Items IHeart: Kitchen Storage!

This month I have really been thinking hard about our kitchen and how it functions for us.  I am sure many of you can relate when I say that the kitchen is the most common and heavily used area in the home.  Sort of the "hub" if you will. 

I am always taking note of the things that work and what absolutely is not, and try to problem solve those problematic areas, which I then share with you darling friends.  And although our kitchen isn't perfect, as I sit and reflect on it this month, there are quite a few items we have been using for years and years that have made our lives in the kitchen so much simpler and easier.  So today, instead of reflecting on the bad, I am going to reflect on the GREAT!  And share with you items that I specifically heart to use in our own kitchen {and two that have made their way onto my wish list for the future}.

{ 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12 / 13 / 14 / 15 / 16 / 17 / 18 }

 

Now, time to review:

1. I am not a huge fan of kitchen counter clutter, I am however, a fan of easy access and being smart about storage.  Keeping a pretty utensil jar on our counter next to the stove keeps daily cooking utensils right within reach and allows you to use your drawers to store less frequently used items and everything else you don't want out in the open.
2. I use small baskets all over my kitchen.  I keep one on the opposite side of the stove, to corral cooking oils and vinegars.  I also use them in my cupboards to group common food packets and small food packages together.
3. By now, you all know I am the biggest advocate for drawer liners in any shape, color or style.  Not only do they allow you to quickly wash up and clean out your drawers, but they also add a happy smiling surprise every time you reach in to grab a measuring spoon or apple cutter.
4. Pull out drawers are the best.invention.ever.  We were fortunate enough to have our already installed within our cabinet when the home was built, but I can't imagine life without them.  They allow you to easily gain access to items stored in the back of the cabinet, that are typically out of site, out of mind.
5. If there is anything I want out of site, out of mind, in the kitchen, it is our knives.  Not necessarily for our sake, but because our kids are in the kitchen just as much as we are.  By using a drawer knife block organizer, we are able to keep the knives tucked away and add a child safety mechanism to the drawer as well.
6. Large glass jars are awesome for keeping frequently used baking items, cereals and puppy treats on your counter, while doubling as adorable, functional accessories.
7. These shelves are wish list item number one for me.  They double the available storage space within a cabinet, and allow dishes to be stacked for simpler access.
8. We added a bakeware organizer to our cabinet a few years ago and it has made life so much simpler ever since.  It allowed us to place our baking sheets and cutting boards vertically vs. horizontally stacked.  Now, they just slide in and out with ease vs. having to dig through a stack.
9. This fam of five goes through a lot of cereal.  So by using cereal keepers we can always see our inventory {we absolutely can't allow it to run out or we will have grumpy kids, lol}, and it keeps it fresh for longer, since when we keep cereal in the box, the bag tends to be left open.
10. Wish list item number two is the tiered cabinet organizer.  Or, I may just DIY one, but regardless, I love that it allows you to easily see items in the back of a cabinet, so nothing is forgotten and everything is within reach.
11. The multi-purpose bins are typically used for the home office and around the house, but I find they work best in the kitchen in the fridge or freezer for keeping food contents separated and organized.
12. Drawer organizers have been a winner around here for years.  Rummaging isn't the name of the game, and organizers not only prevent things from getting mixed up within the drawers, they also prevent you from placing too many things in without thinking about where they belong.
13. Since food is expensive, we store leftovers, freshly cut fruits and vegetables in glass food storage containers.  I went with glass a few years ago since they are BPA free and keep food contents nice and cold.  Plus, they last far longer than any plastic option I have come across.  Well worth our investment.
14. I have to admit, iHeart my coffee tin.  It's the simple things.  I don't use ground coffee, which I think the tin was initially intended for, but I do toss my box of K-Cups inside and keep it right next to the coffee maker.  Again, any way to group common items together wins in this kitchen!
15. Raise your hand if you have paper piles on your counter.  That was us too.  Every single day.  Then, I invested in a wall pocket system and now we can sort family papers in their appropriate bin, hang our keys, drop our change and keep stamps and notepads all within reach, but not on the counter.
16. For all of our dried foods, we now store them in clear, air tight containers.  We can always see what we have, everything stays fresh and by adding a vinyl label on the side, I can use a chalk marker to write in the date that we put the food within the container.  Now it I never have to question how old something is or if it is still good enough to eat.
17. No kitchen is complete without mason jars.  They are so versatile for everything from spices to sprinkles.  I am in love.
18. Our kitchen isn't huge, but it isn't small either.  However, we did eventually outgrow it as our family grew.  I don't hoard excessive entertaining pieces or small appliances, but we did need to expand our storage.  Purchasing a sideboard cabinet allowed us to have a place to store serving items, crock pots, food sealers and tea kettles.  It greatly expanded our storage for all of those things we don't use daily, but still use often enough to keep, and was far less costly than building a new kitchen or home.

