The Art Of Display by Benita Larsson

Another cool tips from Benita Larsson. Did I tell you before that she's rock?

After her ultimate 10 Orginizing Tips, now she's back with some tricks about displaying items on the shelves. And since she's a visual merchandiser, she's definitely competent for that ;).

Thank you Benita, what would we do without you?

Test Tube Kid From Small Object

Siapa yang bilang boneka lucu dari jepitan baju plus test tube ini ga lucu? Hayoh angkat tangan! Pastinya ga ada deh...

Boneka bikinan Sarah Neuburger ini dibuat sebanyak 50 biji khusus untuk para 'student of the month' di Reform School, Los Angeles. Setiap bonekanya pakai ransel yang dijahit sendiri dengan motif yang berbeda-beda pula.

Ibu yang satu ini emang crafty bangeeeeeuud...Blognya penuh barang-barang lucu dan berbagai macam tutorial menarik. I envy your talent girl :) !

Leaf Alphabet

I looooove dry leaves!

Biasanya kalau nemu daun kering atau bunga yang bentuknya unik, aku bakal simpan di antara buku-buku tebal sampai gepeng dan kelopaknya jadi transparan kaya kertas. Tapi biasanya habis itu malah kebingungan....Mau diapain ya daun-daunan ini? Untungnya nemu DIY tips dari Martha Stewart ini. So now I know!

10 Tips Untuk Rumah Bebas Berantakan

Unclutter punya 10 tips untuk membuat rumah bebas berantakan dalam waktu kurang dari 10 menit saja.

1. Make your bed each morning. --> Making my bed is one of the first things I do every morning. It's really quick and can make your house looks 70% tidier than before :D.

2. Throw away the newspaper each night, even if you haven’t read it yet. --> I don't subscribe on any newspapers, I read everything online or watch it on TV. Simplify my life and save money.

3. Follow the “one-minute rule” – push yourself to do any chore that takes less than one minute. Throw away the junk mail, close the cabinet door, put your dirty socks in the hamper, hang up your wet towel. ---> Hohoho....hubby you better read this one! :D

4. Identify an organization or person to whom you can give things you no longer need – it’s much easier to get rid of unneeded stuff if you can envision someone else getting good use from them. Also, figure out a place to store those things until you hand them over. We have a special shelf for books that we’re taking to the Housing Works thrift store. When the shelf is full, we drop off the books. ---> This is a really great tips, my rule is : easy come, easy go. Every time I shop ( especially clothes ), means that there have to be old things to donate. Again, it really simplify my life.

5. Pause for a moment before you “store” something. Storing something means you don’t intend to use it much. Other than holiday decorations and seasonal clothes, you should strive to “store” as little as possible. ---> Especially for 36 type rent house where storage is an issue!

6. Beware of freebies. Never accept anything free, unless you’re thrilled with it. A mug, a tote bag, a hand-me-down toy, the lamp from your mother-in-law—if you don’t need it, don’t take it. ---> Freebies are attempting, but ask yourself whether you really need it. I even refuse to bring home some brochures or free catalouges if I know I wouldn't interest to the products.

7. Get rid of things if they break. When I went through our apartment, I was astonished by how many things I’d kept even though they didn’t work. ---> Hmmmmmm.....For me broken things are even more attempting than freebies! Hahahaha....I always think that I can fix it one day or upcycling it into something new, yet they're still there in my storage and forgotten :D.

8. Don’t keep any piece of paper unless you know that you actually need it. I have a friend who, for years, carefully filed away the stubs when she paid her gas bill. “Why?” I asked, mystified. “I have no idea,” she said. Along the same lines, don’t keep anything that would quickly become dated—like travel information. Remember the internet! If you can easily find information online, you don’t need to keep a hard copy. ---> See what I told ya.

9. Hang up your coat. ---> This is tropical island, I don't wear coat, thank you.

10. Before you go to bed, take five minutes to do an “evening tidy-up.” Don’t tackle anything ambitious, but just stack up the magazines, put your shoes away, shove the chairs into place, etc. Just a few minutes of tidying can make your house look a lot better, and it’s a calming thing to do before going to sleep. Plus it makes the morning nicer. ---> Oh yes. Even better if you clean all the dishes before you go to bed. Embracing morning with a shiny sink really makes your morning brighter.

One Pretty Thing

Senaaaaaaaaang.....Kenapa? Karena aku baru nemu blog asik tentang DIY.

Ibu ini dengan rajinnya selalu meng-update blognya dengan bermacam-macam link tentang DIY. Mam, you make my life much more easier ! :)

Mmmmm....pengen coba bikin yang mana ya?

