This weeks finds...Aldi Special Buys

This week's finds come courtesy of Aldi's special buys (click on the link to go directly to the special buys) for this coming Wednesday, 2 March 2016.  There are some seriously cute finds this week, if you've been thinking a little kid's room makeover this will have you well on your way to a cute room and best of all you can do it on a small budget! I love the mix and match choices and there are some great buys for both boys and girls, I am in love with the Vintage Metal Bed for $99.95 and I have my eye on the Pink and White rug...so sweet!  I thought I'd have a little play with some of the sweet buys and here are some of my favourites...

White Vintage Metal Bed frame -$99.95

Floor Cushion 65cm x 65cm - $24.99

Woven Cotton Rug 1m x 1.5m - $34.99

White Alarm Clock - $8.99

Pink Kid's Storage Box - $6.99

Pink Vintage Metal Bed frame -$99.95

Bunting Flags 5.95m - $12.99

Woven Cotton Rug 1m x 1.5m - $34.99

Floor Cushion 65cm x 65cm - $24.99

Pink Kid's Storage Box - $6.99

White Vintage Metal Bed frame -$99.95

Mint Kid's Storage Box - $6.99

Woven Cotton Rug 1m x 1.5m - $34.99

Floor Cushion 65cm x 65cm - $24.99

Bunting Flags 5.95m - $12.99

White Vintage Metal Bed frame -$99.95

Pink Kid's Storage Box - $6.99

Woven Cotton Rug 1m x 1.5m - $34.99

Pink Alarm Clock - $8.99

Floor Cushion 65cm x 65cm - $24.99

Blue Vintage Metal Bed frame -$99.95

Blue Kid's Storage Box - $6.99

Woven Cotton Rug 1m x 1.5m - $34.99

Floor Cushion 65cm x 65cm - $24.99

Bunting Flags 5.95m - $12.99

White Vintage Metal Bed frame -$99.95

Blue Kid's Storage Box - $6.99

Woven Cotton Rug 1m x 1.5m - $34.99

Floor Cushion 65cm x 65cm - $24.99

Bunting Flags 5.95m - $12.99

Blue Vintage Metal Bed frame -$99.95

Blue Kid's Storage Box - $6.99

Woven Cotton Rug 1m x 1.5m - $34.99

Floor Cushion 65cm x 65cm - $24.99

Bunting Flags 5.95m - $12.99

Hope you've all had a wonderful and happy weekend and wishing you all fabulous week! xx

A little under the kitchen sink organising...

I am slowly working my way through all the cupboards in my home and giving them a little love, some are functioning perfectly, others not so much.  Under my kitchen sink honestly wasn't that bad, however I found that most of cleaning products I had stored under there weren't been used at all, and were taking up precious space. 

When I start any organising project, I like to pull everything out of the space, it's the best way to see exactly what you have and I find a blank canvas always helps you envision what the space could look like.

After I pulled everything out, I decided what was going back in.  From there I made a list of what I needed, and did a little online browsing; I find this saves me time because I find the products I want online (Kmart is always my starting point, their website is user friendly and honestly they have everything you could possibly need to organise a home!) I like to take a screen shot of the item and then I pop all the pictures into a folder on my phone for that project, this also helps as there is nothing worse than trying to describe an item to a sales assistant, when you can't find it and they have no idea what your talking about!  

By doing a little preparation first, I can also get measurements (9 times out of 10) which is handy if there is space issues, then I can measure out the space and make sure everything is going to fit.  There is nothing worse than coming home with a container that you thought would fit perfectly and it doesn't.  By the time I head off to the shops, I have a detailed list,  I know how much an item costs, if it will fit in my budget and I have a good visual in my head of how it's going to work in the space, best of all I'm not spending hours in store...this mama doesn't do well in crowds or busy stores! 

On to the details, I have tried to link all the products where possible...

I started the project by adding some stripes to the back wall using grey duct tape, I figured if I didn't like it I could just pull the tape off!  I took the tape over the joins and then used a stanley knife to ensure a nice clean line.

Such an easy way to add a little fun inside your cabinets!

 I used the large pantry storage shelf from Kmart to take advantage of the height, and these cute Kmart small white storage containers fit under the shelf perfectly!

I used four of the small storage containers in total.  To label everything I made my own labels using Microsoft word, printed, laminated and cut them out.  I attached them to the containers with some heavy duty double-sided tape...so easy!

 In the containers...the 1st container has tea-towels, the 2nd has dish cloths I like to have a few as I also use them to mop up any spills and then pop it in the wash, I also wash my dish cloth each day and just pop it in with a load of washing, so easy and I haven't purchased a Chux in years, the 3rd has cleaning products I use in the kitchen and the 4th has a scrubbing brush and bamboo cloth that I use with the cleaning products. (I use to use bamboo cloths as my dish cloths, they are amazing! I had previously purchased them at Coles but I haven't seen them for almost a year now...so if anyone knows where I can purchase them please let me know!) 

I used this container from Kmart to keep plastic bags and this container to keep all my bottle and scrubbing brushes etc.

I just tie up any grocery bags and they get popped in here.

I keep my dishwasher tablets in a glass jar that was a coffee jar in a previous life, it works perfectly as airtight storage for the dishwasher tablets.

