Let the countdown begin! Just a few more hours of work and then vacation! š
This morning, I slept in until about 6:30 and then leisurely rolled out of bed for breakfast. The thought of food always seems to motivate me! š
For breakfast, I tried a new granola sent to me for sampling from Nature’s Path called Ancient Grains. It’s definitely something special!
The Ancient Grains are made fromĀ spelt, kamut, amaranth, quinoa, and oats (aka lots of good stuff). The nutritionals are pretty good too: 250 calories per 3/4 cup with 6g fiber, 5g protein,Ā and 9g of sugar. And the best part: HUGE clumps of granola!! I always pick them out and eat them first, but there are tons in this granola– all the way to the bottom of the bag! š
I ended up eating two bowls with sliced banana and soy milk.
I also drank a delicious glass of pumpkin spice iced coffee with breakfast. New England Coffee was 3 for $11 at the grocery store this week and I totally stocked up. Coffee never goes to waste in our house! š
So, yesterday’s warm weather inspired me to tackle a couple of outdoor projects, including cleaning a bunch of old, wooden wine boxes.
Mal and I stumbled upon them inĀ his parents’ barn when we were looking for furniture and we thought they’d be good for something.
But, what?
Help me brainstorm!
Feel Great Weight
Tomorrow, Thanksgiving officially kicks-off the holiday season! Are you ready for the 6-week food fest? Check out my tips:Ā 7 Ways to Avoid Holiday Weight Gain.
Question of the Day
What should I do with these wooden boxes?
88 Comments
I would probably fill those up with books to sell at craft shows. But maybe you could fill them with books to display throughout your home? Or hold toilet paper in the bathroom? Or towels? Maybe one could also store potatoes? I find storing potatoes to constantly be a dilemma in my house.
I can’t wait for Ancient Grains to be available everywhere! I was lucky enough to try it and loved and now I want more more more! Hmmm.. those boxes are gorgeous. Magazine holder? Can you grow herbs in them to use for cooking??
So many good ideas in the comments… can’t wait to see what you do with them!
I have a few of those, and I put them on end in the living room to hold stacks of magazines. š
love those boxes, they could be great for stacking with throw blankets
The boxes would be great for storage. You could use them in you kitchen and put boxes, jars, or cans in them.
Breakfast in the morning always motivates me to get out of bed. Breakfast is my favorite meal! š
I love those boxes. I would use them to store magazines in an attractive way.
I didn’t read all the comments, so I don’t know if this has been suggested, but is there a fireplace in your new house? If yes, I would put a box by the fireplace with a few logs in it.
If not, other suggestions:
-in the bathroom, by the toilet to put toilet paper rolls
-as a magazine/newspaper storage
-by the entry to put mittens/umbrellas/puppy walking accesories.
Love the boxes!
I would get a deep book shelf and use them as individual comparments for mail, papers, random things that need to be collected and put out of guests’ way etc. So cool!
Put them in a bench or coffee table that has the inserts for baskets.
Nail them together one on top of the other to make a cute side table.
Or…put up shelves in the bathroom and use these to hold washcloths and hand towels.
i love Nature’s Path granola! the pumpkin flax flavor is my favorite.
you could store all your cookbooks in there! i’d probably use them to store all my extra kitchen equipment.
I have a great idea for the boxes! I just read in Good Housekeeping this weekend a fabulous idea and I immediately implemented it. Put all of your smaller baking supplies (baking soda, baking powder, cocoa powder, measuring spoons, cinnamon, etc) in a basket or box in your case and put it somewhere…we put it on top of our fridge. That way when you bake, you can pull out ONE box and have all of your baking stuff all together in one area, instead of it taking up room somewhere else and you need to grab a million things! I did it immediately after reading this idea and I LOOOOVE it! So handy š
I also love the cookbook idea…
I have a bunch of these in my kitchen and bathroom. You can buy wall brackets at IKea dn use them to mount the boxes to the wall as storage shelves, or bins. I use the for towels, cookbooks, or line them with a plastic tray and put plants in them.
The boxes are adorable!
How about…
–magazine holider
–straw on the bottom, apples on the top
–storage for glass canning jars that hold any grains or other dry goods
I can’t wait to see how you use them! They really do have such character. š
I would store Murphy’s toys in one of the wine boxes. My other suggestion would be to store firewood or kindling in them if you had a wood stove or fireplace.
