Monthly Archives: August 2012

Organizing Tips from a California Artist

Organizing Tips from a California Artist

Jana Botkin Oil Painting

Jana Botkin has given us many organizing tips already. If you missed her interview just go back to the Organizing section of this site and you’ll find her interview below this post. Jana is an artist in California who tries to live a simple lifestyle. You can check out her website here http://www.cabinart.net . If you’d like to see what’s in the mind and life of an artist you can follow her in her blog here
http://www.cabinart.net/weblog/

Below, Jana shares some more tips and ideas on how to stay organized and how to live a minimalist lifestyle. Enjoy!

1) Water in a spray bottle applied lightly to a cloth works better than Pledge.

2) I use soap.com for all of my toiletries. If you spend $40, the shipping is free. Their prices aren’t dirt cheap, but they do have sales and coupons. Besides, it’s worth spending an extra dollar on an item to avoid going into town (Jana lives in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range. A trip to town is almost a 2 hour round trip).

3) A friend told me that once a month she has an Eat-From-The-Freezer week. Brilliant!

4) I have two boxes of Christmas decorations. If something new comes in, something old gets tossed. The lids must fit.

5) Only keep one box of gift wrapping supplies.

6) Conditioner that you don’t like is great for shaving your legs with!

7) Only keep two sets of sheets per bed – 1 for summer and 1 for winter.

8 ) New clothing purchased must match something I already own.

9) If you don’t read ads, then you don’t start thinking you need things.

10) Never tell anyone that you collect something. When word gets out that you like a certain thing, it will start to come in. It can get overwhelming quickly.

There you have it! More insightful advice. I have to agree with the last one. I decided to collect something years ago and told a few people. One person (who was trying to be nice) bought me tons of these little things. First of all, it totally took the fun out of collecting something, and secondly I didn’t know where to put everything. What’s nice about collecting something yourself is you can add to your collection slowly. You can find room for things as you go.

I’m also going to try the Eat-From-Your-Freezer week. I know I have things in there that need to be used up.

I hope Jana’s advice was helpful. It’s always interesting to see how other people live and try to keep things to a minimum. Don’t forget to check out her website http://www.cabinart.net

Interview With A California Artist On How She Stays Organized

Interview With A California Artist On How She Stays Organized

Jana Botkin Pencil Drawing

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing a very talented artist in California (seriously, she’s freaking amazing). She lives in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range and tries to live a simple life style. Her name is Jana Botkin and you can visit her website at cabinart.net. If you’d like to see inside the mind and life of an artist you can follow her on her blog.

One of the things that amazes me about Jana is how committed she is to living a simple life style. She doesn’t buy things she doesn’t need, and if she has something she doesn’t need or use anymore, she donates it. At the same time her home is cozy and feels inviting. She hasn’t taken such a steep minimalist approach that her house feels empty and cold.

Jana is very careful with her money and her tips reflect that. We could all learn something from this amazing and talented woman. Below is the first half of my interview with her. I think you’ll enjoy her honesty and sense of humor. I know I did.

I’ve been to your home and your studio and I didn’t see piles of paper anywhere. What is your secret?
I’ve developed the habit of sorting and tossing – while seeking a recipe, an address in my address book, a phone number in my studio, a book to read – any time I am looking for something, I take the opportunity to dump or erase the no longer viable things. There’s no need to turn it into an event – I just make it an ongoing habit.

That is a great idea! What about mail? How do you handle that?
I’ve been opening my mail by the trash for years – it’s a great help! It forces me to make decisions instead of putting those undecided items into a pile to be sorted and tossed later.

I know you enjoy reading. What is your advice on books?
The library is the best place to get books because then I don’t have to own them. The exceptions are business books that have things I need to refer back to again and also the novels by Maeve Binchy. Since she died last month I guess my collection is complete 🙁 Oh, and bible study books. We’ve become dependent on books and workbooks written by other people in order to study the Bible. What would I do without Beth Moore???

What about magazines?
Subscribe to nothing. Magazine articles are shallow and quickly outdated, and the ads just cause dissatisfaction. If there isn’t time to read it when it comes, it will multiply in the dark.

