Maybe you have been there too, wanting to pare down, wanting to get rid of excess, wanting to want less, need less, be content. For me, being the mom of 5, homeschooler, keeper of a small army of pets, creative recycler, and home- "cozy"-maker, means that that is an ongoing lesson with ever-changing perameters. I have found that even after being generous with the garbage can and donations, being careful with choosing what makes it through the front door, there is still a struggle to find storage in a small space. Every once in awhile, I have a success, and AHA! moment and I enjoy getting the chance to pass it on from one, mom -in -practice, to another. And maybe this is not even a solution that you may need but it may just evoke an AHA! moment of your own!
So, here is the back story to how this solution came about. We adopted our dog Ellie almost a year ago now. She was a true blessing from the Lord. It was amazing how she seemed to slip her way in without any upset, adjustment, or frustration. As a matter fact, you probably would have never known she came to us as a 6 year old mama dog, she just "FIT" us. But we think she had been custom made just for us-thank you Lord-your creation is always good! Anyways, Ellie is a big old mama lab, that has a real adoration for comfort, which always gives us something to laugh about. After being a dog free home for sometime, I thought I was going to be quite strict about letting her on furniture, in the bed, etc. But, here you go...
Yep, we have spoiled her a bit, but oh how cozy she makes this home feel! So now that you have veiwed our entire family album-haha-let me get to the point.
We have a small, 3 bedroom, house for seven of us, some of you know that from previous posts. And the reason I mention it(often) is to hopefully be an encouragement to those of you sharing small spaces as well, and be hopefully sharing some useful solutions for making it work comfortably. Hopefully these will provide a few ideas for multi-functional uses of everyday things-or, not-so-everyday things that are still important to keep around. So, I had one of those ideas today. I had a few goals needed to be reached before the winter shut in starts. The odds and ends in the garage from summer projects and events needed to be stored before it is too cold to work out there, I needed to make some kind of dog bed for Ellie, because even though she is too cute cuddled up in our furntiture, she is wearing them out faster than all five kiddos put together, and I am attempting to finish some of my "unfinished" projects. And guess what, I was able to combine all 3 of those odd goals into one solution!! Curious yet!?
I took an unfinished quilt(it just needed to be bound-for like 3 years now) and yes, it was made from vintage sheets, big surprise:) and decided to turn it into the casing for the dog bed. Then to fill it(and here was a budget saver-not to mention a "need less" situation I mentioned earlier). I have some old comforters and quilts that are not being used for beds anymore, but we have kept them for summertime picnics, forts outside, etc. They take up a lot of room and having them sitting in the garage collecting dust, hasn't worked so well-so I used them to fill the oversized case. This will keep them stored and clean(I have some soft plastic garment bags that they will stay in while inside the dog bed slip cover) . And here you go with a few pictures of the process....
..................Here is the unfinished quilt I used in the project.
......................I folded the quilt in half and sewed it up like a pillowcase.
.................I used velcro to make the closure. I prefer sew in velcro, it handles best in the wash-which this will get a lot of.
Here is my stack of comforters needing a storage solution. They have become my filling for the dog bed.
And here is a perfect picture of success....
And when Ellie is not enjoying it, someone else will. I knew this project would have no shortage of attention. How about an afternoon nap in the sunshine:)