....hiasan dinding ini...

....atau polaroid on string....

....atau jepitan serbet ini?


Pengen coba semmmmuah!

Chez Larsson

Ini nih salah satu blog favoritku : Chez Larsson.

Kayanya kalau semua orang se-crafty dan se-DIY kaya Ibu Benita ini arsitek, desain interior dan tukang ga bakal laku lagi :D. Ga cuma itu, ibu ini juga pantes dipanggil Mrs. Organize karena termasuk salah satu ibu rumah tangga yang sukses menata rumahnya untuk jadi selalu rapi kaya foto-foto di majalah ( ga aku banget deh :P ).



Untungnya beliau ga pelit dan mau berbagi ilmunya sama kita...

Top 10 Organizing Tips From Chez Larsson:

1) Edit, edit edit.
How many pots and pans actually fit on your stove at the same time?
How many clear vases can be filled with flowers at one time? Many if you have a cutting garden, not so many if you live in a small city apartment.
How many (if any) ugly pens you got for free do you need?
How many T-shirts do you need to save for your next paint job? My husband Martin claims many and he never picks up a paint brush. I say one and I’m the one who does all the painting around the house…
I constantly edit my belongings.

2) Let it go.
I always keep a row of grocery bags in the garage designated for stuff I want to get rid of. One goes to the local charity shop, one goes to my son’s younger cousins, one goes to recycling. When one bag is full I bring it to wherever it’s intended. I love it when all the bags are gone!

3) It’s only “stuff”.
You probably won’t regret what you’ve edited out. Considering the masses of stuff I constantly get rid of all the time I can only remember two things I’ve regretted. A few old letters I wish I’d kept and quite recently an Alvar Aalto Savoy vase which had a corner chipped off. I saw someone on AT cast a cement door stopper in one and wish I’d saved mine… But then again I have another one with a tiny chip so…

5) One in - one out
When getting something new get rid of something old. I really do. If I get a new pot for the kitchen I check the cabinet so see if an old one can go and if not I get something from another cabinet and toss that.

6) Own what you love.
Just because somebody you love gave you something doesn’t mean you have to display it or, in my case, even keep it if it’s not to your taste. I’m ruthless about this and feel it’s much better to pass it on to someone who will appreciate it more or to someplace that can use it. I can honestly say that in my house we only have things we really like. Martin doesn’t always agree with all of my things and I may not always agree on all of his but at least someone in our household loves it.

7) Buy storage in bulk.
For a streamlined, less cluttered look get lots of the same boxes in one color. I spend a bit of money here and get all the same boxes from IKEA. My favourites are white cardboard Kassett boxes for upstairs and clear plastic Flaj boxes for the storage room and garage. They are really inexpensive but when you get lots it amounts to a bit of money. I must have about 25 Kassett and 40 Flaj by now… I print the labels on my printer for neatness.

8) Corral your Clutter.
To avoid day-to-day clutter I keep containers in clutter prone places where I corral all things trailing about. There’s a green glass container by the front door where I put keys, cell phones, coins, buss passes, lost (and found) buttons, sun glasses etc. In the home office area there’s another one for desk related things like paper clips, eraser, push pins, business cards and other stuff laying about. In the kitchen there’s a tray on top of the microwave where I gather stuff found on the kitchen counters. Once in a while I empty the stuff out and put all the things in their correct places and start over.

I also keep a basket by the stairs where I put stuff which needs to go downstairs. When the basket’s is full I bring it downstairs and put away the things where they belong.

For paper clutter I’ve added vertical slots in my home office where we each have one slot and I put the papers in there. If Martin or Wille are looking for something they know where to find it.
There’s one slot for bills too. I open all mail every day as soon as I get in and keep a recycling bin by the door. All junk mail goes directly in there and the bills go in the bill slot.

9) Rotate your collections.
It’s not necessary to display all your belongings all the time. I switch things around quite a bit and enjoy the changes. A lot of our collections are in cabinets and boxes but every now and then I bring a different set of things out to enjoy.

10) Buy white.
I always buy day to day supplies in white, no print, no color, just pure white. Paper towels, toilet brush, dish towels, laundry pegs, toilet paper, candles, napkins, the list goes on. White looks clean and fresh and doesn’t draw attention to the boring day to day stuff we all need. Also with white you see when it gets dirty and needs changing.

Di blognya ada posting terbaru yang asik tentang proyek DIY membuat gantungan jemuran dan menyembunyikan kabel di dinding. Kewl!

One more thing that I like about her is that she loves to sew...Awwww I do too!!