Ok, let’s talk about my favorite things! Shoes and purses!
If shoes hurt, rub, pinch, slop around the heel, make me trip, or in any way, ANY WAY cause me to hesitate before putting them on, they are GONE.

I should really abide by that rule. I have several in my closet that I just can’t wear because they hurt or slip off. What about purses?
I only own two purses: a Coach that I finally saved enough to buy in 1996 and a little Sack. Do they still make those? They are crocheted and lined. I have that one for when I dress up. I bought it on eBay for about a tenth its retail price!

So I’m guessing you don’t like to go shopping.
If you don’t use shopping as a recreational activity, you won’t see things to buy that you don’t really need.

Let’s talk about the Kitchen. That seems to be the biggest problem area in everyone’s home. How do you keep your kitchen so clean and organized?
No one-function-stuff is allowed in my kitchen. It has to perform three tasks or it is GONE. The exceptions are the juicer (which I use once a year for making jelly – *as a side note, Jana makes pomegranate jelly and it’s awesome!), the popcorn popper, and the blender. I don’t have woks, angel-food pans, bundt pans, nut grinders (a big knife works great), garlic presses (they are terrible to wash – use a big knife for that too), etc.

I know you like to knit. There is so much beautiful yarn out there. How do you keep yourself from buying it all of the time?
When I have an urge to buy more yarn, I sort through my stash. If I loved it enough to buy it a year or two ago and haven’t used it yet, I’ll probably still love it and will feel as if I have something new to knit with. I probably have three years of yarn, even while trying to be a minimalist. And I am, compared to other Knitters. “knitters” don’t have stashes- “Knitters” do. I am a Knitter. This principle of going through what you have that you may have forgotten about can be applied to anything – earrings, shoes, fabric if you are a quilter, tools, stationery, art supplies, colored tee shirts, etc.

Your house is so beautiful and cozy. Anything you want to share about your home?
My house is really out of style. If Perkins (Jana’s cat) dies, I will get a new couch. Then the rug will look wrong. Then the shabby stained armchairs will be pathetic. After that, the faded curtains will no longer be acceptable. But I’d rather have Perkins than a new couch. He is a couch destroyer, but the thought of being catless is incomprehensible to this childless woman!

There you have it! A look into the minimalist lifestyle of an artist. Do you think you could do it? I can hear my 30 plus purses crying right now. Hold on babies, mama’s coming. I lover her kitchen ideas and I really do need to follow her shoe rule. At this point many of my shoes have become decorations sitting on my closet shelves.

Friday Jana will be back! She will list her advice and other ideas so make sure to check back then! Oh, and don’t forget to check out Jana’s website and her blog http://www.cabinart.net/weblog/. See ya Friday!

Organize Your Inspirations

Organize Your Inspirations

We have planners to help us organize our to-do’s. We have journals to help us organize our thoughts and emotions. But what about your inspirations? How do we keep track of those?

I like to keep an “Inspirations Journal”. When I look through magazines or catalogs and find something I like, I cut them out and put them in my journal. When I think of a painting I want to make I sketch it out. When I come up with an idea for my website or for a fun school project I write out all the details. I’ll even glue in small pieces of fabric that I like or glue on paint samples from Home Depot that I want to use somewhere. On top of that I like to add bible verses or quotes that I can refer back to when I need some motivation.

My Inspirations Journal

It’s a great place to write my ideas, my dreams, my vision. When I get down I can look through it and get a pick-me-up. When I feel motivated to do something but don’t know what I want to do, I can look through it and get ideas. It’s also fun to see how my style changes. Part of the journal might be filled with more modern things and ideas, while another part is full of all things shabby-chic.

If you’d like to start an “Inspirations Journal” here are a few tips:

1) Find a journal that is spiral bound. You can add photos and fabric to the pages with out them adding too much bulk and then breaking the binding.

