Free Printable: 2014-2015 Chevron Calendars {New Design!}

I started receiving requests back in January for the 2015 calendars to be published. Uhh...what? I'm organized, sure, but not already planning for the following year. To those of you that are that planned ahead, I commend you.

Since I changed the design on the 2015 calendar, I included the rest of the months for 2014 in the same format. Newly designed calendars for my Etsy store {in vertical and horizontal} will be uploaded soon and will be able to be typed onto this year. When they're ready, I'll post.

This calendar is completely free for personal use. If you want to share with others, please do so, but share the link to this blog post. Feel free to pin this post, too! :)

Free Printable: 2014 Horizontal Calendar

Check out my other free printables!

2014 Calendars Are Here!

I have created some new calendars for 2014!

As usual, I have a free version, as well as some for sale in my Etsy store.

Get the free 2014 black & white chevron calendar, here!

cursive chevron calendars

vertical & horizontal chevron calendars

vertical & horizontal polka dot calendars

Free Printable: 2014 Monthly Chevron Calendars

Since my 2013 monthly chevron calendars have been such a hit, I decided to create the 2014 version early, as requested by many. To download the free 2014 version, click the image below. Have a great Tuesday!

Check out my other free printables!

Free Printable: 2013 Calendar

I've had several emails asking if I was going to create a 2013 calendar to share on my blog. Honestly, I wasn't going to. I was selling it in my Etsy store only, but want to share for free now.

Please DO NOT download the file and then upload it anywhere online. I had this happen a bunch of times throughout 2012, which is why I waited so long to share the 2013 calendar. The first time I find it elsewhere on the internet, I'm going to take it down. Please just don't do it. You may pin the image on this post to share the calendar with others, though.

 

April Challenge: How Are Things Going For You?

This month has been a trial for me, for so many reasons. We're experiencing a lot of change and stress in our home this month, from jobs mostly. I have been absolutely exhausted and have therefore, not been keeping up with my challenge (or housekeeping for that matter) this month. I guess I also haven't been keeping up with blogging either. My bad. Last week was tough, but I think this week will be better.

Since I have epically failed this month's challenge, I'd love to hear how you've done, if you've cleaned and/or organized any closets.

If you haven't already, enter my Scentsy giveaway! It ends this Saturday, April 28.

April Challenge: Closet Inspiration

Confession: I don't have a closet completed to show you this week. Boo (I know). Spring break has ended and getting back into the "swing of things" has really kicked my butt. I am literally so exhausted at the end of each day that I've come home to take a nap. Ridiculous.

Here's my inspiration for you for this week. (** Please do not PIN any of these photos from my blog. Click through to the blog post, which is directly linked to each blog name/photo and pin from their site. They deserve the credit, not me! **)

Reader Shirley at Motivated Mommy of Two revamped her coat closet. I absolutely love it! (Thanks for sharing!)

Lina at Fancy Frugal Life has an amazing craft closet/office transformation you have to see if you love bright, beautiful color.

I absolutely love this coat closet from Better Homes and Gardens.

If I only had a linen closet...(from Real Simple).

See all of the closets on my Pinterest board, here.

April Challenge: Coat Closet

This month's challenge is closets. I shared my "before" pictures on Monday. Some people commented/emailed me and said it doesn't look messy/unorganized. I wasn't insinuating that it was. My biggest issue is that my closets are currently not functional for our needs, not that they're messy/unorganized. I don't want anyone to be under the impression that I'm calling these pictures either of those things.

With that being said, here's my before picture for my coat closet. This closet functions as a space to hold jackets/hoodies, stockpiled items (laundry and cleaning supplies, dog supplies, flavored water [when we have it], etc.), winter accessories, tools, and extra folding chairs. For me (and my husband agreed), it felt too busy. Too much going on in here. We weren't able to keep up with a system for this closet because it's constantly changing - not that it's a problem for a closet to be like this, it just wasn't what we wanted.

While clearing things out of the closet, I found that we have an overstock of dog treats. I don't think we'll need to buy more for a year (at least). The dog treat container was getting low, so I decided to refill it.

Because we have a small dog, we give him small treats. Many need to be cut up. We mostly do this to save money. He only gets a treat when he comes inside if he goes to the bathroom.

I didn't do all of the bags, just two, but it filled up the container enough to last for a month or two.

I obviously have an addiction to candles, Wallflowers, oils, Scentsy, etc. {Am I really going to use all of this?} My box is overflowing.

I had an empty storage box under my bed which fits everything perfectly. These items are being relocated to under my bed.

Here are the insides of the baskets that sit on the top shelf (after they've been cleaned out/reorganized).

cleaning supplies

sports equipment/dog toy/baby supplies (for the future)

napkins/toilet cleaner/light bulbs (in the container)

Hanging on the door is an over-the-door shoe organizer. We use it for the following (see the image for the text).

