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Monday, November 13, 2006

Set Up a Gift Wrap "Station"

This could be in your hide away space as you play Santa, spare bedroom or craft designated space. Just be sure all your tools are at your fingertips to make it easy.

Remember these easy steps...
  • Organize your material in any type of a gift wrap organizer.
  • Take an inventory of your supplies before your next shopping trip. Be sure that you have plenty of wrapping paper, tape, ribbon and tags to get you started.
  • Don't forget the scissors or any other special tools you like to use. Store them all in one place to save you time. An extra caddy or two comes in handy for special tapes, tape guns or paper supplies.
  • Your workspace and surface is the key to success. A hard surface always works best to avoid torn wrap. A gift wrap center or the 6-8' foot table you store in the garage sure can come in handy at this time of the year. For those of us who like to wrap on the floor of their family room or bedroom, a large piece of corrugated cardboard works perfectly.
  • Most of all... have fun! Wrapping can be an event that everyone shares in. Organize a night for the family to participate. Pop in your favorite Holiday movie, CD of holiday music, and light a fire to set the mood.
  • Remember that kids (especially younger ones) take special pride in a gift they wrap all by themselves. Supply them with some good choices and let them go to town and be creative! Serve some eggnog, hot spiced cider - cinnamon stick included, wine and your freshly baked holiday cookies to stir up the holiday spirit!

(Set Up a Gift Wrap "Station")


Let us entertain you... Organize.com style

One of my greatest pleasures in life is bringing family and friends together at home or around the table. Light a few candles, put out your favorite appetizer and you have a party. Entertaining always did warm my heart. Tabletop is an endless passion for me. From dinnerware, stemware or goblets, linens and accessories - I enjoy mixing all kinds of price points. I think sometimes it's the thrill of the hunt - but at any given time, my table will grace items from department stores to discounters. It just has to work! Some of my most talked about wine glasses are hand painted from Italy and probably cost about $3.00 per stem. Word of advice - just be sure that you buy 12 of anything you see or purchase.

Most especially at this time of the year, we are always looking to bring home new treasures to decorate or celebrate the holiday. Try thinking about where to store these items early on, to avoid stress and frustration.

One of my own frustrations happened to be china and stemware storage. Since we don't use these things as frequently, I found that even though they were kept in the china or kitchen cabinet all year, I felt that they had to be washed before using. I remembered the quilted storage pieces that I saw at my mother's house or in Holiday sale magazines over the years. After some investigation, I realized that while the 'old favorites' were still out there - bigger and better are here today. I chose some white cargo boxes and several covered canvas boxes to store our china and crystal. Now when I put these away, they are dust free and as clean as the day I stored them! If you haven't already, try china separators. They will keep your china from scratching.

Another little dilemma I had were my tablecloths, napkins place mats and napkin rings. I decided to handle this two ways. 1. I continue to hang my most used tablecloths in a closet. 2. My holiday linens would have a new home. Since I only use some of these linen colors once a year, I also wanted to keep these neat and clean. Our long 30-quart storage box worked great for tablecloths and the medium 18.5-quart sweater box was perfect for assorted napkins and any accessories or decorations that I used with that theme or color. This keeps everything together, organized and at my fingertips when I need or want it.

If your house is anything like ours, there is always plenty of food - which also means plenty of leftovers and the need for food storage. We offer many types and styles, but check out our Lock & Locks. I think they are one of the best!

Remember these items for the holidays:
Deviled Egg storage container
Cookie Storage - for home, school, office to cookie exchange!
Baking - be sure to see our line of baking and work station sheets, along with "transportation storage" for any cake or pie.
Wine storage, Wine openers and Wine savers. We have something for any connoisseur.

Every holiday party needs a gift of cheer and spirit. Be sure to see our holiday best buys! Our acrylic wine glasses and tumblers will work for any party. And... talk about 'on the rocks'! Ice tubs that look great on the island or bar are a must. Whether your party be informal or grand, there is a variety of choices from our Acrylic Party Tub, Large Party Bucket, to our Grand Party Stainless Steel Tub to fit your needs.

[Organize.com NEAT idea: If you are thinking of making a wine gift basket this year, try using the acrylic party tub as the container. Cellophane makes a great filler and fake ice is definitely the finishing touch!]

It's that time of the year when we're inviting guests to join us in our homes. We're glad that you came to visit ours.

From our home to yours... We wish you Happy Holidays from all of us at Organize.com.

(Let us entertain you... Organize.com style)