I'M ON ETSY!!!! And A Giveaway!!!!

So if finally took the plunge and opened a little store on Etsy!!! I love this site soooo very much! I have bought some of the neatest little gifts for people from people off of Etsy and it is my go-to browsing site of all time! If this is the first time you are hearing about it, well I definately encourage you to check out all the shops it has to offer. If you are a returning customer...I encourage you to check out my NEW shop! Which brings us to the GIVEAWAY!!!! All you have to do is go to my Etsy store HERE and take a little "looksee" - then come back to my blog and comment on my store so far or offer up any suggestions on what you think I should offer moving forward! You can also earn an additional entry by sharing in a post a link to your favourite Etsy Store! It's that simple!!! The draw will close at midnight on December 15th and one lucky winner will receive one item of their choice from my ETSY store!!

I thought I would also like to take this opportunity to share some of my favourite shops that I have come across at Etsy!!

First up is Janey.Mac Vinyl Wall Art

I have just ordered a project for Jaxon's nursery wall that just arrived the other day. I can hardly wait to document to process and post it for all of you! Stay tuned for that one!


Next is Betsy Farmer Designs! I simply love this jewellery! Custom work and stunning!

Two Pink Hearts provided me with my awesome camera strap cover...

And Amy at Custom Creations made me the most beautiful quilted travel bag to take to the hospital when Jaxon arrived! He now uses it to travel with!

These are just a few of my favourite places to check out on Etsy....why don't you share your favourite store with me and grab a chance or two to win something fun!!!!!

A Spicy Re-org...

And now to tackle that hideous "SPICE CABINET".....
Listen...I am going to spare you the confusion, disgust, and trauma that a photo of the "before" would have given you!

I am just going to cut to the chase - long story short - THESE are the containers that used to house my many spices!!! They would fall all over you when you opened up the cupboard, IF you could get the lid off without ending up with spices all over you, you would be pissed to find out that you were completely out of chilli powder whilst the chilli was simmering on the stove, awaiting it's last ingredient!!! Something HAD TO BE DONE!!!!

These are the AWESOME Tupperware containers that the spices are GOING to be in!!!

I used my handy-dandy Dyno Labelmaker and clear Dynotape to make the labels, trimmed them and put them onto the containers.

Filled the containers with the coordinating spices and ta-dah!!! No more mayhem!!!
Off to prepare a spicy dinner!!!
MWAH~

Basket Labels How-To...

In my last post I showed you these baskets that had labels hanging off them for my pantry organization project. In this post I will show you my simple method of assembling them.
What you will need for this project:
Labels - go here to purchase mine or make your own
A Laminator (Walmart)
Laminating Pouches 4x6 Size (Walmart)
Scissors (Your house probably!)
A Medium Round Hole Punch or Crop-a-dile (Michaels)
Paper Cutter (Michaels)
Small Black Zip-ties (Walmart)
Black Baskets (Dollarama)

The first thing you are going to do is print off all of your label on regular 8x11 printer paper. I used white because I didn't want anything affecting the final color of the labels.

I then cut them into squares, then I cut them out individually around the label. Good time to note that you may want to pour yourself a little cocktail and turn on the "Bachelor Canada" and enjoy the next while of therapeutic cutting!

Next, take your cut out labels and place them into the laminating pouch. I used the Scotch Thermal Laminating Pouches 4x6 size and got four labels comfortably into each pouch.

After your laminator has heated up to proper temperature, feed the laminating pouch containing four labels through it. I don't know if this really makes a difference or not, but I let it rest for about 10 seconds when it comes out and then I re-feed it through for an additional seal?!?! I have never had anything come apart on me yet.

Now you are going to want to use a paper cutter to make straight and evenly measured labels. My finished label cards were 3.5 inches wide and 2.5 inches high.

Next you are going to take your hole punch and punch two holes, one on either side of the top swoop in the label.

You will then take a black zip tie and feed it through the hole, connecting it to the basket, and zipping it up to secure. Repeat on the other side. Your label will now be secure to your basket.

Now you are left with the excess pointy zip tie poking up - simply slide it so that it faces the inside of the basket and clip it off.
Now all that is left is for you to fill your baskets up!
MWAH~

What's In YOUR Pantry?

