TWO COOKBOOKS ARE ENOUGH FOR ME.

Well, for those of you who haven’t heard from me in months, I’ve been busy changing my home space and continuing – with only occasional stumbles - on my minimalist journey. The change was radical. We bought an old RV. And for the past four months we – my husband and I – have lived in a 30-foot RV along with our one gray, outdoor cat. Our RV is parked in a rather large, tree-lined mobile park. Here, we have all the services and Internet for our general creature comfort. 
 
On the basis of our recent experiences, I can say that  life can improve by living with less - all that depending, of course, on what sort of person you are. For us, the minimalist life is challenging, empowering and fun. Saying no to consumer overkill is a tough skill to acquire, but once we had it, we easily gave up a bunch of things that other people still cling to and started to live life on your own terms. 

As we were to become RV full-timers, we prepared to rid ourselves of virtually everything that we deemed unnecessary. And, for us, holding on to just the essentials is a great satisfaction.
 
What fits, in the way of furniture, are only the original RV built-ins. So, all our old furniture had to go. Other personal possessions needed to be weeded out. For example, my wardrobe is now a third of what it was 12 months ago. My husband's held on to about half of the clothes he had. As for household items, we started downsizing a while back when we still lived in regular housing. We took an audit of our bedding, towels, toiletries, kitchen items, electronics. We kept only the best and what we truly used. We got rid of one of our cars 12 months ago. Now we have only one small car and a motorcycle that gets my husband to work. That seems just right for our life in a small town where almost everything is less than a half-hour drive. 

Despite our efforts to prepare for life in the RV, we had to face the fact that the living space is extremely limited – beyond what we could have imagined. So, for the first two months in the RV, we rented a storage unit for the overflow. We also gave a lot away to friends and to the thrift store. We were still cramped for space. There was a real lack of space for my kitchen stuff. And I thought I didn’t have so much. Well, as I’ve found out, I had way much more than I needed. At first, I had kitchen stuff hidden in every sort of place well beyond the tiny kitchen - into the living area and under the bed. I realized that I would have to sort through and keep just what was the most necessary. And that I’ve done and probably will continue to do over the next few months. 

Also, when we moved in, I knew that we wouldn’t have space for a formal book shelf. Our books had to be tucked away in a couple of overhead compartments. That meant that the total - for me - couldn’t be more than a couple of dozen books. And, as in other areas of my material life, I thought about why I was holding onto treasured things and what would happen if I let them go. I spent a whole morning sorting through and donated about thirty books to a community library. And, now, I am the proud owner of 20 books – 6 non-fiction, 12 yoga and self-help books, and just two cookbooks. (Because of their usefulness, cutting back on cookbooks was something that I found especially difficult.)

Finally, settling down to just two cookbooks.

Anyway, that’s the introduction to what I’m talking about today – the downsizing of my cookbook collection. Just a year ago, I had - maybe - twelve cookbooks of all sizes, shapes, age and content. I had believed - erroneously, I imagine - that twelve was a small number. Twelve seemed to be only a few when compared to some friends who report having as many as fifty cookbooks. (What they do with all of them I really don’t know.) It seems if you love to cook, you probably have been collecting a lot of cookbooks. So, this must be a particularly challenging area for library downsizing. 

Of the dozen that I had in the apartment, I'd kept three cookbooks for the RV kitchen. They were: Better Home and Gardens - classic loose-leaf, 5-ringed edition, Frugal Gourmet, and a really old, paperback Joy of Cooking that I'd been carrying around for decades. I felt rather proud of myself for having eliminated well over half of my collection. Still, after a while, I realized that I didn’t need all three and decided to do something about it. Going only e-recipe cooking wasn't a good option for me. While I do sometimes look up recipes on the Internet, most of the time I prefer the tried and true meals from traditional cookbooks. The recipes that I use tend to be easily made as given or simply modified accorded to my whim or, more often, after the lack of one or another ingredients that are included in the write-up. I also had a collection made up of recipe clips from magazines, Internet print-outs and fully hand-written pages. 

For most of the dishes that I like to make, I choose recipes from cookbooks with traditional American recipes. But then, again, I occasionally want to do some ethnic dishes – mostly Indian, Italian and Mexican. I really don't care much about the photos. Also, fortunately, I had no sentimental cookbook inherits from my mom or grandmas.

