Tag: Storage

KITCHEN

6 Home Centre Finds That Are ‘Sold Out’ Online (And Where You Can Find Them Instead)

My mum was here for a fortnight, and like me, she is fond of all things organizing. For the kitchen, in particular. She helped me in organizing organized the kitchen, got rid of stuff that were old, plastics, and put a ban on purchasing anything new until it was time to discard some of the existing canisters. Aren’t mums are the best? I really love it when she is here as it’s like getting a crash course on life and how to be wiser and balanced. I took her to Home Centre and she shortlisted a few things I must buy later. Surprisingly, these are sold out online all the time but I was glad to discover they were available in stores. Here is the list and why I think they are great buys. And just so you know, this is NOT a sponsored post. 1. 6 pc GLASS STORAGE JARS…

LIFESTYLE

Baskets from the Baba Tree Basket Company

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This post is a compilation of my favorite baskets from Baba Tree Basket company and how you can buy them. Pinterest is smart. It is aware of the things I love and adore. Baskets being one of them. Brownies being the other. Pin recommendations have been full of drool-worthy brownies. But, it’s not often that you stop scrolling to drool and obsess over one pin because its pixels are oozing with deftness and beauty. I’m talking about these lovely baskets from the Baba Tree Basket Company. My love for baskets is no secret. I found the vacation to US two years back fulfilling only after a couple of visits to Ikea/TJ Maxx and stuffing the luggage with baskets. Nothing can match these baskets – they are a decor item on their own. These handwoven baskets are handwoven by artisans in Bolgatanga, Ghana and marketed/distributed worldwide by Baba Tree. These functional and colorful…

CLEANING & ORGANIZING

Organizing Ideas To Steal for Your Kitchen from Ikea Stores

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There were two store tours on my list, and I chose Ikea. You’ve read about the baskets before.

Who doesn’t love Ikea, and who doesn’t like affordable storage solutions? I’d never been to an Ikea store before, so it was on top of my list during last month’s visit to U.S. I happened to visit two Ikea stores. Not such a big fan of their furniture, but their organizing and cast-iron cookware section is another story. Going by news source, it will be another two years before Ikea opens its first store in Noida/Gurgaon (I’m not sure which one as the job postings say Gurgaon).

So, here is a virtual tour until then…less of words ..more of pictures. The highlight, of course, is a beautiful, well-planned 390 sq. ft home with a kitchen, living/entertaining section, bed and a bath.

Black Magic: a summer setting at the entrance of every store.

Every store has a small model home. The stores around Los Angeles had a 390 sq. ft set up. I couldn’t believe my eyes it was this small and kept going around in circles ..you know enter through the kitchen and exit out of the bedroom and again enter through the kitchen. Funny and crazy, I know…but I just wanted to take it all in. A real example of small is beautiful. This is the entryway leading into the kitchen followed by the living section at the back…

To the side of the kitchen is the bedroom; adjacent to the living and bed is a small bath. As you can see, the bedroom has ample storage on the top.

HOUSE TOURS

From 2000 to 300 square feet: this cottage shows small is beautiful and how to get clever with storage

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Hope you had a blast yesterday for Holi. Make a guess: how much can you fit in a 320 sq. foot space? Living and dining at the maximum, or perhaps living and a modest kitchen? This enchanting, little 320-square foot cottage caught my eyes this morning, and I thought I must immediately share it with you all. Bigger isn’t always better, right? This theory is more relevant for us as we are debating if we should move into a bigger house, or what we should look for in a new property. As a minimalist, big is not necessarily on my checklist for our 3-member family. But the husband begs to differ. The son and he prefer to play football inside. What do you think? Do you have sq.foot preference, or how big should the home be? The home showcases how to make the most of limited square footprint. My…

CLEANING & ORGANIZING

Organizing: How do you store and use kitchen appliances with ease?

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Do you look for additional muscle power every time you have to make dosa batter? I mean to take out the grinder from the bottom shelf, or is it perched on your countertop conveniently (great for use but not easy on the eye, right?) ?

As much as we would like to use ammi, kalloral (read: food mill, mortar and pestle), they’ve given way to juicer, food processor, mixer, grinder, microwave, and hand blender/chopper. These are the appliances I have currently, add anymore you might own like a tandoor, coffee maker and oven, and what you end up with is an overwhelming list.

Since my kitchen was designed over ten years ago, when I had little design sense, the appliances are not stored in the most efficient way. Two overhead cabinet shelves are home to most of these appliances. I was looking for ideas which would require minimal redesign and this was what I came across.

I believe the design below works incredibly well for small appliances like chopper, blender, juicer etc. As they are on telescopic channels, if you have a waterproof board, weight shouldn’t be an issue. With electric wiring already present, you don’t have to take it out of its place every time to use but, of course, you’d need to detach the parts for cleaning. The only drawback is not all appliances can fit in so you’d need at least two pull out drawers.

