Green Tip Tuesday: Green Ways to Get Rid of the Clutter

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

I'm buried here in Massachusetts and not just because of the blizzard.  I'm buried in STUFF.  Christmas is over and now all of those cheerful decorations are reading as *Clutter* to me now.  With the new gifts we received some stuff has to go.

So how to get rid of the clutter and decorations without filling up a landfill or just slinging it all into a box and stuffing it into that subterranean landfill I call "storage"?

It's easy: Donate.

Here's my plan:
First I'm going to take down the Christmas decorations.  There are a lot of items that I put up this year not because I liked them but because I'd always put them up and didn't have a good reason not to do so again.  Well, my good reason has arrived!  After searching a lot of decorating blogs AND reading my new Feng Shui book, I have decided that having anything, even something seasonal, that isn't useful, beautiful, or both is a BAD IDEA.  As I take the items down I am going to give each bobble a good scrutinizing to see if it goes into the 'Storage' box or the 'Donate' box.  No need to give away family heirlooms, but really?  The shiny gold bows I bought at Big Lots 20 years ago?  No, their time has come...and gone. 

My decor wasn't quite this cluttered, but this is how it feels now!

Luckily I also took my own advice and used a lot of natural decorating so the nuts, seeds, cranberries, pinecones, and clove oranges can all be tossed into the woods to become treasures for the woodland creatures.

Now let's talk about gifts.  Anything you received this year that you know, deep in your heart of hearts, just isn't for you and yours?  Don't store it, don't *intend* to do something with it, don't let it sit somewhere until it becomes part of the landscape.  Give it away.  Do it now.  Don't feel guilty.  There is absolutely nothing wrong with moving things that are not useful and/or beautiful to you on to someone who will love them.  What if the gift was given to you by someone who will a) notice it gone; b) be hurt that you don't love it; or c) spent a lot of time/money in the purchase or creation of the gift?  Thank them.  Thank them genuinely, lovingly, and earnestly.  Then load it in your car and take it to the donation station quickly, before you lose your nerve.

As for the rest of my stuff, these last few days of the year are an excellent opportunity to donate those sweaters that I still haven't worn even though the weather has been cold for 2 months.  To get rid of those platters that I still didn't use, even though I hosted a large party on Christmas Eve.  To help my daughter rid herself of unused Wii games, and my husband and I both need to do a good book purge (though I'll confess that of all the items I donate, books are the hardest with which to part). 

And the benefits of my hard work?  HUGE!  Cleaner house, less clutter, items that really reflect my decorating taste NOW not 10 years ago, tax deductions, good example for my daughter, lightening up is good for the mind, body, and soul, less to store, more room to invite into my life those items I would like now (I have a bedroom chair in mind, more on that later), and according to Feng Shui, my Chi'i should be off the charts with all the positive energy flow.

Sorry about the blur, but you get the idea.  Breathing room!

Simplify, simplify, simplify.  I feel lighter already.

How about you?

Simplicity, Life at its Best

Years ago I came across a book called Simple Abundance by Sarah Ban Breathnach which contains daily meditations on the principles of order, simplicity, beauty, and gratitude.  I have read and re-read this book many times, frequently starting it in the middle of the year, reading ahead or catching up, but always finishing it feeling rejuvenated.  Refreshed.  Revived.

I have been thinking a lot about simplicity lately as I have been reviewing some of my favorite feng shui books, visiting one of my favorite blogs Strictly Simple Style, reading back issues of Guideposts magazine (from the library, of course!) about simplifying life, and gearing up for a new year.

One of my goals this year is to simplify.  I want to simplify my body: simplifying what I eat, smoothing and toning so that my appearance is uncluttered, slender, and healthy.  I want to simplify my home: take all those boxes to the Salvation Army that I have been putting in my storage room "to take later", get in the habit of addressing paperwork immediately rather than putting it on my desk "for later", and organizing closets and drawers rather than tossing items in "to deal with later."  Later appears to be cluttering my life.