So I have been on a mission to organize my pantry (or the Bomb Shelter as my dahling hubby refers to it as)into a state that he has NO choice but to conform to the impeccable organization of each and every piece of it!! This has become a weekly chore of "straightening out" the disarray that it has ended up in because he continues to just toss stuff WHEREVER!!! I got a little carried away and personalized baskets and carried on into my spice cabinet so I will be posting three consecutive posts to break it down a little!
So ladies and gents, please let me introduce you to what "Tupperware" meets "Dollarama" meets a little "CREATIVITY" can do for you....

Welcome to my pantry! I got this wreath at Homesense about two years ago - I love love love it!!!! Spilling with olives, artichokes & pears with many hues of green, I think it screams..."Come In..."

Can you hear that????? Ahhhhhhhhhhh - that is "Organangelo", the organization angel singing his utmost praises to this immaculate pantry!!!!

This is the top two left hand side (LHS) shelves! The modulars are from Tupperware (I hosted a party and earned a lot for free, but did shell out some of it) and I purchased the little black baskets at Dollarama (3 for $2). The modulars house loose ingredients (i.e.: flours, sugars etc.). The baskets house things I want easy access to that are self contained (i.e.: jello, seasoning packets etc.). I will show you how I assembled the labels for the front on the baskets in the next post.

Second from top shelf on LHS - Major "go-to" daily use modulars...

Second from bottom shelf on LHS - all my baking supplies (chipits, nuts, etc) and oils.

Bottom shelf LHS - home of my "must-have" Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer for easy-peasy access, breakfast supplies, crackers, popcorn seasonings and snacks.

Here is a close up of our popcorn seasoning basket - it it great because when we have movie nights, you can just grab the whole thing and bam - they are all together for your choosing!

Floor bottom LHS - my bag-o-recycled-bags, my onion bin and my potato bin (both Tupperware - vented so contents don't spoil as quickly.

Floor bottom right hand side (RHS) - this area won't normally be so "POP-CONCENTRATED" - there was a great sale on these and we were having a party so stocked up! This area will be refurnished with large baskets that will hold my tupperware containers that I will use to put leftovers in the fridge or freezer (one for containers, one for lids. Convenient easy access!

This is the RHS bottom shelf - it is home to my morning routine of COFFEE!!!! There is our Costco K-Cup Box, along with a basket that holds other ground coffees. To the right of it is our film/foil station. To the left - other powdered bevies...including the hubby's "Workout Protein Supplements"(whatever is in them?!)

This is the second and third from bottom RHS shelves - I recently had these "soup shelves" added into my pantry, as well as the very top shelf on both the LHS and RHS of the pantry for additional shelving space! It has made a world of difference!
Right now the bottom soup shelf is holding Jaxon's baby food in the jars, as well as baskets at the end with his snacks and rice cereals. This really makes it easy to see what I have for stock and what I am running low on (currently NOTHING at the time of this photoshoot! LOL!!) The main shelf holds canned goods like pasta sauce, cheese whiz (don't judge me!)jams, jellies, salad dressings and boxed products. PLEASE NOTE* These are all UNOPENED, as they are not shelf stable once the seals are cracked!

Baskets containing Jaxon's snacks and rice pablum...

Middle shelf on RHS - baskets in the corner containing snacks and sides...soups and all canned goods, followed by my collection of Epicure Seasonings tucked into the far right corner...

These baskets hold stuff I "shouldn't" have in my pantry probably...but do! Cookies, candies, pre-done sides like rices and noodles, oh yah...and the healthy granola bars are tucked way back in the corner!!! Might need to re-visit this set up!

Second from top RHS shelf holds all of our cereals - Tupperware containers keep these fresh with pour spout tops.

And finally the top RHS shelf with stuff that I don't need all that often...excess garbage bags, excess Ziplocs, gloves - stuff I need to call the hubby to help me reach!

I put a couple hooks on the wall on the LHS to hang aprons off of...for a quick grab!

I simply love this apron my girlfriend sent me in the mail - "Chefabella" - how fitting!!

Well, that's it folks - hope you enjoyed a little sneak peak into my secret obsession of ORGANIZING!!! Stay tuned for my spice pantry re-vamp and learn how I am going to tackle my fridge and freezer!
MWAH~