Welcome to At Home in Montana!
All sorts of random tips about organizing, designing, and working at home . . . in Montana!
SAVING TIME & MONEY ONLINE
This month I thought I’d share some cool technology to save time & money online. Don’t be scared – if I can use these online tools with ease, anyone can!
reQall – reQall is a free voice-enabled memory aid that seamlessly integrates your mobile phone, email, text messaging and IM into a powerful organizer, reminder system and productivity assistant. I kid you not! reQall lets you capture your ideas, tasks and commitments before you forget, and it proactively keeps you well-prepared and memory-strong. The cool part? You can CALL IT IN! Sign up at www.reqall.com, then program their 800# into your cell phone. Need a reminder about an appointment? Call reQall, SPEAK your reminder to their phone system like so: “Mom has an eye doctor appointment next Tuesday at 2 pm.” reQall sends the message to the calendar on your computer, a text to your cell phone, and will also send email & text message reminders Tuesday morning. In a meeting and want to remember to buy milk at Super 1 grocery store on the way home? You can text in that thought, and reQall will text you back a reminder when you get near Super 1 on the way home. Ever suddenly have a scathingly brilliant idea while driving home from work? Call it into reQall and you’ll never lose that thought again, you’ll get it back in an email from yourself. reQall has a remarkable understanding of voice commands. It even understands ‘tomorrow’ and ‘next week’!
Dial My Calls - Anyone who ever needs to call a bunch of people needs this service. Need to remind the whole team about soccer practice? Or call everyone in the department to schedule a meeting? If you are calling more than 4-5 people, check out Dial My Calls. Input (or upload) your list of phone numbers one time, and then record one message in your own voice by calling the Dial My Calls 800#. Dial My Calls will broadcast your voice message to everyone’s number at the time you choose. (Which means you can record the call at midnight to be sent out at 8:15 am). You can call up to 25 numbers per day for free. (More than 25 calls per day are only a few cents each.) Go to http://www.dialmycalls.com/?code=marywallace57 to get your free Dial My Calls account.
Picasa – Want a way to share your vacation photos while traveling? How about a way for Grandma & Grandpa to view photos of the brand new baby instantly? Visit www.google.com and then wave your cursor around at the very top to make some choices appear. Click on ‘Photos’ to set up your free Picasa account. You can upload your photos right from your photo card, then send an email invitation to whoever you choose to view your photos. Picasa has some privacy settings so you can either make the photos available to the public, or they can be viewed by invitation only. Another cool thing? You can install Picasa on your computer and it will find, sort & file all of your photos in one spot. If you’ve ever spent ages looking for a particular photo on your computer(when they all have file names that read like IMG280079), Picasa is a real lifesaver!
Send Out Cards – one of my favorite discoveries! You can send a printed greeting card with your personalized photos and messages in less than 60 Seconds and as little as $1.06 including postage! It’s incredibly easy to do! Just visit www.sendoutcards.com/104996 and do the following: 1. Choose your card 2. Write your message 3. Click send. SendOutCards prints it, stuffs it and mails it for you – all for less than a greeting card at the store. They have over 17,000 cards or you can design your own. There is also an incredible gift catalog as well – all reasonably priced, beautifully wrapped, and delivered along with your card! It the most fun you can have while shopping online! If you’d like to send try Send Out Cards for free, visit www.sendoutcards.com/104996 and they’ll let you send out one free card. There is no better way to tell someone how much you care than a personalized card!
If you have any organizing questions or ideas, please send them to me at marywallace57@bresnan.net. If used in a future MONTANA WOMAN column or WordPress Blog, you’ll receive a certificate for free organizing products from me. Here’s hoping some of this month’s ideas will save you enough time and money to get out and enjoy all kinds of fun!
Organize Your Living & Working Spaces with Function & Style
as published in MONTANA WOMAN - January 2011 issue
By Mary Wallace
Apparently the economy is driving the efforts of many when it comes to clutter control these days. The Paint Quality Institute reports that, in this new year, people will be changing their home colors to help them renew and refresh. “There’s no escaping the state of the economy,” says paint and color expert Debbie Zimmer. “Rather than buying a new home or diving into large-scale renovation projects, in the coming year, consumers will search for inexpensive ways to freshen and update their homes.”
What better time than January to begin a project to bring function & style to your own living space? Here is a simple plan to get you started:
STEP 1: Organize
Style starts with getting organized. Use baskets to provide various styles and colors. Baskets will keep anyone organized…in any room! In addition to the classic wicker & nylon weave baskets, consumers can now choose from a fabric weave sasket, seagrass baskets, natural bamboo baskets, and the all new Mayan inspired knotted hyacinth, maize and open weave baskets. Mixing and matching all the different colors and textures of these baskets makes it easy to implement the “store it where you use it” method to help your family keep things organized and clutter free.
