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August 27, 2012

Evernote for Design Organization

As you guys know, I was in San Francisco this weekend for the Evernote Trunk Conference where I spoke on the uses of Evernote in the daily life of a design/lifestyle blogger. It was mostly to an audience of people who had a background in development (either for this app or others) and were interested to hear of the regular users take on the application. I also got to hear a bunch of other inspiring people (like the founder of Uppercase magazine) talk about their uses for it as well!

If you don’t know about Evernote, it is a free app (for iphone, ipad, and computer download) which allows you to save ‘notes’ that can be organized, tagged and saved on any of your devices, and then retrieved from any of your other devices. I use it a ton because I have a terrible memory and literally have to write everything down. The random post-it notes and emails to myself were getting a little disorganized, so I started using evernote. I wanted to give you guys some details because it’s so so helpful to collect design inspiration and sources all in one place.

Above is a screenshot of my ‘homepage’ which shows my last several saved notes. Its laid out kind of like an email inbox, but each note shows a snippet of a photo, which is so helpful for finding something visual. If I’m looking for GOLD things in a product round up, I can scan the thumbnails and pick out from all of the notes I’ve saved.

More than that, however, you can tag your notes (in my case they’re mostly photos) with any keywords you want. Later, I can search by keyword to find exactly what I’m looking for. One photo might get ten keywords, but it helps me to recover the idea later on. Some of these things are clipped from a website (using their web clipper) and some are photos I took with my iphone in a store and saved to evernote.

Another amazing detail? The webclipper saves all of the URLs for me. One of the hardest things for me (in life and in blogging) is remembering where I saw something. I started clipping from the web and Evernote it stores the webpage for me. That’s how I can recall some of the more obscure finds that I may feature.

I don’t want this to sound like a big advertisement. I don’t work for evernote, and they don’t pay me anything, I just love it. It’s a free app and helps me by working as an ‘external brain’. It could definitely be helpful to anyone who is looking for a place to capture inspiration (and the sources) that can be accessed from anywhere. If you want to know more about it, give me a shout and we can chat!

Have a wonderful Monday!

13 Comments

May 16, 2012

Your Perfect Pantry

in Food, organize with 9 Comments

Cooking is one of those things that I’m just getting better at and relish the next steps that often make ‘whipping up’ something fast seem easier. I remember early on when recipes would call for this or that and I’d rarely have it. Trips to the grocery store were expensive and confusing, trying to pick up each little spice and herb that the dish called for.

Somewhere a long the line I fell into a spot where I was actually prepared. I had a well stocked pantry and when I’d read through a recipe I had most of the stuff on hand and would only have to pick up the fresh meats and produce.

You don’t have to start off stocked to the brim with everything, but here are a few staples that I always have on hand, and have made cooking up something tasty on weeknights easier to tastier.

You might be thinking that I’m missing this or that – there are a couple of things not shown that I usually stock (milk, canned tomatoes, cannelloni beans, parmesan cheese), but for the most part these items are the base of every meal I make.

If I don’t have taco seasoning, I mix cayenne, cumin, and S&P. For a quick creamy sauce, I use tempered eggs. If I need a good topping for some sliced bread I smash up garlic cloves with coarse salt and mix with olive oil. If I need a quick and delish weeknight meal, I sauté red pepper flakes and garlic in olive oil then mix with some pasta, canned crushed tomatoes and sprinkle with parmesan.

I find that I don’t need a lot when I get creative and let my taste buds do the work.

I hope this is helpful for all of you aspiring cooks! Have a prepped pantry doesn’t happen overnight, but your trip there can be delicious and enjoyable with these staples!

Have a TASTY Wednesday!

Photos: 1. Bodie and Fou | 2. House of Earnest

9 Comments

March 20, 2012

Home Away From Home

in organize with 5 Comments

A COZY THROW White and Warren, CASH STASH Rebecca Minkoff, KEEP IT TOGETHER sewing kit from flight 001, IN ONE PLACE overnigher from flight 001, SWEET SCENTS Paddywax, OVER HEAD Kate Spade, SEE HOW CUTE Henri Bendel.

I’ll be packing up tonight and getting on a plane tomorrow morning (6am!!) in search of brighter times and some strong cocktails.

With the amount that I travel for work, not only do I have packing down to a science, but I really love doing it.

Here are some of my essentials that travel with me (as well as an outlet adapter, but that just wasn’t cute enough to make the cut). With what comforts of home do you always travel? I’d love to know!

Have a FABULOUS Tuesday out there!

5 Comments

January 31, 2012

Kitchen Space Solutions

in organize, our home with 7 Comments

As many of you know, we have an issue with kitchen storage space. We have all of five cupboards in our main kitchen area, four of which I can actually reach. One is filled with pots, one with pans, another with dishes which leaves one cupboard for pantry items. I’ve had so many canned goods fall out on me, I’ve started to cringe and turn away when opening the pantry cupboard. You guys have seen my clever storage solutions for entertaining items or for items we don’t use regularly, but what to do with the everyday used spices and pantry goods has been stumping me.

That is until this weekend, when Matt came home with my $40 hero which simply attached to the inside of my laundry room door.

Look how happy I am to have an organized pantry space. I guess Matt is kind of my hero too for thinking of such an amazing solution.

