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How Labels Save Time

June 29, 2011

I’ve been itching to do this DIY labeling project every since I got my clothespins and I didn’t end up waiting to buy the perfect baskets as I thought I would. I used whatever boxes and bags I already had! So what, if it’s not perfect? Right?

So first I started with my closet drawers. I know they are not as grown up as I would like them to be, especially since I haven’t ordered new closets from Danni with built in organizers and drawers. I’ve had these drawers since high school and I’ve about 20 of them and they get a lot of my stuff organized! I always start out with good intentions when it comes to my clothes and review what goes where with the help, but somehow everything always gets jumbled up because no one remembers where to put what where, especially when we are already in a hurry.

I was inspired by this to label drawers so that getting things in their correct places because a mindless and stress-free exercise for everyone in the house! But I had no idea how I would do it until I saw this DIY labeling project on PINTEREST.

DIY drawer labels

  1. Using a scratch A4 paper I folded it equally several times so I could see what size was going to go well with my drawers.
  2. After folding it to 6 equal parts it was perfect. So I know that I had to have 6 equally sized labels in one A4.
  3. Using the 1/6 size, I eyeballed where to glue the clothespins on the drawers. I glued clothespins using a glue gun.
  4. Open a new document Microsoft Word for Mac
  5. In the OBJECT PALETTE, select rounded rectangle and placed on the document
  6. Changed the color of the rounded rectangle to a shade of brown
  7. Copied the rounded rectangle so I had 6 of them on the page.
  8. I resized it until the 6 were evenly spread out on the page with enough space in between. I just eyeballed it.
  9. I decided what I wanted to label and then searched for clip art on the net, especially from Microsoft Office cliparts.
  10. Drag the photos to the document and resize to fit the rounded rectangle. I aligned it to the left so that when the clothespin is on, the entire image will still show.
  11. I printed a sample  on the same scratch paper first, then took it back to my drawer, folded it up and tested one image. Good thing I did because I realized it was too much to the left, so I adjusted a bit.
  12. Then printed it on cream board paper. It came out like this:
  13. I cut them on a cutting mat with a cutter and ruler, rounded out the corners and laminated them.
  14. Clip on the laminated labels on to the drawers.

 

I also had these twine boxes on shelves in the living area, which I use to hide the stuff I use the most in plain sight. I always pull out the wrong one because I don’t know what is where. So I decided to use the clothespin label idea on this as well.

DIY box labels

  1. At first I just reused some old cream calling card which I didn’t need any more and placed a DYMO label on the back side.
  2. Then with the card on the clip, I estimated the position of the clothespin on the box.
  3. When I knew where I wanted it, I placed hot glue on the entire side of a clothespin and immediately stuck it onto the box. I wasn’t afraid because with glue gun it comes of relatively cleanly when you don’t want it there any more.
  4. The calling cards didn’t look presentable so I found these free printable Manila Tag Templates here (again discovered via PINTEREST). printable manila tags via creaturecomfortsblog.com
  5. Using Photoshop and “Chalkdust” font I wrote down the labels for the 3 boxes on the bigger tags. The rest of the tags I plan to write on with a gold marker when the need arises.
  6. Printed it on A4 board paper, cut out the labels and laminated them. I didn’t punch a hole as instructed since I didn’t need it. And it will probably weaken my laminate.

DIPLO GADGET: the laminator

Wait wait! I almost forgot to highlight the fact that I finally had my own LAMINATOR! Weeeeee! This is the ultimate housewife gadget for me. I never thought I needed it until I read The Happiness Project when Gretchen Rubin mentioned that with a laminator endless fun and projects could be had. And she is completely right! If I didn’t laminate these labels, I would just get stressed on how the cards are already dirty or bent after sometime and I’d have to print out more of them. So by investing a little, I am reducing my stress, organizing my home and creating stuff I love!

I’ll be honest and say that Krisbow is not the best brand (breaks easily & doesn’t work well – like my air humidifier!), so I’ve to be really careful with this contraption. I just wasn’t ready to invest a lot in an expensive brand. Perhaps later on. For now this will have to do. I just got tips from someone familiar with working this particular brand, so that the laminate doesn’t get eaten up by the machine (this is why I folded that blue board above, sandwich whatever I am laminating and insert it fold side first!). Just want you to know incase you think about getting one yourself.   I also need to pass it through several times and the finished product is not the cleanest – so if you are majorly OC this might not be the brand for you. =P It is cheap though. Rp 299,000 for a4 size (30 USD est.) at Ace Hardware.

For other great organizing ideas follow my DIPLO diy and my DIPLO organization boards on PINTEREST!

 

P.S.  Lower quality photos were taken with my iPhone.

12 Comments · Diplo Tips

Comments

  1. Anna says

    June 30, 2011 at 7:00 AM

    I wish you could come over and organize my super disorganized house! 🙂

    Reply
    • diplomaticwife says

      July 2, 2011 at 3:02 PM

      Hahaha! It’s so much easier organizing someone else’s stuff… less attachment! I totally understand how it can be a struggle because I have a hard time myself. And the weird part is, when I am organizing some part of the house the rest seems to look like a tornado hit it! =P Does that happen to you too?

