Before

After

I’m finally done with the cabinets! It took me about three different setups to find something I like. I switched to blue towels, as I hated the brown and they were shredded anyhow. White baskets hold small towels and laundry supplies. Extra bed on top. My vanity on the bottom. Here’s a close-up:

I apologize again for the bad lighting in my bathroom. There’s no natural light…

Regardless, I’m finally completely pleased with my vanity shelf! Here’s what I did:

• I trashed my clear organizer idea. It still looked too cluttered. I bought white drawers from Target and stored my makeup in there.
• I added picture frames to personalize the space. I think they were $2 from IKEA. I printed two illustrations: owls and a blue dress. I’ll likely change this often just to change the space up.
• I decided to put my nail polish on display, because it had more uniformity compared to my make up collection. The spice rack was $5 at Bed Bath and Beyond.
• My brushes are still in a coffee cup with rice to hold them upwards. I just tossed my old brushes and purchased a new collection from ELF. (Review coming soon!) I bought a blue make up sponge from Sonia Kashuk for $10 and keep that in a tea light glass.
• I moved my skin care to the another shelf.
• I made sure I had enough of a U-shape to pull things out, set up my mirror, and create a masterpiece on my face. (Sarcasm) When I’m done, things go back in their spot.
• Something I’d still like: lights. I may invest in a battery powered vanity mirror for better lighting when I put my make up on. But then…where will it go? Hmm, still to decide.

Before

After

Again, out with the brown towels and in with the blue. I also got rid of the brown (also broken) rugs and added blue and beige toned rugs. I’m not crazy about them… But they’ll do. I was pushing for white but the weird dude I live with said they’d get dirty too quickly. So that idea was thrown out. You may notice the huge contraption on the counter. I like to keep things simple and clear but I had no choice with this thing. It’s a towel warmer, and my mother-in-law-to-be gave it to me for Christmas. It’s been the best part of  the cold weather around here… I love it, even though it’s large and obnoxious!

Before

After

This is the bottom of the cabinet where I put skin care and miscellaneous things. Much better! You don’t even want to see that bottom shelf in the before picture…

It’s not perfect and I may change a few things here and there, but for the most part…Bathroom Project: Complete!

To take a look back in time, there’s also Part 1 and Part 2 for your amusement.

Just stopping by to announce that I’ve been in Florida since the 22nd, and will be here until the first week of January. I suppose you could call it a vacation, but I call it visiting my family because I don’t consider it too much of a vacation. I love sleeping in, and aside from hating everything about this state from its humid weather to this terrible town I’m thoroughly enjoying being home with my family.

Yet I can’t stop thinking of things I’d like to do when I get home. Here are a few:

• Post-Christmas decluttering.
• Clean out the closet.
• Go through the kitchen and all the appliances stored in the cupboards.
• Get a new shower head.
• Organize the entertainment center.
• See if it’s possible to reorganize to maximize studio space.
• Finish organizing cables.
• Buy more paint samples to patch up stained parts of the wall.

Only I would be excited to go home and organize. I’m actually kind of upset that as soon as I get home, my time off is over. Back to the apartment makeover on weekends only… I do have a few progress shots to show you when I get back!

How was your holiday? Did you travel?

I was using a folder style filing system similar to this one, which worked fine for my paperwork up until this year. After combining my files with Josh’s paperwork and living on my own… The paperwork wouldn’t fit into the folders anymore.

I had a few options: buy a filing cabinet, buy a second filing folder, or buy a filing box. I didn’t like any of these options. We don’t have room in our small space for a filing cabinet or a second filing folder, much less a box. So I did some looking around at Staples and found a filing frame for next to nothing! Considering the other options were ranging from $25 and onwards, I’d say this was the best way to go.

I ended up clearing out one of our pull-out boxes by our desks and assembled the frame to fit. Ta-da! Problem solved. Though I do admit… I had to cut off the metal ends of the insert with a Dremel to make it fit. But think of the money, space, and ugly appearance I’ve saved! Fair trade off, I’d say.

Apologies for the bad photos. They were taken at night!

How do you organize your files?

1. The Martha Stewart website has a great idea on how to label plain bins: http://bit.ly/o7iCXu
2. Grocery shopping without labels and boxes? It’s being done here: http://tinyurl.com/3eewbv6
3. Check out these recycled pencils made from colored paper. Gorgeous: http://tinyurl.com/69ohf44
4. Make a cute bracelete for next to nothing. Great gift idea: http://tinyurl.com/3rv2b4x
5. Make your own manila tag with this free printable: http://bit.ly/o7iCXu