DIY Closet Size Dividers

When I was over at a friends house looking at her baby's nursery I saw in the closet clothing size dividers. She told me she got them at Babies R Us for $10- so I checked...sold out in blue AND green. Well, not to be discouraged I figured it was something I could make myself on the cheap- and I did! I picked up my supplies- blank closet size dividers (eBay seller, $5 for 20 of them plus free shipping!), scrapbook paper (5 for $1), vinyl sheet for the letters (already on hand), Mod Podge, some scrap cardboard, and a foam brush.

I started by tracing one of the blank dividers onto the cardboard to make a template. The edges are raised, so I wanted the scrapbook paper to fit down into the insert. By making my cardboard piece to fit, all I had to do was trace it 16 times to make the set. This took some trimming of the cardboard to get a perfect fit...and I may or may not have wanted to chuck the whole thing out the window and just cough up the $10...but I'm too proud and far too cheap for that, so on I pressed.

Once it was a perfect fit I traced and cut out my scrapbook paper. I made a bunch of them, and I made sure to flip my template over so that the animals on the paper were right side up on each side of the divider.

Once they were all cut out I busted out the Mod Podge and painted on a thick layer. Then I adjusted the paper to fit the opening and let it dry. Note- in 90 degree heat and high humidity Mod Podge dries QUICK. Like, I wasted a circle because I took the time to pick up the camera to take this action shot and it dried in place- insert curse word *here*.

Then I busted out my Cricut and cut out the labels for the dividers...I chose to go with Newborn, 0-3, 3-6, 6-9, 9-12, 12, 18 and 24 months.

Yes. I'm anal retentive and ridiculous.

The pre-packaged ones come with 5, and I wanted more so I made more. We have not even had the baby shower yet and already I have two Rubbermaid totes of clothes for our little guy- I want to be able to see what we have and what we need quickly. It only took one 12x12 sheet of vinyl (a 12x24 sheet is $1.89 at Expressions Vinyl) to make all of my labels, and about 20 minutes of cutting time. Once they were cut off, I peeled them off and stuck them on. I made my letters one inch in size, so you could easily see the sizes inside of the closet. Because they were vinyl and self stick, I didn't need to worry about gluing them down. Then I added a coat of Mod Podge at the top to seal everything in and they were done! Now, we just need to get hubs to clear his junk out of the Bean's closet, and I can get to work painting and organizing. Here's hoping it won't wait until after the little guy arrives??

DIY Vinyl Calendar

Step one of getting organized involves making sure everyone is where they need to be when they need to be there. A few months ago I saw this project over at Sarah's blog Life Sweet Life and thought "hmm I can do that!" Well today, I decided it was time to get started.

I had an old picture frame lying around the house that I had bought on clearance for $3.00 at JoAnn's a long time ago. . (Please forgive the bad pictures, the good camera was dead so my point and shoot will have to do!)

I removed the back and hot glued the glass to the frame. I simply ran a line of hot glue around the frame and inserted the glass. Then to make sure it was in there good and tight I added another layer to the top of of the glass and folded down the tabs on the back of the frame to secure the glass. I used my Cricut to cut out the vinyl that I got super cheap at http://www.expressionsvinyl.com/. I purchased a 12x24 sheet of one of about 38 colors for around $1.89. Go to Michaels and two sheets is going to cost at least $9, and you cant get near as many colors. Shipping was also very cheap and very fast.

My kitchen is light blue and white, so I went with a black, dark blue and gray color scheme. I used the Cricut Cartridge Designers Calendar that I got on clearance, I use it to make really fun calendars for my classroom. It already had the blank calendar and the days of the week on it, I just had to choose which ones I wanted and hit cut!

I knew I wanted the calendar to be dry-erase, so I used the flip feature to cut the words out backwards and stuck them on the back of the glass. I know the Cricut Expression has this button, but Im not sure about the other Cricut machines.

I used brackets to signify where I can write in the Month and added our name for a little personalization. After it was all stuck on there, I went over it with some windex to remove fingerprints and Volia- Done!

As for sizes- the frame is 12x12, so I cut out an 8 inch calendar box. The days of the week are all 1 inch, the name is 1 1/2 inches and the brackets are 2 inches. I left some space at the side to write in any notes that I may need to remember that month. All I need to do is find a skinny dry erase marker and Im good to go!

The best part- I already had all of the supplies, making this a free project :)

Now- the next challenge is to actually get the hubs to use it....we'll see how it goes!

Getting Organized

It really is amazing how much crap two people can accumulate. The hubs and I have lived together for three years, and he's been in this house for 8. As I start to clean out closets, go through drawers and the attic I keep finding the craziest stuff that for the life of me I cant imagine why we have. Why do two people need a case, think 30 of them, of Jose Cuervo shot glasses? ("Because they were free at the bar one night!" claims hubs.) What about a candle powered fondue set? A kitchen towel warmer? (Christmas gifts gone way wrong) A set of wall sconces with dogs on them? (No idea). As I prepare for this baby one thing is for sure...a yard sale is in our immediate future, and anything that doesn't sell will be at goodwill ASAP. Hopefully the Hubs wont be here for it, or he may cry when he realizes I'm adding his candy bar vending machine and rock em sock em robots to the pile- Christmas gifts that a guy his age does not need. Wish me luck!