Monday, February 16, 2015

Hello darlin', take a peek at my new jewelry drawer!

Let's talk about something that's really important and will bring light into your cold, snowy life:  COSTUME JEWELRY ORGANIZATION!


As we talked about IN 2014 I wanted to organize my mess of jewelry in concordance with my bedroom redo.  It felt right.  I'm adulting one drawer at a time.  

So in true Virgo fashion I began a downward research spiral of all the jewelry organization systems on the market until I wanted to die and then made an impulse decision.


Behold the Ampersand jewelry trays from - wait for it - Bed Bath and Beyond!  I feel so solidly Middle Class!  My 401k immediately gained 3%.  I don't think I've bought anything from BB&B in years but here we are, trying to avoid that one weird dude in a blue apron and all the good candy at the front near the checkout.  

I didn't want something plastic and these looked relatively classy and functional for my needs.  They also needed to stack inside my Malm dresser which is another reason I bought two four-drawer dressers and not one six-drawer.  Swedish space.  It's the ultimate luxury.


Not only did I like BB&B's options best I even signed up for their text alerts to get the 20% off coupon so I could get everything on sale.  I drank the Kool-Aid.  Or more specifically I inhaled that poisonous parfum they pump through their vents.  

I would get a text every few weeks and then head over and add another piece.  It took awhile but I'm not made of money.  I'm made of Cubic Zirconia and bracelets that turn my arm a little green!

The reason I went with this line was because of my bangle collection.  I have a few and if I laid them all down in their own individual compartments I'd need another Malm dresser.  So they needed to stand up like the architecture of jewelry that they are.


This collection had a good deep tray where I could stand everything up and still be able to close my dresser drawer.  [MS sidebar:  when I went to link to the products at BB&B's website I couldn't find this large three-compartment tray so maybe it's only in stores now?  I'm sorry.  That's my luck.]  


But my current setup fits perfectly in my drawer and getting ready is infinitely easier.  I'm like a real adult!


I think I could fit some smaller trays here on the right but for now it's fine with some travel jewelry bags, my sunglasses (all the cool people include them with their jewelry) and a giant bowl of pearls.  I wear them only when I'm feeling extra French vintage soooo... that one Halloween party from 2003.  


I feel like I have a lot of rings but apparently all my new rings (post 2003) have big thick bands and so they don't actually fit in the ring organizer part.  Well, damn.  But I needed those big squares so we had to make a sacrifice.


the basement level contains an even more random assortment of vintage jewelry finds and a real (?) Tiffany box.  Anytime I get too big for my britches I look at the Mr. T chain I got at Goodwill next to it and feel at home once again.


I would like to add more trays for all my earrings because although I aesthetically like looking at this mess of metal I can't actually find shit in here.  Except for my Conway Twitty pin on the middle left.  Best $3 purchase I ever made.

I have one deep tray that's half full on the bottom and is waiting for my Mema's vintage brooch collection as soon as I remember where it is...  

The weird thing is that I felt like I had TONS of jewelry but since it's been organized I feel like it's less than I thought.  So that means I should buy MOAR JEWELRY.

I wish I had this kind of jewelry horde:

Sadly, this seems to be all the way in Texas.
Like an embarrassment of fake riches but in neat orderly boxes.  What a perfect metaphor for my life.

All in all I think I spent about $80 total which was spread out over the course of a couple of months so that's not too bad.

Not only am I an organized and sparkly adult, I'm a financially responsible one!

I bet Conway Twitty liked that kind of woman.



After spending twenty minutes going through Conway Twitty pics and songs I suddenly remembered that my Mema - the same one with lots of costume jewelry I've momentarily replaced - also loved Conway Twitty!  It must be genetic.

This post wrapped up in surprisingly delightful and nostalgic ways!

And if you don't think Slow Hand is the best sexiest song ever then I can't help you.

Happy Belated Valentine's Day with that one.

Everyone else in the country wants to be tied up right now and I'm lusting after the lyrics of old country songs.  

Okay so I DID watch Secretary twice this past weekend because James Spader is JAMES FUCKING SPADER so I'm not afraid of non-vanilla things.  

Sometimes I just prefer things in nicely-lined, imitation-suede boxes.

This post has now gone further down the spiral so I'll stop talking before I drag Trent Reznor into this mess.


6 comments:

  1. To me, Conway Twitty will always be "Hello Darlin'. Nice to see ya. It's been a long tiiiiiiiime; you're just as lovely as you used to be. " There was definitely a period in my life when I really tried to become a person who calls everyone "Darlin'" but it never took. I might try again when I'm over 80.

    I never really wear jewelry myself, but organized jewelry is like, the intersection of "shinies" and "arranging" that just makes my heart happy.

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    1. "Darlin" requires a very special je ne sais quoi but when it works, it works. Probably being over 80 or Conway Twitty improves your chances of getting it right. Best of luck to you in your sweet octogenarian age.

      Honestly, I just want to buy more jewelry so I can organize more of it. Not a smart financial plan...

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  2. Love how your jewelry drawer turned out - the bracelets rock especially hard in their new home. I'd love to hear if you ever come up with a solution for beautiful and functional (can find things!) earring storage, my faves live in a tiny makeup bag for now. I was thinking something on the wall, like one of those key holder mini wall cabinet things (maybe you know what I'm talking about?) but for tons of earrings instead of keys.

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    1. Thanks! Hhmm... I'll be thinking about it. Maybe like one of those vintage typesetter trays with all the different boxes? I'm trying to keep mine OFF the wall but that would be cute and functional to separate everything?!

      Let me know what you find!

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  3. I do love the jewelry organizers. I've used assorted recycled boxes over the years, but my best recycle was a cookie/cracker (can't recall which) plastic insert tray--you know the kind that lines them all up for easy serving with small semi-dividers so guests can take a group at once. (These are from an era before plastic was so thin it broke before serving the item.) Anyhoo, those small subdivides work great for necklaces that can be curled up neatly. Yes, they are still in use but should be replaced before the plastic breaks down.

    I have a wire rack closet system and keep my jewelry on one shelf. I leave earrings on their store card and hook the card over the wire of the shelf above. Actual gold ones that come in a box, stay in a box (keeps 'em clean) but these boxes are lined up in their own big box to avoid a heap falling on my feet. :D

    Yahooie
    (sorry to be anonymous but didn't qualify for the other choices; something to put on my to do list for 2015.)

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    1. You're so organized you put me to shame! Keeping earrings on their cards would be great but I have so many I'd need another way to organize them!

      Anon is fine as long as you're friendly! ; )

      Thanks for all the tips!

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