design finch

Get DOORganized!

Happy National Get Organized Week, y’all! Yes, apparently it’s a real holiday that takes place each year throughout the first week of October. Despite the lack of cake or time off from work, any excuse to organize something is a celebration in my opinion. So, in the spirit of getting organized, I want to share some ways to instantly gain tons of storage space in almost any home by simply utilizing the backs of doors to their fullest potential. I’ve rounded up 15 inspirational photos that illustrate how to really put the back of a cabinet or closet door to work. Shall we get this party started?

Clockwise: Lid Rack, Cutting Board Rack,
Measuring Cup Organizer and Conversion Chart

Clockwise: Chalkboard Menu Planner and Shopping List,
Pocket Organizer, DIY Spice Rack

Clockwise: Broom Closet Hooks, Tool Clips, Laundry Cabinet Pegboard

Clockwise: Craft Cupboard, Craft Closet Pegboard, Gift Wrap Organizer

Clockwise: Bathroom Cabinet Racks, Curling Iron Holsters,
Medicine Cabinet Adhesive Cups

Before you invest time or money into organizational products, measure the depth of the item you plan to install and how much space there is between the closed door and any shelves or other items that might prevent the door from closing. Then, go forth and get organized! Just remember to celebrate your newfound space with a slice of cake!

Now it’s your turn to take part in the festivities. In honor of Get Organized Week, link your organizing posts below!

Published:

October 2, 2011 – 8:00 pm

Author:

By Shayla

Categories:

Comments:

2 Comments

Fall Bucket List

Have I mentioned that fall is my absolute favorite time of year? I adore everything about it – aisle after aisle of school supplies, a crisp breeze in the air, colorful foliage, layered outfits, and any recipe in which pumpkin is an ingredient. Let’s just say that if I knew of a place where every season was fall, I would move there in a heartbeat. Yes, that’s how much I love it!

Imagine my giddiness upon seeing my friend Katie’s adorable Fall Bucket List on her blog. I immediately decided that I must play along to ensure that I savor every. last. drop. of fall goodness this year. Behold, my bucket list:

And, in the spirit of the season, I made one for you, too! Download my free Fall Bucket List template to customize with your family’s favorite activities. Or, print one of the many adorable lists that are linked up below.

Printables: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7

I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait to start checking things off! What will you add to your bucket list?

Published:

September 25, 2011 – 11:09 pm

Author:

By Shayla

Categories:

Comments:

9 Comments

Be Green, Save Green

While cleaning the house today, I thought of a few things that I want to share. Firstly, dusting is way overrated. Secondly, vacuuming is, too. Thirdly, putting away the clean laundry is my least favorite of all.

However, that is not what I want to share.

I’m actually here to tell you about a few products that I’m currently loving because of the way they’ve simplified life, saved us money, and made our home a little greener in the process. Perhaps they can do the same for you.

First up is our beloved Shark Steam Mop. My friend Suzanne introduced me to this nifty invention a few months back and, since then, our floors have never been cleaner. At the risk of sounding like an infomercial, the steam mop has truly revolutionized the way we clean our tile and hardwood floors. No longer do we need harsh chemicals to get the job done – just add water and the mop sanitizes the floors with steam! It comes with reusable cloth pads that are machine washable and I’m always appalled by how filthy they are after my weekly date with the Shark. Yes, it’s a bit of an investment, but I’m thrilled to never buy expensive Swiffer juice or disposable WetJet pads again!

Next are these reusable dryer balls. Instead of using dryer sheets, which are pricey and full of chemicals, we’ve switched to these guys. When I first saw them at Bed Bath & Beyond I was skeptical of their claims to naturally soften fabric and reduce drying time. However, after using them in place of dryer sheets for a couple months now, I’m happy to report that they are working great.

Another green product I love is our mesh coffee filter which can be purchased for almost any coffee maker. After each use, we dump the grounds into our compost bin and just rinse out the filter before popping it back into the coffee maker to be used again. It makes me so happy that we’re saving money and trees by not throwing out a paper filter every day. Some people even claim these reusable filters allow more of the coffee oils to get through, resulting in better flavor.

We’ve also gotten into the habit of using cloth dinner napkins instead of paper ones for every meal at home. Previously, the cloth napkins were reserved just for FANCY occasions. No longer! Now we each have our own napkin that we reuse several times before washing them. (I learned a clever tip from a professional organizer who suggests hanging your napkin over the back of your chair after meals to be used again.)

