Taming the spice stash

I was delighted when a friend brought me a bunch of little glass vitamin jars last year. With a little citrus oil (to remove gunky labels) and a bottle brush to give them a good interior cleaning (and rid them of their previous inhabitants’ odor), I was finally able to create homes for the lingering spice bags in our drawer.

When considering containers for reuse keep in mind that they should be glass, and, if possible, opaque to keep light from taking a toll on freshness. Add a few shakes of baking soda, fill with hot water and soak overnight to rid odor from persistently stinky jars. 

Use a metallic sharpie for labeling the glass jar; erase with rubbing alcohol if your containers’ contents change.

Space-saving tool storage

When life grants you more doors than shelves, perhaps you’ll be able to employ this hip trick. Take a door-hanging shoe rack and stick your useful items, tools and garage-y things in the slots.

Organize your threads

This hip trick comes to us via the fabulous Kate at Blue Chair Fruit Co. in Oakland CA. Kate rocked my book tour stop in the Bay Area over the summer with a tea party. She had me at “let’s also embroider tea towels”.

When she pulled out her embroidery floss organizer, I knew we had a hip trick on our hands. You’re a hole punch, a ring, a manila file folder and a pair of scissors away from this dapper thread organization method.