Sheital Hang Ups

I don't have a spare empty shelf in my closet nor do I have free counter space on my dresser.  The question was where to put my sheitals and falls that wouldn't require giving up space needed in my bedroom.   I have two sheitals and two falls, and having 4 styrofoam heads was not a good solution for me since it takes up too much space (and they're kind of creepy looking).  I happened to be in Ikea when I got inspired with a good idea.  Ikea has these great sturdy toilet paper holders that can be placed vertically or horizontally.

It's flat on top so it won't damage the net

I decided that using these as a type of 'hook' could really work.  So I had my dear hubby drill these guys into a hidden corner in my bedroom and 'voila'!  My sheitals have a home which doesn't take up significant space in my room. I made sure to put them on a wall that you don't see when you walk into the room otherwise it could be an eyesore.

Great for sheitals and/or your husband's hat

 

A friend of mine had a similar idea and had her carpenter add a shelf to the side of her closet and put her sheital holders on it.  Take a look...

Do you have any other solutions for your sheitals?  Let me know what you came up with!

Kitchen Layout

I just read a very helpful blog post on a blog called 'creative juice'.  It shows great pictures on smart and terrible kitchen layouts with explanations for each.  I highly suggest that anyone who is planning a kitchen read this first so that you don't make the same mistakes as some of these high end kitchens did. Check it out...

 http://studiobcreativejuice.blogspot.com/2011/06/what-were-they-thinking-thursday_09.html

More Backsplash Inspiration

I have been collecting more pictures of backsplashes over the last little while.  There are just so many different ideas to be inspired by.   If you can't afford to redo your backsplash at this time and you're looking for another way to enhance the look of your existing kitchen you can always just add new knobs/pulls to your cabinetry.  It's like changing the buttons on a cardigan, it can give you a whole new look.  Don't forget that if you already have a simple backsplash you can always add a few mosaics even at this point just like I did in my bathroom makeover.  Enjoy the new pictures....

I love all the earth tones

I saw similar subway tiles to this at Beit HaKeramica

I went to Beit HaKeramica and they have a nice selection of backsplash ideas upstairs.  Here's a few samples of what I saw...

Subway tiles like the previous picture

Caramel beige stone look

A beautiful olive color modern stone design

There are a few special tiles mixed in to add interest

Glazed ceramic subway tile

Of course, there were a lot more to choose from...it's like going to a candy store.  I'll keep my eye open for more ideas.

Sock Organizer

My mother in-law just gave me a gift the other day called the 'drawer organizer'.  I decided to use it for my daughter's socks and tights that fill up one smallish drawer.  This organizer is a bunch of wavy pieces of plastic that click together and form compartments.  It can be used for socks, underwear, jewellery, ties, belts etc.  My daughter's socks went from a pile in her drawer that she had to dig through, to being super organized.
The package for the 'drawer organizer' looks like this....

Totally light weight and compact

My daughter's sock drawer now looks like this...

You can attach as many rows as you need to fit the drawer

I don't know where to buy this in Israel yet but for any of you who go to chutz l'aretz I checked on line to see where you could pick this up.  You could search on Amazon.com,  I saw one for around $10 that looked like this....

'Honey-Can-Do' drawer organizers

This is what I have $9.90 on Amazon.com

Or, you can get something that does the job, here at IKEA.  It comes in compartments of 9 so you have to measure and see what fits in your drawer.   You could put more than one pair of socks in each square.

46 cm by 56 cm

I never would have thought to buy such a thing but now that I have it I really think it's fantastic.  So a big 'thank you' to my mother in-law!   Oh and I need more for the other kids!

My Bathroom Makeover

I bought my house secondhand and many of the choices made in the design were far from what I would have liked.  But, it is what it is and I have tried to make things work with a little bit of DIY (do it yourself projects) and decorating.  We don't have the budget right now to make the house of our dreams but one step at a time we can make improvements. 
I really didn't like my main bathroom floor.   It bothered me.  The tile was a dull greyish bluish color that had some texture.  The original grouting job was done so poorly that all the grooves in the tile had hard dry grout that was not removable.  My floors looked eternally dirty which is something I can't handle.  There was also a small area separated by a metal floor frame for a potential shower (which I didn't want) so the floor ended up looking 'choppy'.  The time had finally come when I decided to re tile the bathroom floor.
   I spoke to Shelley Winick (0507178123...he does tiling, drywall, electrical, pergolas etc.) and he calmly explained to me that I did not need to rip up my old floor to put a new one in.  He was able to lay down new tiles on top, no problem.  Yeah!  that makes things less expensive.  I called my friend Tova and told her the good news.  She has the exact same bathroom as me and was just as miserable.  We set off on our mission to buy new bathroom floor tiles.  Our bathroom was not even 2 square meters so it was not a big investment.  We looked for something that fit our budget and we did the 'spit' test.  My friend Yael introduced me to this test when we went to choose tiles for our front walkway.  You need to spit on the tile, then walk all over it with your dirty shoes and look at the damage.  If it's really noticeable then 'bye bye'.  If it's minimally noticeable, then it's an option.  We finally chose two completely different tiles (after a couple of hours!) and made our order.   I also chose one sheet of mosaics to tie the existing wall tile and the new floor tile together.  Here's what I chose...

