master closet

one of the biggest issues about our master bedroom is our master closet. i think i've mentioned before how little room it actually houses, and how i find it humorous that it is called a "walk in" closet for all you can do is walk in and back yourself out.

i really do dream of one day owning a closet with a window to allow fresh air to flow in and out. and maybe an island to put my jewelry on. and a shoe wall that makes my limited amount of shoes actually look pretty.  ya know, pretty much one of those sex and the city closets that is actually a room itself, but a girl's dream.

well, since reality isn't that closet, i will work with and be thankful for the one i have.  because let's put it into perspective, shall we? my walk in closet is bigger than most people's homes. this world is a poor place, and we are a very rich country.  i think i need to remind myself of that every now and again.

so i worked with what i had, used baskets already in our home, purged a ton of clothes that i haven't worn in decades (well, more like months) and ended up so giddy in the end. it didn't end up looking like a california closet because our budget was $0 for this project.  but i still love how it turned out.


i've included a little picture flow of the before, during and after. i still have yet to figure out how to write on the pictures with arrows and all that fancy stuff other blogs do.  or even post the pics side by side.  so my apologies.  but i figure if i at least put them in order, you'll hopefully get the idea. :)

before:

we removed the closet door since we never close it and it really only seems to get in the way. that seemed to open it up a great deal.  we also pulled everything out and threw it on the bed to see what we had, what we could get rid of and what we wanted to keep. 

here's during:

and after:

sorry for the lighting. there's no natural light anywhere. the space is small and the camera i use is on my iphone, so it's the best i can do.  but just for a final before and after: 

before:

and after:

martha say wha?!?!?!

oh yes i did. and i'm proud of it! 

i drove the 20+ miles to the nearest Staples store that houses Martha's new organization line to check it out and learn about all she has to offer. 

i only snagged up a couple labels and one file hanger. 

but i am already making a list of the items i'm wanting to organize and beautify with her. 

so be warned: you may see martha much more on this little ol' blog of mine. 

but for now, first project complete:

take out menus are now inside our cupboard door instead of strewn about within a junk drawer.

so much easier.

so much more user friendly. 

and so much more simple for the Mr. 

we're all happy over here,

thanks to ms. martha. :) 

what's behind drawer #4 ?

remember this post?  and how i was telling you about my dresser that needed completion? it's done! hip hip hooray!

i know. i get my mind set on something and i must . . . do it . . . . now.  poor hubby.

just kidding.

i think he's starting to like it in all honesty.  because it's done.  and he can rest.  and i can organize. and beautify. and purge. and dream up more projects. muwahahahah

for real though, let's get back to the project at hand. check.

i love it. and i loved it more when i saw it in the store. and even more when we finished it and put it in our room. it's taller than i thought. deeper than i thought. prettier than i thought. and much more functional than i thought. seriously.

it even has a little (4th) hidden drawer in it for misc items (i put a basket for bracelets and my undergarments next to that) leaving me with three more drawers to utilize! fabuloso people, fabuloso!

so, without further ado, here are some fun pics of the completed project:

:: see the secret drawer? i tried to pull it out so you could get a feel for where it's at. the little hole is the handle

:: looking from top down in each drawer

:: top of the dresser - my mom's jewelry box, a tree stand for necklaces, mirror and lamp

:: the finished products! a view from when you're laying on our bed

:: and just in case you were curious what our bed looks like

:: okay, one more shot of our cat, Patience, who we adore. don't-cha just want to snuggle her?!

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movin hubby in . . .

2012 is a big year for us. we are purging, simplifying, organizing and beautifying our whole house on a wee little budget.

one of the difficult spaces of our home has been our master bedroom. it's a smaller room, but must house a king size bed (my hubster is 6'7'' tall), along with whatever furniture we can fit, as our closet is one of those, "walk in" closets, but in all honesty, all you can really do is: walk. . . in. 

and back out. 

seriously. 

anywho. because of this, the hubs has been storing all of his dress shirts and hanging clothes in our future nursery and has to visit a separate bedroom to find his clothes in the morning.  so, my solution was to measure our one and only wall that currently houses a much too large (& old) dresser with two individual pieces for alan and i to utilize.  ultimately, my goal was to bring alan's clothes from another bedroom into ours.  

so, after a few months of day-dreaming, searching online, in magazines, on pinterest, and so on, I discovered our solution! alan's piece is a wardrobe from ikea and turned out fabulous!! 

i love how it's coming together and cannot believe how great it looks on our one blank wall! half way there people! *now we just have to finish my dresser and put the decor up. wahoo!! 

so for fun, here are a few pics of our new hangers, new space and new organized wardrobe for my main man.  and it's all in one room!  

:: old space with old hangers (different room's closet) where the hub's clothes used to be housed:

:: decor & more pieces to organize his items with -- on top of the wardrobe

:: bottom part of the wardrobe to keep shoes, socks & clean boxers! 

:: a nice glimpse of the new hangers (i'm in love), and the shirts all color coordinated

that's it for his stuff! now we just have to purge our "mini walk-in" closet, show you some pics of that, finish my dresser, add some decor, have our new bed delivered and we should be set. 

*Oh yeah, i wouldn't mind having a little 'co-sleeper' for our future babies added to the room as well. that would be nice, wouldn't it?! 

enjoy your weekend! 

spice that!

what's that you say? spices? organize frenzy? obsessed? 

i think i've said it before. 

and i'll say it again. 

i love organizing. 

and simplifying.

and beautifying. 

so i started with my most used space in my small abode, and tore apart my kitchen. 

bit by bit.

cupboard by cupboard. 

i feel like it's gonna be a work in progress. 

but wanted to share a little of my accomplishment.

the spice cabinet: 

after searching for the past few months for the right spice containers to utilize, to simplify and to keep my herbs so "fresh and so clean clean"

. . . i found these. 

ahh snap! 

and they are awesome. 

period. 

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