Twilight..and not the vampire kind

Summer ends, and Autumn comes, and he who would have it otherwise would have high tide always and a full moon every night; and thus he would never know the rhythms that are at the heart of life. ~Hal Borland

Happy Mabon! Or Happy fall, y'all!!  The autumn equinox is the tipping point from summer into fall. Light starts to give way to the dark.  The night creeps up slowly to claim more and more of the day. The sun starts losing it's strength and the air turns cooler.  If you imagine that the year is like one long day, Mabon would be twilight.  That time of day when the sun has just dipped down beyond the horizon. That time of day when dinner is cleaned up, school and work projects are completed and put away. That time of day when everyone slips into cozy pajamas after night time baths.

Fall is the world getting ready to tuck itself in for the long winter sleep after working hard to gather the harvest. It's a time to rest, refresh, and recharge. Since most of us don't have to work to gather an actual harvest any longer, the fall can be a great time to clean things out or complete projects. Forget spring cleaning, autumn cleaning is where it's at. You want to be ready to go into this time of year with a clutter free home and mind. If you have clutter in your closets, or drawers, or car trunks, or table tops, now is the time to pull it all out and get it sorted. If you have unfinished projects at home or at work, now is the time to try and wrap them up.

Here are some other things you can do to celebrate the autumn equinox:

1. Go for a walk. The weather will be cooling off. The days might still be warm, but the evenings will start getting that crisp nip quickly now. Grab a cardigan and your loved one and take a stroll around the block.

2. Plant some bulbs. Many flowering plants can be planted now to germinate over the winter. Here in Texas, Irises do very well in our climate.

3. Bake something! Now is the prefect time to make all the apple or pumpkin things you have pinned on your Fall Pinterest board. Share them with your friends, neighbors, coworkers, and/or teachers.

Whatever you decide to do, be sure to take just a few minutes to enjoy the changing of the seasons (no matter how slow the change seems to happen). Take a few minutes to make a list, mentally or physically, on all your many blessings. Take a few minutes to just breath and get ready for the coming holiday season.

Capsule Wardrobe

I blogged about our tiny closets before. Our bedroom closet is about the size of a postage stamp and shared between the two of us. It is the only true clothing closet in the house. All other closets have been converted to shelving storage. Anyway, about a month ago, I got the idea of re-booting my wardrobe. So, I started doing research on how to build a capsule wardrobe. Like anything else in the house, I wanted to know if I could do more with less.

I knew I was tired of having my half of the closet crammed with clothes when I know I didn't wear most of it. I knew I didn't want to spend a fortune on new clothes. I knew that I wanted to feel good in all the pieces I did have in my closet.

So, I began with the great cull. I removed everything from my closet and drawers and tossed it on the bed. And then I tried everything on. Some things I had only worn once, which made it hard for me to let it go. But, if I hadn't worn it in over a year, if I didn't feel totally comfortable in it (no 'it will fit if I just lose x amount of weight), if it had any holes or stains on it.....it had to go.

I ended up with two full trash bags and several hangers worth of clothes to donate. I would say I probably got rid of 90% of the clothes in my closet. All that space that was being wasted for all those years. The next step was to purchase new pieces that were versatile, classic, and not overly expensive. I'd say I spent just under $500 and purchased six tops, one dress, two pair of pants, a cargo vest, and five pair of shoes. These were added back to the few items I decided to keep.

Here are all the outfits I have put together in the last month using my much smaller wardrobe:

You can see all my #ootd on my instragram acct: justjinny

I haven't missed anything I decided to get rid of. Once I pulled everything out of my closet, I found that there were very few pieces that I truly loved or felt good wearing. Now that my clothes and shoes have been overhauled, the next thing I'll probably do is sort through my jewelry. A few more statement pieces in that area would open even more options for my new, yet smaller, wardrobe.

Shopping sources:

Maurice's
Target
Payless
Flaunt Boutique

Time to change it up

So, yesterday I got a wild hair up my back side and decided to start changing things up in the kitchen. The cabinet that stores all our cups and glasses was ridiculously full. How on earth do two people accumulate so many beverage containers?!?! Do they multiply in the middle of the night? I think it was more the fact that we sometimes have a hard time letting things go. We think maybe we'll use it someday or it has a special occasion tied to it. But, with little homes its just not practical to hold on to things that serve no purpose. So after a quick cull, the cabinet looks much better and it actually opened up space on the top shelf where other things can be stored, if needed.

