Favorite Five Friday: Fall Printables

One thing I knew for sure when I started my blog was that I not only wanted a place to share my ideas and projects but I also wanted a place to share all of the great ideas I come across on a daily basis. So what I came up with was Favorite Five Friday (say that three times fast). Each Friday, I'll pick a certain topic and share my five favorites in no particular order.This week, I'm sharing my favorite Fall decor printables. 

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1) This fall printable from Howdy Honey is amazing! I just can't get enough of subway styled printables!

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2) I'm in love with this vintage styled banner from Fleece Fun! When you click the link I provided to download, you'll see that she included a list of items you'll need and a tutorial to complete this look. I think this would be gorgeous hung above a buffet or on a dining room wall. 

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3) If you're looking for a simple fall printable that sums up some of the best things about Fall, this printable from Creatively Southern is it!

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4) A friend of mine & fellow blogger Vivian @ For the Love of Family came across this fantastic printable & shared it with me. I'm sort of obsessed with subway styled printables if you couldn't tell by now.

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5) Lastly, I found this adorable Fall quote printable from Blissful Roots and couldn't resist sharing it. According to Blissful Roots, its part of a children's song from the 1800's which just adds to the awesome factor to me because I love old things!

Do you use printables to decorate for holidays? If so, feel free to share your favorites in the comments. 

~Taylor

The Ultimate Guide to Planning Thanksgiving - Part Two

(CREDIT)

Hi everyone! On Saturday, I posted part one of my Ultimate Thanksgiving Planning Guide which can be found HERE if you haven't read it yet. Today is part two and is primarily focused on all things food. I'll share some general tips along with giving you a basic guideline to follow in the days leading up to Thanksgiving. So here we go...

Easy Clean-up Tips:

• Consider using disposable foil pans, plates, etc. 
• Try to clean kitchen messes as you go. 
• After everyone is finished eating, recruit some help. If someone offers to help, let them. You've busted your butt the last few days, you deserve it. 

4-5 Days Before:

• Create a cooking timeline.
• Clean linens, silverware, serveware, etc. 
• Give your home a good cleaning.
• Clean out your refrigerator and try to use up what you have stored in it. 
• Check over your recipes to make sure you have everything you need.
• If you haven't assigned dishes (food dishes, that is) to specific cookware, do that now.

3 Days Before:

• If you're using a frozen turkey, put it in the fridge TODAY to start defrosting. This is a lengthy process and you don't want to be like my mom one year putting a turkey in her tub at the last minute. True story.
• Do some basic prepping like washing and chopping vegetables, shredding cheese for salad, etc.

2 Days Before:

• Things like cranberry relish, pecan pies, cornbread for stuffing, etc. can be cooked today. 
• You can also assemble casseroles now to bake the next day.
• Set up tables. Put clean linens on, add the centerpieces, etc. 

1 Day Before:

• Most side dishes can be done today. My only exception would be mashed potatoes as I find they taste best when made the day of. Candied yams, casseroles, etc. can be cooked now.
• Any breads you make from scratch can be made and warmed right before serving.
• Finish up any baking such as apple pies, pecan pies, etc.
• In general, make whatever you can today.

Day Of:

• First things first, make the stuffing & stuff your bird. Start cooking it first.
• Assemble appetizers on serving trays if you haven't already.
• Turkey, ham, and gravy should be just about all you have to cook for the day.
• If you didn't make mashed potatoes in advance, cook those.
• After everything is cooked, warm up side dishes and enjoy!

General Tips:

• Rule of thumb for how much turkey you need is 1lb. per person if using a whole turkey and 3/4lb per person if using a bone in breast.
• Rule of thumb for ham is 1/4lb - 1/3lb per person for boneless and 1/3lb - 1/2lb for bone-in
• Invest in a probe thermometer that has insulated wire & an alarm. Then you just insert the thermometer, set the alarm, and forget about it. Plus, The pop up timers that come with most turkeys don't pop up until your bird is 180 degrees which means an overcooked bird. Turkey should have a temp of 165 degrees when done.
• Although not required, a gravy strainer is a good thing to have. An alternative if you don't have one is to pour the turkey juices in a measuring cup, allow 5-10 minutes for the fat to separate from the juice, and skim it off with a spoon.
• A sharp carving knife is an absolute MUST unless you're looking to serve shredded turkey. 

