Hello Friends,
How was your Foodie Monday? I came up with a few tips while cooking and cleaning out my fridge yesterday that may/may not be useful for you.
1. I always make a BIG pot of coffee in the morning because nothing is more annoying than going for that third or fourth cup of hot loveliness only to discover a few drops. However, I don't want to waste a half a pot either. What to do? I pour leftover coffee into a pitcher and put it in the fridge so I can have iced coffee later in my day when that 3:00 slump hits.
2. I had a craving for something sweet yesterday so instead of going out to the bakery for a cookie I made brownies at home with mix I had on hand. So easy and so tasty! Most mixes require a certain amount of oil poured into a measuring cup and a greased pan. Instead of using more oil to grease my pan I just turned the measuring cup upside down on top of the pan to get the remaining oil out that was stuck to the sides of the cup. I let it drip down while I finished mixing up the ingredients and then used a small paper towel to spread the leftover oil around. Waste not want not!
3. We have a propane stove and nice, heavy pans that once heated retain heat very well. When cooking my eggs I turn the stove off a minute before the eggs are done and they finish cooking in the hot pan.
Do you have any good tips for short cuts in the kitchen?
Tuesday is laundry day in our home or a.k.a the day where Mommy can hide out in peace for two hours at the laundromat while drinking her hot coffee. In honor of laundry day today our topic is clothing. I'm going to break from our original title and add a phrase-"Use It Up, Wear It Out, Make It Do or Do Without.....or Just Toss It Out". We ALL have things in our closet we just aren't wearing for whatever reason-it needs repair, it's out of date, it doesn't fit right etc. Today I want you to take an honest assessment of your clothing, accessories and shoes. Now this is a tough, gray area because on one hand we really should just use what we have in our closets and figure out a way to make it work either with accessories or some crafty re-purposing. However, I can honestly say I have piles of clothing waiting for a makeover and the reality is they are still sitting there. I also have clothing with tags still on them because I thought I would eventually fit into them or I could make it work in my wardrobe. Again, still sitting there. For the next 24 hours be VERY honest with yourself in terms of what really works on your body, what works with your coloring, if it fits right or if you have intentions for some re-purposing set a deadline. Be ruthless.
I can honestly say that I have wasted tons of money on nonsense clothing and when you add it up it's scary. Today I also want you to start taking stock of what is YOUR personal style, again what works with your body and coloring and most importantly your lifestyle. Clothing is fun and is an outward reflection of your personality. I'm a big believer in finding your base outfit and then adding to it. (One step away from wearing a uniform but you know my ideas about uniforms-love them!) Your base outfit could be leopard print or skirts and blouses or all black or Lenten liturgical purple but find what works and stick with it!
You've sorted your closet-now what!?
1) Does anything need dry cleaning or repairs? Simple holes are easy to fix and if using a thread and needle make you woozy come over and I'll help you. No sense paying someone to fix those small holes (although that could be a good side business!) If something needs dry cleaning take it now. I learned that hard way what happens if you leave pit stains on a gown too long. Yikes.
2) Sort out the clothing you don't want. Can any of your friends use your goodies? Set up a clothing exchange. My feeling is I'd rather give my besties first dibs on my unwanted goods before donating them. If you have some nice corporate clothing consider donating it to a charity that helps women or men get back into the workforce. They'd appreciate your nice suit. Sort out the rest into clothing that is wearable and clothing that has holes/stains etc. Call different thrift stores to see what they do with stained clothing. As someone who used to work at thrift stores in high school (Best. Job. Ever. Take about stunts!) I can honestly say that some just toss unusable clothing into the dumpster and some sell it by the pound for recycling or to be sold to other countries. It's worth taking the time to check. If they are just going to toss your stained items consider cutting them up and using them as rags around your house. Store it in a pretty container and no one will be any wiser. And if someone does pass judgement just stick your nose up in the air, give a big sniff and say " Well. I CARE about the environment and don't want to be wasteful. Don't YOU?"
Hee hee. Donate the rest to your local thrift store and make sure to get a receipt for your taxes. Every little bit adds up at the end of the year.
3) Consider having a house outfit and and your going outside in public outfit. I'm not advocating that you buy a velour number with sequins (unless you want to). Let's face it. NY is gross and the same jeans that are covering your butt that is sitting on the dirty subway seat is the same butt with now dirty jeans sitting on your sofa. Sexy. In Turkey a lot of women have their nice outfits for going out to the markets or to a friends house and then they have more casual clothing for wearing just in the home. Now most of the ladies I know are housewives and part of the wardrobe change is due to the fact that they are cleaning and cooking most of the time and don't want to get their nice clothing dirty. But, I think there is a good takeaway here. Your nicer clothing could last longer in terms of general longevity and you won't have to launder it as frequently. Clean clothing is a wonderful blessing washing is hard on the fibers. To each their own, but I really think a person can get away with wearing a piece of clothing longer in between washings. This is why the good Lord invented perfume friends :)
4) Lastly, now that you've cleaned out your closets you may need to purchase some clothing. A few thoughts.
For the love of all things Holy-there is no reason to buy anything full price. Ever. You can find a coupon online or if not wait. I order a lot of things online which means I may have to return things if they don't fit. Find out what return shipping costs or if you can return to the local store. Find a clothing company with styles that really work with your body type or factor in any return costs when you initially pay for a purchase. You may loose your savings. A good mantra is one thing in one thing out. But I say one thing in THREE things out. It'll keep you honest! Lastly, NY has some great thrift stores and especially outside the city in some of the wealthier communities. It may be worth it to take a train trip up north for the day to snoop around the stores. Used clothing can be lots of fun but do give it a THOROUGH once over to check for any stains or holes. Also give the fabric a nice tug. Vintage tops especially can have weak fibers.
I found this fun Blog Entry which sums up this post nicely along and gives some good tips for purchasing clothing. My final parting words, which probably defies everything I just said, is to not stress about clothing and how you look. If you are big into fashion and it makes you feel great then fine. More power to you. If you just really don't care then more power to you too. Just stop wasting money on nonsense (or too many sparkle shirts).
Love love!
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