Creating Something Useful From The Sentimental

Apparently quilts can have mental issues Sorting through all these old clothes, especially the high school stuff, has put me in a strange position.

Although I’m donating the majority of the items, there are still those pieces that I feel I can’t part with.

I know it’s a little irrational; after all, I haven’t even seen these clothes in years. If they were so special why did I leave them in boxes in my garage all this time? I know, I know. It doesn’t make sense but emotional reactions often don’t, right?

I immediately felt a rush of nostalgia when I spotted the little black dress I loved so much among the other clothing in the box. During a time when I sometimes struggled with the way I looked, I always felt so pretty in that dress. It reminded me of all those fun high school times and brought a smile to my face. After reminiscing for a bit I wondered how I ever fit into it. It looks so small now. There is no way I’ll ever fit back into it. Such is life.

Turns out, I found a bunch of clothing in that box that I couldn’t bear to give away; that cute pleated skirt that I wore until it fell apart, that funky pair of jeans that made me feel rebellious, that stained chef’s coat that I wore to work. I want to keep them, but what do I do with them if I can’t wear them anymore?

My friend suggested I make a “crazy quilt” from the clothing. It could be my high school memories keepsake quilt. A lot of the fabrics are varied in texture and pattern so it could make an interesting piece. Turning that clothing into a quilt saves space and allows me to keep those sentimental items in a more useful form.

I have always wanted to learn how to quilt and a crazy quilt is a good place to start. A “crazy quilt” is a fabric panel made from irregular scraps randomly arranged together. That would be a fantastic way for me to incorporate all the different fabrics into one mismatched but meaningful piece. I bet it would be a great use for old baby clothes, too!

Because of my lack of sewing skill, I believe any quilt I attempt will end up being “crazy”, even if it wasn’t supposed to be. Might as well go with it and this style sounds very creative and fun.

I also like the idea of combining all my memorable old clothes in one (more compact) form. When it comes down to it, I think it is the fabric itself that’s evoking the emotional response. I don’t think the memories will disappear if the clothing isn’t in its original form anymore and if I keep the clothes intact they just end up hidden in a box again. I think I’d rather be able to enjoy those memories more than once a decade.

Do you have clothing from a special time in your life that you have trouble giving away? What did you do with it?

Image Source: onebyjude

$728 Worth Of Stuff Out The Door

Easy-Peasy! This weekend we gave our first big clothes donation to Goodwill. We sorted through all the clothes in our closet and pulled out anything we didn’t intend to wear again.

A frilly tie-dyed blouse (with sequins, no less) and a bright Mai-Tai patterned Hawaiian shirt found buried in the back of the closet come to mind.

The majority of the clothes weren’t nearly as horrifying, thank goodness. It’s mainly t-shirts and polos that just never got worn anymore.

We also got rid of most of the clothes that were too small, with only a few exceptions for clothes we really liked and hoped to fit into again someday. We are realists, though, so only a few too-small items got to stay.

We don’t go through our closet very often, and as a result there were clothes that should have been given away a long time ago. There was enough to fill 3 large boxes!

After entering all the items into ItsDeductible, we discovered our donation was worth $728. That’s awesome! Not only will someone else get the benefit of having these clothes but we get a tax deduction. It’s a win-win situation.

Using ItsDeductible is super simple and it works with TurboTax. You simply search for an item and it will give you the value based on condition. Old clothes are sometimes worth more than you would think! We tend to be conservative and value everything as medium quality, even if it has never been worn.

To make the process easier we looked at the categories in the program before we got started and tallied our donations according to those. I highly recommend sorting that way.

For instance, instead of writing “men’s shirt” we broke it down into t-shirt, polo shirt, dress shirt – just like ItsDeductible does. It made inputting the information a breeze. The more specific you are in what the clothing is the better. Best of all, you can transfer the information to TurboTax when you are done.

Even though we reduced the clothing in our closet by about half, we are just at the tip of the iceberg. There are boxes and boxes of old clothing in the garage that we have been carrying with us through the years for some reason.