So there you have it, everything you need to know to ensure a stress-free Thanksgiving this year! I have one more post to share regarding Thanksgiving and that will be my menu and cooking timeline along with some Thanksgiving dish recipes. Share your tips for an easy Thanksgiving in the comment section. 

~Taylor

The Ultimate Guide to Planning Thanksgiving - Part One

 (Credit)

Do you find yourself at the grocery store a day or two before Thanksgiving scrambling to buy what you need and frustrated when they are out of stock on popular items? Then you spend the following days cooking like a mad (wo)man and before you know it, Thanksgiving is over and you didn't even get to enjoy it. I've spent the last few years hosting Thanksgiving and its always exhausted me to no end because I wasn't prepared. But this year all of that changes. I WILL prepare and enjoy Thanksgiving and I hope you will too using my ultimate guide to planning Thanksgiving. In this post I'll show you how to plan everything from decor to food and even give you helpful tips that I've learned through trial & error. 

BUDGET & GUESTS:

• Decide on the setting you'll want & set a budget accordingly. Do you want an ultra fancy meal or are you taking the traditional route?
• Do a rough plan of your menu. Again, ultra fancy or laidback? Modern or traditional?
• Make a guest list and take note of any food allergies and drink preferences. 
• Figure out if you have enough room for everyone to eat. If not, look into renting tables & chairs or borrowing some from family and/or friends. 

DECOR:

• Decide on the decor you'll want, if you haven't decorated already. A wreath on the door, mantle decorations, and a nice table centerpiece are good choices that truly make it feel like fall. 
• To save money, check out yard sales, online "yard sales", thrift stores, etc. for gently used decor. 
• If you're planning to buy decor from places like Hobby Lobby, Michaels, etc. watch the ads for coupons. Hobby Lobby, for example, has a 40% off one item coupon in EVERY ad and they usually put holiday decor on sale every so often where you can save 30-40% on everything. 
• Get creative! Pinterest is LOADED with tons of DIY projects, most are cheap to do and some even involve repurposing things that would otherwise be junk. 

FOOD/SUPPLIES:

• A good rule of thumb for side dishes is 1 per person for up to 5 people and 1 for each additional 2 people after that. It may seem like a lot but that is going on the average recipe size (4 servings). If you double a recipe for say mashed potatoes, count that as 2 side dishes. 
• When creating your menu, consider items you can cook in the oven at the same time, in advance, etc. Also, consider dishes that taste good at room temperature. The less stuff you have to heat up, the better. Plus you don't want to be worrying about your cold dessert melting before its time to eat. 
• Finalize your menu & gather up all the recipes you'll need. Print or write them down and keep them together. 
• Make your grocery list and don't forget things like condiments/dressings, seasonings, foil pans, and any other disposable things you may need. 
• Look through your cookware, utensils, and serveware to make sure you have enough of everything. 
• Don't forget things like a meat thermometer, carving knife, etc. It would be bad to realize you don't have the essentials at the last minute. 
• I recommend making a list of the cookware/serveware you have and assigning a dish to each piece. That will prevent a bad surprise on Thanksgiving of being short a pan, casserole dish, etc.
• Start shopping as early as possible! Things like brown sugar, canned cranberry sauce, etc. can be bought early in advance and those popular items are likely to be out of stock if you wait til the last minute. Trust me, I know from experience. 
• If the thought of cooking everything is too overwhelming or you aren't able to, consider a potluck style Thanksgiving or at least a partial potluck where you cook the ham, turkey, etc. and everyone else brings a side dish or dessert. Most people have no issue with this and I find many don't like to show up to an event without bringing something anyways.
• Check your local grocery store ads before shopping. Many stores put popular items on sale early on. You can usually find an on-sale turkey at times and just freeze it until its time to use. 
• If you're planning to order a turkey, do it ASAP. Its not unusual for them to sell out in early November. 

