It's the little things...

Sometimes it's the little things that make the big difference. My apartment is certainly clean but I'm not going to lie, it's a tad cluttered. I have tons of magazines and fun design stuff that just accumulates after a while. Are you nodding your head in agreement? Here are a few small things that helped de-clutter my tiny spaces.

That's right. I had one of these little bad boys. It was full of paint and art supplies and had a nice label on it but even so, it was plastic and it was crushing my soul.

So I went on over to The Container Store and got one of THESE, which is made from recycled materials, then I applied a thin pink grosgrain ribbon around it to make it more "Alicia" and look how cute it is now!

It really loves its new home under my slip covered stool.

Do you have moments like this (above),

and this? All around your apartment or house? I love design magazines so I tend to accumulate a lot of them. I love to save the Architectural Digests and the House Beautifuls, and the Martha Stewart Livings, but the other ones sometimes I have issues letting go. BUT, I have created two books to help me with this.

This one that I'm showing you is my "Inspiration Book." It is for things that I see in magazines that inspire me and may not have anything to do with design (the often do though). It has small clippings that I just love to look at most of the time and they make me smile.

Above is one of those pages. A series of beautiful Rothko paintings, a pretty blue and white porcelain plate with a simple flower lying on it, and a black and white bedroom on the opposite side. After I do this, then I can discard the old magazines and free up some more space.

You don't need to make huge changes in your living space to clear out some clutter or make things a little bit simpler. Another thing I'm about to do is change my throw pillows on my love seat for fall! It will freshen up my apartment and not cost a lot of money or take a lot of time. Do you things that you do to freshen up your apartment after a while?


Alicia B.