Once a home is organized, it’s time to add color!
STEP 2: Colorize
Next spark up your space with color. To support this step, color can be added through wall color or decor. Celebrity Designer and company spokesperson Monica Pedersen recommends starting with fabrics when choosing colors and designing a room. Runners and pillow covers are a great way to incorporate color into decor.
Color is hot, hot, HOT this season. All it takes are a few simple touches to bring new life into a home, and something as simple as adding some linens can do it!
Blues and greens add both color and calm to a room. “Since most blues tend to be calming colors, this hue helps to create a perfect retreat from many of life’s stresses,” says paint and color expert Zimmer.
Adding these colors to a home is soothing—even Monica thinks so! “You have this wonderful Balinese feeling happening with these great colors,” Monica says. “The blue—it’s just new, it feels good.”
STEP 3: Accessorize
A few well-placed accessories make you (and your home) happy. Accessories are pure fashion for the home. Accessorize with glass, candles and fabulous pottery, just to name a few options. And let’s not forget about accessorizing walls and creating walls that WOW.
Besides freshening up a room with a new coat of paint, a scrolled wall sculpture, circle sconce, or candle sconce are just a few wall items to add . New Safe T Pillars look like real candles, but they contain a flickering flamelike lightbulb that makes wall sconces not only beautiful, but also safer and now they have a fun new feature! The new Signature Safe T Pillars can be turned off just by blowing out the flame! Like it’s real! Turn it on with the switch at the bottom, but blow out the candle ‘flame’, and it will magically turn off.
How about clocks…
aren’t they grand!?
Go for clocks almost two feet in diameter – big and beautiful clocks a re ready to make a statement in any room!
Pottery – Create an earthscapes collection with pottery – there are countless vases to choose from, in all shapes and colors. Mix & match colors, sizes, and shapes to coordinate a look or let them stand alone to make a bold statement.
A new favorite is the bottle candelabra that can be added to your own favorite wine bottle!
Metal & Glass Trays – A large array of trays are available to add to your new ‘function and style’ format! Wooden, metal, and pottery trays of different colors & textures can also be mixed and matched to pull a look together. Trays are not only great serving pieces, but they can also corral a collection of like items that, if they weren’t grouped together, would look like so much clutter! Try using trays to create a few unique vignettes to add interest to a coffee table or shelf.
So there you have it – ORGANIZE, COLORIZE, AND ACCESSORIZE! If you have an organizing question or suggestion, please send it to me at montanamary57@gmail.com . If used in a future blog, you’ll receive free organizing products from me! Want to get some free anyway? Take a look at the catalog at http://www.signaturehomestyles.biz/ideabook/ and then get it touch with me to book a home organizing workshop or join an upcoming free webinar! My average workshop earns each hostess $100 – $125 in FREE organizing products! Let’s talk!
In the meantime go ahead and get going! Make it a Happy New Year with Function & Style!
Out of the rubble, hope springs eternal! And it looks like . . . A HANDBAG!
I attended a Party For A Living meeting tonight and they had these handbags. They are exquisite! Women survivors of the 2004 earthquake/tsunami in Indonesia and Sumatra sew these on treadle machines and the embroidery is all done free-hand. I learned that these bags were featured on Oprah in April. Most handbags take a full day or more to make; each, an amazing work of art! Every handbag sewn and sold brings renewed hope for a better tomorrow to these women and their families.
I really wanted to get one, but it seemed like it was a little too far to payday to swing it. However, a friend asked to borrow my phone and when I took it out of my coat pocket, money fell out too! (I love it when that happens – I had not worn that coat since last Spring!)
Enough to buy a handbag? YES! It was meant to be – I am sure of it! Which one did I choose? The Hadiah, of course . . .which translated means “gift”.
Check it out at Laga-Handbags!
NOT JUST FOR COFFEE ANYMORE!
Classic Collection Baskets
Got the Spring Cleaning Bug? Here are some unusual ways to use everyday household items to save time & money:
COFFEE FILTERS – Coffee filters . . . Who knew? You can buy 200 for less than one dollar!
Cover bowls or dishes when cooking in the microwave. Food stays moist and no splatters.
Clean windows, mirrors, and chrome – Coffee filters are lint-free so they’ll leave windows sparkling.
Protect your good china – by placing a coffee filter between each dish.
Protect a cast-iron skillet. Place a coffee filter in the skillet to absorb moisture and prevent rust.
Weigh chopped food – Place chopped ingredients in a coffee filter on a kitchen scale.