Want to learn more simple ways to be green and save green? Then you’ll love listening to the “Be Green” series on Vicky and Jen’s What Really Matters podcast (look for the shows archived under the environment section). Actually, I’m a big fan of all of their podcasts, but this series and the Organization series are especially great.

Now it’s your turn – what environmentally-friendly products or habits simplify your life and save you money? Share your faves, for the love of Mother Nature!

Published:

September 17, 2011 – 10:10 pm

Author:

By Shayla

Categories:

Comments:

1 Comment

Fall Fashion

It’s fall, y’all!

Now that the beloved Pumpkin Spice Latte has reappeared on the menu at Starbuck’s, I am officially ready to dig out the cozy clothes from the back of my closet. In fact, this morning I did a little window shopping with latte in hand just to check out the latest eye candy…..all in the name of research, of course. (Okay, maybe I caved and bought a couple things, too.) According to those who are in the know about the fashion world, these are ten of the hottest trends for fall:

Sources: Cape, Pendant Necklace, Leather Jacket, Fall Colors,
Skinny Jeans, Faux Fur Sweater Jacket, Midi-Length Skirt,
Stacked Platform Pumps, Tie-Neck Blouse, Riding Boots

I must admit that I’m still on the fence about the whole leather and faux fur thing. Don’t get me wrong, there are many people that can pull off that look really well – I just don’t think I am one of them. If we swapped those items for, say, yoga pants and a fleece hoodie, then we’d have some fall fashion trends I could really get behind. In the meantime, until those pieces make their debut on the runway, I pinned these images on Pinterest as inspiration for the wardrobe I’d like to magically appear in my closet right now:

Clockwise: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4

The common threads in these photos seem to be comfy layers paired with more fitted, feminine pieces and accessories like a high-waisted belt or scarf to pull the whole look together.

Or something like that.

Keep in mind, I have absolutely no authority to be writing about fashion on the internet and I’m totally making this stuff up as I go. All I truly know about the subject of fall fashion is that I must hunt down a new pair of riding boots to wear whilst sipping my Pumpkin Spice Latte. Because I bet it tastes even better when wearing cute shoes.

Published:

September 10, 2011 – 6:22 pm

Author:

By Shayla

Categories:

Comments:

4 Comments

Pet Sitting

I hope you are having a relaxing Labor Day weekend! We are enjoying some quality time together before Jason starts back to law school on Tuesday. Yesterday we had a cute visitor at our house! Zoe, my friend Amanda’s little Yorkie, spent the day with us while her humans went to Norman for the OU football game. Despite being only a fraction of Denny and Ollie’s size, Zoe plays right alongside our big, wild dogs. Here are some pics I took yesterday of our comical menagerie of pets:

We were happy to return the dog sitting favor as Amanda and Alex often house sit for us when we go out of town. (And I can assure you that we get the bettter end of that deal!)

A while ago I put together a handy document with pet care instructions for our dogs and cat that I keep on my computer so I don’t have to reinvent the wheel every time we have a pet sitter. It really simplifies the process of getting everything organized before we travel. If you have fur babies, I suggest doing the same thing. Here are some free templates you can download to get started:

Printables: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4

Some of the things that I find helpful to include are:

Feeding instructions (time, amount, special treats)
Play time (favorite toys, exercise routine, hiding places)
Routines (daytime, nighttime)
Pet supplies (location of leashes, food containers, pet beds)
Medical information (medications, health concerns, authorization for emergency care)
Contact information (travel itinerary, veterinarian, close friend or relative)

I’m sure this may sound really over-the-top to some of you, but those who have pets know they are like members of the family! I miss our fur babies like crazy when we are away from them for any length of time, but leaving organized instructions gives me peace of mind that they are being well cared for while we are off having fun.

Published:

September 4, 2011 – 1:24 pm

Author:

By Shayla

Categories:

Comments:

5 Comments

Colorful Colorado

We just returned from a week-long vacation to Colorado where we enjoyed cool weather, beautiful mountains, and wonderful friends. So, prepare yourself for the longest blog post ever. With such an amazing backdrop, every photo turned out looking like a postcard and I had a hard time narrowing them down!