I hope you find these tips helpful in making your Thanksgiving easier this year. Check back on Tuesday for part 2 of my Ultimate Guide to Planning Thanksgiving where I'll give you a thorough timeline starting a week before a Thanksgiving to guide you through hosting Turkey Day the easy way! Totally didn't try to rhyme there but its kind of catchy, right? 

~Taylor

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Day 7 Mini Challenge - Organizing Your Workspace

Well this is it everyone! Our last mini challenge was to organize your workspace whether you have a desk or just work from your dining room table. I thought this would be perfect for the last day because then it'd be clean to start the new week. 

My desk was absolutely disastrous ... seriously. I have a tendency to start projects and then not feel like finishing them. I also drag lots of stuff out and then don't feel like putting it away in its proper place. The result is this ...

Crazy, right? I decided to go through some pictures & other keepsakes, got distracted, and left the mess. Then the rest is just random stuff I sat on my desk that came from other rooms. I have an office but when my fiance is home, I tend to work in the living room or kitchen. 

Here's the after of my desk. I removed all the junk that shouldn't have been there & put it up. 

Here's my tips for organizing your workspace:

• Remove everything that doesn't belong & put it where it goes. Don't move one pile of junk from one spot to another. That's what I call double working yourself. 
• Keep only your bare essentials on your desk. Pens, sticky notes, etc. For me, I keep my "on-the-go office basket" which is filled with pens, flags, washi tape, and sticky notes. I also keep my labelmaker which I use frequently, printer, lamp, and 2 decorative pieces on my desk. 
• If you choose to add decorative accents, make sure to keep it simple and make sure it won't be in the way of you working. 
• To maintain your clean space, put everything away each time you leave your desk or put things away immediately after you're done with them. 

I hope everyone enjoyed this week's mini challenges and I hope they have motivated you to continue on your journey to organizational bliss! Continue with baby steps and you won't get burned out. What you will get is an organized life. 

Happy organizing!

~Taylor

 

Day 6 Mini Challenge - Organizing the Car

Hi everyone! Today is already day 6 of the mini organizing challenge! One more day left & hopefully you're all feeling accomplished. Sure we've organized in baby steps but those baby steps add up and make a big difference over time. Plus, you get the added bonus of not getting overwhelmed or destructing your entire home trying to organize it all at once.

So for day 6, we're organizing the car. I picked my fiance's work truck for this because it was SUPER messy. He works rotating 12hr shifts for 2 weeks straight and when he gets off, we're usually busy so he gets behind on cleaning his truck. Originally I was going to clean it but he ended up doing it instead. I wasn't about to complain but I did make sure before & after pics were taken.

Eeeeeek, scary! He tracks a lot of mud/dirt in his truck as you can see. So instead of just organizing like the challenge says, the entire truck was cleaned. 

I forgot to snap a pic immediately after it was cleaned so there is already some grass on the floor again but it still looks WAY better. 

This is the passenger side which is his catch-all area. He usually throws all his junk/trash on that side.

Here's the after - much cleaner! (Please ignore my shadow, the sun was beaming but I wanted to get this post done now before I get busy.)

Here's what he did & some additional tips to organize your car:

• Removed everything that didn't belong in his truck
• Threw away all the trash
• Gave everything a thorough wipe down
• Keep a bag in your car to collect trash
• Use over the seat car organizers to keep small necessities all in one spot
• Have a designated spot for change 
• Make it a habit to take things out that don't belong in your car every time you get home
• Keep a tote or container in the very back with emergency items (change of clothes, first aid kit, jumper cables, etc.)

Happy organizing!

~Taylor

Join our Facebook group >HERE< to share before & afters, ask questions, and share tips on all things home management.
 