2) Make sure the pages aren’t too thin. Many journals contain paper that is very thin and might not hold up well if you’re going to be gluing fabric or photos to them. I buy my journals in the sketch pad section at Hobby Lobby (with my 40% off coupon of course). This paper is nice and thick and holds up well to glue, plus it’s perfect to make sketches on.

3) Decide how you want to organize your journal before you start. Are you just going to add to it how ever you want with no rhyme or reason (this is usually how I like to do it), or are you going to divide it up into sections to make it easier to find things? You could decide to have so many pages dedicated to quotes and inspirational sayings, so many pages for ideas for each room of your home, or pages set aside for sketches, books you want to read, or things you want to buy. If you do it this way, I suggest you buy little post it note tabs and put them at the top of your pages so you don’t have to flip through each page looking for a specific section.

4) Have fun! Don’t restrict yourself. Part of the fun (to me anyway) is that I can write, glue, draw, anything I want. I don’t add to it every day, only when inspiration hits.

5) Decide if it’s going to be a private journal or one you don’t care if your family picks up and flips through. If it’s private, keep it somewhere your family will not likely find it.

I love my Inspirations Journal. Mine is small enough I can keep it in my purse or throw it in a drawer. It’s nice to have my thoughts and dreams in one place. I enjoy looking back to see what I’ve added in the past and be reminded of projects I’d like to do. I can finally put all of my “great ideas” in one place!

Journal

Make a Desk for Less

Make a Desk for Less

My husband and I do a lot of work from home. We only had one desk and it was frequently in use by one of the kids. We knew we needed another work space but we didn’t want to buy two more desks (one for each of us). We came up with an idea – we would make one large one!

Home Made Desk

We went to Home Depot and bought an eight foot long laminate counter top. We then bought 5 “upper” cabinets in the kitchen section. Why did we choose “upper” cabinets instead of “lower” ones? The lower ones would be too tall. Our desk would end up being as tall as our kitchen counter – that would only work for us if we sat on bar stools. That’s not very comfy for long periods of time.

My husband put the desk together by sitting the counter top on top of the cabinets. He screwed the counter to the cabinets (from the inside of the cabinets). He also screwed the two side cabinets together. We have two cabinets on each end (one facing to the front and the other facing out). One cabinet was placed in the middle. Not only do we have a durable work surface (I can put my icy drinks on it and not have to worry about it leaving behind any rings) we also have tons of storage.

How much did this 8 foot long desk cost us to make? The cabinets and the counter top together cost $300. That’s not bad! You can make a smaller version by purchasing a smaller counter top. They had 6 foot sections available also. Or you can make a larger one. Our Home Depot had a 10 foot long counter top.

Desk from the side

Organize Your Bills

Organize Your Bills

I have used bill organizers for a few years now and I don’t know how I ever stayed organized before them (I probably didn’t). Not only is there space to write down your monthly bills and when/how you paid them, there is also a pocket for each month to keep your bills in. This is a must have for anyone who wants to keep all of their bill and receipts in one place.

The Stuffed Animal Tree

The Stuffed Animal Tree

I have two of these in my daughter’s room. I love these things! They hold at least 30 animals a piece. The “tree” has over 30 elastic bands attached to it and you just slide the bands around the animal – it’s easy to put the animals on and easy to take them off! This is also super simple to assembly. I had it up in minutes with out the use of any tools.

Stuffed Animal Tree

Stay Organized This School Year By Thinking Ahead!

Stay Organized This School Year By Thinking Ahead!

Today we went to Target to get our school supplies. I homeschool my kids so I don’t need much – a few folders, notebooks, binders and pencils (we always seem to need pencils). While I walked up and down the aisle of super cheap school supplies, I thought about all the projects I plan on doing with my daughter this school year. We do a lot of science projects (we love science) and I try to incorporate art into everything I possibly can (art is my favorite). Now is the time to be purchasing all of the items I’ll need through out the school year.

I have the advantage of knowing what projects to buy for, public or private school parents probably don’t. Even if you don’t know what projects are in your kids’ future, you can bet it will probably involve markers or colored pencils, glue sticks and poster board. By thinking ahead (and buying ahead), you can save money and frustration in your future. Buy up these things now and keep them in a cabinet or closet so when you’re kids need them in 2 weeks, or 2 months, you’ll be prepared. Look at what’s on your kids’ school supply list and buy extra of the things you’ll know they’ll run out of before the school year is out (notebook paper, index cards, erasers, etc).