What I finally did was keep the Better Homes and Gardens. That was the most useful as it was – minus the meat, fish, and poultry sections that I removed. As a vegetarian, I was 99+% sure that I wouldn't be using anything in those sections. I held onto about forty separate pages of ethnic cooking recipes from the Frugal Gourmet book. It was an old paperback and falling apart, anyway. So, I didn't have to feel so bad about that. I put the Frugal Gourmet pages in the Better Homes and Gardens book, punching holes and separating them into the same food divisions already there.   My diverse recipe clips were transferred to hand-written pages in a special binder that I found on sale at the bookstore. The twenty or so Joy of Cooking pages that I saved were small and fit into plastic page covers in the binder. To tell the truth, a good part of the things in the binder are still in the form of printed pages, computer printouts or magazine clips, awaiting the day, if it ever comes, when I get around to transferring them into nicely hand-written pages.

For those of you who like the idea of cutting back to only a few cookbooks, I urge you to do so. Just start slow and enjoy the activity. Look at one book at a time. Take time to pull the book off the shelf and consider if it's really worth it according to your time and skills. Honor your emotions. Send all those that don't make the cut to someone else, so they'll have a new home. Other books that aren't so valuable  can be donated to the thrift store. You should be happy with the remaining cookbooks. Any other recipe that you might need for some special occasion can easily be found on Internet cooking blogs.

MY OFFICE SUPPLIES, SCRAPBOOK, MEMENTOS, AND GREETING CARD DRAWER SHRUNK TO SHOEBOX SIZE

As you have seen from earlier posts, I fully believe in peace and harmony in the home. That's why I've been busy these past months striving for minimalism in my home. Among my first projects were getting rid of extra furniture items, excess bed and towel linen, and deplasticizing my kitchen.  So, recently, I knew I would have to tackle the junk in my drawers. And, just  a few days ago,  lacking more pressing things to do, I decided to open up one of my drawers and organize it.  My goal was to do this in one afternoon. It was after lunch and I hadn't done much of anything on such a rainy Thursday.  I started by opening the lower drawer of the two-drawer file cabinet in my bedroom.

I have had to face a lot of challenges in my transitioning to a lighter lifestyle and I've found that tidying takes a lot longer than you would think. Can you imagine that, at first, I thought paring down a whole house would take only a few months?  But the year is almost over and the more I work at it, the more I find major loads of junk that don’t need to be around my home. Looking hard for some justification, I like to blame this slow progress on my husband, who isn’t totally on board for this adventure. But, then, again I, personally, have a lot that I still need to do - what with the cleanliness, the organization, and the day-to-day clutter that I also help create.

It's good to have organized file drawers.

But, I did something today – I worked on clearing out misplaced things in the bottom drawer of my file cabinet. What I found was a unsettling combination of craft and scrapbook materials, English as a Second Language lessons (now dusty from my teaching days), pens, sundry office supplies, assorted greeting cards, and other mementos that I had “filed away” for some later date when I could get to them. Oh, and also I found a few knitting and craft patterns that didn’t’ make their way to the four large scrapbooks that I've dedicated to dreaming about and documenting my handiwork projects.

What went and what stayed.

I saw some improvement as the afternoon progressed. I organized and got rid of almost all the things that don’t have any place in this drawer, including, of course, my husband's misplaced files. That was easy enough.

I also discovered what looked like 100 greeting cards for all occasions and blank notes. Not being much of a greeting card person, that supply could easily take me well into my next lifetime.  Obviously, most had to go. I chose to set aside all the specific greeting cards for give away and keep about thirty with nice designs and a white page inside. Those – in my own handwritten note - can be used for birthdays, anniversaries, get-well and even for condolences.  They should last me a while and when they run out, I plan to buy totally blank note cards and print up the fronts with my own colorful artwork.

Office supplies continue to make up most of the space in the drawer and that’s the way it should be. I tossed the extras. For example, I kept only one of the four big letter stencil sets and about a third of the pens that I had collected over the past couple of years. Dried up glue and no longer working scissors quickly found their way to the trash can.

