Finding simple storage for baseball caps is a shoe-in

  

What’s an easy way to organize and store all those baseball caps?

 First, a confession. I guess I have something of a baseball cap addiction. And I don’t even play baseball. In fact, I may hold the all-time strike-out record for my middle school, having achieved that status back in the Dark Ages when I was a preteen student.

 Even so, I have amassed quite a collection of baseball caps – largely because I am loathe to toss any away. Many of them bring back memories. Some were purchased, while others were obtained through participating in various activities: 

• attending minor league baseball games on hat giveaway nights
• covering sporting events as media
• winning my (older and less competitive) age group in a race (and receiving a cap as the prize)
• strolling through foreign cities and other memorable locales (Souvenirs, anyone?)
• volunteering at marathon hydration stations
• running with a team, while sporting their merch
• working for organizations promoting themselves through logo-bearing swag

 

You get the picture.

 And I’m one of those girls who darts around all over town with a ponytail flapping out the back of a ball cap, even if I’m not coming straight from the gym or a trip on the trail. It’s just my style.

 For years, I kept my caps piled up in a plastic tote (like these) on the closet shelf. That meant I’d often wear the same couple of hats by default, rather than dragging out the tote and sorting through the various choices each time.

 Finally, while sorting through my stuff for a rummage sale fundraiser, I decided to come up with a more accessible way to store my baseball cap collection.

 

Enter the over-the-door hanging shoe organizer. It’s not just for shoes anymore.

 Here are a few examples from Amazon, although you can find them at most big-box department stores and may even some of those dollar-ish shops as well. (Can’t call them dollar stores anymore, because nearly nothing is just a dollar these days.) 

·     Amazon Basics 24 Medium Pocket Over-the-Door Hanging Shoe Organizer – This one comes in grey. It has three hooks that fit over the top of the closet door.
·     PAULONE 35 Pocket Over the Door Shoe Organizer – This one has more pockets, and they are a bit deeper, making it easier to fit stiffer ball caps or trucker caps.
·     Simple Houseware 24 Pockets - Crystal Clear Over The Door Hanging Shoe Organizer – This less expensive plastic one comes in several colors. With two dozen deep pockets (and four over-door hooks), it’s handy for hats.
·     Over The Door Shoe Organizer Storage Hanging Shoe Rack Organizer for Sneakers/Boots Storage – This one is a little different, because it features 8 sloped cubbies/shelves that are designed to hold shoes toes-in. It would work well for baseball caps too, holding 2-3 on each level. This might be the best option for storing collectible hats that shouldn’t be rolled or bent at all.

 

 This baseball cap storage solution has changed the way I rotate my cap collection for wearing. I’ve essentially rediscovered some of my old favorites, as it’s easy to pick out which one goes with which outfit on a daily basis. 

Maybe you’ll agree.

 

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Image/s: LAN personal photo/s

 

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Easy way to protect stacked dishes

 

How can you keep your favorite plates and dishes from chipping and scratching one another in your cupboard, on your kitchen shelf, or in your china cabinet?

Coffee filters to the rescue!

 I recently received a set of family heirloom china salad plates. They are dainty and fragile, but I think they are lovely. They’re extra special because they belonged to a loved one who has passed away.

 To preserve these pretty plates, I picked up a package of those scalloped white coffee filters.

 (They are extremely inexpensive too! They also come in an unbleached tan, but I think the white is less visible on my dishes. Plus, it seems to have a smoother texture.)

 I separated several coffee filters out and placed them between my stacked plates. They worked so well that I went ahead and added them to all of my stored breakable plates, dishes, saucers, and so on.

  Easy peasy. And they don’t really even show.

 

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Image/s: Personal photo by LAN/PAH.

 

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Go big: Wrapping oversized gifts creatively

 

Santa’s super wrapping ideas for oversized gifts

 Christmas is coming. At the North Pole, Santa, Mrs. Claus and the elves must be working overtime to make holiday toys and gifts. As everyone knows, the winter holiday shopping season starts months before Yuletide begins.

 Often, Christmas is the time of year when Santa and families and friends splurge on big-ticket gift items, such as home entertainment centers, sound systems, major appliances and even vehicles. These extravagant gifts are difficult to package. How do you gift-wrap a brand-new horse trailer, a hot convertible sportster, or even a tricycle?

 Sometimes, even less costly items may be oversized and somewhat unwieldy for gift-wrapping. A sled, a craft easel, a dollhouse, a standing floor lamp, or a beanbag chair may present special gift-wrapping challenges too.

 Much of the fun of Christmas gift-giving is watching recipients unwrap their holiday treasures. What’s a generous gift-giver’s solution to the gift-wrapping dilemma?

 Here are Santa’s super gift-wrapping strategies for oversized or bulky Christmas gifts.

 

Wrap It. Wrap It big.

 Some oversized gifts, though large, still lend themselves well to traditional gift-wrapping. A new computer (still in the original shipping container), DVD player, or filing cabinet can certainly be wrapped.

