Labor Day is for Laboring?

So It seems that every Labor Day my husband and I work on some big un-done project. So, I guess in my house - Labor Day is for laboring!

This Labor Day weekend my husband and I tackled some un-done projects on my workshop! Originally, I was just going to start painting - a project that is well over-due and desperately needed!! So I woke up bright and early - got on the painting clothes - and went outside to start my weekend project! I apparently inspired my husband to come help me, as he shortly joined me and then left to pick up breakfast. After he returned he decided to start boxing in the eaves on my workshop! Yay! This is certainly a task that I wasn't sure how to complete, and one that I have desperately wanted to have done for a long time!

You see, we have bees and wasps! UGH! Lots of them! Certainly if they were honey bees I would have had our local bee association come and remove the hives, but the bees that we are inundated with are wasps and carpenter bees - NOT FUN!!! Now carpenter bees are great pollonators, but they cause total distruction to any wooden structures by boring tunnels into the wood for their nests! They are also said to be "unlikely to sting", but since I am apparently seen as a threat to their nest (since they build them inside my workshop), they like to dive bomb me and I have been stung by them before. Wasps are my other enemy - I cannot even tell you how many nests I have sprayed inside my workshop, and I have been stung by them also - NOT FUN!!

Here are pictures of the two gigantic wasp nests that we removed from my workshop over the weekend!

The eaves on the workshop are not completed yet as you can see by the pictures, but I am VERY happy that there is much less of a chance that the bees can invade at this point!

Up until this point we have been working on wiring my workshop! The wires have been run to all of the outlets - some of them installed, and some of them not installed! But I do have some workable outlets!

So, the home of MooreMagnets is coming right along, but for now it is back to work! I have custom orders to finish!!!

Friday Yummy!

This is a really easy and quick appetizer that I have fallen in love with! I can't take the credit for the recipe, but my friend Becky taught me this one. I really don't care for plain tomatoes like my husband, so this is a way for me to enjoy the fresh tomatoes and basil from our garden with very little preparation.

Ingredients:

1 ripe tomato sliced
1 package fresh mozzarella sliced
fresh basil
balsamic vinegar

Just slice the tomatoes and mozzarella top them with one or two pieces of fresh basil and sprinkle balsamic vinegar over the top - Done!

An Update on Me and My Websites!

Good Morning! For the last several days I have been busy as a bee adding items to my store! As much as I love Etsy, ?? is really becoming a place where I can offer my customers some great features such as coupons and discounts, as well as the ability to make purchases with out creating a user account while still checking out with a secure connection. I will continue to keep my Etsy store stocked, but all coupons and discounts that are offered will only be available through my ?? store.

I have also reached 100 fans on Facebook, and have secured my Facebook vanity url. Coupons and discounts will be announced via Facebook and on my blog - so either fan me on Facebook, or sign up for my RSS feed on the blog.

A Newsletter - I have had many requests over the years to create a newsletter so that people can keep up with me and be informed of new products, fabrics, where I am going to be, and special promotions. At this time I still do not have plans to start a newsletter. I have tried several times, and the time that it takes as well as the expense have always held me back. My blog and Facebook fan page will be alternatives for a newsletter. I will be sending a monthly email to all of my fans on Facebook, so if you don't want to hear from me everyday you can hide my Facebook posts and you will still receive the monthly email.

As always, if you have any questions please email me at april@MooreMagnets.com

Please know that I want to provide each and every one of my customers the level of personal service that all of my customers have come to expect! By making these changes and additions I will be able to continue offering that service to everyone!

Now for all of the URL's!


Etsy: http://MooreMagnets.etsy.com
Blog: http://MooreMagnets.blogspot.com
Facebook: http://Facebook.com/MagnetBoards
Email: april@MooreMagnets.com

New Accessories for your Magnet Boards!

Here are some new accessories for your Magnet Boards!

Pen/Pencil Holders:

I have been making pen/pencil holders for a long time, and I have friends and family that are still using the pen/pencil holders that they got from me 4-5 years ago! But, these are my "new generation" pen/pencil holders! These are customized with a fabric button so they can match your magnet board or just go with your decor. They will hold any pen/pencil up to 3/8" diameter, and when the pen runs out - just get another and pop it in the holder!


Letter Holders:

These are my newest creation! I am pleased to present to you these magnetic letter holders, although they can be used for a lot more than letters! Use them to keep coupons, mail, notes, invoices, your daily todo lists, and more! These can be customized to match most of the magnet boards in my store!

Organizing Tip Tuesday!

If your house is anything like mine, you ALWAYS need more organization! So, I hope that you can pick up one tip from my blog that will help you get just a little more organized!

Closets! Between me, my husband, and 3 boys there is always a closet in the house that needs to be organized, and most of the time it is due to clothes and shoes that don't fit or that no one wears any more. So, years ago I decided that each closet needed two bins in them no matter how the rest of the closet was organized. One bin is for dirty clothes, and the other bin is for clothes that don't fit, or that no one can or wants to wear anymore.

The donation bins are treated very much like the laundry bins - but they are not mingled with the laundry bins. So, every few weeks they are checked, and sorted by color, and washed. Once they are washed I sort the clothes by things that will be handed down, and things that need to be donated, and things that are just too worn out to be donated. The hand-me-downs are transferred to the next wearers closet, the worn out things are usually sent to the garage or workshop, and the donations are transferred to bags or boxes and taken to the donation center.

I don't wait until I have a truck load of stuff to go to the donation center - I found the closest one to a store that I frequent, and stop and drop of just one bag or just one box at a time. My boys know the difference in the bins - they were cued by color when they were younger - and they use them sometimes. Actually the teenagers are starting to use them more and more as they are much more motivated by style right now!

Hope that helps! Good luck on your organizing quest!