Pinterest is my crack – Uses for over the door shoe pouches…..

Now I can find ALL my tights! Yay!

In case you didn’t read my post about the scarf hangar, Pinterest is my crack.  I absolutely can’t get enough of it!  There are many a post on the fantastic uses of over the door shoe pouches.  I ordered two (or three) to experiment with organization (I love Amazon Prime) and if I had more doors, I’d order more of these.  THEY ARE GREAT!!!  I did manage to deal with two areas of nuisance in my life, my tights and pantyhose collection and my pantry/kitchen counter situation.  I went through my tights drawer, which is typically overflowing and difficult to find.  I took the shoe pouch and organized my tights and hose by color, texture, and foot (footless or not).  I also put a few pairs of leggings that I would only wear with tunics or skirts in the pockets.  Perfect!  The only thing left to do is to take the old label maker out and label the pockets.  I’m debating that because I don’t want to be locked into the current organization.  I’ll label once I get a full feel for the system.

I took the second pocket to the kitchen and put it on the back of the pantry door.  I put all of the random things on the counter and the most frequently used items from the pantry in the pouches.  I ended up with a bit of a hodge podge, but it’s functional for me.  The less often used items are put at the very top or the very bottom.

Now I can find my Dixie Cups! SCORE.

Frequently use items, like my smoothie straws are right at eye level.  Again, the only thing missing is labels, but I like to give myself a good 90 days of any new organization system to make sure I don’t have to do some quick fixes (an organization retrospective if you will).  Once I’m comfortable with the system, I’m going to go a label making spree (I think it’s less dorky than it just sounded…or not).

Bottom line – over the door shoe pockets are AWESOME for things other than shoes.  If you want to store flip flops or flats, I’m sure they are fine, but I use racks for any other shoes.  The pockets are PERFECT size for anything else.  Other uses, put on in the coat close for scarves, gloves, hats, etc.  If I didn’t already have hooks in the coat closet for these things, I’d be all over it.  It could also be great in a smaller bathroom to store bathroom items you don’t want to leave on the sink.  I’m toying with using one on the other closet door for belts, but I can’t decide if I’d find it annoying.  I may experiment.

If you want to order one (or three) look for something like this online or at your local store: http://www.amazon.com/Honey-Can-Do-Clear-Organizer-Storage-White/dp/B001F51AHG/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1359687764&sr=8-3&keywords=over+the+door+shoe+pockets

HAPPY ORGANIZING!!

Quotes to live by….

“If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way.”

— Martin Luther King Jr.

My Latest Yoga Meltdown….

Yoga as only Jillian can do it…

In my eternal quest for workouts that will keep me interested, keep me motivated, and help me lose my last 20, I once again went on an Amazon ordering spree (Prime is a blessing and a curse).  This time I did my spree while watching The Biggest Loser, so of course, I ordered some Jillian Michaels DVDs.  I have Jillian’s 30 day shred, which I have referred to as either the longest 30 minutes or the most horrifying 30 minutes (or both).  I enjoy yoga, so I decided to order Jillian’s Yoga Meltdown.  I had a Yoga Meltdown alright.  I don’t know how Jill does it, how she takes the peaceful practice of yoga and manages to wipe the floor with me, but if Bikram is yoga’s bad boy, Jillian is surely it’s mistress of pain.  Complaining aside, I liked it.  I woke up this morning feel sore, but I felt good.  If you’re a hard core yogi, you may not enjoy the sort of yoga/aerobics vibe it has, but if you are open to new things, give it a whirl.  As always, there are multiple levels (one and two).  Level one is just fine for yoga beginners and there is a person doing modified poses.  It’s not gonna give you a great sense of zen and as an enjoyer of Bikram, it’s not the same type of experience, but it’s a good solid workout with enough variety to keep a soul interested long term.

As always, Jillian Michaels = Pretty Darn Useful (and Pretty Darn Painful)

Image courtesy of amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/Jillian-Michaels-Yoga-Meltdown/dp/B0031XYLWG

Vegan Food that Doesn’t Taste like my Foot…. YUMMY YUMMY!

Today is the end of day 3 of my raw Vegan detox (and yes, I have had non-raw Vegan food, I do the best I can).  My meals have been courtesy of the talented Stephanie Hall and I wanted to provide you all a review of each thing I’ve tried thus far.  The disclaimer is, I certainly have no clue how it’s made or always even what it’s made of, but I know what’s nummy (yes, I said nummy) and what’s not.

My Delicious Raw Detox Food – Part 1

1. Green Juice – YUMMY, NUMMY.  Unlike the blueprint Green Juice, this is more fruit forward (a nice wine reference).  It’s actually quite delicious.  There were 2 green juices in my meals and I enjoyed both of them.
2. Vegan Pizza – Again YUM!  It’s topped with olives and tomatoes and other great things and is AWESOME.
3. Vegan Lasagna- Seriously – not sure how you get a ricotta-ish texture with nuts and other vegan ingredients, but again, it’s awesome.
4. Kale Salad – Yum.  Kale can be a bit overpowering, ususally when I use the fresh stuff in smoothies, I have to hold my nose.  Stephanie’s kale salad is lite and delicious and filling
5. Brazilian Nut Mylk – Much like the cashew milk, I could live on this stuff.

Overall – I haven’t had anything I haven’t liked.  I also had some sort of vegan burger and it was also awesome.  This plan makes “going vegan” seem easy.  The food is delicious.  I feel great and I just feel like i’m giving my body all kinds of great things.  However, I know i’m not a quarter of the chef that Stephanie is, but the experience did cause me to order an easy Vegan recipes book on Amazon.  I won’t pretend i’m going to start sprouting my own bread…because let’s be realistic, I can barely motivate to go buy store brough bread, but i’m hoping the recipe book will give me some new ideas on salads and I would love to learn to make vegan lasagna.  I will also keep experimenting with nut milks.  I “borrowed” A’s Vitamix blender and so far, so good.  Not sure i’m ready to sacrifice the number of shoes i’d have to leave in the store to buy my own, but perhaps after a week or so, i’ll be too spoiled by perfect protein shakes to go back to my $29.99 walmart wonder.

Love those Greens! Vegan Food – Part 2

Bottom line – if you are Vegan, ever wanted to try it, or just need to clean up your body…this is the way to do.  Stephanie makes it SO EASY.  Pick up the goods, eat.  Done.  She also makes it taste great!  I’ve had some vegan stuff from the freezer aisle that tasted like a combination of cardboard and my foot.  This food, I’d order on a regular menu even with full out meaty and cheesy options, it’s just that good.  She does the raw detox program monthly.  Give it a whirl, you’ll have a brand new appreciation for how eating healthy, even vegan, which is hands down challenging, can be awesome and not feel like a sacrifice.  http://stephaniethall.com/