      Reply
  2. esquire says

    June 30, 2011 at 3:30 PM

    This is great! Discovered your blog through 101 grams of (eye) candy, specifically the entry on rubber stamps. That was where I discovered I wasn’t the only weird one with a self-inking stamp of my name and address just for raffle stubs! Now I see this about the laminator! I’ve had one for a year (Scotch brand) and it’s been great haha. And I have the same plastic drawers for my toddler but labeled with my Brother labeler. But your idea is great, specially for my little one who’s only starting to read.

    Your pinterest stuff are great too btw. Keep em coming!

    Reply
    • diplomaticwife says

      July 1, 2011 at 4:28 AM

      Hello there Esquire! Yes I can totally relate to your relief upon realizing that there are other people out there who get a thrill out of these “weird” things =P (LOL!) I am likewise thrilled that you commented and told me about your Scotch laminator and Brother labeler! I would love to know what cool projects you’ve been doing with them and would love to see a pictures! One day I hope to upgrade my Krisbow laminator, but for now it is the only one I can afford in Jakarta. Please do send pics if you are not too busy! =D

      Wow thank you for following my pinterest posts too! Pinterest is just SO inspiring isn’t it?!? Again thanks for dropping by and commenting and I hope to see more of you!

      Reply
  3. ocmominmanila says

    July 2, 2011 at 1:31 AM

    This is so cool!! =) How do you stick the clothespin onto the box though?

    Reply
    • diplomaticwife says

      July 2, 2011 at 2:58 PM

      Hey OCmom! I stick using a glue gun which is perfect because it doesn’t leave any marks or residue when you remove it in the future. Very OC!

      Reply
  4. (eye)candy says

    July 6, 2011 at 10:30 PM

    I have wooden clothespins! I want to do this too! 🙂
    Your twine boxes are really nice!

    Reply
    • diplomaticwife says

      July 7, 2011 at 8:42 AM

      Go for it! I would love to see pics of your clothespin projects! I love my twine boxes but I need to make a lining for them so that they don’t get dirty and I can use them for longer. Wish I had more time to do that project! =D I found some great DIY tutorials on Pinterest!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. DIPLO HOME ♖ Organizing our guest T&B | The Diplomatic Wife says:
    September 10, 2012 at 10:57 PM

    […] wooden door frames, especially this bathroom, is being eaten by termites. They even jumped to my pretty baskets and my woven sea grass laundry hamper so I had to have them incinerated. These are the things that […]

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  2. DIPLO WORKSTATION ✎ My Deli hole puncher | The Diplomatic Wife says:
    January 13, 2013 at 12:09 PM

    […] that my lil’ home office is more well equipped than my husband’s office – from my laminator to badass wifi […]

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  3. JAKARTA FINDS ✽ Bargain hunter’s heaven INACRAFT FAIR | The Diplomatic Wife says:
    October 7, 2013 at 7:20 PM

    […] NOTE: Be wary of this supplier because though the boxes are lovely, I realized after using it that there were mites inside because a fine powder would form under the box. My furniture maker Danni had to burn it because if I gave it away to charity, the mites might also transfer to their books, clothes and other wooden objects in their homes. (Sad coz I even came up with cute labels for these boxes – click here to see) […]

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  4. DIPLO EVENTS: Foodie Get-together says:
    January 2, 2014 at 6:56 PM

    […] which I bought  specifically for this purpose. I decorated it with a sack cloth and placed a laminated sign on […]

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Welcome

Hello! I’m Ayessa, trailing spouse to a diplomat, mama to DiploBaby and DiploDog and founder of Declutter MNL. I love talking about how to achieve a minimaluxe lifestyle one step at a time.

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DISCLOSURE

I am an Amazon affiliate, but all opinions are my own. The content of all my blog and social media posts are products and experiences that I truly enjoy and I only work with brands that fit my life and style.

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SANTA CLAUS MAIN POST OFFICE So one really meanin SANTA CLAUS MAIN POST OFFICE

So one really meaningful part of our trip was @santaclausmainpostoffice which is right outside of @santaclausoffice.

🎄 @diplobaby wrote a postcard for Santa

🎄 He also wrote some postcards to his friends

🎄 I wrote a postcard to @diplobaby to remember our many firsts in this trip.

For the last 2 we were lucky that our hotel @glass_resort  had many FREE POSTCARDS  and STAMPS and we didn’t have to go to the post office. They conveniently sent it for us.

His close friends were happy to receive them and I also loved getting our own post. So cool!

Please don’t forget to LIKE this post to see more family adventures & travel tips!

If Finland is on your bucket list then definitely SAVE THIS!

#udwinfinland #udwinsantaclausvillage #diplobaby #diilofamily
SEEING SANTA Everyday is Christmas Day in @santac SEEING SANTA

Everyday is Christmas Day in @santaclausvillage_rovaniemi! 

While we were walking back to our hotel @glass_resort guess who passed by and was sweet enough to roll down his window to say high.

Roll down for the quick conversation. I’m glad I caught it on camera.