Now that I shared my favorite kitchen storage items, and why, what are yours?  Anything you couldn't live without in the kitchen storage department?

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Our Dining Table Deets!

Well, it's been a little over 7 months now since we swapped out our dining table. 7 months!!  Where does the time go?  And since the switch, I have received oodles of comments, emails, Instagram questions and Facebook inquiries about our new dining room table.  I am SO excited to finally be posting about it!

Back in July of 2012 I acted on impulse.  I do this from time to time, and luckily this impulsive act came with a happy ending.

We had been working endless hours on our home getting ready for our big Better Homes & Gardens magazine shoot.  Majority of what we took on included DIY projects, painting, cleaning... and just two weeks before they were going to be in our home, photo equipment in hand, I gazed at my dining room wishing that our dream table was sitting there...

My husband and I had been chatting about swapping out our dining table for a good two years.  We had a small budget set aside, and had been playing with all of our options.  We even picked up a large round table found on Craigslist that lived in our kitchen for a good six months, waiting to be refinished, before we decided it wasn't right for us.  Lucky enough, it was right for another family member. 

We looked at the numbers and searched Craigslist for comparable listings to see what tables similar to ours were selling for.  We had tried to sell the chairs separately prior, since I like to mix and match pieces, and because we also had recovered the chairs three times already due to the kidlets.  They had been sitting in storage for over a year and we didn't have intentions of bringing them back into our home.  Instead, we were using temporary espresso wood chairs from our old lower level game table.  We were finding that we weren't going to get what we wanted out of the maple chairs, unless we gave in and sold the table and chairs together as a set.

Some of you may be wondering, what was so wrong with our previous table?

The table itself has a special place in our hearts.  More on a sentimental level since it was our first furniture purchase when we built our home over eleven years ago.  But it was just that, our first furniture purchase.  We knew nothing about purchasing furniture, or had any clue about how our family would expand.  The chairs were covered in a beautiful ivory fabric and we purchased everything as a set vs. mixing and matching pieces to create a more unique feeling {which I later grew to adore}.  Although beautiful in the photo above, the table began to show it's age.  It had a maple veneer finish that would easily scratch and ding and wasn't something that could be fixed easily.  And at the end of the day, we were just over the Maple.  And since it wasn't a real wood top, we couldn't even have sanded it down to refinish it to better please our style.

So, we decided to list it on Craigslist.  Surely we would be able to find a table in our budget before the photo crew showed up at our door.  No problem.... ha!

Little did I realize that within hours of listing the table... she would be gone....

She sold on a Monday, so we made plans to keep on with the house projects throughout the week and begin our table search on Saturday.  Big mistake.

Who would have thought searching for a dining table would be so hard?  Especially because we knew exactly what we wanted!  And Bryan and I even agreed what style table we were after, which meant is would be even easier to bring one home.  We wanted this table:

Oh, but we didn't want that price.  $1300 for just the table?  I knew I could do better.  I was determined to do better!

Seventeen stops it took us before finding the right table.  Sun up to sun down on Saturday, we hauled a trailer around the entire Twin Cities area.  We looked at high end furniture stores.  We looked at thrift and consignment stores.  We looked at design centers, more furniture stores and even unfinished wood furniture places.  And then we thought we found it.  The perfect match to our high end Pottery Barn inspiration table....

We had stopped into the Macy's furniture store and we gazed at this beauty.  My hubby was about to hand over the cash, $600 total {now on sale for even less!}  But then we got to chatting and they were going to be able to have the table delivered.  They didn't have any in stock.  So after taxes and delivery charges, the table wasn't $600 anymore.  And then the bigger news, the delivery date would be the day before our magazine shoot.  And it wasn't even guaranteed.  That didn't sit so well with me.

So we told them we would call back and let them know for sure, after we did a little more searching.  Our very last stop of the day was a cute little furniture boutique in Minneapolis, called Nadeau.

This store has always been a favorite of mine to check out, as they always have unique pieces and pretty finished furniture for reasonable {and sometimes unreasonable} prices.

