The Organizational Freak In Me!

Hi everyone. So today I decided to write a blog about how I organize my makeup and fashion accessories. I would love to hear back from you; maybe we can learn from each other. Do now hesitate to share your own tips on organization.
Although it is important that the items I use for organizing be cute, the most important feature is by far functionality. I'm all about functionality. I will keep changing stuff and trying new items until I find exactly what I am looking for, i.e. something that makes me spend as little time as possible on a daily basis and something that is easy to maintain.

Let's start with makeup. So you know that you can buy MAC eyeshadows individually in a container, and that is fine if you are planning to have only a couple of their eyeshadows. But if you like the quality and price and you are planning to collect some, I would recommend getting their custom eyeshadow palettes and filling them with "pro palette refill pans". It is the exact same quality and color of eyeshadow. The only difference is that it is cheaper since it is already depotted. To save time on looking for the right colors I have color coordinated all my MAC shadows.
On the back of the cover I use stickers (purchased from Office Depot) to write down the name of each eyeshadow.

I organize all my eyeshadow palettes in a letter holder (also purchased at an office supply store). 

As to my makeup brushes, I put them in vases filled with bean bag filler (purchased from Joann's Fabric). 

The rest of my makeup fits into these containers (also purchased from ikea). I think it's supposed to be tupperware. It comes with a lid which I don't use. I kept the lids just in case. I think it will be very convenient to have them when we move out. I can just close the lid and transfer my makeup to my new place more safely. The cool thing about these containers is that they have 2 dividers that come off. It's pretty cool considering that you can have anywhere from 1 big drawer to 3 smaller ones. 

By the way, isn't it great that these containers fit into my vanity drawer so perfectly?!

As you can probably see the makeup is categorized into each drawer: foundation, blushes, concealers, paint pots and fluid lines, mascaras, tools, lip sticks, lip glosses and eye pencils. I have two other smaller drawers in my vanity that holds miscellaneous items. 

Moving on....nail polishes! I bought a nail polish holder from ebay and it fits more nail polishes than I have, which is cool given that I buy new colors all the time  :)

Jewelry... Braceletes were probably the hardest jewelry items for me to organize. No matter what I did, I wasn't satisfied. First I put them in one big drawer, then into three different drawers, but what I realized was that I needed to have them in sight to wear or else I would either use the same one over and over again or not use any at all. I finally bought this bracelet holder from ebay. 

What I like about it is that it showcases all my bracelets so it saves me time, plus I am more likely to wear one. What I don't like about it is the quality. It's basically a roll of cardboard wrapped with some black fabric.  However, I'm sure that there is a more durable version of this. I have seen them at accessory stores but I don't know where to get it from. It so irritates me that sale associates never know where the owners got them from lol. Forever 21 always has some nice quality ones to showcase their jewelry. I'm going to try to look more to find this same design with different material. Keep me posted if you know where I can get one from.

Next: belts and scarves. I finally found these hangers at www.organize.com. They are perfect for scarves, ties and belts because the hangers are designed to spin for quick access. I have another one holding my purses but I don't like it for purses that much since they take more space and are not really functional for big purses. However, these hangers work great for belts, scarves and your man's ties ;) 

By the way the pink hangers you see on the left are for my necklaces, earrings and rings. Each hanger has about 15 zipped drawers on each side. I got them either from TJ Maxx or Nordstrom Rack. I don't quite remember. I like that they are clear so you can see what's in them. I organize them due to size (long or short), color (gold or silver) and type (earring, necklace or ring). 

Below you can find links to all the items mentioned above. I hope this post was helpful to you guys :) Good luck.

Circular labels  http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/944009/Avery-Removable-Round-Color-Coding-Labels/

Letter holder (I used this kind before but I like my current one better because it's wider and fits my palettes better. Unfortunately, I can't find the one I have online, so I'm posting this kind) http://www.staples.com/Staples-Silver-Wire-Mesh-Letter-Holder-5-1-4H-x-7W-x/product_939746

Brush holders  http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/86933500

Vase fillers http://www.joann.com/joann/catalog/productdetail.jsp?pageName=search&flag=true&PRODID=xprd1131757

3 drawer containers for makeup (choose the 9x7x3 size from the drop-down menu) http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/60118214#/10112525/

Vanity table (You didn't see the full vanity in the blog post, only the drawer with all my makeup. The big drawer is in the front. Those two little drawers on top are where I fit my miscalenaeous items) http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/10121228

Nail Polish Rack - For this item, go to ebay.com and look for nail polish display rack 60

Belt, tie, scarf hanger http://www.organize.com/tiespinner.html

9 weeks pregnant! Update!

Hi guys. So I made a baby bump vlog and you can watch it by clicking on the link below. Please don't forget to like and comment. It would be the best gift if you could subscribe to my youtube channel. It would make my day!!!!!!!!!!!!
So basically you can hear me talk about everything pregnancy-related in the video but I forgot to mention a couple of things. I remembered them right after I turned the camera off. I will, however, add them here.
1. My belly looks the same. I am not showing at all, and if it continues this way, I'm afraid it will be a long way until it does :(
2. My face is acting up a little bit. I don't know if it is my hormones or the fact that I stopped using my acne medication, but my forehead is going a little out of control. I don't have any blemishes although there is something like a rash all over my forehead. They look like little bumps. I don't even know how to describe it except that my forehead is not as smooth as it used to be.
3. I'm taking prenatal vitamins that my gynecologist prescribed for pregnancy even before I got pregnant.
4. It was really difficult to quit smoking. I found out that I was pregnant around week 4 and I smoked about 6 cigarettes until the end of week 5. (I felt really bad about it but it was still fewer than a pack a day). At the end of week 5 I made a conscious decision to stop smoking completely. It was difficult but I did it!!! I am so proud of myself. And THANK GOD around week 7 I couldn't even take the smell of it any more. Now it disgusts me so much that I think I am never ever going to be able to smoke again. I can smell it miles away and it makes me wanna run straight to the bathroom. I hope this feeling stays with me forever :)
5. I practice yoga (although I haven't been able to lately due to morning sickness), and I am planning to go swimming soon. I am also planning to start taking half an hour to an hour walks every day. Why haven't I started already, you might ask?! Because of morning sickness and fatigue, of course. I'm hoping I can start tomorrow because today was quite promising feeling-wise.
6. As I said in the video, I don't believe in cravings and the whole "eating-for-two" thing. I think women use pregnancy as an excuse to eat whatever they want. Overeating is not judged as harshly during pregnancy, and some women use that to make up for years of dieting.  As to cravings, I've always had cravings, pregnant or not. And I know that I am not the only person who has cravings when they are not pregnant. It's just that you can give in to your cravings more often when you are pregnant because....because you are pregnant! :) As to "eating-for-two", yes, you are eating for two, however that second person is only about 7 pounds when it's born and even smaller before that. So even though you have to eat more food daily, that more is only about 300 or so calories more not a whole 1500 calories more. Although I am going to play the "I'm-pregnant-card" quite often (who doesn't, right?), I don't believe I need to gain any more than 25-35 pounds. It is healthy for both you and the baby, and gaining more weight only means more health complications... I just wish I am able to accomplish all that I want to :) It will be pretty embarrassing to look back at this post after I've gained 50+ pounds lol!!!!