Allow me to introduce my new love: textiles by William Morris (my favorite is posted above).

I stumbled onto images of his textiles, then learned he’s credited with founding the Arts and Crafts movement in the late 19th century, sending me down a mini-rabbit-hole researching him. His work is in the public domain, making it possible for me to print several and enjoy them on my walls and in my sketchbooks and journals. The only thing I love more than his textiles is his philosophy: “Have nothing in your home you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.”

Of course, my favorite thing is to combine the two, making useful things beautiful. This month, that’s meant covering old cat litter buckets. Before you judge, take a look.

The top of my linen closet was a dead space, with gobs of room I cannot reach without a step stool and no shelving. But cat litter buckets fit perfectly, making it an ideal nook for things I don’t need often, but do want to save. Old curtains and table cloths, odds and ends that could be used for costumes, torn sheets I’ll use as drop cloths – all of them now neatly tucked away and beautiful to behold.

I don’t have cats, but I have friends willing to share these gems they used to throw away or, at best, recycle. A bit of crowd sourcing on Facebook resulted in a few neighbors sharing theirs as well. Now I gift almost as many as I cover for myself and one wall of my little red barn has quite the collection.

Next, I tackled the bottom of my pantry, home to half-full cans of paint, saved for touch ups or small projects. I started saving Jasmati rice containers last year, after seeing my mother use hers for storing small items. I had no idea what I’d do with them, but love their shape and transparency. Now look at them.

Not only is my leftover paint easier to access and less trouble to use, it’s downright pretty! In the lower left corner of the picture above, you get a glimpse of a large plastic container that used to hold pretzels and now holds plastic grocery bags I save for picking up after my dog when we go for walks.

It’s hard to turn my brain off, sometimes, as I find myself staring at different spots in my home thinking WWWMD (what would William Morris do?). His philosophy makes him an inspiration for tiny house owners, like me, and I’m enjoying the challenge. I promise to keep you posted on future projects and perhaps you can inspire me with your favorite beautiful and useful solution.