Like Gretchen Rubin said during her keynote speech at Alt, “Outer order contributes to inner calm”. And I completely agree.

Have a CALM and ORDERLY Tuesday!

7 Comments

August 30, 2011

An Inspiration Display to Inspire {Part Two}

in organize with 1 Comment

I showed you guys my vintage wooden hangers when I posted a couple of months ago when I posted about my take on displaying information and inspiration pieces. Then after I showed pictures of my total office redesign, I felt that the ‘organization’ area of the office was looking slightly sparse. It needs a little something extra and something a little more user-friendly than the hangers (it is really difficult to actually hang things on those hangers). This prompted me to use the clipboards.

Aside from the askew one on the left, they’re so much easier to use than the hangers! I decided to put things that are not as temporary on the hangers (photos, art) and keep my constant rotation of inspiring clips and swatches on the clipboards.

Initially I was going to do something cool to the clipboards like cover them in awesome fabric or paper, do some sort of stenciling design or painting treatment. However, when it came down to it, I just wanted something that would tie back to the hangers and not upstage them or look out-of-place.

It sounds silly that it was actually a big decision for me to add the clipboards to the wall. I am a sucker for simplicity and a minimalist approach so I was really afraid of cluttering up the wall. With the addition of a little faux milk glass vessel and some dried lavender, I think the area still looks easy and natural – what do you think?

Where do you guys display your inspiration?

Have a PRODUCTIVE Tuesday!

1 Comment

June 8, 2011

Salvage Sale Scores

in easy entertaining, Home Decor, organize with 2 Comments

Wow, say that three times fast… Salvage sale scores… I went to a salvage sale auction on Monday and ended up winning a couple of fun things! I landed this lot of three wooded trays for $15! You can see the bottom one has three sections with little library-esque metal label slots. It measures about 48 by 40 inches and I can see it as the PERFECT coffee table with a piece of glass fit on top. It would require me buying or making an apparatus for the legs, but totally worth it!

The two other wooden trays, although dirty, are beautiful wood and I’m just over the top with ideas on what to do with them! Here are five of my favorites that I whipped up this morning!

1. Make a Bigger Statement! You may have pieces of art which are smaller than what you would put on a feature wall. Encase them with a beautiful tray for bigger impact.

2. Give your guest the royal treatment. I like to put guest items out in the open so they can clearly what is available for their use! House all the guest necessities in a stylish tray for clear definition – it can then be moved to any table top or dresser for use throughout the weekend.

3. You can’t grow wrong with an indoor garden, but who has enough windowsill space? Amp up your real estate in the sun by placing an easy to move, and easy to clean tray on top of two sturdy stools or a side table.

4. I told you about my love for accent tables, right? Any basket or bin can be turned into a beautiful accent table in a flash with a well placed tray.

5. Corral your centerpiece! My centerpieces are usually multiple things grouped together, which can get irritating when they have to be moved (hello dusting!). I like to keep my centerpiece contained on a tray for easy transport.

What are your thoughts? Any new uses for trays you think you’ll try? Do you have a creative use for a tray? Please Share!

REMEMBER!!! house of earnest* reader submission day is approaching! Submit your before and after photos of things you’ve taken from gross to great with a little spray paint!!! Email the photos to erin@houseofearnest.com with a brief description!

I hope your Wednesday is AWESOME!!

2 Comments

April 25, 2011

An Inspiration Display to Inspire

in Home Decor, organize with 4 Comments

I spend many moments in my life scouring through magazines, catalogues, and various other inspiration that finds its way in large stacks throughout my office. Recently, I decided that I needed a way to organize these finds in a creative way. One of the blogs I follow, Oh Joy! posted a few weeks back and she showed some photos of her and her friends secured by vintage pants hangers.

*above photo by Joy from her blog oh joy!

Eureka! This is what I was looking for! Something simple, creative, and cute. I jumped onto ebay and found some vintage pants hangers of my very own to hang in my office. They now hold some of the various inspiration and ideas that I need to keep forefront in my mind, a picture of my nephew which just keeps me smiling, and the print I bought for my husband.

Where do you guys keep your inspiration? filed? stacked? on a cork board? Please tell!

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In other news… I’m very flattered that Courtney (Just Another Way to Share Life…) shared the Kreativ Blogger Award with me. The rules of the award are to share ten facts about yourself and to pass on the award. You can see my 10 facts here!

I’m passing on the award to Sarah who writes Ezell Family. Not only does she have wonderfully creative ideas, but the patience to carry them out along with the help of her two little ones!

4 Comments

January 25, 2011

Shelving on my Mind

in organize with 0 Comments

How about a little organization to start your week? My friend KM is dealing with the daunting task of filling up some beautiful built-ins. Of course, you can just fill them up with all sorts of various items, but if there is one unifying idea that or recurring element to your shelves, you can make a statement!

A home library seems so grand and luxurious, but it is also a very practical way to organize your book collection or give your family a go-to space for studying or relaxing. In addition to the books on the shelves, a comfortable chair and lighting added to a corner will give the necessary touches to create your own library. If you don’t have enough reading material to start out your collection, get some old books from a second hand shop and cover them (old school style) with patterned craft paper. In time you’ll collect enough of your own books to get rid of (or donate!) the original stand-ins.