TD was pretty impressed that his car is also red. 😂

Mind you his facial hair looked totally real!

#udwinfinland #udwinsantaclausvillage
NIGHT OF THE MUSEUMS 2: For the 2nd Museum we cho NIGHT OF THE MUSEUMS 2:

For the 2nd Museum we chose
SAINT PETER’S CATHEDRAL ARCHEOLOGICAL SITE

🤍 Impressive cathedral even from the outside. If you are interested in the Church’s history, or even just history, this place is a must!

🤍 Off to the right is the stairs to go to another time, to see the ruins underneath the current cathedral. 

🤍 You get to see what was built here before the cathedral even up to the years before Christ.

🤍 I was really impressed with the mosaic tile flooring

🤍 You can see how Christianity evolved in Geneva over millenia 

🤍 There were a lot of deep wells. I wonder how they dug them out during simpler times? Some people even dropped credit cards. Be careful because once something falls out of your wallet, it’s gone. 

🤍 If you have fear of heights there are parts on the floor where there is a bigger distance from the ruin to the flooring. I got a bit scared in those parts.

🤍 We explained what we learned to @diplobaby and he was very fascinated with it. From the coins of the old days, the combs, how baptisms were done and how old these things were… he soaked it all up.

🤍 It’s so important not to underestimate our kids. If we share what we read and explain things to them even a museum like this is interesting. 

🤍 When we got out at 11, we walked back to the shuttle to get back to TD’s office. We saw some things like canons that made us realize how little we have explored of @ville_de_geneve! Must come back for more!

🤍 shuttle was like a private bus coz there were only 2 other people with us!

Night at the Museums is a great way to explore the city on a budget!
#UDWinGeneva #diplobaby #diplofamily #undiplomaticwife
NIGHT OF THE MUSEUMS 1: Last 13 May we went with NIGHT OF THE MUSEUMS 1:

Last 13 May we went with some colleagues & their families to check out Night in the Museums for the first time!

A FEW TIPS:

🤍 Doing the “Nuit des musées” is another way to see more museums in Geneva on a budget.

🤍 To avoid long lines, you can buy tickets online for chf10/adult. Kids are FREE.

🤍 BUT you might not get the pink lanyard/ID if the museums run out. No worries, nobody checked us.

🤍 Included in your ticket are FREE shuttle buses to take you from different points to another. So no need to buy regular train/tram tickets.

🤍 There are less people in the shuttles too, so this is good if you don’t like crowds. 

🤍 It starts at 5pm & ends at 12mn. But some museums close earlier

🤍 This year we started at 7pm and only got 2 museums done. If you get 2 in one night, it’s already worth it. 

🤍 Next year we will definitely start at 5 to see more museums.

🤍 And it’s better to schedule & book where you will have dinner, otherwise everything is totally full. 

🤍 For our group of about 20 (coz we were with 2 other families) we were able to get tables at McDonalds. 

🤍 If it’s rainy, use a lightweight hooded down jacket that can easily be folded like our favorite @uniqlo UltraLightDown Jacket. The cool thing about it is if you have not time to go to a coat check, you can roll it into it’s own bag.

NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM @museum.geneve 

✨ We prioritized this because we knew the kids would love learning about the animals, the environment and even the crystals.

✨ It’s interesting because it’s also interactive. 

✨ It’s small but packs a punch and has several floors so the kids didn’t even want to leave. 

So happy we are exploring @ville_de_geneve more!

#UDWinGeneva #diplobaby #diplofamily #undiplomaticwife
TRUFFLE TIPS When buying truffle products, it’s TRUFFLE TIPS

When buying truffle products, it’s important to know what you are buying. I’m not an expert but I’d like to share with you what I’ve learned over the years. 

Did you know that many TRUFFLE OILS only contain faux truffle flavoring?

⚡️Try to buy oils that contain small truffle bits to know that it’s a genuine truffle infusion. 

⚡️If the oil is clear (or even if it’s not), it’s important to read the ingredients list & make sure that it lists truffle/truffle infusion as an ingredient. 

⚡️Truffle flavor(ing) is not real truffle.

⚡️Black truffle is more common & cheaper than white truffle.

⚡️TRUFFLE SALT is cheaper but less flavorful than truffle oil. It’s great to layer on top of truffle oil when making truffle popcorn, eggs or pasta. But used alone the flavor isn’t as strong as time goes by. It’s good bang for buck though!

⚡️TRUFFLE POWDER is nice to have to give that truffle color, but not a must. It’s also more expensive coz it’s pure dried truffle.

Swipe to see how much we get them for at @tkmaxxat. We always go to @tkmaxxde when we go to Germany to get fancy things to fit within our limited budget.

As for the @turci_firenze traditionally infused truffle oil, we get them at an affordable price in @elcorteingles when we are in Madrid.

We don’t have it all the time, but when we want to treat ourselves at home we make our favorites:

1. Truffle popcorn for movie nights
2. Truffle scrambled eggs for weekends
3. Truffle cream pasta for special meals

What are your other truffle tips?

What are your favorite truffle dishes? #diplotummy
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