 

Day 5 Mini Challenge - Junk Drawer

Everyone home has one ... A place where all the random pieces of junk go because you can't figure out where else to put them AKA a junk drawer. You're probably thinking I'll show you how to eliminate that drawer but nope, I'm not. I've never figured out how to eliminate my own, much less anyone else's. I will say, my junk drawer is kind of funny to look at because its not messy but that's probably because I've only been in my home for a few months. Here's a peek at it though...

Yep, that's it. Batteries, spare lighters, duct tape, and a flashlight. Please excuse the dust on those big batteries, BTW. This is how its looked since we unpacked and I'm not really sure how. I assume over time it will collect more junk though. 

Here's how to clean your junk drawer:

• Empty everything out on the counter. 
• Starting sorting. There are most likely things in your junk drawer that could go elsewhere in your house. 
• Throw away things you no longer need or don't think you'll use. 
• Use a drawer organizer, ice cube tray, etc. to separate small items. 
• For bigger items like packs of batteries, you can find small plastic containers in bundles of 3-4 for about a $1-$2.
  
  At this point, you should have an organized junk drawer where you can find what you need without digging around and having things fall out everywhere.
  
  Happy organizing!
  ~Taylor

Join our group on Facebook >HERE< to share your before & afters, ask questions, and share tips on all things home management. 

Day 4 Mini Challenge - Living Room Clutter

The living room is probably one of the most used rooms in your home. Its where you and your family gather and spend quality time together so its bound to get cluttered and messy from time to time. Since my fiance & I have only been in our home for a couple months, ours hasn't had much time to get really cluttered so today I'll share general tips that I've came across to help you get your living room organized.

Here's a picture of my living room and this is pretty much how it looks all the time except there are usually dog toys scattered on the rug. There is a love seat to the right against the wall which I couldn't fit in the picture. We haven't really decorated much because we'll be remodeling the entire house starting next year. Originally I wanted an earth-tone color scheme but with all the natural light this room gets, I think I'll focus on neutral colors with pops of color instead. 

This is one way we've organized what little living room clutter we have. I found this long, narrow box at TJMaxx for about $5 and its worked perfectly to house our remote controls and keep them from getting lost. 

This is what I refer to as our "catch-all basket" and it does just as the name implies, catches all the junk. When my fiance comes home, he'll toss his keys, wallet, phone, etc. in there. The lawn mower key has been hanging out in there for a while as well. Just any random stuff that would normally end up scattered throughout the house goes in that basket. Eventually I'd like to upgrade to a bigger basket so when we have things that need to leave with us, we can put them there the night before or whatever. 

Here's some more tips on organizing your living room. 

• Use a decorative basket to store all your pet's toys. Make it a habit to pick them up before bed. If you're expecting company, it'll only take a minute to collect them all & store them away.
• Roll up throw blankets and store them in a basket. I personally love vintage wicker laundry baskets, trunks, and/or ottomans as storage options.
• If you have children that play in the living room, get a big basket to store their toys. Rotate which toys are in there every so often.
• You could also get a cubicle shelf system (IKEA Expedit, closetmaid, etc.) to store toys and other living room items.
• For even more storage, consider a sofa table with drawers or even repurpose a buffet. Buffets look nice behind the sofa or underneath a wall mounted TV.
• Use a vintage (or new) magazine rack next to a sofa or chair to house magazines.
• Instead of a coffee table, use an ottoman with a tray or crate on top to hold remote controls, candles, and/or decorative pieces. 
• Swap out traditional DVD cases with jewel tone cases or fabric/paper cases to minimize the space they take up. Store them in a decorative photo album box, basket, or a fabric cube if you have a cubicle system. 

What are some ways you organize your living room? Share in the comments!

~Taylor

Join our group on Facebook >HERE< to share before & afters, ask questions, and share tips on all things home management. 