Maybe it’s laziness. It’s easier to just leave it in the garage than to go through it, I suppose. No more! Every box will be opened and dealt with. I’m on a donation rampage!

Sunday we started going through those long-neglected boxes. Most of the clothes are from “way back when” so almost all of it will be donated. I am in the process of laundering those clothes for the next round of donations. Even though they are clean, they have been sitting in boxes for years and could use a freshening up. I figured that it’s a nice thing to do and helps get them on the racks for sale as quickly as possible.

Donating all this clothing is almost addictive. I can’t wait to see how much our next load adds up to!

It’s My Turn For The Book Meme!

I’ve been tagged with a few interesting memes lately and I’ve been meaning to find the time to respond to them. My plan is to fit in one a week so we don’t get meme’d out.

I love that I’ve Paid Twice For This Already tagged me for a cool book meme going around. I had seen it on a few other blogs and was hoping I’d get to play along.

According to PaidTwice’s post the meme is super easy:

Grab the nearest book that has at least 123 pages, open it to page 123, and count down 5 sentences. Then, type the next three sentences here.

The two books closest to me on my desk happen to both be cooking related:

Hors d’Oeuvres by Eric Treuille
Joy of Cooking by Irma Rombauer

Flipping to page 123 on the Hors d’Oeuvres book (incredible book, by the way) I discovered that it’s full page picture with no text. So I guess that one is out. I next turned to the ever fabulous Joy of Cooking and found this useful advice:

As for stocks, see 116, there are three simple methods for removing fat from soup. Chill the soup, the fat will solidify and then it is easy to spoon it off. Or float a paper towel on the surface of warm soup, and when it has absorbed as much fat as it will hold, discard.

Joy is such a monstrous book of cooking know-how that page 123 hasn’t even hit the salad section yet. We are still in soups!

I think every home cook should have a copy of Joy of Cooking. It is a wealth of information and really comes in handy when you are stuck trying to figure out a new skill like cutting a mango or making a roux.

Why the cook books nearby? I’m preparing to do my first official (in other words, paid) catering job at the end of the month! I’ve been scouring my favorite books for interesting recipes to test in addition to my tried-and-true classics. I cooked all day and into the night on Monday to test 18 potential recipes for this “classy but not too fancy” baby shower. The host has decided she wants an abundance of vegetarian heavy hors d’oeuvres for the party and at this point, she is expecting about 30 guests. That’s a lot of cooking!

We have chosen a tentative menu and are still deep in the planning stages. We need to map out the table presentation, create the cooking schedule, and compile the shopping list next week. It’s a big ordeal but I’m loving every minute of it. It’s a great way for me to use my passion for cooking to bring in a few extra dollars.

Oh, and in case you actually wanted to know the third method for removing fat from soup, here it is:

Or roll up a paper towel and use one end to skim over the soup surface to remove the fat as shown. When the end becomes drenched with fat, cut off the used part with scissors and repeat the process, as shown.

I’ve seen this meme floating around a lot so I hope I’m not double tagging anyone:

Image Source: Hors d’Oeuvres p.123

Make Valentine’s Day Special Without It Being Special

there’s no forgetting the HOFF When Eric and I first started dating he definitely worked to impress me, especially on Valentine’s Day. He would buy me flowers, take me to a nice restaurant, and get me gifts. That kind of Valentine’s date is practically a requirement for new relationships. I loved it back then and thought he might be the kindest, sweetest man I’d ever met.

Now that our relationship has matured beyond the dating stage (and I know that he is the kindest, sweetest man I’ve ever met) we have settled into a different routine when it comes to Valentine’s Day.

This Valentine’s Day, like the past few, we are going to enjoy a dinner in. Eric gets to decide the entrée and it can be anything (within reason – no caviar, etc). Not surprisingly, he tends to choose one of his favorite recipes from my weeknight staples. This works out beautifully for the budget because most of my recipes can be made inexpensively without sacrificing anything.