Wood tile

I picked out a mosaic sheet that would compliment the floor tile and the existing wall tile.

I like the copper squares with the etching on it

The wall tile, floor tile and the mosaic.

Now let's take a look at the process....

The old tiles were 'scored' for better adherence

I decided to 'stagger' the new tiles for an authentic hardwood floor look.  I also had the legs of the vanity sawed off so that we wouldn't have to cut the new tiles around them.  The legs weren't necessary in actually holding up the vanity.  A few hours later the tiles were basically down...

It's hard to see with all the dust but I was so excited

The floor had to dry for a couple of days and then Shellie came back and did the grout.

I chose a greyish brownish grout

After that I had diamond shaped cut outs done on the wall tile for the mosaics.

There were a total of 8 diamonds made around the bathroom

As luck would have it Shellie had another commitment and couldn't come back for 2 weeks.  So, being impatient like I am, I decided to take matters into my own hands and do the rest of the job.  I bought tile cement (ready to go in a small tub) at 'HaKol L'Bayit' in the Merkaz.

This cost me 20 shekel

I smeared the stuff in each diamond and carefully placed a section of mosaics in the area.  I let it dry over night and the next morning I grouted it...

I mixed the grout powder with water until it was like hummus.

The grout always looks like a different color when it's wet, so don't panic.  It dries much lighter!  Now, for the cleaned up finished picture....

Not the greatest lighting yet but you get the picture

Here is the bathroom almost completed, I still have to get the light fixture up which will enhance the whole picture.

The new bathroom

Another angle

There was a small amount of mosaics left over so of course I put them to good use.  I bought a cheap ceramic soap dispenser at HaMachsan for 15 shekel and just added some mosaic and grouted it.

Stay tuned for the cool light fixture I chose.  I got it at Machsane Teora and loved it right away.  I was able to buy a regular light fixture since there is no shower or bath in this bathroom otherwise you have to choose one suitable for moisture.

What's to choose first in the Kitchen.

What should you choose first in your new kitchen? Let's hear some different opinions from our local talents...
 
Michal Landau (interior designer)-"I would say that the first thing you should think about is cabinets, it's by far the most dominant material in the kitchen and you need to start there before thinking about anything else."
Naomi Goldberg (in interior design school)-"I say, choose the part that is most important to you first,  the one that you love or have in your mind (like solid wood cabinets or a granite counter)  and coordinate everything else with that."
Aliza Freedman (interior designer)-"When it comes to choosing a kitchen, I generally recommend to decide on the carpentry materials first because it’s the most dominant part of the kitchen. But, if a client has a particular counter that they “must have” than they can start with that counter and from there choose the rest."
Atara Lavi (interior designer)- "The cabinets are the dominant element in the kitchen and the floors, counters and backsplash are complimentary to that. Therefore, the cabinets should be chosen first then the countertops and floors and lastly the backsplash."

 Lastly,in my own opinion from experience.....if you are going with granite then choose that first.  You need to fall in love with your granite and usually you may not know which slab is going to be the one to grab your attention.  I went to the granite yard looking for something beige based and I ended up choosing a green shade.  With your granite sample you can then choose a cabinet color that enhances the granite.  Granite has so many shades in it and can be so busy you need to have a sample with you before you choose anything else.  Then comes the backsplash.  If you are using Ceasarstone you could probably choose a cabinet color first, then the counter top.  Ceasarstone is more uniform in color and not as deep as granite. 

The Boots Dilemma

This is just a short but sweet post to inspire my sister living in wintery cold Toronto.  She has 2 boys and their wet boots to deal with in her small entryway.  I picked these pictures off of another blog (jdorganizer.blogspot.com) and I think they're inspiring. 

You could put this outside under an awning

Pretty and delicate

8 pairs of boots or shoes ....solid and simple

multi purpose rack

If you don't want a heavier wood rack this has a lighter look

One last one from Martha Stewart who definitely keeps things looking stylish....

You can buy bags of large pebbles at the dollar store