low-fat garlic cheese biscuits

Posted on by

4

I am not the biggest seafood fan {I like some fish, but not really shrimp, crab, lobster, etc} … but I have always loved going to Red Lobster, even when I was a kid and ordered the chicken tenders, because of the amazing garlic cheese biscuits they give to every table. YUM! I always want to gobble down two or three biscuits before the food even arrives.

So I was thrilled when I found this recipe for garlic cheese biscuits on the terrific food website gina’s skinny recipes. I love the recipes Gina creates because they’re delicious AND low-fat. I decided to try this recipe as a side to the cilantro-honey marinated salmon I made for dinner the other night {my new favorite way to cook salmon; I’ll post it here next week!} It was my first time making any sort of biscuits, and they turned out great!

Here’s the recipe:

  • 2 tbsp butter, melted
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced {I used 2 tsp of pre-minced garlic in olive oil that I found at the store}
  • 2 tbsp fresh chopped parsley
  • 2 cups Heart Smart Bisquick
  • 1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese {I got the reduced fat kind}
  • 2/3 cup fat free milk

1. Preheat oven to 400°. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

2. Melt butter in a small frying pan, add half the garlic and saute on low heat about 1 minute. Remove from heat and add parsley.

3. In a large bowl, combine biscuit mix, cheddar cheese, and remaining garlic. Stir in milk and mix (do not over mix). Drop batter by heaping tablespoonfuls onto prepared cookie sheet.

4. Bake for 10 minutes. Brush or drizzle biscuits with melted parsley/garlic butter. Bake for 5 more minutes, or until lightly browned on the bottom.

These biscuits are delicious warm from the oven, and I actually thought they were even more flavorful warmed up the next day. Just store any leftovers in a plastic bag or wrapped tightly in aluminum foil. You can also freeze the batter if you’d like — then all you have to do is pop it in the oven and you’re good to go!

YUM! Please make these and share them with those you love! ❤

Always,
Dallas

—————————–

Time: 15 minutes
Cost: $3.00

tips for selling things on craigslist

Posted on by

7

When I first moved to Indiana for graduate school, all I brought with me was what I could fit in my Ford Taurus — mostly clothes, books, small kitchen items, and pictures/special trinkets/mementos. Which means … almost all of my furniture I bought on Craigslist. I had not used Craigslist much before, but I decided to give it a shot because 1) I was on a tight budget; and 2) I try to be as eco-friendly as possible — I love the idea of buying something that might otherwise end up in a landfill and giving it a new home.

All in all, I have been so happy with my purchases! Since then, I have even sold a couple things on Craigslist myself and helped Mike sell some things he no longer needs or uses.

In my experience, often the best first step to organization is getting rid of stuff! Is there any unneeded, unused stuff cluttering up your life? One of my favorite quotes is by Henry David Thoreau: “Simplify, simplify!” He continued, “As you simplify your life, the laws of the universe will be simpler; solitude will not be solitude, poverty will not be poverty, nor weakness weakness.”

Go through your closets, kitchen, dresser, etc. and see if there is anything you no longer need or want. Have you used it or worn it in the past three or four months? If the answer is no, maybe it’s time to let it go! And if the item is in good condition, you might be able to make a little money by putting it up on Craigslist.

Now, the cons to Craigslist is it does take a little time to get things posted up there. If your items are not very expensive or in-demand, it might be more worthwhile to donate them to Goodwill instead of spending time putting them up on Craiglist. That said {especially as a grad student on a tight budget} every little bit helps!

Here are some tips from my double-perspective: a savvy Craigslist scourer in the days when I was first furnishing my apartment, and a busy sometimes-Craigslist seller of items I no longer need.

How to Use Craigslist to Simplify your Surroundings & Make a Little Extra Moohlah:

1. Include a photo of the item you are selling! When I was looking for furniture for my apartment, I pretty much only contacted people who posted photos of the item. I wanted to be able to “see” what was being sold before I decided if I was going to drive out and look at it in person!

2. Make your title straight and to the point. What are you selling and for how much? Titles that are too long or have a ton of capital letters and exclamation marks scream desperation, which can attract people who want to bargain you down to the bare bones. On the other hand, as a Craigslist buyer wary of being scammed, long titles that seemed too “sales-pitch-y” often turned me off; they made me feel like the seller was trying to pull one over on me. Let your item speak for itself.