Day 3 Mini Challenge - Laundry Room

Hey all! Hope everyone is doing good with the mini challenges. This is the first time I've done little organizing projects throughout the house and I was a bit skeptical that it'd make a difference but it does! Its really nice to open a cabinet and go straight for what you need or open the fridge and find the exact veggie you need for a recipe without digging. Anyway, I didn't have time yesterday to organize my laundry room but I did it today and it really needed it! 

Ok so this cabinet isn't bad .. There was only three items in there but I was still able to make some changes. 

This cabinet is above the washer and now houses: laundry detergent, dryer sheets, bleach, and a container where I store cleaning rags. 

Ok so this picture doesn't do this cabinet justice. There is a big blind spot behind where the Mr. Clean is because there was a lot in there and it was so messy looking. My intentions were to put a shelf to use more vertical space but I wasn't able to. This cabinet sits high on the wall & its deep and since I'm short, I can't reach anything behind that Mr. Clean. 

So this was the solution. I put all the cleaners in a container I already had except the Mr. Clean & Gain Febreeze (Can you tell I'm addicted to Gain?). The huge bottle of vinegar is also back there along with an iron that I don't use very much. Now I can just pull the container down, grab what I need, and put it back. Before I had to ask the hubby to get something or use a chair.

I'm usually pretty good about keeping the dryer clear of junk but stuff happens, right? Its been a catch all for a few days but not anymore!

Now its cleared & my cabinets are more organized then before. 

I can't wait to see everyone else's before and afters of their laundry rooms. I find its common for laundry rooms to become a hotspot for junk and a lot of people wouldn't even think to organize it but it really makes doing laundry easier and maybe a tad bit fun. Ok not really but laundry is a fact of life. 

Happy Organizing!

~Taylor

Join our Facebook group >HERE< to share your before & afters, ask questions, and share tips on all things home management. 

Day 2 Mini Challenge - Refrigerator Organization

Hi everyone! I hope everyone is doing good with the mini challenges so far. Yesterday we tackled beauty/hygiene organization and today its the refrigerator. Luckily for me, tomorrow is grocery shopping day so we were pretty empty to start with. I always clean the fridge before we grocery shop and for leftovers, I usually toss those after 2-3 days so it doesn't get very messy anyway.

Here's my before:

We have a pretty small fridge so we have to be creative with storing things. But here you can see, its a little messy. The red bowl had some rice that needed to be tossed, beside that was sausage that didn't belong there etc. It just needed a little tidying up. 

And here's the after. All I did was put things back in their spot, group everything up, and toss out anything that was old. As you can see, there are 2 containers at the bottom. One is used for snacks such as fruit cups, applesauce, pudding, etc. and the other is where I keep meat. I'll keep deli meat, sausage, and/or meat that I'm thawing out in there. It keeps things all together but also, if I thaw meat and it leaks, that leak is contained. I actually just dealt with that recently and it was much easier to clean the container rather then the entire fridge and its contents. I'll probably add a 3rd container soon to house jars, condiments,etc. that don't fit in the door. Anyway, that's all for today! By the way, You can find these containers at Walmart in the kitchen organization section for around $2.50 each.

Happy organizing!

~ Taylor

Click >HERE< to join our group on Facebook where you can follow the challenges, share tips on home management, share before & afters of your organized spaces, etc. 

Day 1 of Mini Challenge - Beauty & Hygiene Products

Hi everyone! I wanted to take a minute to show you my own before & afters for today's mini challenge as well as show you a neat tip to store hair styling tools. The areas I worked on weren't THAT bad because I try to keep them tidy but they needed a little work. 

This is one of our bathroom cabinets where we store just about all of our beauty/hygiene products aside from shower stuff, cottons balls/Qtips & toothpaste. Not too messy but not very organized either. Please ignore the hideous wallpaper ... it will be leaving very soon!

Here's the after. I removed 1-2 things that didn't belong, added a few things that should be there, added shelf liner, and straightened everything up. 

This is a container where I store nail polish & tools, my frequently used makeup, and a few odds & ends.