Ten minutes before closing, we made it there, and it took me a total of two minutes to find the table!  Happy dancing, jumping up and down and squealing are all a few of the things I did right then and there.  And even better yet, we could take it home that very day!  And even better the table was the best price we had found.

But my husband got cold feet.  The table didn't offer any leaves to expand or shrink down.  And there were small imperfections in the wood.  So he said no.  He said, we needed to sleep on it.  All of that running and searching and he was making me wait... Ugh!  Darn logical thinkers!

So I begged the kind folks at the store to hold it and I promised to let them know right away our decision in the morning.

My hubby and I chatted and chatted and went over all of the pros and cons.  The table was the perfect color, match and price.  It was available now and it was made of REAL wood.  That was my biggest argument.  Real wood that could be dented and dinged and scratched and the same dark beautiful wood would be below the surface.  Real wood that could be refinished someday.  It wasn't veneer and it would have love marks and character over the years of being used by our family. 

But my husband was still concerned about the size and the inability to shrink it if we needed to.  The full size of the table was the same as the full size of our previous table.  Which we only removed the leaves from twice in our years and years of using it.  In the end, all of the pros outweighed the single con, and we went back for our new dining room table!

Loooooooove doesn't even describe it.

Her curvy legs, beautiful wood finish.... sigh... it is amazing.

So, now we had our table, but we also needed seating.  Again, looking at the inspiration pic, I knew I could do less than $300 per chair for the slip-covered options, so we went to IKEA and snagged four of the Henriksdal.

I know what you are thinking.  Am I nuts?  Quite possibly, but I am also sure we have already confirmed that a few times over the past three years.  White slipcovered chairs while raising three busy boys.  I am seriously looking to be punished.

But I refused to believe my kids were messy.  And that I would have a problem having white chairs.  It was only a matter of time before the white chairs were moved around the home, and the brown espresso wooden chairs were back.  But that didn't make me happy.  I didn't want espresso wooden chairs and after looking hours upon hours for a suitable replacement, I knew I just wanted my slipcovered chairs back.  They were so so comfortable, they were washable and they gave our dining area the bright and fresh look I was after.  Plus, I needed something that was cozy since I love to move around my home when I work, and I figured quite a few hours would be logged at the table...

And then it hit me one day.  Boooom!  Like a ton of bricks!  What about a bench instead?  So I scoured inspiration pics and I totally loved the look.  And the practicality!  If we were to use a bench instead, we could fit three bottoms on the bench and bring the white chairs back!  Sweet!

I began looking into benches and found a few really great options, and then boom, it hit me again that we already had a bench in our master bedroom that we would toss our pillows and bedding onto at night.  So I grabbed it to see how it would fit and look.

It was only meant to be temporary, just to see how it would fit the table and the space.  Could the kids all fit on it?  What size would we need.  Would it look unbalanced or funny? 

But it was perfect.  Like it was meant to be.  And then it happened, ketchup spilled on it the first day.  And I wanted to cry.  But I grabbed a cloth that I ran under water and quickly wiped up the spill.  It came up and seconds later, it was like it was never there.  It was magical and I thought... this could work!

And it has!  It's been working for a good four months and I couldn't be happier! 

The boys like the bench and fit on it perfectly, and if they decide they would rather sit in a white chair, I am at ease since I know they can be washed.  In fact, I have only had to wash them once in the past seven months, and they still look great. 

The room is used and abused daily, but we love it and adore that it now offers a great compromise of pretty finishes, soft upholstery yet is family friendly and versatile.

Funny how the table completely changed the feeling of the space!

And to really drive the happiness home, the side by side dining table before and after:

So there you have it.  The roller coaster, happy ending story of our dining room table and seating. 

And for the final budget:

• Table: $500
• Chairs: $360
• Bench: Already owned
• Cash from selling previous table on Craigslist: -$400
• Total:  $460

Much much better than the inspiration price!  Wahoo!

Let's chat.  Have you ever been on a wild goose chase for that perfect item that you refused to settle on?  Are you a furniture mixer and matcher too?  Have you recently discovered that a piece of furniture that has been living in your home for years, would work oh so much more brilliantly somewhere else?

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Creating a Baking Drawer

I am excited to be participating in the Kitchen monthly organizing challenge with all of you!  Has anyone dug in and gotten started yet?