First, we spent a couple days exploring the Aspen area. Before we left home, I bid on hotels through Priceline and, because we were there during off-season, we luckily scored an amazing deal on a room at the swanky Viceroy Resort in Snowmass. Our first night there, we had dinner in Snowmass Village overlooking the ski slopes. We dined outside and it was chilly enough that they had the fire pits going! The next morning we woke up early to hike the Rim Trail. When we got to the top of this trail, we discovered an awesome marble yoga circle with stunning 360° views of the surrounding peaks. Of course, I insisted that we spend some time there practicing yoga poses! (Fortunately, Jason was a good sport about it and humored me for a while.) After we hiked back down the mountain, we had lunch in downtown Aspen and spent the rest of the afternoon exploring.

Oh, Aspen, how you charm me with your beautiful scenery and quaint small town vibe, yet you know I can not afford you. You really think you are something special with your multi-million dollar home prices! I’m sure living among rich and beautiful movie stars is overrated, anyway.

(On a side note, Jason swears he saw Connie Britton, who played Tami Taylor in Friday Night Lights, riding a bicycle through downtown Aspen. Tami, if you are reading this please confirm whether or not it was really you. Also, Texas forever!)

After leaving Aspen, we stopped in Vail for a couple hours to look around and get dinner. I’d never been to Vail before and my first impression was that it felt a bit like Disney World. Most of the streets in the village area are pedestrian-only and there were gorgeous flowers everywhere we looked. I can imagine that during ski season the whole village turns into a Winter Wonderland.

We had never been to Boulder either and spent a day just exploring the town. It reminded us in many ways of a mini Austin, except with mountain views! We enjoyed breakfast at a cafe on Pearl Street while doing some serious people-watching! (It was move-in weekend for Colorado University, so the whole town was swarming with excited college students and nervous parents….oh, and smelly hippies, although I think we were the only ones that noticed.) One of my favorite places in Boulder was the Chautauqua National Historic Landmark at the base of the Flatiron Mountains.

After leaving Boulder, we continued on to Fort Collins to visit our dear friends Christian and Max who recently moved there from Austin. Apparently we were so excited to see them that we forgot to take any pictures of Fort Collins itself. I just have a couple pictures from our morning of rock climbing at Horsetooth Reservoir. Now I wish I’d taken some pictures of Fort Collins’ cute downtown, but at the time we were too busy chowing down on yummy Mexican food and cupcakes!

Christian and Max were the perfect hosts and tour guides! They took us to Estes Park, which is only a 30 minute drive from Fort Collins. We hiked around Bear Lake, Nymph Lake and Dream Lake on our way up to Emerald Lake where we enjoyed a picnic lunch with incredible views of Hallett Peak. There was still some snow up there and we actually saw a marmot, too!

Jason and I spent a couple hours strolling around Winter Park. The wildflowers were absolutely gorgeous there! It was in Winter Park that we ate one of the most delightful things we’ve ever tasted – a Nutella Crepe from Goodys. Let me tell you, that crepe was heaven. on. earth. The scenery was just the cherry on top!

There are a ton of neat things to do in Denver – we explored downtown and the 16th Street Mall, cheered on the Rockies at a baseball game, made a pilgrimage to the amazing REI flagship store, strolled through City Park, hiked around Red Rocks, and ate frozen yogurt for more meals than I care to mention. The highlight of our time in Denver was meeting up with our friend Ashley for breakfast. We all went to high school together and it had been a while since we’d seen each other, so it was great to catch up!

It was really hard stepping off the plane in Tulsa into triple-digit temperatures. We immediately started planning another Colorado trip! What are some places we should visit on our next mountain adventure?

Published:

August 27, 2011 – 2:54 pm

Author:

By Shayla

Categories:

Comments:

6 Comments

Homemade Toothpaste

Well, friends – I’ve been at it again here in the design finch laboratory, this time experimenting with a recipe for homemade toothpaste. Why am I making toothpaste, you ask?

When I started reading about the toxins (think rat poison and engine degreaser) contained in most conventional toothpastes, we made the decision to switch to natural toothpaste. We were using Tom’s of Maine for a while, but never really liked the flavor, plus it is a little more expensive. So I was intrigued when I found Simple Mom’s recipe for homemade toothpaste.

You only need a few ingredients to make your own toothpaste:

baking soda
coconut oil
Stevia natural sweetner
pure peppermint extract
lidded container

I found everything at Whole Foods, with the exception of the container (which, in full disclosure, is just a Nutella jar I dug out of our recycling bin). My first batch of toothpaste turned out too watery when I followed the recipe, so now instead of precisely measuring out the ingredients I just mix things together until it resembles toothpaste.

