The Daily System

We went to our friend's house for dinner earlier this week and had a great time eating yummy food and talking about the joys of marriage. Surprisingly, we had very similar experiences so it was such a relief to know that we weren't alone in our neurosis. We just felt a lot better sharing laughs as well as serious talks ranging from budgeting all the way to organic eggs from the farmer's market. One of the things we noticed at their house was their super cute and organized daily calendar with menus written on a small whiteboard in the hallway. For them, it helps them stick to their grocery budget. I also liked how every two days was a "leftovers" day. I dislike leftovers so having a set "leftover" day will make me stop making more stuff.

We both left that night thinking that a weekly menu/calendar was just what we needed to keep our schedules in synch. I don't really like the smell of dry erase boards so I went on the hunt for chalkboard. While I was at it, I wanted something to hold mail that comes in because right now, it just gets tossed onto the kitchen counter. Lastly, hubby has a habit of tossing his wallet and keys in any nook or cranny that is immediately available to him. It'd be better for all purposes if we had a designated place for his keys too.

Armed with those requirements, I set out browsing Pottery Barn for inspiration and it did not disappoint:


Here is a close up. It's cute, it holds mail, keys, and I can mix in a chalkboard panel instead of the magazine files if I wanted to, but at $118, I think I will look elsewhere.


Since I'm looking for something to contain errant mail, stray keys, and love notes, What about the Container Store?


Or this modern one:


This one is too cute!


At a low starting price of $12.99, these were truly great budget buys to contain mail and keys, but I wasn't sure how the chalkboard/calendar thing would fit.

Then it hit me, IKEA might have something available. A quick search yielded (almost) exactly what I was looking for:


Chalkboard? check. Mail slot? check. Key hangers: done. done. and done.

The only thing I don't like about it is that the square design is a little elementary skool looking. I'll probably distress it and repaint it a streaky blue/green. Seriously. Or white. But distressed blue has a bit more character to it.

Another idea is to ikeahack this frame:


and turn it into something like this!



I am loving the ornate look but that begs the question of what to do with mail & keys all over again. O options, my never ending temptress!