the frames: updated so soon

Yesterday, I posted one of my recently concluded projects - the photo frames. I love that they are all up, I am happy with the frames and the photos that I have decided to put inside them. But for days I have been staring at that wall with that gnawing feeling that somehow something's amiss. And looking around our room that little voice got louder because I felt that the wall does not anymore connect to any part of the room. The vase holding capiz leaves placed on the iron shelf looked out of place.

When I got home from work, I decided to remove the vase and the capiz leaves. The vase which really is a wine bottle, I could easily store in the buffet cabinet, where its stopper is waiting. The capiz leaves I did not know where to put them. I didn't want to store decorative pieces so I was already toying with the idea of giving them away or including them in a yard sale. Then an idea struck.

Yesterday, I have been thinking of adding a few more photo frames but hubby wouldn't have welcomed that idea. Then I thought of adding stickers. Decals, like the ones I used for the cabinet doors, could have tied the wall with the cabinet doors and added a bit more oomph to the frames. But I have to bring down the frames and stick them one by one. Just thinking about it made me tired. But I also knew I wanted to add a bit more to this wall and somehow unify it with something in our room. The capiz leaves became the answer. They made for a better substitute to the decals. They were easier to mount on our wall and I didn't even have to take down the frames. And somehow, I think, they tied the wall to the cabinet doors, creating a corner that now has a quirky feminine vibe to it. Playful and a bit romantic, well at least that's how I see it.

the frames are up, finally!

This is a project that started with my trip to Dapitan sometime in May. It took a while because we wanted to wait for B to come back before we put them up but in June it was clear to us that she was staying in the province to get married and raise a family and that we had to complete this project on our own. Things got busy and hubby and I had to put it off, the frames were lying around the house for over 5 months but finally, last week I had a surge of energy. Yes, same week as that of the shoe boxes. I was able to complete this project as well. Two home projects in one weekend. Not bad. Not bad at all!

After five long months, they are all up on a bedroom wall.

breathable plastic shoe boxes

Some call it obsessive-compulsive personality disorder, I call it small space control measure. Last week I threw away all the shoe boxes that are stacked inside a cabinet in our kitchen. You see we live in a rather tight space. We don't have kids yet so it's okay but keeping our stuff from swallowing us is a big challenge, hence, I try to look for ways to help me organize whatever little shelf space we have. I have been dreaming about having standard sized transparent shoe boxes for quite some time. I saw a 14-pc pack at S&R during the sale last September but the plastic shoe boxes did not have holes nor slits, which was a concern as I want the shoes to breathe, plus at 1,200 pesos (on sale) per pack, I could have spent around 3,600 pesos if I bought them, a bit steep. Good thing I resisted the urge and decided to wait. Last Saturday, I was chatting with a friend and our conversation led to the discussion on shoe boxes. Oh! Now I remember how it started, I saw those non-woven shoe boxes being sold on Facebook and I showed it to her. As a reply, she suggested that I take a look at the shoe boxes she saw at SM. She was sure that they breathe but she couldn't tell me how. I dragged hubby that evening to SM and boy! was F right; I have found my breathable shoe boxes! They have slits on either side which keeps the pairs ventilated.

And this type of shoe box was on discount. They used to be 69 pesos but they had a promo pack of three which sold for 159.95 pesos. I got 13 packs and was able to replace the store shoe boxes stacked inside a kitchen cabinet, which I sequestered and declared "for shoes only." I know, some might say gross! What? shoes in the kitchen? I know, I apologize, but I have got to improvise in our rathole. Good thing my hubby is a stickler for cleanliness, bugs and mickeys aren't members of our household. That's why I can get away storing shoes in a kitchen cabinet.

We do have a shoe cabinet but not enough. This floor to ceiling shallow shoe cabinet is one of the earlier improvements in our humble abode. As you can see, we have to really maximize space. We wanted the cabinet to almost blend in the wall. It turned out well as it also hid our circuit breaker, aside from providing us extra storage space.

Good thing I did not buy shoe boxes for the shoes inside this cabinet. They wouldn't have fit. The shelf is too shallow for the width of the breathable plastics. I wish they have different sizes for these shoe boxes. I would have gotten the smaller box since I really don't have big feet.

So the four shoe boxes you see above are the only remaining paper shoe boxes left. I still have another project related to these breathable plastic boxes but even before I complete that, I am now happy camper.