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Have you all seen this trick? Next time you brew a pot of coffee, make an extra cup, pour it into an ice cube tray, and freeze. Then when you’re craving iced coffee on a hot summer day, you can use the coffee ice cubes instead of water ones… no diluted coffee!

You can do the same thing with tea, or even juice or lemonade. No one wants a watered-down beverage, right? It did take almost the whole tray to make my freshly brewed hot coffee suitably icy, so save these up for a single-serving special treat.

Photo from P.J.McAdie’s Flickr

There are so many uses for a glass jar: storing leftovers, using as vases, or even lining up empty on a windowsill to show off.   Save your pasta sauce jars, jam and jelly jars, and other glass bottles.  It’s like your own home has become its own little recycling center!

It can also be a fun weekend activity to troll the antique and flea markets for old jars to add a bit of personality to your collection–I’ve found cool chemistry beakers, old mason jars, and even old Vapor Rub jars.

Here’s the trick to getting the sticky labels off: Wash in warm water, and peel off as much of the label you can.  Apply your run-of-the-mill hair conditioner to the remainder of the label, let soak for about half an hour, and scrub off with a course sponge.

Enjoy!

Much love,

-B

In our flat, we have an ongoing debate about cushions. I am a big fan of cushions, aesthetically & practically. Husband on the other hand really doesn’t like them. Prior to the arrival of our sewing machine as a wedding present, I could almost see why. When I went to university my Mum and I bought me some new cushions & covers: black velvet & deep red velvet with embroidery and mirrors. If you knew that I was a heavy metal fan who liked black eyeliner and incense and ‘ethnic decoration’ when I was 18 and started university, you would not be surprised about the cushions. Those cushions moved from student halls to student house at Exeter, then they came with me to London via a flat with a girlfriend, a random shared house, & 2 flats with the (now) Husband. So, a little tired and on their sixth house, I decided that it was time to upgrade. With no real money this summer all decorating has been attempted on a diy, recycle, remake basis so in order to keep the cushions a little structured I recovered them, old covers and all.

I bought the red & white striped ticking in a charity shop for £2.50 last summer but never got around to using it. When measuring the cushions I discovered that if I cut it into 3 pieces, hemmed the top & bottom of each bit and sewed them into pillowcase style covers, I could have 3 new cushions in about an hour. So I did. And while Husband doesn’t exactly love cushions yet, even he admits that they are a vast improvement. Not with the brown sofa maybe, but that’s another project…

Sometimes, there’s nothing quite as nice as a clean, fresh house that smells bright and lovely.

{Image via ApartmentTherapy}

However, getting there isn’t always so easy.  And with all the cleaning products available today, it’s almost impossible to choose one that doesn’t smell overly strong, is effective, affordable, and not harmful for the environment.  Well get ready for this…a whole slew of all-natural cleaning possibilities with just a handful of good, old-fashioned products.

I’ve been using these “recipes” for the last few years.  I was motivated to find an alternative all-purpose cleaner after cleaning my bathtub one day, inhaling a few too many fumes, and deciding that it just was NOT healthy to have that floating around the air in my home!  I’ve found that the biggest hurdle to using these types of cleaners was that they didn’t have that Clorox-y clean smell that we’re all used to associating with “clean.”  If you choose to try any of these recipes and encounter the same problem, try adding a drop or two of eucalyptus or tea tree oil to make it smell more fresh and bright!

Without further ado…you will need: (to clean your ENTIRE HOUSE!)
-Baking Soda
-Borax (found in your grocery store’s laundry detergent aisle
-Tea tree oil
-Lemon oil
-Lemons or lemon juice
-Toothpaste (paste, not gel; with no tartar control or whitening properties)
-Table salt
-Distilled white vinegar
-Castile Soap

{Read the rest of this entry…}

This is one of those posts that I can’t believe I’m writing.  Cleaning products?  Really?  Cleaning products?

Yes, yes, I freakin’ pink-puffy-heart a cleaning product.  There.  I said it.

The website for Mrs. Meyer’s Clean Day Aromatheraputic Household Cleaners says that Mrs. Meyer’s products make cleaning your home “fresh, fun, and fragrant.”  Now, I don’t know about the “fun” part, but these wholly organic cleansers do make scrub-a-dub-dubbing a bit more enjoyable with their fabulous scents and aesthetically pleasing packaging.  Eco-friendly cleaning never felt so good!

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Hello.  My name is Kate and I’m addicted to Etsy.

And really, is that so bad?  I mean, does it get any better than a virtual marketplace, accessible with the click of a button, filled with wares created by amateur and professional artists alike from around the globe?