Hold tacos – Coffee filters make convenient wrappers for messy foods.
Stop the soil from leaking out of a plant pot – Line with a coffee filter to prevent the soil from going through the drainage holes.
Prevent a Popsicle from dripping – Poke one or two holes as needed in a coffee filter.
As a sewing backing – Use a filter as an easy-to-tear backing for embroidering or appliquéing soft fabrics.
Use to strain soup stock and to tie fresh herbs in to put in soups and stews.
Use as a spoon rest while cooking and to clean up small counter spills.
Can hold dry ingredients when baking or when cutting up fruit or veggies – Saves on having extra bowls to wash.
Use them to remove fingernail polish when out of cotton balls.
Pressed flowers – Place the flowers between two coffee filters and press into phone book.
Use as a disposable “snack bowl” for popcorn, chips, etc.
Beautiful snowflakes – fold them in a triangle and then make strategic cuts (no two alike)!
FABRIC SOFTENER SHEETS
Absorb shoe odor – Place a sheet in shoes to absorb odor.
Air sweetener – Line drawers and cupboard shelves with fresh sheets.
Eliminates static cling from pantyhose – Dampen sheet and rub on pantyhose and lightly against the underside of your clothing. No more static cling!
Burnt or Baked on Foods – Clean burnt or baked-on foods from pots or pans by putting a sheet in the pan and cover with hot water. Let stand a couple hours, then sponge clean.
Car freshener – Place several sheets under the front seat of your car to mask stale odors.
Mosquito repellent – Rub the sheet over any exposed skin. When you are done stick the sheet in your pocket. Works better and is safer for children than most repellents.
Dust the television screen – Reduces static electricity that attracts more dust.
Wasp and Bee Deterrent – Hang a fabric softener sheet in the area where you are in your back yard, picnicking or camping to keep the wasps and bees away.
Glasses cleaner – Wipe lenses with a fabric softener sheet to clean them and prevent them misting up.
Keep stored clothing smelling fresh – When storing clothes for the season, place one or two dryer sheets in the clothing bag or container to keep them smelling fresh.
Remove odors from old, musty books – place fabric softener sheets between a handful of pages and leave for several days.
Screen cleaner – Save used sheets of fabric softener to remove dust and static from the screen weaving.
Sewing aid – Run your threaded needle through a fabric softener sheet before you start sewing to make handstitching easier.
Shoe shiner – Buff shoes to a high gloss with a fabric softener sheet.
DENTAL FLOSS
Professionally cut a sheet cake while hardly disturbing the frosting. Get a piece long enough to lay across the length of the cake and wrap taut around your fingers. While holding it taut, press it down through to the bottom, then pull it out sideways at the bottom. Voila! No frosting residue, ready to make the next cut!
Jewelry string – In an emergency, use floss to restring beads and pearls.
Photo separator – When two photographs are stuck together, work a piece of dental floss in between. The wax may help separate them without tearing.
Picture wire – Hang lightweight pictures with dental floss — it’s strong & nearly invisible.
Umbrella salvager – Attach a loose umbrella to its ribs with dental floss; it’s stronger than cotton.
DENTURE CLEANING TABLETS
Clean your comb or brushes easy – The cheapest brand works fine. Soak overnight.
Remove stains from your teapot, tea cups or coffee cups – Fill your teapot with water just off the boil and then add one tablet and let stand for 10 minutes. Instead of pouring down the sink, pour into tea cups and coffee cups that need the same treatment. Rinse clean.
Ditto – Thermos Bottle. Fill bottle with hot water and drop a couple tablets in. Let stand for an hour or more. Rinse clean.
Clean the toilet – Drop 2-3 tablets into the toilet and let stand until done fizzing. Swab with toilet brush and then let stand 10 minutes. Swab again and flush!
Find some great organizing products at 60-80% off at my Signature Homestyles MEGA SUPER SAVINGS SALE.
If you have some unusual ways of using everday household items, please send them to me at montanamary57@gmail.com. If used in a future article, you’ll receive a certificate for free organizing products for your home! Happy Spring Cleaning!
This article originally appeared in the April 2010 issue of MONTANA WOMAN MAGAZINE.
Life . . . Stuff . . . Solutions!
Welcome to my blog! I am very excited to get started after attending Tom Heatherington’s (www.webunet.com) blogging workshop today at our Kalispell Biz to Biz chapter office!
Here I will be posting timely tips on home organizing, clutter control, and easy home decor projects. To keep my content full of the stuff YOU are looking for, please feel free to let me know your challenges in home organizing and accessorizing. Just drop a note to mary@athomeinmontana.com. And check back often! I will be adding an offer to to subscribe to my newsletter soon!