I found it interesting that when I search Google Images for Simplicity a lot of the images returned were of nature.  I agree.  Even a forest strewn with leaves, branches, stones, flora and fauna appears simple.  Soothing.  Uncomplicated.  I notice the same thing about my daughter: she is still young enough that her body is simple, her attitude is straight forward.  Her life, while certainly becoming busy and more complicated, is still uncluttered.

Being a huge admirer of (anything) Pottery Barn I always tend to picture one the rooms they feature online, in their catalog, or in their stores as the image of simplicity.  Like if I lived in a room like that: flooded with natural light, adorned with furnishings and fabrics that have clean lines, beautiful textures, soft colors, and sturdy construction,  that I too would become a person with clean lines, enough texture to be interesting,  a soft forgiving heart, and a sturdy character.

Image from Potterybarn.com

Luckily I don't believe for a minute that I have to invest in a $10,000 room makeover (as enticing as that would be!) to achieve those qualities.  I simply need to simplify.

The January Doldrums

Our household is feeling the January doldrums.  The blahs.  Steve is home sick from work.  I am having to talk myself into going to the gym, folding that last load of laundry, and/or cooking dinner.  Our daughter is trying to fry her brain with too many The Suite Life of Zach and Cody reruns.

Yep, it's the end of January all right.

I read a feng shui book that had a lot of information about stale energy.  If I have any energy at all right now it is certainly stale, so I thought I'd get the book out again and brush up on the cures.  It turns out the cure to stale energy is to get moving.  sigh.  I don't want to get moving, but okay, I'll play along.  The book said to move 21 items in your home.  Unfortunately cleaning up, while extremely good, doesn't count as moving items.  I think I'll give it a try.  That candle on the mantle that has been collecting dust could be (dusted) moved upstairs to my bedroom.  The picture frames that I keep meaning to fill could be filled and hung up.  Maybe the throw pillows on the couch in the living room could be switched with the ones on the couch in the basement?  Perhaps I can recycle a pretty glass jar I received at Christmas as a new pen holder on my desk.  Maybe I'll even add a ribbon to it.  Or add a fun label to the jar.  Heck maybe I'll print out a collection of black & white toile labels and give my desk a coordinated French country look.

Okay, maybe there is something to moving 21 items.  Just thinking about moving the items I feel more energetic.  I'll start with moving the biggest item: myself, and then see where it goes from there.

Happy January!

Oh so that's what we are supposed to do in bed!

New house. New bedroom. New bed including mattress and box springs. Scene set for a night of ...TV watching? The new house also came with another new feature: the wall mount TV bracket. I abhor the wall mount TV brackets on many, many levels as I will detail for you in a moment, but first let me ask: what is it about an empty TV bracket that instantly turns men into beings obsessed with filling that space? We haven't had a television in our bedroom for 8 years and suddenly Steve cannot live another moment without watching the news while he gets dressed each morning. Now I'll admit that with all the "together time" we've had over the past 2 weeks that he was on vacation he probably he fears having to talk to me for any length of time, but I don't know that putting a television in our bedroom will solve this problem because I have no problem talking over the TV.

Now about these wall-mount TVs:
1. The bracket isn't centered over a fireplace or other architectural structure it is in the corner of the room just like in a hospital. With our green-painted walls and white bedding the whole hospital look may just be too much for anyone but especially a recovering hypochondriac like me.

2. The television is ugly. It is a blank black box. It is not aesthetically pleasing. It cannot be masked, mounted in the corner as it is. It is an aberration in my beautiful, peaceful room.

3. First comes the TV. Then he'll need TiVo. Then a DVD player. The corner that was supposed to house a beautiful chair for relaxing, reading, and looking at the mountains will become a shrine to technology. It is inevitable.

4. Sleep and sex. That's all I need to do in bed. I would prefer not to do either with a laugh track playing in the background. (Although studio audience applause, if well placed, could be kind of encouraging...)

5. Feng shui says this a definite no-no and y'all know how into Feng shui I am.

But...I don't live alone (for which I am thankful) and I don't have complete control over the contents of my home (something which I am striving to change through nagging), and I suppose that anyone lucky enough to live in a home with a view of the mountains could perhaps, just perhaps, be graceful enough to suck up having a television in the room.

