their buds are closed and watch them open a little more each day.  Each Casa Blanca stem is so full of flowers that we often cut off singles to put in small vases for the bathrooms.  Our Bluebird of Happiness pitcher was an $8 flea market find.  To make your lilies last longer:

*Cut flower stems and place in water as soon as you get home.

*Be sure to add flower food to the water.  (Ask the florist for a couple of packets).

*Remove pollen anthers as soon as each bloom opens.  (If you miss picking one before it gets messy and fuzzy, use a pipe cleaner to dust pollen off of petals).

*Change water every four days.  Recut stems, add more flower food and be sure stems are submerged.

*Remove old blooms as they fade.

Enjoy!

Early Winter Spring Cleaning: Vinegar, Baking Soda and Baby Oil

14 Monday Jan 2013

Posted by in Likes, Organizing

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

MirrorWe spent the better part of our weekend on spring cleaning. (Yes, I know it is only mid-January), but I’ve felt in a bit of a funk since the holidays ended and a major house cleaning always makes me feel better. The luxury of child-free time to myself to do a major overhaul feels like meditation to me. It clears my head. While Chris took the girls to the park I dug through junk drawers, washed windows, did some secret toy editing. I put away outgrown clothes and took down the bigger sizes. Aaahhh – so much better to wake up to a clean floor and a clear view out the window! Here are some of our essential and non-toxic cleaning supplies:

*White Vinegar – Nothing gets windows, mirrors, or picture glass more sparkling. Fill up a spray bottle with straight white vinegar (the cheaper the better). Spray, wipe with a soft cloth and voila! The smell disappears as soon as the vinegar evaporates, so you don’t need to worry about your space smelling like a pickle factory. Old clean cloth diapers are my favorite cloths for window washing.

*Baking Soda – Make a paste with water, or mix with your favorite liquid cleaner, rub on bathtubs, tiles and chrome faucets and rinse with water. The grit removes soap scum and bathtub rings and leaves tile shiny. My favorite liquid multi-purpose cleaner is Charlie’s Soap. It “Cleans Everything From False Teeth to Diesel Engines” and they aren’t kidding.

*Baby Oil – Unscented mineral oil works magic on our vintage wood furniture. Squirt a bit on a rag, wipe over the wood and let it sit for ten minutes. Wipe off excess oil and polish with a soft cloth. The oil helps hide the scratches left by little hands and toys and evens out any discoloration in the wood. Be sure to test in an inconspicuous spot if you are worried about darkening.

*Miele Vaccuum – I am in love with our vacuum. Chris and I both had our own Miele when we moved in together and neither of us would give up our model so now we technically have two. Mieles are quiet, super-powerful, easy to use and not ugly (an important count in my book). I have never used a better vacuum in my life and it is worth the price. I promise.

*These are our everyday favorite cleaning for everyday messes.

Happy Day!

Flea Market Finds: Suitcase Side Table

10 Thursday Jan 2013

Posted by in Organizing, Vintage

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , ,

SuitcaseWe are always on the hunt for the perfect vintage furniture for the house.  The bedroom search list includes bedside tables, a lamp for Ada’s room, wall sconces…But for now we’ve employed this little vintage suitcase to hold the lamp and water glasses.  It is just the right height and can be quickly converted back to its original self when Ada needs a suitcase to carry to Nan’s.  Vintage suitcases are abundant at flea markets.  Etsy has some cute choices here.  Be sure to check inside linings if you plan to use the case for storage.  A stack of vintage child-size suitcases also makes a good storage/table option.

Clean Up Everybody!

08 Tuesday Jan 2013

Posted by in Likes, Organizing

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

Brooms1Brooms2Broom3These are our favorite cleaning tools.  I had the large sets first and found matching smaller brooms when Ada was old enough to use them.  Josie loves to help with the sweeping and the girls often turn the large brooms into horses and run around the kitchen while I cook.  I especially love that little horsehair brush and the woven detail along the handle of the large broom.  Cleaning is less of a chore if you have pretty tools!

We got our brooms here:

*Large and Small Straw Brooms are from Moon River Chattel in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Moon River has an amazing selection of home goods, both new and vintage.

*We got our Small Dustpan and Brush from the children’s store Pomme in Dumbo, Brooklyn but they seem not to carry them any longer.  You can find a similar the same German-made Gluckskafer set here for an amazing $7 each.

*The Large Dustpan and Horsehair Brush set is from Kiosk , one of my favorite places in Manhattan.  I coveted this Swedish set for a long time before purchasing, but it is worth every penny.

Thrift Store Sweater Update

13 Tuesday Nov 2012

Posted by in Likes, Organizing, Projects, Vintage

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

Some of my favorite clothes for the girls are vintage finds from thrift and resale shops.  Clementine Consignment in Manhattan and LuLu’s Then and Now in Brooklyn are frequent stops for us.  These resale shops also buy gently used clothing and will donate items they can’t resell, so they are a great resource for moving your kids’ outgrown items.  We got this sweater at LuLu’s for under $10, changed out boring buttons for pretty vintage ones and added black lace over the pockets.  Flea markets, Ebay and Etsy always have great stashes of vintage trims and buttons.  We keep ours in these big glass storage jars.  Our little white sweater is now as Josie would say: “fancy”.