These yard sale finds cleaned up pretty well, didn't they? They were both a greasy, dusty mess when my husband brought them home (see previous post), but a little elbow grease does wonders!

I doubt the previous owners used the bread machine more than 2-3 times. The plastic protective covering (the kind you peel off) was still over the keypad, and it was extremely clean inside. The toaster oven probably wasn't used much, either. Although it was pretty dirty on the outside, the inside was almost spotless. We tried them both, and they work great!

Organizing
I've been busy going through closets and cabinets today. I got rid of a 13-gallon trash bag worth of clothing and my closet is still full. (It used to be bursting at the seams!) It's much more organized now, too, for which I am grateful.

I've decided that organization books don't always have the final answer on some things. For instance, every organization book I've ever read has told me to organize my wardrobe by putting outfits separate - so you can see the different possibilities. I've done that for years. Recently, though, I've noticed that I am wearing the same outfits all the time and forgetting about the other wonderful clothing I have in the closet.

So I decided to organize by outfits. Now, it's not what you might think. I own a lot of blazers that I like to pair with skirts, jumpers and dresses. So, as an example, I put my green blazer first, then all the skirts, jumpers and dresses that I would wear with it right next to it. I actually matched up a few things that I hadn't even thought of ... And got rid of a few things that I thought were "must haves" but didn't match a thing I own.

Renewing
And while I'm on the subject of clothing, I tried one of those clothing shavers on my "old" winter coat last night. It's the shaver that's supposed to take the "pills" off sweaters and the like. Well, my coat is wool and somewhere around 13 years old, but I still like it. However, it was starting to pill and it looked horrible. After about 5 minutes invested in shaving it, I have a great-looking coat that should last me at least a few more years.

That was my first attempt at using one of those shavers. I'm wondering now if it harms the fabric in any way. Of course, I had nothing to lose with a 13-year-old coat, but I'm curious. Has anyone had experience using these?