I used this spice rack from Kmart and it works a treat for storing those items I use regularly. Those cute green scrubbers and soap dispenser brush are also from Kmart. 

I secured the spice rack with these little stick on hooks I also picked up from Kmart for $2 as I didn't want to drill any holes the doors.

On the other door I have a paper towel holder for quick and easy access, I picked up for $2 from a dollar store, which also fastens to the door with a double-sided tape.

The final result, after living with the newly organised cupboard for a week or so now, I can say it functions wonderfully and I love it! Nothing like another organised space to keep you motivated!

Hopefully there are some helpful little tips or trips you can put to use in your home!  Wishing you all a wonderful and happy week! xx

A little pantry organising...

I am a pretty organised person, but I have found of late some of the systems I put in place when we first moved in (almost two years ago) just aren't doing what they should be.  I wish I had I taken before pictures but I just didn't think about it at all, I really need to get into blogger mode and photograph everything! Basically, I had too much in my pantry, I had baskets on the top shelf which stored pantry overflow, this didn't work for me as it was too heavy to pull down and I couldn't just have a quick peek to see what was in there, I'd have to get the stool and get up there.  I also had more items stored in baskets and containers and again I couldn't see with a quick glace what was in there.  I have a weird little corner and had items pushed in there and up the back in jars etc. (labelled, but labelled does no good if you can't see it!) none of it was user friendly...basically it just wasn't working.

So after doing a little grocery shopping and going to put away my groceries I started pulling things out and then realised I had 2 x 2kg bags of sugar and guess what...yep I had just purchased another 2kg bag, I thought I was losing my mind, swearing I had bought sugar not so long ago and knowing we really don't use sugar except for baking?!  I often have the big kids put groceries away, which translates to shove everything in back and in those horrible corners and put the pretty containers in front so mum thinks we did a great job! Ha!  With the kiddies off to school, I got stuck in!

I apologise in advance for the quality of the photos, this mama really needs to invest in a camera! All my photos are taken on my iPhone so are a little grainy.

Here is the end result...

The details...

On the top shelf of the pantry I have all my glass jars which store flours, pastas, rice etc. they are all labelled and I can see exactly what I have.  Behind these I have stored any extra glass jars.

On the second shelf I have my canned items, spices, sauces etc. basically 'cooking' items.  I have oils, vinegar, salt and pepper and some spices stored on a lazy Susan.  It saves room and means I can easily access items I use everyday for cooking. The rest of the items are stored on a 3-tier shelf I picked up from Kmart, and I can see exactly what I have.  I have nothing stored in those 'corners' of the cupboard which are on the right of the picture, now what I see is what we have.

On the third shelf I have our cereals which are in containers from Kmart, I have used Kmart blackboard labels to label the cereals (and the glass jars on the top shelf).  I have porridge (quick oats) in the white container, and have used Kmart kraft tags and string to make labels.  Above the porridge, is a Tupperware container which holds whatever snack I baked that week for the kids, at the moment it is muesli bars, they are easy to access when I am making lunches.  Off to the side and slightly into that 'corner' I have another lazy Susan which has spreads on, it's perfect for that awkward spot and whilst you can only see one jar, with a spin you can easily access all the spreads, I have nutella, peanut butter, honey, vegemite etc. all on here.

On the fourth shelf I used only container, and I know I can't 'see' what's in there but I put in these containers things I don't really need to see...I have one big container which stores the kid's lunchbox snacks i.e. packets of ricewheels, vegechips etc. I will also package my own little bags of snacks, i.e. trail mix, nuts etc. it nice and easy to pull out when I'm making lunches and the kids just pick an item and it slides easily back into it's little spot.  Above that I have an empty container, I think it's important when organising to remember there will times when you have more food or items than you do at this very moment so it's always good to have empty container or space in your pantry.  In the next big container I have all my baking and cake decorating items, I love having this all together (this is one of the things I have had in place for a long time and love), when I am baking I just pull one container out and I have everything I need on the bench.  I have my food colouring, food gels, baking soda, bicarb soda etc, essences, sprinkles, piping bags and tips all in here.  In the two smaller containers above I have all my different sized and patterned cupcake liners.  In the last big container I have some boxes of cake mix for those super lazy days or the days when the kids ask me to whip up cupcakes with 2hrs notice! Always handy to have on hand.

On the bottom of the pantry I have two big open baskets, in the first one I have the kid's lunch bags and spare drink bottles, I have spares on hand for those super-hot days and days that they play sport.  After school the kids empty the containers into the sink and put the lunch bags straight into these, that way I know exactly where they are when I pack their lunches that night, and they are not cluttering up my bench.  The second basket has what I guess is pantry overflow; it has any extra unopened pasta or rice packets, noodles and chips.

It feels so good to have the pantry organised!  At the end of the day I believe that any space needs to be organised in a way that is going to function best for you, your family and your needs. 

Having 'organised' my pantry and home when we first moved in, and living in our home now for a while, I now know what works and what doesn't.  I am slowly working my way through the home to organise those spots that just aren't working, I find after living in a space for a while it's always clearer what you need.

If you have any questions, please feel free to comment below or head over to my Instagram account and I'll be more than happy to answer any questions or help where I can!

Hope you have all had an amazing weekend, and the week ahead is a fabulous one! xx