Creatively Organized Spaces
In honor of the simple joyful things in life!
10 Simple things that bring me joy…
1. Taking photo’s
2. Sunsets
3. Time with friends (family friends, new friends & old friends)
4. Laughter, especially from children
5. Chocolate
8. Hugs
9. Waterfalls
10. Flowers, in the garden, in my house, in photo’s-anywhere
Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple. — Dr. Seuss
The simple life::Living with Less
This was a case of a beautifully designed closet that just wasn’t functioning so well. Without calling in anyone to redesign the closet or purchasing anything new we made do with what they had and re-organized some things so that more of what was needed fit into the closet in a neat and tidy way.
Her Side (Before left: After right)
About 4 hours later (mostly working by myself on this project) I had this closet finished. On her side I sorted tops, bottoms and long dresses and jackets by clothing type and color. I re-located less used special occasion items to a second guest room closet, created drawers designated for specific items such as hats, jewelry, belts and lingerie. This freed up space for the client to use other bedroom furniture drawers for items that should not be hung such as sweaters, other knits and casual/frequently used items.
His Side (Before left: After right)
On his side I sorted full suits by season putting the warmer season suits to the front since we are shifting towards summer (at least here in the south). This client also has quite a collection of bow ties and suspenders which I hung on a multi section hangers (often used for scarves or pants). Again I sorted shirts and pants/shorts by type and color leaving suspenders attached to several pairs of pants in this case.
We got rid of almost everything on the floor and many of the decorative boxes and items cluttering up the shelves. We used the shelves for shoes (both in and out of boxes and drawer bins), bags, hats (on the top shelves) and photo albums. She liked keeping these albums in the closet but if she needed more shelving space she could remove them to another area in the future. The closet is a nice space to keep photo albums if you have the room and you can always pull out a few at a time to have on display in a more public room of the house.
Tip: Store items that are not needed often in the back of deep corner shelves in containers that are easily pulled out. For example shoe; a shoe shining kit. Label the edge of shelves so you know what’s hiding in the back of each.
I have a lot going on behind the scenes and I’m not quite ready to share as I mentioned in a previous post BUT…I want to share some of what I’ve been doing! I recently decided to apply to volunteer at Brookgreen Gardens and last Tuesday I was “interviewed” and “oriented” to become a part of that team. I am so excited, as a Master Gardener in both Maryland and Georgia I’ve been itching to get my hands in the dirt here and begin to learn more about the coastal plants I’m not familiar with. The Master Gardener program in SC is run through Clemson and I missed the cut off for the first class of the year so while I’m waiting and deciding if I want to continue as a Master Gardener here I opted to jump into the Brookgreen opportunity! This place is one of my favorite public gardens, anywhere, ever!
Here is the daily display of the flowers in bloom. This is not a comprehensive display but it represents alot of what’s blooming on any given day. It’s the sneak peak of goodies to be seen and smelled.
This bottle tree is in the education center garden which includes edible crops such as rice, corn, medicinal herbs, greens and other seasonal crops. I love the Southern tradition of bottle trees in the garden, they are said to catch evil spirits as they get caught the colorful bottles after being entranced.
Look at all these blooming beauties! Azaleas, Delphinium, Larkspur, Poppies and many other springtime favorites were in bloom. With the warm winter and spring we are having, the daffodils were almost done blooming but there were some incredible combinations of flowers not typically in bloom together. March is typically a “dangerous” month in low country gardens that border marshy areas, snakes and alligators are coming out of hibernation and I was startled by one in an unexpected spot as I was trying to get some shots. I’ll be learning a lot more about where they like to hang out and I’ll be using extreme caution! I am typically a pretty fearless gardener but I have a healthy respect for these potentially deadly creatures. Avoidance will be my main tactic, along with long pants, closed toe shoes and gloves when reaching into hidden areas.
I am thrilled to just be able to go soak in the beauty and contribute to sharing that with all the visitors who come there. I’m sure you will be hearing and seeing more of my Brookgreen experience over the months to come. If you ever get to Myrtle Beach or Charleston, it’s worth the little extra drive to visit this garden which also includes a comprehensive sculpture collection and a lot of plantation history.
Alliterations are all over the web these days. I guess with so much info being thrown at us we need to find ways to more easily remember what interest us. A lot of the blogs I follow (and many others) use alliterations on certain days of the week to highlight specific themes such as “Makeover Monday”, “Texture Tuesday”, “Wednesday Words”, “Favorites Friday” or “Silent Saturday/Sunday” to name a few.
Sure, I use them too! I love a good alliteration and I hadn’t realized it runs in my family.
February’s field trip to Florida found family fascinating and fun!
At every meal that my grandparents dine in the dining room in their community they create a short note for their server, written on their check.
Gregarious givers greet glorious “Grands” graciously grazing on grapes.
In response to the generous service given in the dining room the guest are encouraged to interact with their server and since my grandparents love to write so they make it fun by writing an alliterative note using the first name of their server to start it off. One might go something a little like this:
Sandy’s smiling soul serves sweet sensations.
I found it a ton of fun and it’s had me thinking of more creative alliterations to use in my daily life.
This lovely poem by Robert Frost uses Alliteration.
Nothing Gold Can Stay
Nature’s first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leaf’s a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.
Watch wonderful words as they wisely work wonders!
Do you write for fun using alliteration or other forms of word play? It’s fun, it’s everywhere and not just for kids so give it a try!
I’ve been following along with Danielle LaPort’s blog for a couple years now and I love how she gets to the meat of a topic with poetic and direct wording. Recently she has begun a weekly series called The Burning Question. A recent question really caught my attention:
I’ve set my intentions in so many areas of my life and I often set my intentions for money and wealth as I sit down to balance my checkbook, pay bills etc. Her question and some of the responses posted really shifted my awareness to my own intentions around money. Without consciously realizing it I have many intentions surrounding my wealth and perception of wealth and money. Not all of them have been positive but right here and now I’m shifting my intentions around my personal wealth!
What are your intentions around wealth and money? How do your conscious or unconscious thoughts steer your financial future?
I invite you to make a conscious shift to define your wealth by setting your intentions around the money that flows in and out of your life.