What's under your sink?

In mine there was a lot! So many products they could barely fit.  That was long time ago when I was searching for the right non-toxic cleaning products.  I tested pretty much everything out there in the market.  After a long search I found my favorites:

So let's see what we have here...

Cleaning products...

Basic H2

I love this stuff.  You mix it with water to make glass cleaner, all purpose cleaner, degreaser.  It also works to wash floors and it is so highly concentrate that you won't need a new window cleaner in about a year. I promise!!

Scour Off

Great for cleaning burt food in oven.  Super tough on dirt yet super gentle on your hands.

Baking Soda and Bon Ami

Great to scrub bath tub without the chemicals

Bathroom Cleaner

I use Basic G from Shaklee.  It kills germs, viruses and bacteria.  Excellent to disinfect bathrooms.

Two Sponges

If you see closely one of the sponges is cut on one corner.  That way we know that one is ONLY for toilet.  I've found that even using two different colors it it not always clear and simply forget what color was for what!

 Clear drawers from Container Store will fit perfectly in this corner. I holds microfiber cloths, extra gloves, extra sponges, swiffers refills, Magic Eraser sponges (which I just realized I run out of), etc.

I also stacked the dishwasher detergent on top of the drawers for easy access.  I put it inside a bin to prevent spills.

Gloves hanging on the door to let them dry in between uses.

Over the door towel rack to let air dry the microfiber cloths after each use (they can not go in the dryer).

Trash bags.  In the same box I will put all of the plastic bags from grocery store.  Even though I bring our own bags when I go shopping sometimes I get things on the way and get overflowed with bags... why they double bag to put just one item?!

And that's it.  That's how my under the sink looks like.  I'm very proud of myself to have it green and organized :)

The rest of the tools, such as vacuum, mop/bucket, swiffer stick and duster are in the broom/coat closet in the hallway.  I'll show you those picture when the closet is ready, working on it yet :)

How about you, do you keep your cleaning supplies under the sink?  Let us know your tips!

Thanks for reading and have a beautiful week!

xo,

Marcela

Shades of Green

Pantone has picked Green as the color of the year.  I have to say green is one of my favorite colors.  It is even part of my business' name and logo!  You will find it everywhere, from fashion accessories to home decor.  Some have gone crazy with the color and literally have painted entire rooms!

Kitchen...

via House Beautiful

Furniture...

via Emily Clark

Playroom Organization...

via I Heart Organizing

Studies...

via Centsational Girl

Walls...

via Pinterest

Dinning rooms...

via House Beautiful

Lamp and accessories...

via Pinterest

How about you, do you love green?  Would you paint an entire room or just add some as accent color?

Thanks for reading!

xo,

Marcela

Fashion meets Home...

I'm always amazed at how fashion and home decor are so connected and Valentine's Day is no exception.
With Heart Day just around the corner I've spotted many home decor and fashion items that are not only pretty but also functional.  Here are a few that I've found.

Heart Mug..

Via West Elm

A Heart sweater...

Via Forever 21

Heart Bowl...

Via West Elm

Heart Shoes...


Via C Wonder (on sale!)

Beautiful DYI...

Via I Heart Organizing

Cookie Cutter...

Via Crate and Barrel

Heart Outfit...

Via The Pink Peonies

Je T'aime...

Via Etsy by Honey Pie Design

How lovely items, no?  Are you ready for Valentine's Day?


Thanks for reading!

xo,
Marcela

How I wash my makeup brushes...

Experts say we should wash our make up brushes once a week.  I have to admit I'm (very) bad about following their advice.  Instead I will wash them once... in awhile!
My brushes didn't look that bad so it didn't seem urgent to do it.  Since I hadn't cleaned them 'in awhile' I decided to do so this weekend.

Let's look at them before their bath...

Not too bad, right?

I usually wash them and rinse them individually, but this time I soaked them in soapy water to see the real dirt in them...

 WOW, that's pretty bad!

Then I washed them the way I usually do and rinse them under running water.  

(Note:  I always put brushes facing down so the bristles don't open up)

Then I pressed them with paper towel to get the excess of water and lie them down on a clean paper towel to air dry...

And here are my clean brushes!

Much, much better!!

I can now use them safely.  Not just makeup free, but also free of germs!

How often do you wash your brushes?  Do you have a favorite product you use? I personally like Brush Conditioning Shampoo from Bare Minerals. I know there are a lot of brush-shampoo out there, which one do you like?

Hope you have a great week!

Thanks for reading!

xo,

Marcela 

Home Office...

Hello everyone!  Hope you all had a great weekend!  January is usually the month when we try to put our life back together after the Holidays -aka the organizing month.  It seems that this is the time we want to do it all.  Over the years I have learned that is better to start little by little so that way we see progress and get motivated for the next step.  I have to admit this is has been a slow process.  I'm the kind of person who likes to do it all at once.  In my attempt to do everything I soon realized there was too much to do.  It became overwhelming and I ended up doing nothing!  Then I got frustrated and waited until I got motivated again.  Why did I have to insist on doing it all at once!?  It is impossible to accomplish a huge job in a short amount of time!  After many failed projects I learned but it's an every day process.  

Well, this year I have debated about if I should start with the kitchen or home office. So I decided to follow Jen's challenge and I'm doing the office first. 

I've been searching for inspiration and here are some beautifully organized Home Offices of wonderful bloggers I admire...

How well this ikea shelves became an office!  Brilliant!

Via I Heart Organizing


Via Centsational Girl

Via Emily Clark

Via Ana Antunez


Via Elements of Style


 Via Made by Girl


Via Arianna Belle

So I put myself to work!  Please picture me doing all the hard work in a white shirt, gold skirt and high heel :D

Via Arianna Belle


Have you started your organizing projects yet?  What will you do first?

Have a beautiful week!

xo,
Marcela

Silver...

I saw these beautiful trays at a thrift store and loved them!  They were in great condition except they were very tarnish.

This was the condition I found them...

So I decided to give a try to some silver polishers and see which would work best...

I had to scrub a little on some more with certain products.  Let's see what happened:

1. Wright's Silver Cream:  I loved the way it works.  It comes with a sponge and is super easy to use.  Doesn't smell bad at all.

2. Eco's Earth Friendly:  This was surprisingly good!  I love the fact that is "green" and worked super fast. not much scrubbing, just a add some cream on a soft cloth and apply to the tray, rinse and voila!

3. Goddard's Silver Polish:  I have to admit that I was disappointed on this one.  I honestly thought this would be the easiest to work with and was just the opposite.  It required a lot of work and it smells so strong!

And this is the final result...

 

My conclusion:  The three cleaners did the job I was looking for, my trays look shiny and beautiful! But some of them took longer to get the jobe done and some were very strong and didn't smell good.

And the winner is...

This was absolutely my favorite, it has the two things I look for on a cleaner, Eco Friendly and Works and it smells soooo nice!!

I have to say that Wright's Silver Cream worked fantastic too, I would definitely choose that one too :)

Do you have a special way to clean your silver?  Please share your trick with us!

Thanks for reading!

xo,

Marcela