Notice the under-cabinet wine rack. Another great idea when you don't have a lot of counter space.

After that, I pulled down the thick yellow and orange checkered curtains that have been hanging over the kitchen sink for years and years. They went from the very top of the window to pretty much the very bottom. The muted yellow and orange, like many things we initially selected for our kitchen, just made things look dark and dingy. I was SICK of looking at them! And even though it left the window totally naked I didn't care. They were coming down..forever.

Look how much light comes in that window without the curtains blocking it! As much as I loved all the light, once the sun went down it left us feeling a little exposed. So I knew I wouldn't be able to leave it bare for very long. After I got off work today I thought I might run out and see if I could find a cheap pair of simple, sheer curtains that would still let the light in but give us our privacy at night. I knew I didn't want to spend a lot of money but as I was looking at the window envisioning what exactly I wanted I was feeling doubtful I'd be able to find what I wanted at any local store.

And then inspiration hit...tea towels!

Never mind the paint sample. They are all over our house right now.

My mom bought these tea towels for me two Christmases ago (you can still find them here). And I really love them, but they are sort of wasted hanging on the doors down there. We don't use them to dry anything, they have been there strictly for decoration but without being at eye-level they are easily forgotten about.  I decided to elevate their status.

I whipped out my sewing machine and set it right on my kitchen counter. I measured how long I wanted the new curtains to be and then measured how much of an opening the old curtain had for the rod. That's all I really needed and in less than 20 minutes I had stitched two new curtain panels that would be exactly what I wanted.  Once my husband came home and moved the hardware down to were I wanted it I popped the rod back in place. And there you have it!

The light fixture will be replaced, eventually.

 The tea towels ended up being a perfect solution. We still get light coming in, but it will still give us the privacy we need once it gets dark in the evenings. I actually feel like this is a much better use for the towels rather than just hanging on the lower cabinet doors. And it also doesn't hurt that this cost me zero dollars.

 

Life with a small closet

Does anyone else have trouble finding knee-high boots that fit their calves? It can't be just me right? I'm a curvy girl. I have curves all over...even my calves. Usually the knee-high boots I try on never zip all the way up. Doesn't matter if I'm wearing jeans or leggings or tights. That zipper won't budge. So, when I find a pair that fits I wear them until they look ratchet.

This was the case with my brown knee-high boots. Love them. But I've had them for many, many years now and they had started to crack. And so the search was on for a new pair of knee-high boots that would zip all the way up. On a random trip into the mall (very random as I rarely go there) I stopped into Payless and found the perfect pair of knee-high boots.  They zipped right up with room left to spare. The downside was the price. Regular price was $59.99. It's not really a bad price but it's Christmas time and my money is going everywhere else but to me (Yes, I know I JUST told y'all that dollar bills are not the reason for the season! But do as I say, not as I do!!!). Needless to say, I left without the boots.

But I'm subscribed to the Payless email and eventually they were running a really great 50% off sale. It was too good to pass up. So not only did I buy a new brown pair, but I went ahead and got a black pair too.

Forget thigh gaps. Look at that gap between the boot and my knee! I can put my whole hand in there!! Unless you have thicker calves you probably have no idea why I am so giddy. That's ok, I love you anyway. So, I am totally thrilled with my purchase. I love them already...obvs. But here is my ever-present, on-going, problem. My closet. It's small. Like postage stamp sized small. And only half of it is mine.



I am touching both sides of the closet.

When something goes in the closet, usually something has to come out of the closet. This is life in the love cottage. You have to love your items enough to bring them in, for one, and then until they can't be loved anymore before letting them go. So, I did a fast and furious thinning of the shoe herd. I love my shoes but if I have only worn them a couple of times or not at all over the last year (or longer), I have to let them go.

You see those platform pumps?! I love those shoes. I look great in those shoes. But, I hardly ever wear them because they just aren't comfortable. And if I'm honest with myself, they aren't really my style (no matter how much I want them to be). I'm more of a wedge girl. A big box of shoes will go to donation and hopefully someone else will find them and love them until they can't be loved anymore.