3. Use proper grammar, spelling and punctuation. If you come across professionally {even in relatively informal settings like Craigslist} people will see you as more trustworthy and reliable. And people want to do business with trustworthy, reliable people!

4. Don’t list your items for too much. Don’t expect to get back what you paid for the item. Think garage-sale prices. Think about how great it will feel to get this item out from cluttering up your space. When I sell items, I often take my first-thought price and knock it down by $5 or $10. I would much rather sell the item for $5 less than I originally thought and get it out of my house and at least get something for it, rather than ask $5 more for it and not sell it at all. At the same time, however…

5. Don’t list your items for too little. Expect people to bargain down a little with you. If you list your item for $10, and that is as absolutely as low as you are willing to go, people will likely want to only pay $5 for it. But if you had listed it for $15 originally, someone might be happy bargaining you down to $10. If you list your item for a certain price and it doesn’t sell for a week or two, you can always knock the price down. I think it’s better to start too high and bargain down than it is to start too low, because if you’re too low you’re stuck there.

6. Show you have done your research. I think the most successful Craigslist post I did was when I sold an ice-cream maker that Mike had never even used. It was still in its original box, just collecting dust in his closet. Before I posted an ad on Craigslist, I went onto Amazon and found how much it was selling for there. Then, I was able to reference this in my post: I listed the original price, the reduced price Amazon was selling it for, and the further-reduced price Mike was asking for it. I received an email within a couple hours and the next day a super nice lady came by and bought it to use with her kids. She paid the price we asked, no questions, and I could tell she was thrilled about it. She got a great deal, Mike got a great deal — everybody wins!

Hope those tips help you make the most out of Craigslist — and organize your space and make some extra moohlah in the process! I would love to hear what other tips you would add. Does anyone have a great success story, or lessons learned, about selling or buying items on sites like Craigslist?

Have a great day!
-Dallas

marvelous monday: making time for what you love

Posted on by

2

Happy Monday, everyone! Welcome to all the new followers/subscribers!

When I was thinking about what to write for today, I must admit I was feeling a little down about the weekend being over. It was one of those weekends that really flew by. I mentally scrolled back through the days, wondering where the time had gone. What had I done with my days off? {Not that I don’t love teaching, but still — it’s always nice to get a little break!}

Do you ever have days or weekends like that? Where it feels like a giant Hoover vacuum has invaded your life and sucked up all your time and productivity?

Not that this weekend wasn’t “productive” — I graded student papers; read a book for a lit class I’m taking; sent out a newsletter for my Write On! organization {you can subscribe here if you’re interested — it’s free and comes out every other month or so}; cleaned the bathroom and wiped down the fridge; made cilantro-honey salmon and red velvet cupcakes {recipes coming soon!} … and spent some quality movie-and-cuddle time with my sweetie.

But I still didn’t FEEL productive. Or, maybe I should say, I didn’t feel productive in a way that is hugely important to me: my writing.

When I first entered graduate school, I imagined having an infinite amount of time to write. I mean, that’s what I’m here to do — I’m getting my Master’s degree in fiction writing. You’d think all my time would be dedicated to writing fiction! And it’s true that I am extremely fortunate. I don’t have to worry about holding down a full-time job while squeezing in writing on the side. My position in the program came with a teaching position, a job I love that complements my own writing very well. Most of my homework assignments are things I would want to be doing anyway: reading books, writing stories. My biggest obligation this third-and-final year of the program is to write my Master’s thesis, in my case a novel. I have no excuse not to give writing the shining spotlight of my daily time and focus.

And yet … something I’ve learned is that no matter how much time you have to do what you really love, there are always things that will swoop in and take that time away if you let them. On the one hand, I should have no excuse not to write for hours upon hours every day; on the other hand, real life easily intrudes upon my to-do list: papers to grade, papers to write, books to review, slush-pile submissions to read for the literary magazine, emails to reply to, phone calls to return, errands to run.

It gradually dawned on me that if I don’t make writing a priority now, while my largest obligation is to get my thesis done by getting words on the page, how can I expect to make time to write after my program is over?

Simply put: how do you make time for what you love? If not now, when?

