My goal this week was to clean up and clean out my sewing room. Few of the MUST-DOS I have are:
- Organize and restock my sharps.
- Organize and clean out my “scraps”
- Organize my patterns.
- Put away all Christmas fabrics and embellishments.
Have I gotten it done? No! I did get putting away Christmas and other holiday stuff done. I had been using 1 tote. Now I have 2 under the bed totes. Well, everything is put away, so I can check that off my list. I didn’t toss any of that away.:/.
When I deal with my sharps, I am planning to make me a sharp container. I have used large pill bottles and taped the lid closed when I am ready to dispose of it but I ran across this idea that I found interesting.
You know that you should change needles regularly. But you may not know how to properly dispose of the old needles.
Sure, you can throw them directly in the trash, but anyone who touches that trash bag may get an unpleasant and painful surprise.
“Here's an easy solution: recycle a makeup / night cream jar! A Clinique jar, but the jars of this size from lotions, makeup or even kitchen products work well. I just put my used needles (and bent pins) in this jar, and when it's full, I make sure the lid is on tight, and I throw away the jar. It's easy and safe! “Amelie Scott. This size jar would make a great disposal place for rotary blades also. Think I’ll use this method for getting rid of all those dull blades. I’m going to add a peg on my pegboard for unopened packages of rotary blades. I already have 1 peg but when blades are on sale, I can’t help myself and I buy a couple of packages. I need to take my own advice and change them more often.”
I hate to throw away scraps. I am a spirit of the depression. I reuse many things until they are completely worn out. But I have never got the hang of using scraps smaller than about 9” square. I realize this is wasteful and want to try to utilize every inch of my scraps. Maybe sone of you have ideas that will help me. If you have been buying from chateausew.com in the past few months. You have received a small gift from us. This month it has been a fabric pattern weight. This have been a great use of small scraps.
When I arrange, I use clear small boxes so I can readily see what is inside. These are the shoe box sizes and then I stack them on shelves inside the closet of my sewing room / spare room. It looks good but does take up quite a bit of my too little space.
Patterns is a whole different matter. The prepackage patter are easily stored in a hanging file boxes. But what about the PDF patterns? How do you handle these? I have JUST ordered a gift wrap storage box, Primode Wrapping Paper Storage Container, 41”x14”x6”. I’m excited to get this in. I’ll let you know how it works out.
So, I guess this CLEAN UP CLEAN OUT is a project in progress. I hope I’m the only one who didn’t finish their goals this week.
Any one ready for another Cute Kitchen project? What about a Bowl Koosie by Fabric Editions, Inc. I have plans for these! Is it cold where you are? It is burr cold here in Louisiana. I am looking forward to using my koosies holding a nice bowl of chili. Free PDF pattern available January 30. Send me your Koozie pics.
CHILI
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion -diced
- 1 pound 90% lean ground beef
- 2 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
- 2 tablespoons ground cumin
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper* -optional
- 1 1/2 cups beef broth
- 1 (15 oz.) can petite diced tomatoes
- 1 (16 oz.) can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
Instructions
- Add the olive oil to a large soup pot and place it over medium-high heat for two minutes. Add the onion. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the ground beef to the pot. Break it apart with a wooden spoon. Cook for 6-7 minutes, until the beef is browned, stirring occasionally.
- Add the chili powder, cumin, sugar, tomato paste, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and optional cayenne. Stir until well combined.
- Add the broth, diced tomatoes (with their juice), drained beans, and tomato sauce. Stir well.
- Bring the liquid to a low boil. Then, reduce the heat (low to medium-low) to gently simmer the chili, uncovered, for 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Remove the pot from the heat. Let the chili rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Notes
I typically skip the cayenne pepper. Then, I put out some hot sauce for those adults that want to add some spiciness to their chili.