inspiration workshop with gussy sews: ORGANIZATION!

This week's prompt is {ORGANIZATION}:
The new year is a great time to declutter and ORGANIZE to tackle the year ahead. Which is why we thought ORGANIZATION would make a great prompt for February. Maybe you already have a share worthy system in place? Maybe you've seen out in the inter-webs the perfect way to ORGANIZE your office or your kids playroom? Or maybe it's a cool device or shelf system to ORGANIZE things just so. Staying ORGANIZED is personal, so share what inspires you to organize your life. Feel free to use your own images, or images you find, just be sure to give appropriate photo credit if you use someone else's photo.

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OH, how wonderful this inspiration workshop will be for me! i'm SLIGHTLY obsessive compulsive. ;)

i used to be way worse, trust me. i've mellowed out a bit now that i'm married to my very much NOT ocd husband. but i still love to organize pretty much everything in sight....in fact, i even have an entire pinterest board dedicated to "ocd goodness" which pretty much consists of anything and everything organized. sigh...it's beautiful!


here are a few organization tips that i'm hoping to use when we've got everything moved into our new house....

Source: creatingreallyawesomefreethings.com via Catie on Pinterest

these DIY balsa wood drawer dividers are awesome for so many reasons. 

1. they remind me of studio in design school. 

2. they are pretty dang cheap. and 

3. they are such an EASY way to organize anything EXACTLY the way you want it to be!

Source: craftaholicsanonymous.net via Catie on Pinterest

i am in love with this craft organizer. jars make me smile and the twine upside down twine holders are genius. this would be a simple upgrade to any crafting space, large or small.

Source: blogs.babble.com via Catie on Pinterest

jen over at tater tots and jello wrote some great organization ideas, tips and DIY projects for the bathroom over at the new home ec. she has such fabulous ideas that make organization look so PRETTY! ;)

while you are over there, make sure to check out her 15 kitchen tips as well. you won't regret it!

Source: diynetwork.com via Catie on Pinterest

speaking of kitchens, i've been drooling over this organized kitchen for ages. i'm pretty sure i've shown you this one before, but it's TOTALLY WORTH REPEATING! it's that stinkin' awesome!

Source: thepaintedhive.blogspot.com via Catie on Pinterest

another swoon worthy organization tip are these definition labels. what's not to love about them?

fonts: good. words: good. organization: GOOD.

all together: GOOOOOOOD!

does that remind anyone of this?

ross: "it tastes like feet!"

Joey: "i like it!"

ross:"are you kidding?"

joey: "what's not to like? custard, good. jam, good. meat, goooooooood!"


oh, joey, you get me every time.

join us for inspiration workshop!

inspiration workshop with Gussy Sews

inspiration workshop is BACK!

hip hip, hooray!!

This week's prompt is {BEDROOMS}:
It's the New Year! And what a great time to be inspired by your living space. Whether you live alone or have a family, BEDROOMS are the space people spend most of their time and often decorate to make their own. Whether your space is comfortable, modern or kitchy, it needs to be inspired to be you. Feel free to share your BEDROOM space, or BEDROOM spaces that inspire you. Maybe it's a really amazing bed frame, night table, or the coziest bed linens you've ever seen. Or a baby's nursery, a child's bedroom or guest room. Share what inspires you for a BEDROOM space. Remember, if you use someone else's photo be sure to give proper photo credit :}

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we have three bedrooms in our new house (i promise, i'll get around to doing a photo tour tab soon...fingers crossed!) and i have never had such a hard time finding STUFF to put in a room! they look so naked right now, every room needs to be "dressed" i suppose and i needed a kick in the butt to find some inspiration. so, here goes nothing!

Source: google.com via Catie on Pinterest

my craft room is in the same room as one of our guest beds. i am extremely lucky to have had the pleasure of growing up in an old iron bed very similar to this one. the problem is, 3-year-old catie decided to "decorate" her bed with some crayons. there are also quite a few chips in the paint and the knobs were all sprayed a really bright brass, so i'm hoping this summer sometime to clean it as well as i can and spray paint the entire thing. i'm thinking possibly a fun color? we'll see how that project progresses!

i love everything about the photo, the casual quilt draped and the gorgeous bed. love it all.