Nope.  Didn’t think so.

My latest decorating obsession is pillows.  Funky throw-pillows seem to me to be one of the most economical ways to liven up a dull space… like cushy fluffs of art!   Revamp your old, worn out pillows with vibrant pillow-covers that you can interchange with the season (or your mood!).   Or, purchase a “statement pillow” (totally just made that up) to spruce up an entire room.

Considering my Etsy Infatuation, it shouldn’t come as much surprise that I’m scratching this pillow itch quite nicely with homemade finds…

Check out seller Alexandra Ferguson - how ridiculously fabulous are these felt pillows?

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Fortunately, the answer to the above question is “yes.”  But it’s not easy.

I’m like Charlotte York. And I don’t mean in the adorable, head-band wearing, beautiful, and eternally optimistic way. I am like Charlotte York in the I-am-rigid-and-like-for-my-home-to-be-pristine way. I’m probably the world’s worst roommate– if you’re messy. You’d love me if you’re tidy! Remember on Sex and the City when Charlotte and Harry finally got married and she was so happy? Her only problem was that Harry’s home habits didn’t fit with Charlotte’s very clean, tidy lifestyle in her very white, Park Avenue apartment.

Yep. I’m Charlotte. I truly believe that everything in my home has a place and if it doesn’t currently have a place I’m going to run to Hobby Lobby or The Container Store to buy a beautiful container to make sure it has a place. I am the queen of baskets, buckets, bins, label makers, and storage.

My dear husband is nearly perfect. Except for one thing. The major difference in our lifestyles that made newlywed life a challenge was the value that we each place on being tidy.

Just like any man would do, he walks in the house, puts his keys on one surface, takes out his wallet and puts it on another surface, unloads his change and drops it on the kitchen counter, and then goes upstairs to our bedroom to change clothes. He practically leaves a trail a breadcrumbs on his way and I walk behind and pick everything up.

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The following is a tale of an eventful evening and a few valuable lessons learned.

When I started making dinner, I thought to myself, “Should I change out of my dress first?” I pretty much always wear an apron and it seemed pretty silly to change into a whole new outfit just to cook, especially considering the mountain of laundry that always seems to be building in the corner of our bedroom. So I left my brand new J. Crew sundress on, threw on an apron, and proceeded with dinner.

I wasn’t making anything too fancy. Just oven roasted potatoes and broccoli, a fairly simple meal really. The potatoes and onions were chopped and then the fun began as I brought out the olive oil, an absolute essential in any meal made at our house. I started generously drizzling it across the pan of potatoes when all of a sudden the jar gave a burp, and a splash flew through the air landing in no spot other than the two inches of sundress hanging out from the bottom of my apron. At this point, I hastily threw the potatoes into the oven, ignoring the remaining ingredients and abandoning the broccoli all together, and raced to the computer.

I really didn’t think you could ever remove olive oil stains from clothing but was willing to give anything a shot. I thought about calling my mother but realized she wouldn’t really appreciate such an interruption in her sleep at 11 pm.

A quick Google search and I was well on my way to dress recovery. The two most commonly mentioned stain removers were dish soap and shampoo. With not a moment to lose, I grabbed them both and got to work. Miracle of all miracles, the stain was gone in a matter of seconds. I really couldn’t believe it. A quick rinse with cool water and the dress was as good as new.

Side note: I also had to look up if hot or cold water sets a stain. I’m pretty sure that is one of those little things that your mother teaches you from about the age of three, yet you always seem to forget when it counts.

Lessons learned: You can remove olive oil stains. And change out of your new sundress before doing any cooking!

Here are a few helpful links for removing all sorts of stains.

Real Simple’s Stain Removal 101 covers everything from cranberry to tree sap.

Martha Stewart mentions the basics. Also, take a look at the printable Stain First Aid chart.

Do you know any other stain removal tips or tricks? It would be great to add some to my arsenal.

The hubby sent over a link (this is a common occurrence) for a device that blew my mind. It was part of the “Help for Harried Moms” gallery on This Old House.  It’s called the Smart Shopper, and it creates a printable list of groceries.  It’s magnetic, so you can stick it to your fridge.  Yay!

Smart Shopper

It’s kind of pricey ($150) but so worth it if your mom/sister/wife is a gadget freak like me.

I also saw this wall hook from Design Within Reach.  Um, fabulous?

Design Within Reach Hookbox

Who knew dog leashes could be so elegant?

All images via This Old House.

I might as well just repost everything from CraftyNest.  Her projects are THAT COOL.

Go check out the before on her blog!