The Ask Anna Blog

Organize the Kitchen to help it run Smoothly

The kitchen is the “heart” of every home so it’s very important that it is well organized and its function doesn’t make you skip a beat. I want to show you some of the ways I have organized my kitchen to help it run smoothly. When we moved in, our kitchen was dark, old and outdated (click here if you want to see the full transformation). In order for a kitchen to “feel” clean and organized I think it needs to be bright, airy and open. Since we have a galley-style kitchen my only options for making it “feel” that… Read More

How to Organize Papers and Get Rid of Junk Mail

One of the things I know we all struggle with is paper clutter. Why is it that we all have so many papers!? Bills, receipts, important papers, it all adds up so quickly, and if you don’t get organized, before you know it you’ll be drowning in it. This is the year to organize papers and get rid of the clutter! Today I’m going to give you a few tips for how to organize receipts, bills, junk mail and important papers! #1 Receipts The easiest way to keep track of receipts, but not have a lot of clutter, is with… Read More

How to Clean Between Oven Window Glass

This step-by-step tutorial will show you how to clean between oven window glass. You won’t believe how easy it is! HOW TO CLEAN BETWEEN THE OVEN GLASS DOOR Materials needed: Wire coat hanger, like from the dry cleaners Clorox Glass Wipes, a paper towel sprayed with your favorite cleaning product, or a microfiber cloth A rubber band Instructions: Since writing the post on how to clean the oven, I have received so many questions about how to clean between oven window glass, so today I am finally posting a tutorial for you, and it’s so easy, you don’t even need… Read More

Office Organization Tips

To get you inspired I’m going to show you how I organized my office this past summer. Before, this was a room that was just wasting away but with a little creative thinking I was able to transform it into a clean, organized space that’s perfect for working and creating! Let’s start with the left side of the room. This is where most of the things in my office are stored, let me show you… This stack of drawers is where I store almost all of my craft supplies. When I purchased this drawer set from the AS IS section… Read More

How to Remove Urine Smell from Carpet

Last month when we went to Tennessee I hired a handyman to finish painting Malea’s bed. What I forgot to tell him was to not close the door to where the cat box is hidden! Two days after we’d been gone I got a call from my friend, who was there to feed our cat, and she told me that the door had been closed and that our poor kitty had been using our hallway as a bathroom instead. I, of course, felt horrible for our cat, because she had been locked out of her bathroom! She’s very obedient so… Read More

The BEST Zuppa Toscana Recipe (An Olive Garden Soup Knockoff)

Happy Holidays! We all know when the Holidays approach so does cooler weather, shorter days, and the need for warm, delicious meals for comfort and warmth. Keeping that in mind, I thought I’d share with you my secret recipe for The BEST Zuppa Toscana Recipe (an Olive Garden soup knockoff) and it seriously tastes BETTER than the soup you buy in their restaurant. Better yet, I’ve even included my recipe for Parmesan bread sticks so you can create your own Italian inspired dinner at home! The BEST Zuppa Toscana Recipe Ingredients 1 pound Italian Sausage (you can use mild or hot Italian… Read More