Source: nattybydesign.blogspot.com via Catie on Pinterest

our master bed is in this really odd little bump out in the room. our bed JUUUUUUST fits inside it. which means we have no room for bed side tables. for a reader like myself, this is unacceptable. i've been looking for ideas all over pinterest on how to solve this problem. so far, my favorite shelves are these.

Source: sawdustandembryos.com via Catie on Pinterest

are you pro headboard or against them at all costs? i think my husband would rather slit his wrists than have a headboard on the bed, he's THAT against them. i'm hoping something like this upholstered headboard from sawdust and embryos will win him over.

Source: coastalliving.com via Catie on Pinterest

in addition to our two guest bedrooms (slash craft room) we have a semi-finished attic. semi finished meaning there are stairs up to it and someone went a little cray cray with the sponge painting and the wall paper. and there are random holes in the drywall. that birds somehow get through.

but that's neither here nor there.

i'd love to be able to do something similar to this in the "wings" of the attic, what kid wouldn't want a fun attic to have sleepovers in?

the bonus is i might stay sane during a future sleepover. (HAH!)

Source: etsy.com via Catie on Pinterest

i have an unadulterated love for all things scrabble. (anyone want to play words with friends!?!?!) and these pillows are going to have to go somewhere in my house.

like, yesterday.

Source: apartmenttherapy.com via Catie on Pinterest

and while we're on the subject of pillows, i had to share these pillows. they made me giggle for about ten minutes straight.

my husband, a non-shaver in the winter months, did not find them that funny.

men.

i'm linking up with:

inspiration workshop with Gussy Sews: RED!

today over at the inspiration workshop with gussy, we're talking about

RED!

red is one of my very favorite colors.  i, personally, think there isn't anyone in the world that looks bad in red!  red is sexy, smart, calm, warm, trendy and yet trend enduring all at the same time.

seriously, it's the perfect color.

here are some pretties from pinterest that i was feeling this morning...

Source: ruemag.com via Catie on Pinterest

i believe i let it slip in my last post that we are moving to the country in a couple of tickets.  if you follow me on facebook or twitter, you've seen the photos to prove it.  (don't worry, i'll be uploading to the ol' blog soon enough.)  our new place has not one, but TWO red barns!  and i'm super excited about them both.

side note: when i told my brother about our new place and told him there were two barns, he says to me, "the only thing better than one barn is two barns, i always say."

he doesn't get it.  he's a city boy.

Source: google.com via Catie on Pinterest

i'm a little angry at pinterest for not being around from the fall of 2009 while i was planning my wedding.  i'd like a do-over wedding, so i can wear this dress.  mmmmkay?  'kay.

Source: bhg.com via Catie on Pinterest

hello, entirely red accessorized kitchen with awesome dark grey cabinets and beautiful red cherry wallpaper, i'm catie.  have we met?  heck yes we have...in my dreams.

Source: 6thstreetdesignschool.blogspot.com via Catie on Pinterest

gorgeous flowers.  just be glad i didn't add a gratuitous wedding shot in here.  you know i wanted to...

Source: daintysquid.blogspot.com via Catie on Pinterest

i know summer is almost over, but i LOOOOOVE this outfit.

Source: thecoolhunter.net via Catie on Pinterest

i am, quite literally, the biggest fan of fall.  ever.  hands down.

Source: pooryou.com.au via Catie on Pinterest

i have this weird hair color that's not really brunette, not really blonde and not really red.  it's like this odd mix of color and i don't really hate it, but i wouldn't really say that i love it either.  i'm "meh" about it.  kyle calls me a "ginger" all the time, but that's more due to the translucent skin and freckles than flaming red hair.  how beautiful is this girl's hair?  simply gorgeous.  i want, i want!  i totally want to dye my hair now.

here's another fun story: not that long ago, kyle was staring at me as i was getting ready to go somewhere.  i think it was a wedding, but i honestly don't remember.  i was straightening my hair and he just kept looking at me.  i finally turned to him and asked him what exactly was it he was looking at and he goes, "you know, i really prefer blondes, but your hair color, whatever that is, is my second favorite color."

um...thanks?

and, just for the record, i'll post a picture of the most accurate picture of my true hair color.  it's horrible of me, but let's focus on the hair, people.

my friend, ty, and i on fake patty's day, which i blogged a bit about here in march.  so let's not judge people, it's just not nice.  and it was 10 am and i had been drinking for 4 hours already.

note the start of ty's green mustache.  green beer = green mustaches.

i love being irish.  or fake irish.

whatever.

join us for the party!

inspiration workshop with Gussy Sews

THE PROMPT

To keep with the outdoor theme {I'm soaking in every minute while the favorable weather allows), this week's prompt is THE FRONT PORCH. And really, this can be interpreted in any way... Including {but not limited to} front and back PORCHES, decks, patios, outdoor dining spaces, etc. Maybe you have a PORCH off your condo that is divine, or you have a neighbor with a space you drool over. Or, is there a rickety old porch that you find charming. Or a meal you'd like to enjoy on a FRONT PORCH.The possibilities are endless!

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OOOOH!  the front porch!  one of my favorite places to be!  a front porch was a must have for kyle and i when we were looking for the house we currently live in.  i think it will be a must have in any house that we live in, ever.  there is just something so blissfully MIDWEST about a front porch.  (yes, i just made the midwest into an adjective, what are you gonna do about it?)

here's a few images of my dream front porch...

Source: houseplanshomeplansfloorplans.com via Catie on Pinterest

i love all the detailing of this house, and how the front porch wraps most of the way around.

Source: livinginlilly.tumblr.com via Catie on Pinterest

the fans and the painted ceiling...SWOON!  the trim is also beautiful.

Source: hookedonhouses.net via Catie on Pinterest

another fun wrap around.  (can you tell i have a soft spot for craftsman styled homes?)

Source: savedbythesouthernbelle.tumblr.com via Catie on Pinterest

i'd love to have a porch swing.  the lights fixtures are amazing!

Source: brylanehome.com via Catie on Pinterest

we have a couple of these chairs that we've inherited from various places...we might need to get a couple of cans of spray paint out!

what does YOUR dream front porch look like?  is it in the city?  the country?  or would you rather sit in the driveway and take in the sun full blast?

inspiration workshop with Gussy Sews

THE PROMPT

To honor our warm weather {for now}, I've been enjoying day dreaming about outdoor GARDENS, which is this week's prompt. I love my terrarium and my potted plants, but am also intrigued with lush GARDENS, with vegetables, wildflowers and green foliage. I am also inspired with unique container GARDENS that use unusual containers {like a local cafe, Wise Acres, decorates with on an inside wall}, often repurposed, to grow plants. Do you have a GARDEN you are proud of? Do you have a friend with a green thumb? Or a neighbor? Remember, this doesn't need to be a GARDEN you've harvested or even have taken a picture of {just be sure to give proper photo credit if the photo is not yours}. This is your interpretation of the GARDEN prompt.

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i'm going to be honest with you here, i don't think i can "honor" the warm weather any longer.  i'm just too sick of it.  i know come february, when it's -17 degrees outside, i'm going to be wishing for it, but right now i want to smack mother nature for such crap weather.

sighhhhh.....

rant over.

moving on...my garden has gone to complete crap this year.  i planted the normal cucumbers and tomatoes and herbs and they ALL DIED, because it was way too hot.  i mean, i watered them, but that didn't really seem to help at all.  i have a few flowers let, but not many and our grass has pretty much all but dried out.  it's brown.  and crunchy.

BUT this is supposed to be a HAPPY post, so today i want to talk about my dream garden.  i'd love to have an amazingly huge, lush garden, full of veggies, potatoes and fresh herbs!  fresh herbs are my favorite!  last year, i had a pretty awesome dill plant going on and i branched out on a lot of dishes to include dill, even some fish, which i had never used it for.

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of course, the mother of all things crafty, home, garden and cooking is THE martha stewart.  and martha has the mother of all gardens!  now, i don't love martha's business tactics, or, honestly, her personality.  but, i do believe that you have to admit it when people are pretty awesome at stuff, and she didn't get all the way up there without a little bit of talent.  i read this article a while back on apartment therapy (side note, how awesome is apartment therapy?  i just love it.) and they linked to a garden tour of martha's.  i can't find the original link anymore, but i DID find this awesome tour of martha's culinary herb garden and boy-oh-boy is it fantastically amazing!!  there's a few images below for you, but you really should go take the tour if you are interested at all.  beautiful!

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inspiration workshop with Gussy Sews

THE PROMPT
I've been thinking a lot what we all do in a day. And what I am always in awe by is how vastly different we all are, which is why I came up with this weeks prompt. This week I encourage you to find inspiration in your day-to-day by posting a single photo, a collage of photos or simply a written list that depicts A DAY IN YOUR LIFE. Some of you may be stay-at-home or work-at-home moms. Some of you, like me, are business owners. Or a student. So look around you... What does your day look like?  I hope you will find beauty in something that maybe you find a little mundane by taking a moment to work on this prompt, A DAY IN YOUR LIFE

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a day i the life of catie

i'll be honest, my days tend to vary a lot.  i'm trying to change that.  i know it's healthier to get into a routine, i have just been having some troubles doing that.  right now we are working out with shocker fitness on monday, wednesday and fridays and i've been trying to get myself up to run on the off days.  unsuccessfully i might add.  but, again, i'm working on it.

so, in conclusion, i'm going to give you today's play by play, because it was somewhat of a normal day.

and i worked out, so you know, i look better.  ;)

catie's wednesday

4:45 am - alarm goes off, kyle hits snooze

5:00 am - alarm goes off again, we get up

5:15 am - we're off and headed towards shocker fitness

5:30 am - workout begins

6:30 am - workout ends and we head home

6:45 am - kyle gets in the shower and i make breakfast and his lunch

7:00 am - kyle heads out the door

7:15 am - hop in the shower, get ready for work

7:50 am - leave for work

8:05 am - get to work, log into computer

8:15 - 11:15 am - today i spent this block of time freaking out a bit about a deadline, it worked out in the end.

11:15 am - kyle called me and informs me that his flight left at 1:20 pm, not 3:20 pm like he thought and was i coming home for lunch to see him

11:30 am - left for home, ate lunch, told kyle bye (he's headed to atlanta for a meeting tomorrow)

12:30 pm - back at work, spent the rest of the day freaking out about another deadline

5:30 pm - realize that i just did a bunch of extra work that the architect didn't ask me to do, instead of working on the one thing he asked me for and decided i was too annoyed to continue working.  and the dogs needed let out.

5:45 pm - ran to dillons, grabbed a bite to eat, let the dogs out into the oppressive heat, watched the news, passed out on the couch for about an hour

7:00 pm - woke up to a cat sleeping on my head....i'm looking at you MOW...

8:05 pm - kyle calls because i didn't get online.  i was distracted by the TV i guess...

8:15 pm - we discuss a few things, hang up and i read my google reader for a while...

9:00 pm - time for the 9 pm news and a little big of blogging

9:35 pm - once the news is over, we typically start getting ready for bed so we can actually wake up at 4:45 one of these days!

my life sounds very depressing wrapped up into a little list like this.

but, the thing that i love about my job is that EVERY SINGLE DAY is different.  projects are in different stages, sometimes i head to the site, sometimes i'm working on drawings, sometimes (though not lately) i'm pulling finishes or making presentation boards and sometimes, i have nothing at all to do.  that's usually around christmas though.

because construction workers don't like to work when the ground is frozen.

just sayin'.

and because it's not a post without a picture, here's a little funny for you.

tomorrow we're doing an office tour of my very first project i did "on my own" and i was prepping a post for you all about it and went to google maps to see if it had been updated and i saw this:

construction site.  it looks like three buildings, but it's actually all one.  i promise, they even have furniture and stuff in it now.

so i got all excited and thought maybe they had updated the street view (the car has been spotted recently in the wichita area) and went to the street view and saw this:

BHAHAH!

how far i've come.

i'll take some pictures for ya tomorrow and hope to share!

and yes, i'm a funhater and blocked out all the information from the google search, so don't even bother.  i'd rather not get fired for sharing client info thankyouverymuch.

inspiration workshop with Gussy Sews

this week's inspiration workshop prompt is SUNSHINE.

oh me, oh my, sunshine is a hard one for me, i had to come up with a few different images...  i spent a lot of time in the sun as a kid/teen/college student.  

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i lifeguarded and taught swimming lessons for EIGHT years, so i have a LOT of memories of being at the pool. we had a lot of fun at all the pools i worked at, even when it was a bazillion degrees outside, we made it fun.  it was my main source of income through high school and to this day, the smell of a pool is one of my favorite smells in the entire world.

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ever since i can remember, we've spent a week at table rock lake in the summer.  my parents now have a cabin there, but we tent camped and stayed in rented cabins throughout my childhood.  there is nothing like seeing the sunrise over the lake as you're going out for a set of skiing.

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and speaking of waterskiing, i skied for Kansas State, did you know that?  i'm sure i've told you...right?  well, i did.  i spent 4 weekends in the spring and five in the fall skiing in college tournaments and those are some of my favorite memories from college.  we had way too much fun, got way too much sun and drank way too much beer.  needless to say, i had to quit the team in my second year of design school or i would have never graduated.  *wink*

i'm linking up with Gussy, won't you join in?

inspiration workshop with Gussy Sews

this week is my first to link up to Gussy's Inspiration Workshop and i'm SO EXCITED about this week's prompt!  here it is from Gussy herself:

This week's prompt is the PERFECT BATHROOM. Oh, the PERFECT BATHROOM, I could go on for days about what I would want that to be {but you will just need to wait for my post next Thursday *wink*}. As a tease, I dream of a spacious space with snuggly soft towels and beautiful colors. What would your PERFECT BATHROOM look like? Do you already have a PERFECT BATHROOM -- what does that look like?

how amazing that the prompt this week was the perfect bathroom as we are planning out our very own bathroom remodel here at the catie and co. house?  pretty stinkin' perfect if you ask me!  i've already started and shared my pinterest boards for our bathroom and kitchen remodels, so some of these images you've seen already...but hopefully there are a few new ones!

Source: bathroomremodelings.org via Catie on Pinterest

i love the vanity and built-ins.  this bathroom just screams, "come on in and stay a while, fill the tub and sip on a glass of wine."  the bench and storage above is great and i love how they lowered part of the vanity to accomodate for the window, but it looks intentional.  and i'm loving white cabinets right now, i'm hoping for a while vanity in my future bathroom!

Source: odenwalddesign.wordpress.com via Catie on Pinterest

great use of space and the sinks are amazing.  i love the window greenhouse space and the bead board wainscot brings the whole look together.

Source: google.com via Catie on Pinterest

i love the tile in this shot.  the mirror is pretty amazing, as well!

Source: picasaweb.google.com via Catie on Pinterest

this one just makes me smile.  i will indeed have this quote somewhere in my new bathroom.  :)

so what about you?  what would you pick as the perfect bathroom?

i will never peel an egg again.

not after this post by kami over at no biggie!

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you just SCOOP IT OUT WITH A SPOON!

do you know how life changing this is for me?  i will now have gorgeous deviled eggs.  that has never happened.

because i suck at peeling eggs.

perfect for the coming of SUMMER and BBQ'S!!

thanks, kami!

ps - how funny is that video!?!  not sure anyone wants my spit on their deviled egg...but...i guess there are some weirdos out there.  :)

pinterest

so, i'm probably way late on this bandwagon, but i'm just discovering the love i have for a little website.

you may have heard of it before....

pinterest.

yeah, you know, the awesome website that allows you to "pin" things, put a little comment and essentially saves them for you, and then shows your friends what you love?  out there in the universe.  floating in the clouds.

i bet pinterest's clouds are quite pretty.  and possibly pink.  at least in my world they are.

i read about pinterest a while ago over at no biggie's blog.  and then like five other blogs that i follow.  they all found out about it at ALT.  but...i'm not cool enough to go to ALT.  or, really, have any reason to go other than it sounds like a blast.  and i'd love to hear heather speak.  (who wouldn't, really?)

but i digress.

the point is:

i gots mad graphix skillz, yo.

yes, yes, i did just speak about myself in third person.  you gotta problem with that?

since i'm fairly new to pinterest (i just got my invite on tuesday...it took a while, but they are still in beta phase, so that's completely understandable) i don't feel i can deeply express my love quite yet, but for now, i'll just show you the one reason i keep going back for more.

pretty little inspriation boards.

sigh....a designer's dream come true!

where WAS this website when i was planning my wedding!?!

and i thought using google docs to plan it was groundbreaking...