Emergency Kit For Holiday Parties

Are you starting to prepare for the season? Do not get stuck with a wine stain on your couch.  Here is the perfect emergency kit to remove any stains or spills you may encounter hosting a party.  You can learn more at Apartment Therapy.

It's hosting season and you know what that means: your home will soon be getting a workout. Be it parties or houseguests, lots of traffic means lots of messes. Since you know spills are inevitable, do yourself a favor this year and put together an emergency cleaning kit so you'll be prepared to act fast when someone slips up.

Having this quick kit on hand has two benefits. Firstly, it'll help you deal with those messes quickly (and therefore more effectively) and more importantly, it lets you avoid the drama and embarrassment that can go along with an accident. Keeping these key things close means there's no need to frantically empty everything from under the sink in the middle of a party or family dinner (and make the spiller feel worse then they already do!).

The Emergency Kit

• Sponge or microfiber cloth
• Small handheld broom and dustbin
• Countertop cleaner
• Soda water (to dilute a stain but it's also handy to have on hand in case you run out during your party)
• Salt (combine with soda water as an effective natural stain remover)
• Laundry stain stick or wipes for clothing spills
• Masking tape for picking up those final, invisible shards of a broken glass
• Put these things in a caddy and get ready to be the graceful host who can dispatch spills and get back to the party that much quicker.

Keep the Laundry Monster Away

Do you find yourself at the end of the month or week with piles of laundry.  The "laundry monster" is something that no one wants to see.  However, there are ways to prevent this giant pile up of dirty clothes.  Here are some great tips on how to keep away the laundry beast from showing up in your home.  You can learn more at Apartment Therapy. 

Anyone else at war with piles upon piles of laundry? It never occurred to me how much motherhood and laundry go together, but here we are! While it's still an uphill battle, I have learned that some things (when I actually do them) help keep the relentless laundry situation under control.

Five steps to taming the laundry beast:

1. A load a day.

   Obviously, this will be way too excessive for some people, but for anyone with a couple kids or more, this amount of laundry is just about right —and will save you from a day or more that's consumed by catching up with laundry. Early on in my homekeeping life, I came across Flylady. Her mantra of "A load a day keeps CHAOS away" has been burned into my memory, in large part because I've found it to be true in my experience. (Note: "CHAOS" stands for "can't have anyone over syndrome.")

2. Follow through with each load.

   Load goes in the wash, then the dryer (or hung to dry), then gets folded or hung and then gets put away. My laundry troubles come when I linger too long between steps and loads begin to pile up at the clean end. I like to "save" folding for when my kids are in bed and I watch a TV show, but if I'm behind at all, then this means piles that I probably won't get through will be waiting for me... and grow and multiply. If I really mean business with keeping up, I'd fold right after the load is dry and then put it away. Honestly, this never happens. I'm still learning.

3. Address your sticking point.

   Usually there's a part of laundry that's a bit more of a mental block and this is what makes the piles grow and multiply. For me, it's putting the clothes away. I like putting the clothes in to wash and dry. And I even enjoy folding. But putting the clothes away is just not my favorite thing to do, and, alas, I often end up with several baskets of clean, folded laundry waiting to be put away.

4. Set up strategically.

   For me, this means that I have to think about putting clothes away before I start folding them; I have to make putting them away as painless as possible. I set out separate empty laundry baskets per room or person and put folded clothes in piles according to which drawer they go into. I also have hangers at the ready for clothes that need to be hung.

5. Make it fun.

   As with many chores in life that just have to get done, take a page out of Mary Poppins's book and make it fun. Turn on some music, make a party out of it, or reward yourself with a treat (chocolate, 15 minutes of pleasure reading, staring at the miraculously empty laundry baskets, whatever) when you accomplish either the laundry task as a whole (is anyone out there ever caught up with laundry???) or the part you dread most.

I'm going to go take my own advice and put away the piles of folded kids' clothes so my son doesn't have to dig for clean Ninja Turtle undies after bathtime tonight.

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween!

Halloween Fun Facts: The ancient Celts thought that spirits and ghosts roamed the countryside on Halloween night. They began wearing masks and costumes to avoid being recognized as human. Learn more here.

A Spooky Halloween Drink

Ghosts, goblins, and delicious treats are some of our favorite things about Halloween.  We have found a spooky recipe for you to try next week.  This recipe is perfect for a themed drink at any party. You can learn more here.

Closet Inventory

Have you ever tried to work on a closet inventory?  It will only take a few hours, and it will help organize and clean out your clothes.  Read over this blog to learn how to start a closet inventory.  You only need a few supplies and help from a friend.  You can learn more at Apartment Therapy.


Do you know what's in your closet? Like, way in there? Do you ever find two or three of the (nearly or exactly) same clothing items because you didn't realize you had already bought one? Do you not buy items you really like because you know you already have something — even though you don't really love it? A closet inventory is more than just a cleverly disguised way to declutter your closet (though it is that, too). It's a way to get a handle on your wardrobe so that future shopping and dressing is easier.

It's also the best thing to do each time the seasons switch and the temperature begins to change. Here's how to do one in an afternoon this weekend:


What you'll need:

A few hours

A full-length mirror, a friend or a camera

Two boxes: one labeled "maybe" and another labeled "donate"

A list of clothing basics that resonates with you. (Here's a good example).