Awhile back I gave a full tour of our kitchen cabinets, and years later they are almost identical to the way they were then, and are functioning quite well for us.  And although we have intentions of doing a kitchen reno in the near future, I still have a few problem areas in the kitchen that I am looking forward to addressing this month.  Some bigger than others, but all things that will hopefully be helpful in the most commonly used area of the home.

One of the ways I looked at this monthly challenge, was to question how we are utilizing the space in our kitchen, and making sure that "like" or common items are stored together.  We are doing a pretty good job at this for the most part, but like I said, there are some areas for improvement.  One being my baking items.

Now I don't mean the flours, sugars and oils since those have been all stored together in our spice cabinet for years and are doing well there.  And our baking utensils are nicely divided in drawers near the stove, so high fives for that being another successful organizing project in the kitchen.

But everything else, like the cookie cutters, the frosting, the sprinkles and cupcake liners.... all those little "extras" that come with baking special treats every once in awhile.  Well, those items didn't have a designated space, and there were times when I was over-purchasing items I already had since I didn't always know what I had.  Frosting tubes were in the dry food cabinet, food coloring, candles and sprinkles were in the spice cabinet and the cookies cutters... you will never guess it.... in the storage ottomans in our living room where the craft bins live.... makes total sense right?! Ha!

So I gathered all the supplies and placed them on our kitchen table.

I knew exactly where all of these goodies should reside, happily together.  In a drawer that was acting oh so effectively holding one single set of candles...

The drawer is in our dining room buffet, which is directly across from our kitchen, and is where we store overflow items and small appliances.  The whole thing needs some organizing love, but I am taking this challenge one idea and drawer at a time.

Because I only bake special treats about once a month {and I shouldn't even be allowed to do that, my baking is less than awesome}, my thinking was that when baking day comes around, I could easily just grab the drawer out of the sideboard and take it over to the kitchen counter.

I started by removing the drawer, cleaning it out, lining it for easy cleaning, and popping in two bins I found at the dollar section at Target.

That dollar spot keeps saving the day with my drawer organizing!  These bins couldn't have fit any better, it was like they were meant to be!

The next step was to continue to create more drawer dividers, so I scoured our home for a box that would be the perfect size....

I cut down the edges and used my box wrapping technique to cover the box with wipe-able drawer lining paper.

I still had space to spare and I knew I had smaller items that needed some dividing, so back to the searching of the home I went...

Jell-o cups were the winning solution.  I transferred the contents of the Jell-o cups to a covered dish and cleaned them out.  I now had all of the dividers I needed and began placing items into the drawer.

The cookie cutters fit perfectly in the first box divider I found from Target...

And the sprinkles and some colored gels fit in the other.

The cake pop sticks and small plastic treat bags tucked nicely in-between the boxes.

And my newly covered box was the perfect solution for my cupcake liners!

My favorite part of the whole project are the Jell-o cups.  They worked so wonderfully for dividing the candles and food coloring.

And just when I was prematurely happy dancing about my newly created and organized baking drawer... I went to shut the drawer and fail.

The tubs of sprinkles didn't fit and allow the drawer to close all the way.  The angle of them was too tall and there just wasn't another great way to place them inside the drawer as is.  Boo.  Goes to show that organizing takes a little trial and error and doesn't always work out perfectly the first time around.

So, more searching around the house and a few small mason jars later...

And the drawer was now closing just fine and this project was called complete!

It feels good to have a designated place for all of my baking items, and inspired me to instantly start perusing Pinterest for some fabulous Valentine treats to create.

So what was your first kitchen project this month?  Anyone else have a baking drawer or basket?

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Monthly Organizing Challenge: Kitchen Intro

Happy February my bloggy pals!

I am back to launch another monthly challenge, this month we are tackling the hub of the home, the KITCHEN!

It's all about sharing ideas, working together and conquering our organizing projects one step at a time.  And organizing is so much more fun when you have someone to do it with {or hundreds of people to do it with}, so let's do this together!

