DreamHunter's Profile

There are some nice looking curio cabinets out there to fit almost every style, and as a bonus most of them have a lock to keep out human younglings too. I've got an Ikea Klingsbo sideboard-style cabinet in which I keep my favorite decorative glass and smaller sculptures, as well as some smaller shinies that my cats would otherwise claim as toys. In addition to keeping the cats away from my most fragile breakables, it keeps most of the dust out and if/when we have an earthquake (I live in CA) my pretties should be semi-protected. Glass-door bookcases (ex. Ikea Billy + Osbo door) are another way to protect and display at the same time, and I love how closing a door - even a clear one - on my crammed-to-exploding shelves makes everything suddenly look tidier.

My grandmother, who owned a gift shop for several years and as a result acquired some beautiful collectibles, has some sort of glass-fronted bookcase or cabinet in every major room (living, bedroom, dining, kitchen) and displays her treasures alongside her cookbooks and family games.

Another former unaccompanied-minor flier here. I traveled "alone" from Montana to Virginia almost every summer from the time I was 7 to 14 or so. My parents went through security with me, and we checked in at the departure gate. Once on the plane, the flight attendants kept track of me and made sure I was doing well. During layovers, I was escorted off the plane and to a designated unaccompanied minors waiting area, where I got to mingle with other kids until it was time to board the next flight. My grandma would meet me at the arrival gate at my destination. As security tightened, the number of family allowed to accompany me to or meet me at the gate decreased, but at least one person was designated the legal guardian and given a "pass" to go through security. I was never left alone. I remember it being a lot of fun, and never scary - plus I got to ride on the beep-beep carts that are usually reserved for the elderly or disabled!

I can understand the massive indoor firewood stacks if you don't have a good place to store your wood outside, especially if you rely on a wood fireplace or stove for your main heat during a cold winter, but... spiders, bugs, dirt and debris... ick! I'd save that as a last resort.

My parents' main wood stack is on their deck on a raised holder, pulled away from the house and covered by a tarp. They keep their wood for the day in a plastic tub near the stove. By the end of the week that tub has a thick floor of bark, dirt, twigs, and so forth. They usually find the spiders when they pick up the log to put it in the fireplace - more than one log has gone flying across the living room at a large eight-legged discovery!

For fellow cat owners: maybe make this using cat toys? Surely I can't be the only one who has accumulated so many cat toys to make this without needing additional ornaments!

How to tell when you've done too much: your circuit breakers / fuse boxes give up. Then, remove one set of lights, and you're good!

I will note though that right now I have exactly 1 string of lights up, and it's one I use year-round as mood lighting. I just haven't found a good place for more in my current rental, or a safe place to keep my ornaments out of my cats' reach. Hopefully inspiration's hammer will swing by before Christmas.

to Hannah from Urban Stone Creative: Your solution works for me! There's always someplace you can cram a new bookshelf in, although eventually you might have to get creative.

I will read and re-read my books until they fall to pieces, and then promptly try to replace the same book while praying it hasn't disappeared from print. It seems like every time I read a story, I catch new details that I hadn't noticed before. I have a "new books" corner with fresh reading material, and if I like the new material, it goes on the forever shelves. If it's more "meh" than devoured, it gets promptly donated.

I will declutter elsewhere. Knicknacks, clothes, gadgets, cat toys... but once on my forever shelves, the book stays.

alexhi - You could try accordion-style doors, which expand to custom sizes. There are cheap plastic versions that come in several colors and are easy to install, as well as the more expensive "good" versions. The plastic ones aren't the prettiest solution, but if you need a quick fix, they work great. I don't trust my linking skills, but the "Spectrum Via 36 in. x 80 in. Vinyl White Accordion Door" at Home Depot is only $25, and doubling them makes a 72inch door. I replaced a standard interior door with one, and the only issue I found is that the latches are magnetic and not terribly strong. Depending on how determined your cats are, they could still sneak into the closet unless you installed a secondary hard latch, like a hook & eye.

My requirements: Tea. Apple cider. More tea. More apple cider. Grits and cheese, easy on the stomach. Canned soups, because my coordination with slippery frozen things decreases exponentially with my mental capacity. Fuzzy blankets, extra pillows to prop me up, trusty well-beloved books, and cats.