So this is the after. I have a bin with my most used eyeshadows and another for misc. small things that I use a lot. I put all the nail stuff in the polka dot bag and the leopard bag will be moved to my purse since it doesn't belong in there anyways. 

This is the tip I wanted to share. I used small command hooks on the cabinet door to hang my curling iron, straightener, and hairbrush. I didn't want to pile them up somewhere or leave them hanging out on the counter. This is also a great way to preserve space elsewhere and use a space that is commonly ignored. So if you're limited on space, try this or think of other things that could be stored in a similar method.

~Taylor

Click >HERE< to join our group on Facebook where you can follow the challenges, share tips on home management, share before & afters of your organized spaces, etc. 

Decorating on a Budget: Interchangeable Burlap Wreath

So I'm sure by now everyone has seen the beautifully decorated, over the top wreaths on Pinterest. They are the perfect decor item to make your house stand out. You can find endless varieties on Etsy for sell but they are pretty pricey. I love DIY projects especially ones that are cheap so I figured I'd make own AND I'm sharing how I made it with all of you! I apologize in advance for the pictures, they aren't the greatest. My plan was to take them outside but I didn't have time and its dark out now. Oh & I goofed and totally forgot to buy a wreath hanger so you can't see it in action ... yet. 

You will need:
1 Pool Noodle - $1 @ Dollar Tree
About 1yd of Burlap fabric - $2.97 per yard @ Walmart
1 Wreath Hanger - $2 @ Walmart
Alligator Clips - $5 @ Sally's (I already had those)
Hot Glue Gun
Decorations of Choice - I used a $3 flower I already had 

1. Play around with the pool noodle and decide the size you want your wreath to be, cut accordingly.

2. Put the ends together and wrap plenty of duct tape around them. You may need help with this step, I did.

3. Cut your burlap in strips about 8" in width or you can use burlap ribbon found at a craft store. 

4. Glue the end of a strip of burlap on the pool noodle and begin wrapping around the noodle at an angle. Continue until its completely covered.

5. At this point, your wreath should look like this, minus the flower. Sorry, forgot to snap a picture without decorations. 

6. Trim the frayed ends of the burlap. Now your wreath should look like this. 

6. Line an alligator clip with ribbon & hot glue the clip(s) to your decoration(s).

7. Slide the alligator clips under an edge of burlap.

And you're done! Once you get tired of the wreath's decorations or want to change it up for another holiday, you just remove the old decorations and replace with new pieces that have alligators clip added to them. Super easy and totally beats buying a new wreath for every holiday! My wreath is pretty simple right now because I wanted to use what I had for the most part but I plan on making it fall themed very soon. I'll post an update when I do and I'll be sure its hanging on the door this time. =)

Total Project Cost for Me: $6

~Taylor

7 Day Mini Organizing Challenge

Since I know how overwhelming it can be to keep up with a home, I thought for this challenge, I'd keep it easy yet effective. Just doing these easy challenges each day will make life a little easier and motivate you to keep going on your journey to a home that fills you with bliss. Here's a breakdown of what you could do for each challenge:

MONDAY - Organize your beauty & hygiene products. Toss empty bottles, containerize small items, and group like items together. 

TUESDAY - Sort things into groups, toss expired foods, and containerize if you desire.

WEDNESDAY - Organize your cleaning products, remove things that don't belong in your laundry room, etc. If you have laundry hanging out, you can wash/fold/put away. 

THURSDAY - Organize living room essentials (blankets, remotes, etc.) and clear out the clutter by removing things that don't belong. 

FRIDAY - Sort through everything. There are probably some items that could be put elsewhere or you don't need anymore.

SATURDAY - Toss out trash, remove things that don't belong, and organize the things that stay.

SUNDAY - Whether you have a desk or just use the kitchen table, clear the clutter. Straighten up things that stay, remove things that don't belong, and get a fresh start on the new week. 

***If you'd like to see before & afters of others as they do this challenge or share before & afters yourself, please join our group on Facebook. You can also ask questions, share tips, etc.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/632527110131749/

~ Taylor