This year he chose my Orange Rosemary Porkchops. I’ll pair them with creamy mashed potatoes and mixed vegetables with herbed butter. Add a little cheese course, a little wine, and a little dessert and we will have a fantastic (and cheap) meal for the two of us.

Eating a budget-friendly home cooked meal for Valentine’s Day may be thought of as routine or incredibly un-romantic to some but to us it is romantic. What’s more romantic than putting time and effort into creating something from scratch for someone you love? So what that cooking frugal dinners are an everyday occurrence and not something “special” or unique. Valentine’s Day just places emphasis on showing someone you love them, which is something we do everyday in the little things.

Love is found in those little things – he takes the trash out without me asking, she makes sure the kids get to school on time, he makes sure the car has plenty of gas, she cooks us dinner after her long day…

I’ve found that I feel the most loved from those little “ordinary” things rather than the grand gestures we have come to associate with romantic love. Why not celebrate the “every day” dinner as a valid expression of love on Valentine’s Day?

Cooking at home is a wonderful couples activity. It’s not just me in the kitchen slaving away while Eric sits on the couch drinking a beer. We cook together. We share a glass of wine, talk, and prepare the meal as a couple. The chronically common becomes something special. It reminds us that the mundane things we do for each other are so meaningful.

Try it some time, maybe even tonight. Let your someone special choose a meal and cook it together over a glass of wine. Or if cooking dinner has no significance to you choose an activity that does. Emphasize that love is something that happens every day.

In my opinion, Valentine’s Day isn’t just an excuse to blow some cash on expensive gifts and fancy dinners; it’s a reminder to give and to recognize love in its most common yet most significant form. Celebrate the little things that make you feel loved.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Image Source: pink hats, red shoes

Rent Or Sell: The Decision

I guess you can’t BUY respect I apologize for not writing about our decision on whether to sell or lease out our old home earlier than today. I didn’t realize I left you all in the dark until this week! Shame on me.

The house has been on the market since January 26th. After careful consideration, we decided to put the home up for lease. Here’s why:

We will be able to rent it for more than our mortgage payment, including insurance, taxes, and fees. That means we will be able to pull in a small profit every month while still building up equity in the home. An extra $200 a month could really come in handy.

By keeping it as a rental property we can deduct the cost of repairs from our taxes. That alone will save us a good amount of money. We can also deduct the management company fees and the depreciation of the home. This means we can reduce our overall taxable income while still earning a slight profit every month.

The area is very likely to appreciate in value in the next few years. While the home used to be on the edge of town it is now considered a prime location. In the next year there are plans for more shopping centers, entertainment venues, and restaurants to be built within a mile of the home. The location is also perfect for accessing all the major highways (some newly built) in the area.

We like the idea of having our funds diversified. By owning a property we have our wealth diversified into multiple areas and not all in stocks or bonds. If we need to tap the money we have the option to get a home equity loan or we could always sell it in the future. Even though this form of investment isn’t exactly liquid we do have options just in case.

We didn’t need the equity to buy a new home or pay off debt. In my original plan, selling the old home would have provided the funds we would need if we went into debt from the move and carrying two mortgages. So far, we have avoided going into debt and we still have enough funds to carry the home for several more months. I’m a little bummed that we can’t build a screened sunroom yet (the money would have come from the sale) but I can wait. It will be a good savings goal for me to set for this year.

We might not have been able to get the price we wanted if we sold. Although our realtor felt we could get our target selling price, we felt a little uneasy because many of the recent home sales were at lower figures. Our area has not been affected by dropping property values yet but the credit crunch is everywhere. We would still need to be competitively priced despite the fresh paint and upgrades.

We also decided to go with the management company we mentioned. It will cost us $50 a month but we feel it will be worth it not to have to deal with the everyday stresses of being a landlord. We have received several applications on the property but so far none have panned out. I’ll write about those experiences soon.

Hopefully this decision will turn out to be the right one!

Image Source: mulad

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