Command strips

Here are some close-ups of the shelves.

Okay, so it doesn't look a lot different than the before photo, but I can definitely tell the difference. I got rid of a bag full of junk, relocated some things, and cleared out some coats for donation/to sell on eBay. It was hard for me to part with some of the coats...although I'm not sure why. I haven't worn them in the last year, hence why I'm getting rid of them. I know it's for the better. =]

If I were "allowed to", I'd paint the inside of the closet or stencil it to give it a nicer look, but our contact says we can't. Boo.

Do you have a coat closet/multipurpose closet that is driving you crazy? If so, your challenge this weekend is to clean it!

April Challege: Closets

This month's challenge will be closets.

I haven't started yet, because I'm still debating on what exactly to do with my closets. I've cleaned/organized my closets and shared before. They're not messy really, they're just not functional for our needs. It's time to simplify.

I have inspiration, on Pinterest, for ways to organize my closets.

Being on spring break this week, I have plans to visit IKEA and other organization-friendly stores. When I do, I'll post about what I've bought and how I used it to get organized.

So my first course of action is to take a look at the closets and figure out what exactly I want their function/purpose to be. Our coat closet is the least functional at this point, so that one is going to need some creative thinking.

I will post later this week, after visiting IKEA and reorganizing a closet.

Here are my before pictures.

coat closet

my closet

my closet

Chris' closet

Chris' closet

Review & Giveaway: Rubbermaid 2-in-1 Recycler

This month we tackled organizing paper clutter. How are things going? Has this month's challenged helped you? I'd love to hear about your progress from the challenge!

Have you heard? Rubbermaid has a new product out, just in time for Earth Day (and the March Challenge: Paper Clutter)! Recycling has always been a pain for me because it takes up so much room when you need to sort it all out. I've truly been searching online, for the last 3 years, for something affordable and compact, yet able to hold quite a bit of material.

The Rubbermaid 2-in-1 Recycler is awesome. It holds two separate compartments of materials - both easily detachable from the unit so you can empty them at the recycling bin outside your home. Both compartments also have carrying handles that swing up for easy transportation.

If you don't need as much space for recyclables, you can use the bottom section for garbage. This section holds an 8-gallon trash bag and will hold the bag in place with Rubbermaid's Liner Lock™ system, making this recycler a dual-purpose bin that fits easily in your kitchen without taking up twice the space!

Rubbermaid sent a 2-in-1 Recycler to me to try out for myself. I decided to use mine by my desk and use the bottom half for garbage. I seriously throw out so much paper, it's terrible. This is definitely motivation for me to start recycling. We don't have a recycling bin at our apartment complex, so I'm going to have to take my recyclables to school with me - which is just fine because my school makes money off of the amount of materials we're recycling!

The 2-in-1 Recycler honestly makes me feel better about this month's challenge since I've been getting rid of so much paper clutter. This review/giveaway couldn't have had better timing!

Prize: Rubbermaid 2-in-1 Recycler

Number of Winners: one

To Enter: You must use the Rafflecopter widget below. It's really easy to use and makes giveaways a lot easier for me to manage. The widget will tell you what your commenting topic is! (mandatory)

Giveaway Ends: Friday, March 30 @ 12:01 a.m. (Eastern Time). One winner will be chosen using the Rafflecopter widget. The winner will be announced on this post and will be emailed to claim their prize. The winner has 48 hours to respond to my email to claim their prize.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaway Rules & Disclosure:

• You must be a follower (through Twitter, FB, GFC, or RSS/email) of The Nest Effect to win.
• The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter.com.
• This giveaway is open to readers living in the U.S. and Canada.
• Please make sure your email is either linked in your profile or on your blog OR that you include it in your comment. If I can't find your email address, I can't contact you as the winner.
• You must comment as your first, mandatory entry. All entries will be verified when the winner is chosen.
• One entry per method per person (3 total).
• This giveaway is sponsored. The prize, information, and giveaway have been provided by Rubbermaid. I was sent a product for free to review and give my honest opinion on. Any opinions about products stated in this post are completely honest and purely my own.

March Challenge: "Must Keep Papers" - What To Do With Them?

Now you get to help me. See this stack of paper below? Student loan promissory notes (a.k.a. agreements). What am I supposed to do with these? I don't know where to store them, how long to store them, and/or if I can get rid of the ones I've consolidated with the government and are no longer open with the original grantor.

That's just so much unnecessary paper.

We have a fireproof safe that is small and doesn't fit a ton of stuff. I keep Social Security cards, birth certificates, marriage license, etc. in it - you know, the usual. I don't, however, have room for all of this junk inside. I could just throw it all in my filing cabinet. Any ideas for me?

Tomorrow I'll be posting a super cool giveaway for the March Challenge. I think you're going to love it! =]