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How to Set Up Your Spring Capsule Wardrobe

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Now is the perfect time to set up your spring capsule wardrobe. As you figured out, the "in-between seasons" make it difficult to decide what to wear. Right now, are you searching two closets or digging through bins of off-season clothing? Instead, consider how much easier it will be to get ready, if everything lived in one closet? I use one closet (no dresser) but that wasn't always the case. Here's how I downsized my wardrobe into one simple closet.  Experiment with Less First, I challenged myself to wear just 7 pieces of clothing for an entire week. This exercise was inspired by Jen Hatmaker’s book 7 Experiments Against Excess. During this week, I still left the house for work, church, and social engagements and always in clean clothes.  Second, I developed a spring (and then winter) capsule wardrobe of a limited number of seasonal pieces. By following Courtney Carver’s Project 333, I selected my favorite spring items. And moved the rest to our guest closet. I dressed …

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Guide to Easy Spring Cleaning with 5 DIY Cleaners

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Spring Cleaning can be daunting, especially in a large home. But many hands make light work, so enlist some help from your family, set a reasonable timeline, and plan multiple days if needed. Studies show we are more productive when we break large projects into small, manageable tasks. Plan of Attack Eat a good breakfast and fill your water bottle Start upstairs. Bedrooms first Clean top to bottom to avoid re-cleaning Dust first, vacuum second Wash towels and sheets as you go Bathrooms last, then a shower-reward! Homemade Cleaners I use natural homemade cleaners for most of my cleaning. Homemade Cleaners are non-toxic, less expensive, and very effective when used properly. It also simplifies my shopping list and reduces plastic waste. Try my favorites below. Choose just one or two to get started. And be sure to use your existing inventory of cleaning products first! 1. All-Purpose Cleaner The All-Purpose Cleaner is anti-bacterial and great for doorknobs, …

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7 Easy Ways To Reduce Plastic Waste in Your Home

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March 18 is Global Recycling Day. I'd love to celebrate but we've reached a point of no return. Not only should we reduce plastic waste and use, we simply have to. This is no time to celebrate with statistics like this: The equivalent of one garbage truck of trash enters the ocean every minute The North Pacific Gyre (aka Great Pacific Garbage Patch) is twice the size of Texas 1 Million single-use plastic bottles are sold every minute. Americans use 50 Billion water bottles per year. Only 3 out of 10 are recycled. Studies show that 93% of bottled water contains microplastics in the water itself. Also, plastic is now in our food supply. By 2050, the ocean will have more plastic than fish by weight. I am overwhelmed by the magnitude of these statistics and saddened for our world. Something has to change.  But How? Start small. Just start! Like decluttering, start with your own stuff. Make a few simple changes and set the example for others to follow. The best way we …

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How to Live Like a Minimalist Family

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We are a minimalist family and yet we have some stuff. But minimalism is more about habits than stuff.  I consider our family minimalist, but I've been told I'm not a real minimalist. I guess I missed the memo on who can join the club. And while the "average American home has over 300,000 items,” we do not. So that's a good place to start. Of course, there's no checklist that works for everyone. But as I studied our home, there are things we do intentionally that make a difference. You will find these habits helpful as you declutter and simplify. Trash Throw away trash immediately. I’m not talking about messy stuff. I mean annoying stuff that accumulates like receipts, wrappers, mail, and packaging. We pick stuff up off the floor, immediately. I recycle as much as possible including junk mail, toner cartridges, and plastic bags.  Trash will clutter a flat surface quickly. Guard your flat surfaces because clutter attracts more clutter! Don't forget about the …

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3 Habits To Combat My Struggle with Screen Time

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1 house, 3 people and 17 devicesI have three devices. Eight more screen-like devices, belonging to my husband and son, are available for my use. And let’s not forget three TVs, two gaming systems and an Apple TV.Seriously?Thankfully, our desire to simplify encourages conversations about what we really need. (I use that term loosely). Because each device has a cost long after their initial purchase including subscription services, protective cases, chargers, accessories, data plans, replacement, and maintenance...just to name a few.5 years ago, we cut the cable cord. Initially, it encouraged us to be intentional about TV watching. And with so many streaming services and advertisements for new shows, our streaming costs could exceed the former cable bill if we didn't follow a budget. When was the last time, you checked in on your subscriptions?Thankfully, I'm not much of a TV person. My best guys, on the other hand, can binge-watch like it's their job. But I have my own issues with …

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5 Easy Technology Solutions to Go Paperless

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Paper clutter challenges families every day. Junk mail, kid's art, catalogs, and more. Having established a Paper Filing System for our family, I can safely say that we live 90% paperless leveraging technology to support this goal. If you get control of the paper, the paperless part became a reality. Sign up to receive my FREE Paper Filing System  Technology options are overwhelming and it's hard to know how to choose the right one. But it's more important to establish your routine and less about the tool itself. Here are my 5 "go-to" tools to help you get started on the road to Paperless Living. 1. Evernote I started using Evernote over 10 years ago.  I love that the information syncs to all devices. My Evernote tab stays open all the time. The addition of the Web Clipper on my web browser allows me to clip webpages and save them to relevant notebooks such as Business, Recipes, Family, etc. Eventually, it's easy to see which Notebooks really work …

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