I will admit that I (like so many others) have become somewhat of a pinterest junkie. I get so many emails every day telling me that people have repinned or liked something I have pinned that I have to force myself not to click on the links until the weekends. Otherwise, an entire evening could go by with me just looking at decorating or teaching eye candy.

At last count, I have pinned 5777 images. Wowzer! I keep thinking that pinning is great but when am I going to do some of the ideas that I have pinned? It is very easy to spend hours pinning lovely ideas and never actually get up out of the computer chair to go do something, you know?

So, I have come up with a summer challenge for myself. I am going through all of my pins and pinning 30 or so ones that I really want to try &/or do on to my Summer Challenge board.

I am off work in 5 days and then I will be hitting the pinterest ideas with a vengeance. I already got going on a couple of the ideas I have on my SC board. Check it out...



These are jars for tracking weight loss. I am not super concerned about pounds going away but I am working at getting healthier and, hopefully, pound loss will come as a result. My doctor has said that I need to get my BMI down. And, as my family does not have a good track record with things like diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease, I figure I better get going. This image was posted without a link (if it is yours, please let me know so that I can credit you!) This is my version of the idea:

I am happy to say that there are already 5 marbles in the lost side since I quit eating wheat and chocolate last week. Plus, I am feeling tons better than before. Go me!

Another thing on my SC board is to organize my storage room. The picture I pinned to remind me to do this looks like this...



This pic is from pink suede shoe and I must admit that I am pretty darn impressed by it. I, of course do not have on hand the copious amount of Rubbermaid drawers that I would need to create this level of organizational happiness. I have to make do with what I do have. So, today I took everything out of the closet that wasn't in a piece of furniture. That made the hallway look like this...

and pretty much insured that no one could get from one end of the apartment to the other. Then I shifted some of the storage room furniture around and ended up with something that looks like this...

Now, it is by no means finished but, at least, I can walk from one end to the other. Okay, I have to turn sideways to do it but, hey, those 5 marbles in the Lost jar have made that easier!!! I will be going through all of the Rubbermaid tubs this summer, as well as, the filing cabinet on the right. There is a ton of storage up above that you can't see in this picture. By the time I am done everything will have a place. You can count on it!

So what else is on my SC board? Well, there's this...

baby crib spring that I want to do. I kept the one from my sister's baby crib (40 some odd years ago) when Mum was doing a big clean out of the basement. Not sure where it will go but I will do something with it.

And there's this...

running quote which is there to remind me that I am going back to the gym starting June 30th and will be starting my running regime again.

And then there's this...

pattern that I have had for forever (I also have the fabric) and want to finally make. I love the design of the pants so much. Not sure if I will do the jacket. We'll see.

And there is much, much more in store for my summer. Organizing, sewing, exercising, painting, crafting, furniture covering, eating healthy, all of these (and probably some others) can be found in the pins on my SC board. I am up for the challenge. What about you? What are you going to challenge yourself to do this summer?

Hidden Storage

Do you have the same issues as I do with storage? There never seems to be enough! We have downsized dramatically since our last move and still I have trouble finding somewhere to keep it all. One of our biggest challenges is with blankets. We are a blanket family. We like to tuck them around our feet, cuddle under them when it is chilly, snooze under them when the drowzies hit, you get the idea. We lack storage in our living room for all of the blankets. So, I have been keeping them in this since we moved in at Christmas:

Lovely, isn't it? NOT!!! I keep thinking that we will get a new piece of furniture to use for storage but, so far, we haven't had the money to spend on something that really isn't a necessity. Well, the other day, I just got sick and tired of looking at this awful rubbermaid tub  (that I had thrown a pillow on to use as a pseudo ottoman while I sit in the chair near it) and decided to give it a very quick facelift. Now it looks like this:

So much better, don't you think? This is an old quilt made by my great grandmama. It was passed down to me a few years ago when my grandmama died - mostly because no one else wanted it! It was already well passed its prime as quilts go when it came to me. Too far gone to really salvage and use properly but I still loved it. A true patchwork made from bits and bobs and a few rice and flour sacks thrown into it as well.

Lately, I have had it thrown over a chair in the livingroom and it was literally going to pieces. I cut it to fit by eyeballing it against the rubbermaid tub and then went to work on the sewing machine. I am very happy with how it turned out. You can not tell by looking that there is a rubbermaid tub under there and it is easy to access the blankets when we need them. It has that shabby chic look that I like and blends well with the other furnishings. Plus, I think of my father's family and the South every time I put my feet up on it. Quite simply, it makes me happy! I am still undecided about the rug you see it on but as it was another freebie (scored by my crow while out walking the dog!) I am going to learn to live with it (at least for the time being.)

What small changes have you made around the house lately that bring a smile to your heart? Making our house into a home is one of the most rewarding jobs I have taken on. Each little step I take makes me even more glad to open my door and call out "I'm home!" at the end of a long day.