A list of items you want to have in your closet (dream items or need items!)

Step 1: Take out everything in your closet and pile it on the bed. (Or, depending on closet size or volume, tackle this step in chunks.)

Step 2: Begin trying clothes on in front of a mirror, taking a picture of it to look at or showing outfit items to a trusted friend. You're going to want to rate everything on a scale of 1 - 10 in your mind.

Step 3. Items that rate an "8" or above — say those articles that are in good shape, fit you well and make you feel good, get to stay. 5 to 8 ratings go in the maybe box. Anything lower (damaged items, items you haven't worn in years or things that just don't make you feel confident), goes directly into the donate box. Consider putting high rating clothes back by the "hanger trick."

Step 4: While you're trying things on, consider making a quick tally list of types of clothing you have. That way at the end you'll have a good idea of whether or not you have 20 pants and 1 skirt or your tank top to long sleeve shirt ratio is way off. With cooler temperatures on the way, make sure you have what you consider to be enough warm weather clothing items.

Step 5: Along with tallying what you own, as you find items that are on the clothing basics or dream items list, check them off. When you're finished, you'll have two lists: One of the amounts of types of items you have, and a list of things you'd like in your closet but don't have. You'll have a good idea of what you're lacking in your closet and, combined with the informal tally you took while trying everything on earlier, what you've got way too much of.

Step 6: After you go through all your clothes, reevaluate your maybe box with the help of a friend or based off of your new knowledge with the tally list or basics list. Donate, sell or put aside to reuse the stuff from your donate box.

Step 7: Keep your lists close at hand so the next time you're shopping you know what to look out for and what to not splurge on because you've already got too much of!

Step 8: Repeat every few months as necessary so you don't waste money on unneeded items!

Ten Ways to Use Wax Paper In Your Home

We love secret uses for everyday household items.  There are many items in your home that can be used for more than one purpose.  Here are ten great uses for wax paper in your home.  There are problems on this list that wax paper can solve easily!  You can learn more at Apartment Therapy.

Add wax paper to the long list of items with surprising applications and usefulness well beyond their original purpose. Wax paper (as opposed to parchment paper) has a thin layer of wax on each side, and was designed to keep food fresh longer. Its both water resistant and non-stick — two attributes that make this handy item versatile and helpful, even outside the kitchen.

Rub a sheet on the teeth of a zipper to discourage snags.

Roll it up and insert in the neck of a bottle, and use as an impromptu funnel. The wax keeps the paper stiff.

Rub it on bathroom and kitchen faucets to both buff the metal, and make them more resistant to future water spots.

Layer the tops of kitchen cabinets with the stuff, and replace every so often instead of dusting that hard-to-dust spot.

If you have a door that stubbornly sticks, rub the edges to keep it from jamming as much.

Keep wooden salad bowls and cutting boards in good shape by giving them an extra layer of wax protection.

Protect the fridge from spills by covering the shelves. It makes it infinitely easier to clean.

Lost your wine cork after opening a bottle? Make an plug out of a wad of paper, and stick it right in there.

Cover bowls and plates when you use the microwave to prevent splatter. 

If your shower curtain has trouble moving over its rods without squeaking or catching, a light rub with wax paper will help it move smoother.

Use it as drawer liner in your dresser.

Before you close up paint cans, add a sheet over the top of the paint to keep skin from forming.

Swipe non-stick appliances , to give it a little more non-stickiness.

Wrap up paint brushes to keep them from drying out in between coats.

If you have drafty windows in winter, use it to plug up holes. Again, the wax wards off precipitation.

Wrap up any delicate fabrics when you store them. The wax keeps out light and keeps colors from fading or turning yellow.

If you are out of kindling, wax paper makes a good fire starter.

Get Those Stains Away

Do you have clothes that you dread getting a stain on?  There is always a way to get the stain out you just have to know the right ingredients.  Apartment Therapy has found a great list on what items take out which stains.  Keep reading to learn more about the database below!.

I recently took a favorite silk dress of mine to the dry cleaners. It had a new mystery stain, right next to a faint old stain still slightly visible after an unsuccessful laundering attempt. This time around I was asked what the stain was, because I was advised, it would be far easier to remove if the source was known. I told her my best guess was wine or a cocktail, crossed my fingers and left.

Low and behold when I picked up the dress this time around, BOTH stains were gone. Of course I knew determining the cause of a stain makes it easier to remove, but I guess I never realized how crucially important that fact is! If you're armed with that knowledge and attempting this task solo, there's a searchable database that has just about every stain solution covered.

The University of Illinois has developed a database that catalogs stain solutions in an alphabetized index or searchable format. The database covers common stains like wax or wine, right next to stains you thought you might never encounter. Calamine lotion stain anyone? They've got you covered. Black walnut or bird dropping stains? Yup, that too. As long as the stain is on carpet, upholstery, or washable fabrics, they should be able to provide you with an answer.

Curious about my wine or cocktail mystery stain, I looked it up. It appears that both stains are removed with the exact same treatment. So the next time you're tackling a tough stain, try consulting the University of Illinois' stain solution database. It's a handy website that's probably worth bookmarking!