Tag: Simple Home

Spring into Simplicity with this Decluttering Method

Nearly every time I mention to someone that I write about simplicity, I’m greeted with a long sigh, a sheepish look or a desperate story about wanting to get rid of clutter but not knowing how to get started. My own search for simplicity began more than forty years ago with a massive declutter of my messy dorm room during finals week. As soon as my physical space was cleared, so was my mind, and I was able to focus on my studies.

Since then, whether living alone in an efficiency apartment or with a busy family in a three-bedroom house, I’ve kept my home clutter-free. Hands-down, the easiest way to get started, especially if you don’t have much time, is this three-box method. You’ll need three boxes (or bags) and as little as half an hour. Here’s the simple process:

  1. Take the first box and walk through your entire house quickly picking up all the trash. This includes garbage, paper, magazines and anything that is broken or otherwise unsuitable for donating. Don’t forget those half-used bottles of products you aren’t going to use up. Immediately take the box and dump it in the trash or recycling. This step declutters the most obvious layer of junk from your home and gives you a little momentum.
  2. Take the second box and walk through your entire house picking up everything that belongs someplace else. Immediately put each item where it belongs. If an item doesn’t have a home, leave it in the box until you can decide where it should go. In this step you are likely to find you have more stuff than space. If, for example, you don’t have enough space for all your coffee mugs, you’ll know you need to get rid of some.
  3. Take the third box and walk through your entire house picking up anything that isn’t being used and is suitable for donating. This might include toys, clothing, books, lamps, knick-knacks, kitchenware, art and office supplies and furniture. I recommend being ruthless and immediately taking the box to the donation center. This step often reveals some big-ticket items you might be able to sell. If you can’t make a plan to sell it within the week, cut your losses and donate it. It might hurt a little, but I promise the space you free up will be worth it.

Depending on the amount of clutter you have, you may need to repeat this process several times over several days. The trick is to stay laser-focused on each step. When you’re searching for trash, don’t get distracted by a pile of laundry. When you’re looking for things to donate, don’t get overwhelmed by unorganized office files. Start the process by going through the whole house addressing only what is out in the open. Then, room-by-room, apply the same method to every cabinet, drawer, shelf and closet in your house.

The three-box method isn’t the only way to declutter your home, but it is a good way to spring into action and put a spring in your step. Going through this declutter process quickly will immediately energize your home and your life. As home organizer Peter Walsh wrote, “Clutter is not just the stuff on your floor – it’s anything that stands between you and the life you want to be living.”

10 Things We Don’t Buy for Our Home

Simple living requires us to be more intentional about what we buy and bring into our home. What we choose to consume is a personal decision dependent on many different factors, so I’m not suggesting you stop buying the things on our list. Contemplating what we routinely purchase can lead to saving money, reducing clutter, caring for the environment and being more mindful.

Here are ten things we no longer buy for our home. I’d love to know what you’ve decided to no longer purchase.

  1. Flowering Annuals  – Mike and I got tired of spending time and money on planting annuals every spring. Last year we decided to stop buying flowers that only last a season and landscape our yard with perennials that return year after year. Now our yard magically blooms with a wide variety of flowers, grasses and shrubs through all the seasons.
  2.  Most Cleaning Products – I used to buy dozens of different products to clean windows, mirrors, furniture, toilets, tile floors, wood floors, showers and sinks. These days my house gets just as clean with one concentrated cleaning product, water and a little elbow grease.
  3. Plug-in Fragrances – I’m a sucker for good smells, but I no longer buy those plastic plug-in things with silly names like Cashmere Woods and Hawaiian Breeze. The artificial scents tend to be overpowering for few days and then disappear. Now I just make sure my house is fresh and clean and rely on a clean-burning candle for subtle fragrance. (I don’t see myself scratching good candles off my list any time soon.)
  4. Seasonal Decor – I enjoy celebrating the holidays, but I’m done decorating our home with pumpkins, turkeys, hearts, leprechauns, bunnies and Uncle Sam. Passing up these seasonal knick-knacks saves money, reduces clutter and makes our house feel less like a kitschy gift shop and more like our own home.
  5. Wall Decor – This one is pretty extreme, but we stopped buying things to hang on our walls. We find bare walls enhance the view of nature through our picture windows. This blank space helps create the serene ambiance we enjoy in our home. (I’ll be writing more about negative space in an upcoming column.)
  6. Decorative Window Treatments – We prefer to leave our windows as unadorned as possible. Where needed for privacy, we have simple curtains that are opened first thing every morning. We even removed those square grids (called muntins) and screens from our windows making them look larger, more modern and so much easier to clean.
  7. Photo Frames – A couple of years ago we got a quality 8 X 10 digital picture frame and got rid of all the small picture frames placed around our house. The digital frame sits in our living room and constantly rotates through hundreds of photos that can easily be added  through an app on our phones. I can even take pictures of old photos and pop them into the mix. Our digital frame has become one of our favorite possessions.
  8. Kitchen Gadgets – Mike and I are simple people who eat simple food. Somehow we’ve made it to 61 without needing an avocado slicer, an egg separator, a corn peeler, a pineapple corer, a crumb sweeper, a waffle-maker or an air fryer. We are pretty sure we can make do with the simple basics our kitchen has always had.
  9. Indoor Plants – One summer in my youth, I sublet an apartment where I was working and going to school. I lined my extensive collection of 70s record albums on the floor under the stereo system, never once having time to listen to them. For three months, my roommate overwatered a corner plant soaking the hideous brown shag carpet and destroying all of my precious albums. Ever since, I’ve been skeptical of indoor plants.
  10. Fresh Flowers – I love fresh flowers and used to purchase bouquets for our home a couple of times a month. Unfortunately, my cat loves flowers, too. He loves to eat them, play with them, hide them and knock them over. I’m happy to trade fresh flowers for free snuggles and purrs that really make our house feel like a home. §