One of the greatest decisions I made for my writing life, and for my own happiness and sense of fulfillment, was when I made a promise to myself to write at least 400 words every single day, no excuses. Doesn’t matter how tired or uninspired I feel. Even if I am sick with the stomach flu I can manage to scrawl out 400 words over the course of a day and meet my commitment. I track my progress on this great, free motivational website Joe’s Goals, which may seem simple but has helped me enormously.

And you know what? Writing really has become a habit. My self-expectations have increased, so now I think of 400 words as the bare minimum. I want to write more than that each day, especially during these gloriously long summer days we’re blessed with right now. Which brings me to this weekend: yes, I wrote 400 words each day, but I still didn’t feel productive the way I hope to. I want to write more. I want to give even more time to doing what I love.

I think balance is the key, and also realizing that you’re probably never going to feel like you have enough time. There’s always going to be more that you want to do. But that’s a good thing, right? That’s part of why you love doing what you love doing so much. “Boredom” is a foreign concept when you feel full of ideas and inspiration, always wanting more time!

I have a sticky-note hanging above my desk, where I see it every day. It says “1/24.” It’s a reminder for myself that I get 24 hours every day; I owe it to myself to use at least 1 of those hours doing what I really love. For me, that means writing.

Can you carve out an hour out of your daily 24 to do what you love?

Have a marvelous week!

All best wishes,
Dallas

stuffed chicken breasts

Posted on by

6

My favorite homecooked meal {when I was a kid and still to this day} is this stuffed chicken breast recipe my mom makes. It was passed down through my family from my great-grandmother to my grandma to my mom, who learned to make it when she married my dad. It is the meal I always request on my birthday and whenever I go home and my mom asks me what I would like her to make for a special “welcome home” dinner. 

I wanted to share the recipe with you in case you are looking for a special and delicious recipe to serve for a nice night in with your sweetie, family or friends!

Great-Grandma Rahn’s Special Stuffed Chicken Breasts

For the chicken:
-8 chicken breast halves {though this recipe can easily be halved}
-7 oz can diced green chiles divided into 8 equal portions
-1/4 lb Monterrey Jack cheese cut into 8 strips
-1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
-1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
-1 tbsp chili powder
-1/2 tsp salt
-1/4 tsp cumin
-1/4 tsp pepper
-6 tbsp butter

For the sauce:
-15 oz can tomato sauce
-1/3 cup green onions/scallions
-1/2 tsp cumin
-salt & pepper to taste

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2. Pound each chicken breast to about a quarter-inch thickness. Put the chilies and cheese strips in the center of each chicken breast, then roll them, tucking the ends under.

3. Combine the bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper into a pie tin or shallow bowl. Melt the butter in another shallow bowl. Then dip each chicken breast into the butter and roll it in the crumb mixture.

4. Place the chicken, seam side down, in a glass baking dish. Once all eight have been done, drizzle with the remaining of the melted butter.

5. Bake uncovered for 20 minutes, or until chicken is done.

6. While chicken is baking, make your tomato sauce: in a small saucepan, combine the can of tomato sauce, cumin, sliced green onions, salt and pepper. Heat over medium-low heat.

7. To serve, top the chicken with tomato sauce. I like to serve this dish with mashed potatoes and some sort of vegetable, though it is also nice over rice.

Hope you enjoy!

——————–

Time spent: 1 hour
Cost: about $10

under-the-sink organization & plastic bag recycling

Posted on by

6

Before I started this blog, I was a big hide-my-mess person. I would shove all the extra stuff I didn’t know what to do with into closets and dresser drawers. Then, I’d feel better, because while my place wasn’t exactly organized, at least it appeared that way from the outside.

The problem with this strategy? It’s only a temporary fix. Any time I would open up an overflowing closet or dig through a stuffed-to-the-brim drawer trying to find something, all the stress I had slapped a Band-Aid over by shoving my mess out of sight came barreling back into my life with full force.

In starting this blog, not only am I trying to organize on a budget, I’m also trying to organize honestly and thoroughly, from the inside-out. And that means tackling the hidden places I might otherwise prefer to ignore. Like: the space under my kitchen sink.

Umm… yeah.

Every time I had to reach under there to get a trash bag or cleaning supplies or dishwashing soap, I felt depressed. I would grab what I needed and quickly shut the cabinet up again. And then wash my hands, because it just felt grimy under there. {Ironic for a place I store cleaning supplies, huh?}

Finally, I decided it was time to tackle this problem area for good! My first step was taking everything out and giving the space a good wipe-down. I tossed some crusty sponges, raggedy dishtowels, and empty cleaning bottles that I found way in the back. Then I consolidated products, like my multiple three-quarters-empty bottles of Windex was poured into one bottle.