It doesn’t take much room to store these items throughout the school year. Everything but the poster board can fit into a basket or small bucket that your kids can retrieve whenever they need it. Poster board is easily stashed upright in a closet next to something that will keep it upright. I have a cabinet in a desk my husband made (I’ll write about that in a future post) that I store all of our extra school supplies in. Before the amazing desk was built, I kept everything in a basket in a closet.

School Supply Cabinet

On a side note – did you know that glue expires? This came directly from the Elmer’s Glue website:
“If stored properly and capped tightly, Elmer’s school glues and wood glues have an average shelf life of 2 years; Krazy Glue, also known as a cyanoacrylate, has a shelf life of approximately 12 – 18 months.”

Super Cheap Pen/Pencil Holders

Super Cheap Pen/Pencil Holders

I needed something to keep my pens and pencils in but didn’t want to spend much money…or any money if I could get by with it. I came up with this super simple (and inexpensive) idea.

Things you need:
Cans (mine had enchilada sauce in them…Yum!)
Craft paper
Glue
Ribbon

*The first thing I did was to use a drill to make two holes in the can (one on one side of the can, and one on the other side directly across from each other). Even though I used a drill, you could a screw (or something else that is sturdy and sharp) and hammer it through the can.

*I then cut the paper to fit around the can and glued it on. If you’re impatient and don’t want to hold onto the can while the paper dries you could wrap a rubber band around it (just don’t wrap it too tightly or it could crinkle the paper).

*Use a nail (or ink pen) and poke a hole through the paper where the holes in the can are.

*Thread a piece of ribbon in one of the holes and tie a knot on the inside so the ribbon won’t come out of the hole.

*Thread the other end of the ribbon into the other hole on the opposite side (starting from the outside of the can). Before you tie it in a knot, decide how long you want the ribbon to be. I marked a spot on the ribbon where my knot should go. Once you’ve decided on your length, tie the ribbon on the inside of the can. I put a little bit of glue on each of the knots to help it hold a little better.

Now I have super cute pen/pencil holders and I made them from things I had in my home! I love them so much I think I might make some more!

Turning A Wasted Space Into a Work Space

Turning A Wasted Space Into a Work Space

I have a small area between the living room and the master bed room that is just wasted space. It’s only about a 4×4 foot space. It’s a bright area; light comes from the living room, plus there is an outside door in that tiny space as well. Since I moved here, that space has stumped me. I hate wasted space!

One day I was thinking about how nice it would be to have a space I could sit and drink my tea and look out at the birds in the back yard. It would also be nice to have a little area to read, write letters, be inspired (I know, I want a lot of things). Could I make all that in that little 4×4 foot space? Could I make a mini-sunroom, work space, creative nook, and reading area? I could try!

I worked on it all day today, and I have to say that I’m really happy with my new space. Not only did I get all the things I wanted out of this space, I also made homes for things that didn’t have a home before:

*I added space for several books on the new shelf. On a side note, that shelf came from Hobby Lobby and I got it half off so it only cost me $22.
*I added a space for colored pencils, pens and other office supplies. The step shelf also came from Hobby Lobby and was also half off so I paid $10 for it.
*I used a chair that has been in my garage for 2 years.
*I used a table that came from outside. The paint was worn so I made an easy table cloth.
*I used an old picture frame to make a cute cork board.

If you’d like to see how I made the cute little pen/pencil holders go to my “Make It” section! You’ll also see how I made the cork board.

In case you’re wondering “Hey! What’s that white thing hanging on the wall in the “before” picture and where did it go in the “after” picture?” That is my door bell. I hung the shelf directly under it and put a book in front of it to hide it. Pretty clever!

You may also be wondering who that person is in the back ground of the “before” picture. That is my daughter – I have no idea how she sneaks into some of these pictures!