To kick things off let's chat about some of my favorite kitchen organizing tips:

• Counter clutter is typically the top culprit in the kitchen.  Determine why your counter clutter is appearing and create solutions for those items.  Temporary papers, give them a review basket.  Returns?  Pop a bag or bin in your coat closet that you can grab when you head to the store.   Dishes?  Set a goal to do them each evening before you head to bed.
• Drawer dividers will be your best friend in the kitchen.  By adding dividers to the drawers, you have to think about and categorize your belongings.  It forces you to edit what you put into the drawers {no more just tossing everything in}, and also helps you quickly find what you are looking for without digging endlessly for that garlic press.
• Edit down your small kitchen tools.  It's amazing how many items a good knife can replace.  Donate duplicate items and keep the pieces that serve multiple functions.
• Store dried goods in clear, air-tight containers.  This prolongs the life of the foods and always gives you a quick visual inventory of your pantry stock.
• Create a meal plan for your family.  Just a couple minutes of planning during the weekend can save you boatloads of time, money and frustration when the busy week hits.  
• Don't be afraid to start with a blank slate.  Take everything out of your cabinets and be selective about what you put back.  Dispose of expired foods and think about how you use your kitchen each day.  Put pans near the stove and dishes near the dishwasher.  Keep children's dishes in low cabinets or drawers for kids to reach.  Just because a cabinet is typically intended for a single purpose, don't be afraid to challenge that and use it for how it makes the most sense for you.
• Use lazy susans and tiered shelving to maximize shelf space and to make items in your cabinets easier to view and access.
• Consider the frequency of use of your small appliances.  There are so many specialty items such as quesadilla makers and panini presses that are only used a few times per year.  If you are low on cabinet space, it may be time to pair down the small appliances that take up so much room.
• Use pull out shelves and drawers within your cabinets to give yourself easy access to items in the back of the cupboard.
• Remember there is a lot of unused space in the kitchen on the backs of cabinets and doors.  Command hooks, over the door organizers and cork tiles are all great items that can provide extra storage where you would least expect it.
• Clean out your fridge and freezer and take inventory of the contents to make meal planning easier and to reduce over-purchasing at the grocery store.

So where does one begin?

1. Make a list of things you are hoping to tackle this month to get your kitchen in working order.  Be realistic and only take on what you can commit to and pick your battles.  It doesn't have to be an entire space overhaul, just enough to feel stress free about your time in the kitchen each day.
2. Find inspiration.  Check out the www and your favorite magazines for ideas and products to spark your creativity.
3. Schedule it in!  Make time to get it done, whether it is 15 minutes per day or an hour on a weekend.  Ask for help watching the kids or get them involved to help with sorting and any crafting.
4. Blank slate it!  Anytime I take on an organizing project, it is great to start with a blank slate.  It allows you to properly evaluate what you have and place things back where they make the most sense vs. where they have been for the last eight years.
5. Sort.  Sort down your contents into categories and piles.  Make sure you have a purge pile!  It's time to clear out the clutter!
6. Purge.  Say farewell to all of those things holding you back from living simply.  Only keep what you need and love, say farewell to all the rest.  Sell on Craigslist, donate to Goodwill, recycle recycle recycle.
7. Store it!  Now that you have cleared the clutter, it is time to store the remaining items.  Use what you have and shop your home for additional items.  Check out thrift stores, the dollar store or the Container Store to find things that fit your storage needs.  Or, DIY your own storage for a custom fit, to save moolah and because crafting and projecting is fun!
8. Share it!  Blog about your projects and share them with the world!  You have just accomplished something, you should be proud!  At the end of the month, we will link up all of our projects and share the ideas and inspiration with the IHeart Organizing community!

This blog isn't just about organizing, it's about getting your hands dirty.  Whether making a tag from scrapbooking supplies or re-purposing a wine crate as pantry storage.... let's dare to DIY something fun while working on our kitchen spaces!

To not only bring us some inspiration, but to also spark a few DIY ideas, here are a few that have recently caught my eye:

• Add additional storage by making over a bookcase.  Go the extra mile and DIY some pretty labels for dry goods.

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• DIY a lovely little recipe box.

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• And then use those recipes to plan your weekly menu on a pretty menu board.

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• Keep track of your grocery list on a pretty chalkboard tablet created from an old cutting board.

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• Use standard hardware from a Home Improvement store to create easy to access utensil storage.

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• Line your drawers with pretty papers.

• Paint the inside of your cabinets or pantry for an unexpected happy surprise.

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• Get creative when storing your spices.

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• Repurpose an old cabinet or armoire as a pantry.

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So who is excited to tackle the kitchen with me?  I will be sharing a few of our projects along the way this month, but what I am most excited about is seeing yours at the end of the month during the Link Party!

What other kitchen organizing tips do you have to share to kick off the challenge?  Any projects that are working wonders for you?  How about favorite product picks that you couldn't function without?

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