The biggest mess-factor was the barrage of plastic bags I’d saved to use as trash bags for small trash cans, to bring my lunch to school, etc. I try to bring reusable bags to the grocery store, but every so often I forget. Over the past year or so I’ve accumulated quite a few, and they were completely taking over the entire cabinet!

Yikes!

Then Mike found this really neat bag holder for me, and it made all the difference! This one is from the company simplyhuman, but there are many other similar versions available.

All I had to do was gather up the plastic bags and cram them into the container, and then hang the container up on the back of the cupboard door. It fit perfectly!

In all, the project only took about 15 minutes, and now I feel even more motivated to clean! It’s an all-around win. I’m feeling more inspired than ever to tackle the other hidden messes in the closets around my apartment. I’ll be sure to keep you posted on my progress!

Hope you’re having a great week —
❤ Dallas

——————————-

Time spent: 15 minutes
Cost: $12.00

marvelous monday: good morning sunshine muffins

Posted on by

4

Hi everyone! Happy Monday! How is your week going so far? Grrrreat I hope! ❤ It’s been H-O-T here but I am trying to remember all the snowy winter days when I was aching for sunshine … it makes me feel grateful for these blazin’ summer days! {I am also grateful for A/C and electric fans!}

I have a recipe to share with you that I hope will brighten your week. I call these muffins “good morning sunshine muffins” because they are yummy, healthy, and guaranteed to give you some up-and-at-em energy and bring a smile to your face. {And also because one of my favorite things to hear in the morning is, “Good morning, sunshine!” How can that not get your day off to a good start?}

I adapted this recipe from this one for Oat Flour Morning Glory Muffins.

good morning sunshine muffins

-3 egg whites
-3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
-1/2 cup plain yogurt {I used plain Greek yogurt for some extra protein}
-2 tsp vanilla
-2 cups flour {you could use whole wheat flour or oat flour if desired; I just used plain white flour because it’s what I had on hand}
-1/2 cup rolled oats
-1 & 1/2 tsp baking powder
-1 tsp baking soda
-1/2 tsp salt
-1 tsp ground ginger
-2 tsp cinnamon
-1 cup shredded carrots
-1/4 cup chopped walnuts
-1/2 cup flaked coconut
-1/4 cup honey

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray a muffin tin with nonstick spray.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the egg whites, applesauce, Greek yogurt, and vanilla.

3. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, rolled oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, and cinnamon. Slowly add the dry ingredients to your applesauce mixture. Mix well.

4. Add your carrots, coconut, walnuts and honey.

5. Pour batter into muffin cups and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

YUM!

Have a marvelous Monday!

-Dallas

carrot cake with coconut cream-cheese frosting

Posted on by

9

I don’t know about you, but I loooooove cream-cheese frosting. I had never attempted to make some myself {I’ll admit it: I was intimidated} … whenever I made a cake I always chickened out and opted for the store-bought kind. But whenever I got a piece of red velvet cake or carrot cake from a bakery or restaurant, and the cream-cheese frosting was obviously homemade, it always tasted a million times better.

So, for Mike’s birthday, when I asked him what kind of cake he wanted me to make, he requested carrot cake … with cream-cheese frosting, of course! And I knew I had to try making the good homemade frosting for my sweetie.

I am SO glad I did! It was way easier than I expected, and sooooo delicious. This is now my go-to frosting for any cakes, cookies, cupcakes — you name it, I’ll frost it with coconut cream-cheese goodness.

Here is the recipe for both the carrot cake and the frosting. The carrot cake is relatively healthy as far as cake goes: no oil or butter; egg whites, applesauce, carrots. The frosting is not healthy in the least, but it is worth it!

carrot cake with coconut cream cheese frosting

cake:
– 6 egg whites
– 3/4 cup sugar
– 1 cup applesauce
– 1/2 cup skim milk
– 2 tsp vanilla extract
– 1/2 tsp ground cloves
– 1 tsp ground nutmeg
– 2 tbsp cinnamon
– 2 tsp baking soda
– 2 cups flour
– 2 cups shredded carrots
– 8 oz can crushed pineapple with juice
– 1/2 cup raisins {though I left them out because I don’t like raisins}
– 1/2 cup chopped walnuts {if desired}

frosting:
– 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
– 1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
– 2 cups confectioners’ sugar
– 1 tablespoon heavy cream
– 1/4 teaspoon salt
– 1/2 teaspoon coconut flavoring {optional}
– 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
– 1/4 cup sweetened shredded coconut

directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a baking pan with cooking spray.