 Generally, geometric shapes (such as rectangles, squares, cylinders or cones) can be wrapped, regardless of their size. If your gift items are heavy and bulky, you may need to enlist a gift-wrapping assistant to help you lift and maneuver the packaging.

 However, store-bought holiday wrapping paper does not usually fit larger packages. To gift-wrap these, you will need oversized paper. Purchase a roll of extra-wide mural paper at a craft store or art supply shop. As an alternative, pick up a roll of banquet table-runner paper. A third option might be to offer to purchase a leftover newsprint roll remnant from the local newspaper, if their presses still use rolled newsprint. (Many still do.)

 If you wish, you can decorate these plain oversized papers with paints, markers, holiday stickers, ribbons or other embellishments.

 NOTE: Written by this author, this copyrighted material originally appeared on another publisher’s site. That site no longer exists. This author holds all rights to this content. No republication is allowed without permission.

 

Piece together gift wrapping paper for oversized gifts.

 Oversized gifts that are square or rectangular may still be wrapped in festive holiday gift wrapping papers. Standard- or jumbo-sized gift wrapping paper can be doubled up to cover larger presents.

 Simply unroll gift wrap in a large, open room. Measure and cut a single sheet of wrapping paper to encircle the oversized gift. Cut a second sheet of wrapping paper to the identical length. Lay both sheets of wrapping paper adjacent to one another (printed sides down), lining up ends and edges. Be sure to overlap the shared edges by about an inch.

 Place books or paperweights on the corners of the wrapping paper sheets to prevent recoiling.

 Use long strips of wide, clear packing tape to affix the two sheets of wrapping paper together.

 Wrap the oversized Christmas gift, lining it up so that the taped seam will be in the center of the package. Trim the wrapped present with wide ribbon, covering the taped seam.

 

Bag Big Gifts.

 If a Christmas gift is oversized, but not huge, you can use an extra-large clean trash bag, a lawn refuse disposal bag, a Christmas tree disposal sack, a fancy pillowcase, or a store-bought holiday drawstring bag to gift-wrap it.

 Simply place the big gift into the bag, and tie or tape it closed. Add a holiday bow, if you wish. Sometimes, Santa’s best gift-wrapping can be quite simple and speedy.

 

Tie It All Up.

 Many oversized Christmas gifts are odd-shaped items. Presents that do not fit into a carton or box can be difficult to gift-wrap in the traditional manner. Suppose you need to gift-wrap a large figurine, a small electric fountain or a piece of garden statuary. How will you do it?

 You can easily disguise many sorts of odd-shaped gifts by hiding inside a few layers of disposable plastic holiday tablecloths or tarps.

 Plastic tablecloths are available in nearly unlimited color and holiday design choices at party supply stores. (Often, the dollar-type stores offer these as well.) Purchase plenty of these, as they tend to be somewhat transparent and delicate to use for gift-wrapping.

 Lay out a few plastic tablecloths on the floor or a large flat surface. (Stagger a few colors together, if you wish.) Place your oversized Christmas gift in the center of the tablecloths. Take up all of the corners, and hold them together, forming a hobo-sack-like bag. Tie the sack closed with sturdy holiday ribbons, yarn, twine or string.

 

Drape a Big Gift.

 Of course, some oversized Christmas gifts are simply too heavy and grand-sized to lift. For example, how might you gift-wrap a new piano or a piece of furniture, once it has been delivered and assembled?

 Don’t panic. Simply head for the linen closet, and grab a large sheet, blanket bedspread, beach towel, or coverlet. (You can even unzip a sleeping bag for this purpose.) Gently drape it over the oversized Christmas gift. Fasten the drape closed with large safety pins or diaper pins. Tack on a gift tag, and it’s ready for Christmas morning. You might even purchase a new sheet or spread and make it part of the gift.

 Be sure to keep the prying present-pinchers and nosy gift-peekers away from your draped presents, so they do not ruin Santa’s surprise.

 

Embellish a Big Box.

 Many oversized Christmas gifts do arrive in big boxes. Even if these are heavy and unwieldy, you can certainly disguise a big box. Cover it with sticky opaque or ornamental contact paper, or simply paint it, instead of gift-wrapping it.

 Handprints, stenciled holiday designs, sponge-painting patterns, vegetable-stamped prints and other adornments can make festive costumes for a large carton. The main point is to hide any of the manufacturer or product distributor’s images, identifying tags, labels or printed descriptions that might reveal the contents of the box.

 Where can you obtain big cartons, if oversized Christmas gifts do not come prepackaged?

 Often, large boxes are available (free for the asking) at furniture and appliance stores. Be sure to call ahead to request leftover cartons, as trash pickups are regularly scheduled. In addition, moving and storage companies often offer boxes for sale. Friends and neighbors may be thrilled to pass along used cartons for Santa’s use.

 

Think outside the box with oversized gifts.

 Sometimes the most creative gift wrapping for oversized gifts actually offers a bonus gift in itself. The packaging may even fit the theme of the gift. Laundry baskets, hampers, picnic coolers, tents, and brand-new muck buckets can make super gift packaging.

 

Have a Treasure Hunt.