You could attach hardware to the back and mount them on the wall to display small items like picture frames, flowers, or other tchotchkes like little shadowboxes. They’d also be great for storing things like knitting or sewing supplies (to keep everything in one place).
I use boxes like this for DVD storage…or for all those photos you might have not organized into albums yet š If you don’t already have a wine rack and you (or your husband, friends) are handy, you could construct a pretty easy criss-cross wood insert and use the boxes as a home-made wine rack/storage. This would be a cool way to make storing towels, magazines, or even dried bouquets of flowers look more organzized instead of just dumped into the boxes. Very cool find…I’m jealous!
The wine box with handles on it would be really cute in the living room or a bathroom. You could either roll up blankets or towels to display/store. Have a great Thanksgiving š
Like others have suggested I’d use them for some sort of decorative storage. Maybe books or magazines, or even somehow make a cool centerpiece out of it for your next cocktail party.
We use ours as decorations in our living room. Shelves might be a unique idea though!
I have a bunch of apple crates that I have stacked on their sides to use as storage/shelving. I think the wine boxes could be used in a similar way, though as they are shallower I agree with the suggestions to attach them to a wall somehow. Or just as general storage I think they would be great – We never seem to have enough storage in our house so I’m sure I’d have no difficulty coming up with uses for wine boxes like those!
Have fun with the last few hours of work!!
I have no idea what I’d do with the boxes..but I’ve seen a few houses that have them outside standing up, like you do, net to chairs or the door for a little extra shelf if they need it or something.
I did not get a chance to read everyone’s comments. Nate Berkus hangs those boxes on the wall and puts nick knacks in them. In the bathroom he rolls up towels. You can hang them either direction. If you are a mason jar kind of person, perhaps hang them in the kitchen. Ooh, you are going to have so much fun decorating your new home.
Bad time of year to start this, but I’m thinking a gardening project of some kind…
I think I would used those boxes for magazines. I am a big magazine fanatic so it would be nice to organized them. Or you could use them as a table center piece and add candles and pretty nick nacks. Happy Thanksgiving!!
I would use them to hold books/magazines or put one in the bathroom with rolled up towels.
Can’t really tell how big they are, but maybe to hold magazines, mail you bring in, even extra toilet paper in the bathroom? Or if they are clean enough, fruit on the kitchen counter!
http://www.designspongeonline.com/2007/10/diy-wednesdays-wine-crate-display-cases.html
I love this website and I think this is such a cool idea!
That granola sounds good! Is it out in stores yet?
Those boxes would make really cute planters for flowers and herbs! š
Hmmm… fill them with peanut butter cookies? š
Add shelves to them for storage.
Or you could can stack and nail them to use them as a pantry with Ball Jars for pretty effect.
I used to have similar boxes (mine were wooden veggie boxes) that I stacked sort of at angles (nor boring ol’ straight up and down). Take real short wood screws and anchor each one to the other, use some wing nuts to keep them tight. Once they’re sturdy, standing one on top of the other I used them in my dining room next to a big rustic table with a light on top, books on a few shelves & some knick knacks. I loved those things. Nobody else had shelves even close!
I love this idea… in this photo they used old drawers from a desk/ dresser, but I think it would work well with crates.
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/sf/inspiration/inspiration-junk-drawers-as-shelving-displayselle-decoration-may-2009-082716
I had a friend many years ago that had similar boxes on the wall as shelves/shadow boxes.
I love this cereal/granola! Try treating it like oatmeal:
1) add a few glugs of almond milk to the bowl
2) sprinkle with cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice, throw in some raisins or pumpkin puree (which is what I’ve been doing!)
3) microwave the granola and milk for a minute
4) stir and rotate in the micro, nuke for another 45-60 seconds
5) top with chopped toasted nuts and voila a revamped granola experience!
Oh my gosh – so many uses… we have old boxes that we use for DVDs/CDs, records, blankets, kitchen pantry organizers, books, under the bed storage (although they are too cool to hide under the bed). Nice find!
Hi! I have used wine boxes like this before for quite a few things. I think the best idea i have had so far is to use it as a bookshelf/corridor table. If your husbands handy you can ask him to find a long skilly plank of wood and then stack it 2 high and fill them up with books.Then just decorate the table with pictures and things.