2. In a large mixing bowl, beat egg whites. Slowly beat in sugar, then applesauce, skim milk, and vanilla. Stir in cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, baking soda, and flour.

3. Stir in, one ingredient at a time, pineapple (with juice), carrots, walnuts, and raisins.

4. Pour into the prepared pan. Bake for 35 – 40 minutes. Your cake is done when a fork inserted in center comes out clean.

5. While your cake cools, make the frosting: Beat the cream cheese and butter in a mixer bowl until light and fluffy. Gradually add the confectioners’ sugar, one cup at a time, alternating with heavy cream. Beat in the salt, coconut flavoring, and vanilla extract. Continue beating until mixture is smooth and spreadable. Add additional confectioners’ sugar if necessary to thicken the frosting, or more cream to thin. Stir in the coconut.

6. Once the cake has cooled, spread the frosting evenly over it with a knife or spatula. If you can bear the wait, pop the frosted cake in the fridge for half an hour or so to give the frosting time to set. I think this cake tastes even better the next day, after spending a night in the fridge!

Upon taking his first bite, Mike declared:

“BEST. CARROT. CAKE. EVER.”

Hooray!

Happy weekend & happy baking!
-Dallas

———————————-

Time spent: about 1 hour
Cost: $8.00

patriotic fruit cobbler

Posted on by

5

Happy 4th of July! Hope you’re celebrating with family, friends, sunshine and good food. On this day {well, every day, but especially today!} it’s important to remember and thank all of the men and women who have served and continue to serve our country. Here is a nice way you can let current service members know they are appreciated: A Million Thanks letter-writing campaign.

I have a quick dessert recipe to share with you today — it’s a great way to use up delicious summer fruit, and you can make it patriotic if you throw in some strawberries, raspberries and blueberries. Add some whipped cream and you’ve got a red, white, and blue dessert, perfect for a 4th of July barbeque or potluck!

patriotic fruit cobbler

-1 box pie crust mix {I used Jiffy}
-4 cups diced summer fruit {I used blueberries, strawberries, one pear and one apple)
-1 tbsp flour
-1/4 cup sugar
-1 tsp cinnamon
-1 tbsp lemon juice

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a baking dish.

2. Prepare pie crust as directed and press dough into bottom of baking dish in a thin layer.

3. Core and dice the fruit. Gently mix it together with the flour, sugar, cinnamon and lemon juice.

4. Pour fruit on top of pie crust. Bake for 20 minutes, or until fruit is starting to bubble.


Let cool for five minutes, then serve with whipped cream or iced cream.

YUM!

Happy Independence Day!

——————-

Time: 30 minutes (including bake time)
Cost: $5.00

marvelous monday: the magic of to-do lists

Posted on by

7

There’s something about the way my brain works that makes me really drawn to lists. These lists permeate my life and range from the motivating {goal lists, markets-to-submit-my-writing-to lists} to the mundane {grocery lists, thank-you-notes-to-write lists} but no matter what the topic, it all boils down to this: lists make me a happier and less-stressed person.

And the mother of all lists is the to-do list, which I write pretty much every day. I kinda feel bad for the to-do list. It gets a bad rap. People complain all the time about their to-do lists. {Sometimes I feel like people compete on the lengths of their to-do lists just to have more complaining leverage!} But I think the to-do list can be a really wonderful tool to boost your feelings of motivation and accomplishment, not to mention your sense of organization over your time, work and daily life.

The trick is to use the to-do list in a way that helps you, not hinders you. You want the to-do list to make you feel good about yourself, not stressed out or overwhelmed.

I think the first step in coming up with an effective to-do list system for your life is to take an honest look at how you spend your time. Is there something you wish you were doing more of? Is there anything you feel like you waste time on that you wish you wouldn’t? How much free time do you feel you have every day/week/month? Honesty is crucial here! I think the biggest mistake people make when writing to-do lists {and believe me, I am guilty of this too} is putting waaay too much on the list, more than anyone could possibly get done in a day, and then feeling bad about themselves when the day draws to close and there are still a lot of un-crossed-off items on the list.