Uncategorized

Storage: Boxes from Bigso

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I hope it’s bright and sunny in the part of the world where you live in. Here, in Bangalore, there is an overcast for the past couple of days, but no rain in sight. But that doesn’t deter us from camping out on weekends, does it? How and where do you store important bills? Do you have any ideas for stashing away wires and cords of the zillion digital devices that occupy our lives – from Kindle and Kinect to Creative and iPad? How about the knick-kanck in your kids room such as crayons, poster colors and chalk pieces?And, how about those bands and clips in rainbow colors in your dresser? Over the years, I’ve used a combination of things for storage that’s recyclable and not ugly in presentation ranging from color paper-wrapped shoe boxes to colorful straw boxes. We have a habit of filing telephone, electricity and water bills…

Uncategorized

Stylish Storage Ideas : Open Shelves

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You’re well traveled. You love to cook. You’re an avid reader. You have an eye for interesting curios. Now, that means you have an impressive collection of souvenirs from the various countries you’ve visited, a good collection of recipe books, spices and well-stocked grocery, and an overflowing library. And, there’s always only so much space in an apartment to display one’s collectibles, right?

Umm, that’s true to only an extent. But, if you ask me, limited space is an excellent opportunity to change the look of your home often. Don’t you think cluttering a showcase with all those shot-glasses and porcelain frames from exotic locations is a tad boring and old-fashioned? For a minimalist look, introduce open shelves around the house. Line them asymmetrically to give it a stylish edge. The material is of your choice but wood looks classy.

Try not to clutter a shelf with too many similar objects. Change the display frequently by rotating your collectibles. This way you get to get out all you have on time or the other. Match a photo frame with a odd looking vase. Go wild. The part I like about open shelves is you don’t have to spend a fortune and it’s easy to maintain.

Plan carefully how many shelves you would need based on the room. If it’s a living/dining room, limit it to two or three. For a study/kids room, you can design them into open cubes for additional storage.

Here are several ideas for inspiration.

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Kitchen: How Do You Like to Store Pots and Pans?

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What is it that you look at when you walk into a kitchen – at a friend’s, relatives’, your own or at a store? My eyes advertently scan the space for a clutter-free counter, organized pantry storage, layout, and to my surprise, how the pots and pans are stored.

I spend a considerable amount of time in the kitchen cooking regular food or trying out new recipes and desserts for my son. Though keeping kadais and pans in the open makes for easy access and helps in drying naturally after washing them, I think it is an eyesore. Currently, I store my pans in a stainless steel stand over the sink and kadais in a large pullout drawer like the one below. I’d prefer to stash them away in cabinets but find most Indian modular kitchens ill-equipped in that area.

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Storing Cookbooks in Kitchen

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Every woman’s kitchen has at least one recipe book – either self-bought or gifted. Mine has over 100 of them. No exaggeration. Seriously. Most of them are small supplements that come with various Tamil monthly magazines. My mom religiously collects them every month and hands them by the dozen or more when we meet, usually after3-4 months. That shows her confidence in my cooking :) Or she trusts me to get inspired and cook a lot of variety dishes, which I do.

The books cover a wide range. Sample this. The collection consists of 30 Chutney recipes, 30 tomato dishes, 64 pickles, 30 soya recipes, 100 age-old home remedies (those granny ideas!), what to do with leftovers, 64 cakes/cookies/chocolates, 64 juice, 200 Diwali tips, 30 biryani masala, 16 types of sambar, and 10 types of rasam. The list goes on. And believe me, it is really handy at times to break the routine and fix something different for dinner.

One practical issue I face is stocking these in the kitchen where it’s easily accessible; for, I know, if I lay my hands on the stack, I’ll end up cooking a dish. The block is in reaching out to the stack. Right now, it’s stashed in the farthest cabinet. I’m contemplating of binding them into just 4-5 books categorized by snacks, juices, pickles, desserts, and main course dishes.

Uncategorized

Inviting Creative Toy Storage Ideas in Kids’ Room

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One of my biggest nightmares is to organize and put away my toddler’s growing pile of toys. Just when I make my resolution of not buying any more for another month or two, does he receive a huge carton from my parents’ or friends as gifts. Once a month, I go through the pile to discard broken ones and give away those that he has outgrown. Yet, the inventory is growing strong and large, with little space to store them in his modest room. Lately, one of the biggest disadvantages is it has become tough to tidy the room and find a game that he wants to play with.

I use two huge laundry baskets to store his toys and keep us from walking over plastic cars and stuffed animals. And, don’t even get me started on the number of batteries strewn around for all those remote-controlled jeeps, aeroplanes and cars. This is what one calls grandparent indulgence! Anyways, so I’ve figured that the laundry basket system is not a very efficient one as one has to dig deep into the pile and pour the stuff over to find what you are looking for.

Here are a few that caught my attention. Loft beds such as the one below in particular, are great for storage. Look at the boxes underneath every step of the staircase.

Open shelves with wicker baskets are my all time favorite as they are easy to organize and to store not just toys but other knick-knack as well such books, CDs/DVDs, crayons, and stuffed toys. The only downside is it tends to take up considerable floor space. But I would prefer these any day to metal bins on grounds of safety.