I start by filling the container about half full of baking soda, then slowly mixing in coconut oil a little at a time until its the same consistency as toothpaste. Finally, I add about a teaspoon of Stevia and a few drops of peppermint extract to achieve that minty fresh taste.

We use a little spoon to scoop the toothpaste out of the jar onto our toothbrushes. I have to admit that its an acquired taste and, at first, it seems a little weird to brush your teeth with anything other than Crest. However, now that we’ve perfected the recipe for making our own natural toothpaste, we actually prefer it over the store-bought stuff.

I’m not certain if 9 out of 10 dentists endorse this method, but I’m sure it’s totally fine. I mean, nothing says dental hygiene like brushing your teeth with homemade toothpaste straight from an old Nutella jar. It seems like a better choice than rat poison.

Published:

August 20, 2011 – 7:00 am

Author:

By Shayla

Categories:

Comments:

4 Comments

On-the-Go Breakfast

We’ve all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but I have to admit I’ve never been much of a breakfast eater (most likely because I’m not a morning person!). However, I know that when I skip breakfast it affects my energy level for the rest of the day. Over time I’ve learned that the key to starting the day off right is to keep a few healthy grab-and-go breakfast options on hand.

Most mornings I whip up a fruit smoothie as I’m running out the door because, not only is it delicious and nutritious, it’s also incredibly simple to make thanks to my rocket blender that doubles as a to-go cup. I’ve also discovered that I can make breakfast tacos in large batches to freeze and then quickly reheat one in the microwave to eat in the car. The same freeze-and-zap method applies to muffins and breakfast pizza, too.

With school starting back again and the morning chaos that inevitably ensues, I thought now would be a perfect time to share a few nutritious breakfast recipes you can eat with one hand while sprinting out the door.

Clockwise from top: Frozen Fruit Smoothies, Green Monster Smoothie,
Fruit, Cheese & Walnuts, Yogurt Parfait

Nutritious On-the-Go Breakfast Recipes Clockwise from top: Breakfast Pizza, French Toast Kebabs,
Bacon, Egg & Toast Cups, Proscuitto-Wrapped Mini Frittata Muffins,
Greek Omelette in a Pita, Breakfast Tacos

Have a great breakfast recipe you’d like to share? Please link it up below!

Published:

August 7, 2011 – 4:39 pm

Author:

By Shayla

Categories:

Comments:

2 Comments

Sunday Planning

I recently read a statistic that said every minute invested in planning will save you ten minutes down the road. I can personally attest that not only does a little planning ahead help with time management, but it also saves money and reduces stress. Don’t we all want more help in those areas? Um, I sure do!

No matter how busy I am, I try to set aside about an hour on Sunday afternoons to prepare for the week ahead. Since today is Sunday and I’m in the process of doing my weekly planning, I felt inspired to share the tasks that keep me organized.

Check calendar for appointments.
Make a “to do” list.
Jot down a plan for dinners.
Create a shopping list.
Take items out of the freezer to defrost.
Check the weather forecast.
Iron work clothes for the week.

When I don’t take the time to do these things on Sunday, I feel like I spend the rest of the week playing catch-up. Do you know the feeling?

While my iPhone has certainly simplified things, I still find it helpful to make lists the old-fashioned way because I find great pleasure in checking things off! Plus, there are so many cute and FREE printables online that make it easier than ever to get organized. Here is a roundup of some of my favorites:

Free Weekly Planner Printables Printables: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9

Free Printable Weekly Menu Planners Printables: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5

Free Printable Weekly Cleaning Schedules Printables: 1 / 2 / 3

Free Printable Weekly Blog Planners Printables: 1 / 2 / 3

If you don’t already do this, I encourage you to give it a try this week and let me know how it goes. Happy planning!

Published:

July 31, 2011 – 4:04 pm

Author:

By Shayla

Categories:

Comments:

121 Comments

Dreaming Up My Dream House

I have a pretty vivid picture in my head of what my dream house looks like. It’s an old Craftsman-style bungalow that has been lovingly restored and decorated with an eclectic mixture of modern and classic furnishings. While I’ve never seen this house in real life, I know it exists out there somewhere.

Today I thought it would be fun to try and piece together my dream house in pictures by gathering some of the design ideas I’ve collected via Pinterest that capture my personal decorating style. So, here goes: