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Thursday, January 8, 2009

sorting it out

Another ice storm left me housebound with both kids. Hurray for another pajama/hot cocoa day! We found many cozy ways to pass the hours, but our favorite was sorting our new treasures. I've saved a ton of egg cartons for future projects, and this was an immediate good use for one. We spread out our beach finds and organized them by type first, and then later by size. We all enjoyed this! While we sorted, we talked about our favorite moments during our trip.

What a spontaneous and easy activity for an inside day... if you happen to live where it's warm (don't rub it in too much)... egg cartons don't get any more portable and can be packed up and taken out to a blanket under a tree. Sort objects from nature, marbles, coins, etc. It's quiet, calming and offers the perfect opportunity for discussion.


Now, I'm inspired to tackle some bigger sorting projects... like my poor, desperate studio. It would take some GIANT egg cartons to handle all of its delicious piles( I mean treasures)! This will be my task today, as I ready myself for a very productive year. Speaking of studios... my mother set up the sweetest sewing corner while she was here. I'll be sharing pictures of that new nook in the barn studio very soon, just waiting for a sunny day! You're going to love it!

What are you sorting and organizing?

24 comments:

  1. I love it already and I haven't even seen it yet except in my imagination. How far is it to your house from mine? Hmmmm

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  2. I wonder if those cartons can hold alligator eggs.

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  3. You guys found some great stuff!
    Organizing? Ummmm..... ;)

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  4. Oh! Don't they look so lovely and pale and beachy and eggshelly and pretty?!

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  5. Beautiful, your ideas are always so great. Its really cold here too. We are spending most of our evenings by the fire. s

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  6. lovely idea and thougtfull writing...you should write a book!! I'm looking forward to that barn-corner already...Love that barn, love your stories about your mum and your december days spent there...happy place!

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  7. I need to:
    -Separate the old clothes from Zoe's closet, and put them into bags to give away
    -Find some more boxes to put the fabric piles in
    -Organize and clean several corners of our livingroom which has much accumulated toys and art stuff
    -Organize (again) kitchen cabinets
    -Re-sort and organize my whole studio space!
    ...-Oh! And the pictures in my computer!!!

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  8. That looks like such fun! And a great way to use the egg cartons. I spent much of the day yesterday sorting my digital photos and transferring them to DVD. Now I can clean off my hard drive and start again with the 2009 pics!

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  9. I need to sort my son's room - so many toys post Christmas that it's hard to walk from the door to the bed, but such a task I keep putting it off - what better way than by reading your blog.

    Looking forward to seeing the sewing corner.

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  10. I've been sorting and organizing my gazillions of photos, in which process I came across DVDs of my first daughter's first days, which both girls have been requesting to watch daily.

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  11. I just noticed that our local grocery store has cleared out all the holiday items and made way for storage bins, so I guess January is the time to think of sorting. I would much prefer to have a bit of the beach to sort through and arrange, but I'm afraid what I have is a mish-mash of craft supplies mixed in with my work and bills to sort through and arrange so that I can find things. Ick.

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  12. Oh what a great idea! I actually have a glass jar full of shells and agates and such in my living room. That sounds like a nice quiet time activity and a chance to explore nature indoors with my toddler this afternoon.

    What am I sorting and organizing? Baby clothes. Very soon. As soon as we find out the gender, then I'll know how to sort and give away! I can't wait!

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  13. I'm sorting out my kitchen cabinets and drawers and just finished sorting the baking spices. Next, the savory cooking-spices. I've been using various cardboard boxes as drawer dividers....maybe egg cartons would work too???

    Jody

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  14. wow! You got some beauties!! Happy New year :)

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  15. What fun!!! A great rainy day project. I am in the mood for organizing. But i have to wait till the bathroom is finished so I can get all the bathroom stuff out of our closet!

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  16. great idea!! thanx!

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  17. Your collection is so aesthetically pleasing too.

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  18. Your photos and shells are gorgeous! I love egg cartons as the perfect medium for organizing. I just put away all of our mini-Christmas ornaments in egg cartons.

    Your mother's new space sounds lovely! I look forward to seeing the beautiful photos :)

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  19. Can't wait to see the sewing corner.

    Finally, I am putting every sheet set together and tying them with twill tape. I love the tape and it's a good use for it. It's much easier for family members to get the 'whole package' for changing sheets...

    --Vicki K.

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  20. what a wonderful idea! we usually give our containers back to our neighbors, who take them to their parent's farm and fill them with fresh eggs, but we might need to keep a few cartons at home for sorting.

    organizing...where do i even begin?

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  21. I have boxes of unsorted shells. This is definitely a great activity. for a cold, snowy day, allowing one to reminisce and relive the warmth of the sun and the crashing of the waves...

    I've been working on the rat king of embroidery thread I'm ashamed to be the caretaker of. Luckily I've managed to sort it all out, wind it on flat spools, and get it into a thread box where it belongs. There's something deliriously fulfilling about seeing a project completed- in this case, all of my thread lined up in a colorful rainbow.

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  22. I *try* to sort things out on a regular basis. Last year I had the world's largest garage sale and I went through everything. Every room, closet, cupboard, dresser, drawer - nothing was left untouched. It felt really good to declutter, organize and sort things out. Liberating might be a better word! :)

    Of course, as you know, the craft/studio area is supposed to be a mess... signs of a true artist!

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  23. What beautiful shells you've found. The photographs of the egg carton on the linen fabric is gorgeous. A very colorful no color photo.

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  24. What a beautiful idea to do with your children. Not only are you spending quality time together, but your also creating intimate memories and a beautiful display of all you've shared together. I love it!

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