So, Tip #1: Be honest and realistic with yourself.

Another thing that works for me is to break to-do list items up into categories of “big” and “small” … sometimes these categories morph into “things I need to do but keep putting off” and “things I need to do and actually like doing.” Then I try to even out these tasks throughout the week. In a perfect world, I’d do at least one “big” task every day, and one or two “small” tasks. When life gets hectic, a good balance for me is to aim for three “big” tasks every week, and maybe 6-8 “small” tasks.

Here are some examples of “big” tasks on my list this week {i.e. things I want to keep putting off but shouldn’t}: get my car in for an oil change; put some items up on Craigslist that I’ve been meaning to sell; go through my closet and weed out clothes to donate.

And here are some examples of “small” tasks on my list this week {i.e. things I should do and don’t mind doing}: go to the Post Office to send out play submissions with upcoming deadlines; try a new recipe I found for Morning Glory Muffins; write & mail a couple thank-you notes; order prints of photos from a recent trip Mike & I took to Chicago; hang up a new picture I got for the guest bedroom.

At the beginning of every week, I jot down a list of the “big” tasks and “small” tasks I want to get done that week, and then every day or every other day I choose a big task and a couple small tasks to tackle. This works for me because:

  • It really helps me focus on one thing at a time and not get overwhelmed by all the things I want to get done
  • It helps me structure the week {for example, maybe one day I’ll focus on running all my errands to save on gas & car time}
  • It makes it much harder for me to put off or procrastinate on certain tasks because I’m just focusing on one per day or one every two days.

There are also a few tasks on my to-do list every day! These relate to bigger goals I want to accomplish in the year. For example, one of my goals is to read 52 books this year, so reading time is on my to-do list every day. I also have a goal of writing at least 400 words every day {which I track on this super-motivating free website www.joesgoals.com — can’t recommend it enough!}

Chores I designate on a weekly basis, and I go through phases. Sometimes I like having a “chore/cleaning day” where I try to get all my cleaning/laundry/dishes/housework stuff done in a single swoop. Other times I’ll go for a few months when I prefer splitting up chores into smaller tasks that I will do day-by-day. I think it’s all about what works for you, how you’re feeling, and what your free time/schedule is like.

For years I’ve saved envelopes and written my to-do lists on the backs of them. Then Mike got me this pretty notepad from the $1 bin at Target — isn’t it adorable? How can you not be excited to tackle your to-do list when you write it out on paper like this? I still save envelopes though because I am always writing lists and I like to be eco-friendly!

It can also be helpful to keep a pad of paper somewhere you pass by every day so you can write down ideas or reminders when they first strike you. {If I don’t do this, half the time I completely forget!} I keep a notepad on the fridge where I jot down items to get at the store, reminders to myself of things to add to my list or places I need to be:

Do you write to-do lists? What sorts of tips work for you? What do you find helpful when organizing your daily or weekly tasks?

Have a marvelous week!
Dallas

quick bathroom organization

Posted on by

1

I have a confession to make: I have a cluttered bathroom sink.

I am still using {and loving!} the toiletry organization system I put up on the back of the door using a shoe organizer — it’s the perfect way for me to store extra toiletry items, medicine, and items I don’t use all that often.

But what about the items I use every day? As you can see, they were completely cluttering up my countertop, creating a totally stressful environment and making it a big chore to clean.

My inspiration came from actually right across the bathroom: my shower. The tub used to be cluttered with various shampoo and conditioner bottles, body soap, shaving cream, etc. Then I found these vertical shower shelves and {hooray!} the result is a much more organized shower with all my products within easy access.

All it took for me to transform my cluttered bathroom sink was this $1 navy blue shower caddy. All I had to do was plop all my everyday-use toiletry products in the basket, wipe down the sink, and it’s like a whole new bathroom!

I’m really pleased with the transformation! And it is so much easier to clean now. All I need to do is pick up the basket, wipe the counter down, and put it back. Easy peasy!

Have you ever struck upon a cheap and simple solution to transform a cluttered space?

Have a great weekend!
-Dallas

———————————–

Cost: $1.00
Time spent: 5 mins