A space, a shelf, a solution.....The InstaHANGER from Green Apple Organising

Well our bathroom organisation project has definitely left us with the organisation bug 

and this is one bug we are in no hurry to get rid of! 

Our organisation fever has  moved on from the bathroom 

and now taken its hold on the wardrobe!

In particular Master O's wardrobe has long been cause of heart palpitations with an overwhelming amount of clothes, shoes, socks, underwear, swimwear, even a large family of stuffed toys have taken up residence amongst the chaos. 

In particular I have been searching for a way of storing and organising his clothes so that he can independently get dressed (in appropriate clothes) in the mornings.

Sending him off to get dressed often results in him reappearing with his swim suit bottoms, a jumper, socks and sandals.  As much as I appreciate his european styling, I am not sure it would meet "Kindy standards" and so we waste another half an hour arguing, wrestling the clothes off getting him changed.

With his first year of school uniforms rapidly approaching I was starting to get frantic!

We have the space but just not the solution.

Then I spied this little piece of inspiration...

Living Locurto

Amy from Living Locurto was in a similar predicament when she created this great system for her son!

I must admit the procrastinator in me bit and although I saw this picture months ago, I have not done anything about it!

Well to be fair it was not just procrastination but the how-would-this-work-for-us question?

Master O has to be able to reach the clothes for this to be effective?

How can you put a clothes rail at his height?

Do we really have room for a whole other clothes rail in his cupboard?

How would you install it?

enter......

The InstaHANGER

$19.99

Green Apple Organising

 I found this little beauty when I recently stumbled upon a life changing website. 

Green Apple Organising.  

Australian based, Adele from Green Apple not only has the most amazing products 

but inspiring videos with time saving and simple snippets of organising gold!

I had massive organisers envy when I browsed her online store but there was one product I had to HAVE!

This product the InstaHANGER is the perfect solution to our wardrobe problem!

Basically its a mini hanging shelf that can be put almost anywhere you need some extra shelf space!

It can be installed anywhere!  On a door, wall, cupboard or in our case in the wardrobe!

Here it is!!!

We are putting it at Master O's eye level so that he can see what he is to wear each day.

Each coathanger has a day of the week tag on it so I can help him plan for a week of clothes!

The InstaHANGER is the perfect size, stable and can hold 50lbs of weight.

and.....

It has made the most of the unused space underneath the current clothes rail!

Children's clothes are so short that you often have unused space (at their reach!)

I would love to have one in the laundry to place clothes on once I have ironed them.

Or in our guest bathroom for guests to put their clothes on whilst they have a shower.

Or in our entryway for school jumpers and work jackets.

ANYWHERE!

It is great because when you are not using it just folds discretely against the wall. (see the little inset picture above) and can be used inside and outside!

The InstaHANGER is available online through Green Apple Organising

but beware they have sooo many clever products (more of which you will read about on here!) and Adele's You Tube Clips are addictive

and will only encourage your organising bug may take hold of your life! 

That can't be a bad thing, can it?

A cup full of inspiration......A Tea Party

Dainty vintage tea cups, ribbon sandwiches, spring dresses.

It is no surprise that a "tea party" is one of my favourite party themes.

It is simple, classic and can be adjusted to suit just about any age group or occasion.

A "sip and see" baby shower

(Where attendees sip tea, as you reveal the gender of your baby! 

or come and meet your baby for the first time)

A high tea bridal shower.

A teddy bears tea party for little ones

An "Alice in Wonderland" mad hatters tea party

A garden party with milk and cookies!

The possibilities are endless.

The hardest part of any party planning is having the courage to have a party!

Once you have your initial concept or idea 

it is time to let the imagining and inspiration begin!

I always start with the invitation or party printables.

This gives me a much clearer picture of what I want to do and also the colour palette.

You don't always have to use a theme, in fact some of the most gorgeous parties I have seen have just chosen an effective colour palette and incorporated it into all aspects of their party.

but for me....

