Life is short. Buy the shoes.

 

Reusable shopping bag. Triple layer vinyl project.

 

Shoes these days are a really big deal. Weather your a high heel Stiletto lover, simplicity of  flip-flops is your fancy, tennis shoes for running (after kids or on tracks), boots, or anything else for every occasion, people today buy lots more shoes than our previous generations.

So needless to say this saying is quite the hit with many people. However 26 years ago when I had been married only a short time I owned only 4 pairs of shoes. Yes, I only owned 4, 2 pairs of dress shoes; a pair of heels and flats, and 2 pairs of tennis shoes; a good pair and a work pair for mowing the grass, etc.

I went out for a shopping trip of essentials, and window shopping for our soon to be born son. When I seen a pair of shoes, the kind that put a smile on your face immediately and actually make your heart skip a beat. I knew the right thing was to admire them, try them on (wink), feel how comfortable they were, and put them back on the shelf.

At the end of the day my darling hubby asked about the events of my day, which I rambled all the highlights and minimized how wonderfully fabulous those shoes were I had seen. His response was "let me see them." I hid my surprise, and said I didn't buy them. "Why not?" I could think of a million reasonable responses, no reasonable adult would think I should have brought those shoes home at this point in my life. His shock increased as we spoke, deeply questioning, how much could they be? In his mind that obviously was what he had missed. My answer they were on clearance, and I actually thought they were yet cheaper than the clearance tag. "You really liked them?...go back and get them." I remember his very articulate convincing conversation, why I must go back and get them, lol, really true story.

So for me this is a reminder how much my dearest husband loves me, and how I really need to, sometimes (smile) live a little more in 'today' and not worry so much about the future as we do not know what it holds for us.

DO THE PROJECT

Making the most of small gifts

I love a good child care provider. Occasionally leading me to want to give a little bonus. However I am not sure if you all are like me, but I frequently find myself thinking, "I only have ____ to give."   It only takes a few minutes to make it a real heartfelt gift. Making the response a hug and treasured memory instead of an awkard money exchange.

 These are the simple match boxes I posted last month. Take your currency fold in half. Wrap tightly around a pencil, remove from pencil wrap with ribbon use glue dot to hold in place.

 

Wrapping paper storage

I love it when I can find that simple little spot for something special that otherwise is stuffed in a corner somewhere, and this week it happens to be wrapping  and tissue paper. This is such a simple inexpensive project I am kicking myself for not doing it much sooner. And it carves out space that otherwise is never touched anyway.

Supplies:
8 - 1/2 inch wooden dowels
12 - gold cup hooks
4 - L brackets
2 - 12 1/2 inch small pieces of wood
spray paint

6 of your dowels will be used as is, two of them will be cut into thirds.
I painted my hooks black to match my decor, I've seen others go white, as well as paint the dowels. I left mine natural, do what fits your decor.
My two pieces of wood were from an old shelf I took apart (it was the face plate) so they were 1 1/2 inches wide by an inch deep. Something similar to that is important for your wood.

The instructions:
Cut your 2 pieces of wood 12.5 inches long. The top piece will have 5/8 inch holes drilled all the way through it, and the bottom only half way through it.
I marked out the top piece first, every 2 inches with 1.25 at each end so the marks to drill are 1.25 3.25, 5.25, 7.25, 9.25, and 11.25. I drilled a smaller pilot hole all the way through and lined up my bottom board and drilled it into mark the top of the bottom board.
After all the pilot holes are drilled and the bottom board is marked then use a spade bit to complete the 5/8 hole. For the bottom wholes you want them drilled only half way through your wood, so for me that was 1/2 inch. You can mark your drill bit with a piece of tape, or a permanent marker so you will know how deep to drill.

Mount these to the inside of your door making sure they are far enough apart to fit wrapping paper between them, but also take into consideration where shelves are mounted. In the picture you can see the top piece is mounted just below the shelf.

Cup hooks put in 2 inches apart vertically and no more than 11 inches apart horizontally.
Cut your wooden dowels into thirds. My husband was kind enough to mark the right side of the dowels against the hooks and notch them so they won't slide. A great bonus, not essential.