Then again...if nagging works....

We Bought A House!!!

You may remember this little gem, it was one of the contenders, then became a finalist, and as of June 30 will be called home. Home, what a wonderful word. We began the search back in mid-January and I can honestly say I have looked at hundreds of homes, if only online. We began searching a very narrow area in Massachusetts, then ventured out into New Hampshire, and finally narrowed in again. The new house is 5 minutes from our daughter's school, 10 minutes from Steve's office, 5 minutes from my favorite grocery store, and 3 minutes from Barnes&Noble (which for a book lover, was a huge consideration!). I can walk to the library and post office. We have neighbors, there are plenty of kids, and the view is amazing.

From a feng shui point of view you are always supposed to face the south and have a mountain at your back. This house has both. It is open, airy, and filled with natural light. It is my dream home and I feel incredibly lucky to have found such a house and incredibly grateful to be able to afford it. Just out of curiosity I ran the address through a numerology "calculator" and the address equals a '4' which means strength, solidity, and comfort. I need some solidity in my life. I am ready to settle down. We could all just use some time to be settled. I am grateful for the time I have had to search for the right home, but I am definitely not a long-term-renter. I need the responsibility of a home of my own. I need the grounding, maybe because I am a Gemini, an air sign, I am drawn toward bricks and mortar, wood and earth: solid substances to provide some balance to my air-filled nature (air-headed as my family would say).

Be it ever so humble, it will be my home.

Feng Shui for Lazy People

I would love to read a book titled Feng Shui for Lazy People, perhaps I should write one because I, more than anyone I know, is all about combining Feng Shui and being lazy.

I am not lazy in the typical sense of the word, I am not 'resistant to work or exertion' or 'prone to idleness or sloth' I am more of a procrastinator. I keep busy all day long, it's what I'm busy doing with which I sometimes take issue.

All this leads to Feng Shui because I have lately been trying to make peace with my circumstances (renting, having no storage, having 2/3 of my household goods still in boxes in storage) and thought perhaps bringing the art of placement to this home would help me to attract a new home more quickly. Sounds good, right? Unfortunately I have found myself plagued by a lack of motivation to do anything to this home. Unclutter a cabinet? Well, I know I should, but the cabinet is only cluttered because I have only 3 cabinets in the entire kitchen and if I take anything out, where would I put it?

The biggest nightmare is the bathroom. Having all 3 of us and all our sundry stuff squished into a bathroom with only 1 upright wall (the others are all slanted with the eaves of ceiling), a pedestal sink, no countertop, and no linen closet has been challenging to say the least. Feng Shui recommends that I transform the bathroom into a haven for relaxing, cleaning the body (inside and out), and devoting time to grooming rituals. Wellllllll, my bathroom is more of a chaotic blend of too many grooming products fighting for space with towels, sheets, bathroom cleaners, and a (gulp!) litter box. That's right, it's not just us 3 humans using the bathroom, Princess the Cat is a resident as well.

Couldn't I just get all the benefits of Feng Shui without actually having to organize anything? (I believe we have uncovered the lazy part, yes?) Sadly, it doesn't seem to work that way. So here is my plan: I am going to begin packing. We are all going to pretend we are at camp for the next several months and make do with only the bare essentials. I am going to pack all the towels, except for 6. I will pack all the sheet sets, except for 2, etc. Not only will I get the benefit of having less packing to do when we buy a house, I'll get the decluttering benefits as well. I will take each room, one week at a time, figuring out what we can do without. Hopefully the added benefit will be that when we do actually move into a house perhaps I can chuck the whole lot in storage and we'll all live simpler, more streamlined lives.

Okay, I have my plan. Armed with plenty of packing boxes and my feng shui books I am ready to begin. I can't get started right now of course because I need to start dinner. Then I'll help my daughter with her homework. Then I have to pick up Steve. Then eat. Then wash dishes.

I think I'll start tomorrow...