I LOVE PRINTABLES

Bought online they are sent to you via email file for you to print at home.

A simple version is very cheap and the more personalised designs then vary in expense.

Just buy, download and print as many as you need!!!

If you don't have a great printer at home you can take the file to Office works or a copy shop and have it printed!

Think cupcake toppers, banners, candy wrappers, thank you cards, favour tags, drink bottle wraps, food labels if you can think it, you can print it!

If you have the time or are creative you can make your own very easily on a computer and using some scrapbooking paper or even just using stationary items from around the house!

So here are some inspiring invites and printables for your next tea party...

Owly Molly Print

Owly Molly Print is owned by an Australian Mummy!

Love the top right design, think simple pink, vintage lace and doilies!

TomKat Studio

Mad hatter inspired tea party.

Love the bright spring colours a break from traditional pink!

even better......

they have a whole printable collection!

How fresh are those colours!

For a more garden tea party style....

wants and wishes

Pink, Lemon and Lime

Girly, elegant and timeless

Great for a garden party or high tea.

they also have these great matching printables

that are very affordable!

Sweet Bee Design Shoppe

LOVE these fresh vibrant colours from Sweet Bee Design

A mix of fun and girly

and they have matching printables!

These would be great for a little girl or even a teenager

(you're never too cool for a tea party)

Doodle Prints

Sweet, simple, elegant pink!

Love the very simple design with just a hint of chocolate.

Of course a party inpsiration post would not be complete without my favourite party gals...

Anders Ruff

This elegant style could not only be used for a sip and see baby shower but  

little girls tea party or a ladies afternoon high tea! 

The colours are very neutral and modern

Even better than tea...how about milk and cookies?

Perfect for a first Birthday!

Think outside the teacups....

Why not use the shabby chic collection and have a vintage inspired tea party!

Having a spring Birthday?

This invite would be perfect!

Love the mix of classic pink damask and contemporary lime dots.

So with invitation inspiration in hand, it's time to start thinking food and decorations....

but first...I think it's time for a cup of tea!

Keep Calm and Teach On

So let the juggle resume.

Holidays are over.

Back to work.

No more finished cups of morning coffee.

Goodbye sleep in's (who am I kidding I haven't slept in since 2006!)

Pass me the juggling balls, this term I will master them!

You can buy the print

{Here}

Oh and did you notice something new on the right sidebar??

Fashion Friday.....The Mummy Uniform

I am as far from sporty spice on the fashion spectrum as you can get.   

My idea of exercise is a stroll along the lake or chasing the kids at the playground or does doing laps of the shopping centre whilst window shopping count?

But there is no denying the comfort and practicality 

of a pair of tracky dacks and sport shoes!

Even better a cap to hide the unwashed unruly hair and dark glasses to disguise the evidence of another sleepless night.

So I am adopting a new Mummy uniform.

The Tracksuit.

Must be black and baggy.  

This body is not as trim as it used to be and needs all the slimming disguise it can get. 

Black does just that, and at the same time disguises spew, snot or vegemite.

The Polo

Adds a bit of colour and makes the whole outfit a bit dressier in case my incognito fails and I get spotted by another Mother.  Also looks good if they day warms up and I need to take the tracksuit top off.

Sneakers

My attempt at looking sporty but also ever so practical for wrangling shopping trolleys on an escalator whilst Master O constantly jumps on and off the front.  Or for making the mad dash to the bottom of the playground slide as Miss A blocks a speeding child sliding down.

Sunglasses and Hat

No need for hair and makeup in the morning if I can slap these two on.

A slick of lipgloss and I'm ready to roll

Bag

My one slightly glamorous possession to provide me with just a dash of non mumsiness 

(until it spills on the cafe floor revealing an assortment of wipes, nappies, half eaten biscuits and toy cars.) 

Yes, I speak from experience.