 

Spring cleaning gives us a fresh start

The birds are singing, the flowers are blooming and I am happily cleaning every nook and cranny of our home. I know, some of you might be more like my clever mom who said, “If I ever get the urge to clean, I lie down until the feeling passes!” Regardless of where the urge comes from or how long it lasts, spring cleaning can give us a fresh start.

Historically, spring cleaning can be traced back at least 3,000 years to a Persian tradition still practiced in some homes called Khāne Tekānī. The phrase literally means “shaking the house.” In Jewish tradition, not a crumb of leavened food is allowed in the house during Passover, so homes are carefully cleaned. Some consider these traditions to be the origin of spring cleaning, though many cultures have practices that include elements of spring cleaning.

Most experts in the field of human science believe there are biological reasons for spring cleaning. During the short, dark days of winter, our bodies produce more melatonin, a hormone that makes us sleepy. As days get longer, we receive a boost of energy from longer hours of daylight and produce less melatonin. So it may be a natural instinct to emerge from winter’s hibernation ready to clean and organize our environments.

There are also some very practical reasons that led to spring cleaning. Prior to the invention of the vacuum cleaner, spring was the best time for dusting because it was warm enough to open windows and doors, but not warm enough for bugs to be a big problem. In the days of coal furnaces, everything in the home got covered in a layer of black soot. Once winter was over, it was time to clean up the mess. Even with today’s improved home heating, ventilation and appliances, it makes sense to wait to do deep cleaning until it is nice enough to throw open the windows and doors.

Iconic comedienne Phyllis Diller joked, “Housework can’t kill you, but why take a chance?” The truth is, spring cleaning offers proven health benefits. An uncluttered home is safer than a cluttered one. Fires and falls are common causes of injury and death. Not only can clutter cause people to trip and fall, it can rapidly spread a fire and block doors and windows, reducing ability to escape or be rescued. Even if our clutter isn’t at a dangerous level (yet), addressing it at least once a year keeps us from gaining hoarder status.

A clean home can protect us from sickness. Dust, mildew, mold and pet dander are pollutants that tend to gather during winter months and can trigger our immune systems. We can also get sick from germs. One thing we learned from the Covid-19 pandemic was the importance of keeping surfaces clean, especially in bathrooms and kitchens.

Spring cleaning provides exercise and can reduce stress and help us sleep better. Doing household chores is a low-intensity exercise that burns calories and increases heart rate. The mindless repetitive tasks can turn off our our brains for a while and help us de-stress. Research shows sleeping in a clean, tranquil room can help us sleep more deeply and restfully.

Finally, tackling spring cleaning projects can boost our mood and give us a fresh start. Not only can cleaning leave us with a satisfying sense of accomplishment, it is proven to release endorphins in the brain which can improve our mood and energy level. Several studies show cleaning our home can motivate us to clean up other areas of our lives including diet, finances and relationships.

Dusting baseboards, washing windows and organizing closets might not seem that important but, like spring itself, it can inspire a new beginning. Professional organizer Peter Walsh said this about spring cleaning, “What I know for sure is that when you clean-up anything – whether it’s your home, your head or your heart – it is astounding what will flow into that space that will enrich you, your life and your family.