 When my children were young, Santa loved to add a bit of mystery to Christmas morning by hiding some of the larger gift items. A small gift-wrapped box might appear under the Christmas tree. Once a child opened the box, he or she might discover the first clue in a Christmas morning holiday treasure hunt. One clue would lead to another, until the actual gift would be discovered, usually in the basement, attic, garage or other secret spot.

 Our Christmas treasure hunts are treasured holiday memories. Many times, a child might have pleaded for a certain item (such as a new bike) and seemed somewhat crestfallen to find that gift apparently absent on Christmas morning. Later, when the gift is uncovered, the child may be particularly delighted.

 

Don’t Wrap the Biggest Items at All.

 Hide oversized gifts at a trusted neighbor’s house. Santa can retrieve them on Christmas Eve and place them in an appropriate spot for Christmas morning showcasing. A big red holiday bow might be just enough to dress up a brand-new sports car, motorcycle, all-terrain vehicle, snowmobile, scooter or bicycle.

 Of course, a perky holiday ribbon bow is the ideal gift-wrapping for a living gift, such as a puppy or a kitten.

 Can you imagine the look of surprise that will appear on recipients’ faces when they enter the family room (or the garage) on Christmas morning and find their much-anticipated holiday gifts on display?

 

Christmas Creativity Counts.

 Much of the fun of Christmas gift-giving is watching recipients unwrap holiday gifts. But finding creative ways to wrap oversized gifts can be an enjoyable adventure as well.

 

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Image/s: vintage public domain artwork

 Feel free to follow on Twitter. Like this blog?  Check out Practically at Home on Facebook. You are invited to visit my author page on Amazon.com.

Spiral hair ties are a snap ... until they do

  

The idea of spiral hair ties sounds ingenious. These little coiled plastic loops are supposed to hold hair (as in a ponytail or half-pony) without creasing the hair shafts. That way, when they are removed, the hair remains sleek and styled.

 

Hey, they kind of work.

 Ever since hair scrunchies went out of style (inciting me to discard a whole Rubbermaid shoebox of those home-sewn fabric gems), I’ve used basic covered hair rubber bands to hold back (or up) my hair. Sometimes I’ve splurged a little for patterned or beaded varieties, but you get the point.

 I purchased a multi-pack of colors, ranging from clear to grey to tan to rust to brown to black. The promotional info calls this collection “gradient colors,” and I guess it’s supposed to correspond to plenty of people’s hair colors. OK, sure.

 Spiral hair ties are not particularly costly. I think I received 15 for about $5.

 But inexpensive and cheap are not exactly the same thing. When a product doesn’t hold up to a reasonable amount of use, then I’d count any price as too much.

 

Snap! Oops!

 Here’s what happened to one of my spiral hair ties – the second time I used it. I didn’t pull extra hard, as many of the various manufacturers' promotional photos demonstrate. It simply snapped when I tried to loop it twice around my ponytail.

 

Here’s an add-on drawback to the spiral hair ties.

 Unlike the traditional hair rubber bands (and scrunchies), spiral hair ties are too small and tight to fit on one’s wrist. And we all know how often we have worn our hair rubber bands that way, despite warnings about their possible effects on circulation and blood pressure.

 

Going back to the basics.

 Guess I’ll go back to the old covered rubber bands. Sure, they make a bump in my hair, but at least I can count on them to hold.

 And by the way. I heard hair scrunchies are coming back.

 

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 Image/s:

Product promo photo – fair use

Other photos by Practically at Home – all rights reserved.

 

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Golden dreams proved portents of quests to come

 

PICK A COLOR – for the 2021 Holiday Photography Challenge (See sidebar for full list.).

 

This golden holiday ornament cites the title of Frank Sinatra’s 1964 hit single, “My Kind of Town.” It appeared on our own Christmas tree many years ago – three houses ago, in fact. (It came in a little red box from the old Marshall Fields department store. Who remembers Christmas shopping at Marshall Fields?)

 

At the time, it merely marked our nearest major metropolis.

 At the time, I’d never dreamed I’d run the streets of that city in one of the World Majors Marathons.

 At the time, I didn’t even like running, unless I was chasing after my then-young children (who now have families and homes and Christmas trees of their own).

 So this little gold ornament now carries multiple meanings. That’s golden – in a whole lot of ways.

 Image/s: Personal photo/s. All rights reserved.

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Ribbons and bows make fancies, not throws

 

RIBBONS AND BOWS – for the 2021 Holiday Photography Challenge (See sidebar for full list.).

 

So I guess people exchange holiday gifts in the strangest of places – even shopping mall parking lots, if this tossed bow offers any indication. There it was, discarded on the pavement. Zoom out, and you’ll probably find a trashed face-mask and a couple of plastic spear toothpicks.

 

 Christmas is the season of giving, so let’s give the environment a break, while we’re at it!

 

Image/s: Personal photo/s. All rights reserved.

Feel free to follow on Google Plus and Twitter. Like this blog?  Check out Practically at Home on Facebook. You are invited to visit my author page on Amazon.com.