Oh how times have changed my BC (Before children) track suit loathe has become a track suit love, 

 if only I could wear it to work!

Do you have a Mummy uniform?

Bathroom Helpers

After completing our recent Project Bathroom, I have found a few new ways of helping to keep our bathroom clean!

On our bathroom bench

1. Dettol no touch hand wash.  

 I am LOVING this.  

It took me a while to brave enough to part with the money 

($10 for starter unit and hand wash on special at woolworths) 

but it was worth every cent.

It senses your hand and then automatically dispenses a small amount.

Perfect for kids that love to pump a ridiculous amount of soap on their hands!

I love that it looks good on our bench and it is great for when you have makeup on your hands to wash off!

2. Scented Candle

I just loved this candle in a jar from a "cheap" shop.

 The vanilla scent is great for freshening up the bathroom, and there is something magical about candles burning whilst you relax in the bath!

3. We are now using this gorgeous crystal ring holder we had put away!

and this little box hidden over in the corner.....

It has baby wipes inside!  

This was a whole $3 from Big W and included the wipes inside!

I use baby wipes for everything but they are especially good in the bathroom for

Removing makeup especially eyeliner/mascara

Wiping down your makeup after use

Wiping the sink down

Giving the bench a quick wipe

If only it came in pink!

What are your favourite bathroom helpers?

Up in the air I fly.....

We are home!!!

We had a lovely time away but it is good to be back into the routine of our daily lives

 (did I just say that?)

Travelling with two little ones by myself was  as eventful as I had predicted,

 but I did make some mental notes for next time.

1. Do not dress your children in white for travelling.  EVER.

2. Do not give children in white, M&M's on the plane unless you are going for the rainbow clown look on arrival.  Freddo frogs are just as bad, cheese and bacon balls, forget it.

3. M&M packets are hard to open whilst juggling an infant on your lap.  Contrary to popular belief,  air hostesses do not have permanent smiles on their face, especially whilst trying to dodge rolling M&M's with their food trolley.

4. Do not tell your child they can watch a movie on the plane until you definitely know that 

a) they have movies on the plane 

b)the movies will not be M rated

c) you have the ability to juggle an infant, whilst trying to get your credit card out of your purse and swipe it through a ridiculously small slot without elbowing your other child in the face.

5. Do not let your infant fall asleep on your lap with their head towards the aisle. You will either risk them being hit by that ridiculously large food trolley, a man posing as a giant as he goes to the toilet or attempting to move them closer towards you, without waking them up whilst trying to open the packet of M&M's....impossible. Face them the other way and risk being hit in the head with the arm rest as the other child continually raises it to try and put the head phone socket in.  If your infant can not sleep sitting up, with their massive metal seatbelt clasp in their back and the tray table centimetres from their face, 

perhaps don't expect them to sleep at all.

6. An adult and two children can not fit into an airplane toilet cubicle AND go to the toilet.  If you are willing to attempt it...

 place the infant in the wash basin, sitting up. 

Hold them with one hand.

 Lean against the door. HOLD the child going to the toilet with your legs.  

Use your spare hand to hold the child's shirt so it is not peed on. 

Be sure to lock the door before you scar the immaculately dressed air hostess for life.

If it is you who needs go to the toilet,

 forget it or invest in nappies for all three of you.

But we survived, we are home, 

with a few orange stained shirts and extra bruises but none the less, we made it!

A family snapshot

We may be away, but naturally

my thoughts are never far from finding inspiring ideas to fill our lives!

I have spent many precious moments going through old family photos, 

admiring the classic shots of days gone by and frantically scanning them all so I can take them home!

So.....I am looking for some ideas on how to display these precious memories in our home!

Love love love this one as it mixes quotes or other memorabilia with the photos.

The matching frames tie all the pics together!

image

simple straight classic

image

Different frames, different sizes but still matching!

image

so elegant, love the ribbons!

Do you have a family photo display?

I would love to see it!!!!