My personal documents were transferred to the top file drawer that I, as yet, haven’t organized the way I want.  Now, the ESL file is up there, too.

Crafty pages have been reassigned to scrapbooks on a shelf.

Smallish sundry mementos and sewing materials have found their way to a few boxes in the closet where I usually stash them.

I have to admit that I still have a smallish stash of pens and other highly useful office accessories near my desk and consequently, outside the bottom drawer. But, given their utility – by proximity – for the time being, they'll have to stay where they are.

Oh, and did I really get everything down to the sought after shoebox full? Well, that was just me, daydreaming, again. In truth, I haven’t accomplished all that I set out to do -- yet. But I now have a large pile of throw-outs and destined-for-the-thrift-shop that accounts for about half the former contents of the drawer. So, I guess it will take another rainy day inspiration to finish the task. And just cheating a bit - I have a couple of over sized boot boxes, on reserve, that might fit the shrunken contents of my second file drawer - whenever I get back to work on it.

MY (ALMOST ALL) HOMEMADE LIQUID DISH SOAP

Making your own household cleaning products isn't really such a big deal – but it may seem that way at first. The truth is that it’s actually easier than you may think. It’s all a matter of routines. That’s what I told myself when I began this adventure with homemade laundry detergent. And on my very first try, happily, it that turned out to be an excellent product - far superior and much cheaper than anything I could buy at the big box store.  .

After that, I felt that I could also make my own homemade liquid dish soap - something that I use a lot of  because I totally lack a dish wash machine. (And that's a condition that I've had most of my adult life, making me a more-than-experienced dishwasher by hand.) It turned out that all my early tries at making a homemade dish soap failed – for months. And all those trials were in contrast to my homemade laundry detergent that was a success from the very first.

The recipes for homemade dish soap – and there are many of them online - kept falling short of my needs. Most weren’t soap-like at all. Some were slippery and thin and others just didn’t suit me at all because they left a nasty oily scum on the dishes. After many tries, I finally came up with something that works for me.  The recipe that I’m following now leaves squeaky-clean dishes and glassware and rinses off without any residue. And I don’t hesitate to share with others.  It takes only a few minutes to make – in my case, that’s 5 minutes about twice a week. That's pretty good return for my time considering that I've lowered my dish soap bill to about 15% of what it was just a few months ago.

The best part of it is that this homemade dish soap is earth-friendly. We all know that most commercial dish soaps are loaded with toxins, and even some of the "green" cleaners contain harsh chemicals. Beyond that, the second ingredient in many popular store brands is sodium lauryl sulfate, something that is considered to be a health-hazard and a carcinogen. So, why continue using products that we know are bad for us and for the environment? And that, especially, when we come across a recipe for an eco-friendly liquid dish soap that is non-toxic and does a great job.

This dish soap is non-toxic, cheap and works! 

Ingredients
-1 and 1/2 cups of boiling hot water (with some lemon, orange and/or grapefruit peels thrown in, if you like a bit of pleasant odor).

- 3 heaping tablespoons of grated laundry soap

-1 teaspoons of super washing soda

- 1 teaspoons of borax

Using your homemade dish soap
I use a funnel to put all the dry ingredients in a glass 2-quart, recycled fruit juice bottle. Next, I dump in the almost boiling water - having removed the fruit peels - in the bottle and stir vigorously with a chopstick. Then, I add a quart of plain cool water and shake it all up.

So, as you  see, this recipe is super easy. You just make up the batch right in the bottle. It’s initially somewhat liquid but it thickens up after it cools. If it’s too thick later on, just shake it up,  add a little warm water, and give it a good shake. It'll do fine.

As to the dishwashing method, this may take a bit of a variation over what you usually do with commercial products. I transfer a quarter cup or so of the liquid to a plastic bowl and wash my dishes with the dish rag, separately – meaning that I don’t let the dishes soak together and rinse them, one-by-one. The soap suds up only the slightest bit on the rag and it's better not to add more water to the rag while washing a dish (or a few dishes at a time, depending on the amount of grease to be eliminated).

NOTES: The amount of thickeners needed - washing soda and borax - may vary some, depending on your water supply, so adjust accordingly. Although I wouldn’t want everyone to quote me on this, you may still have to throw in a couple of squirts of a commercial dish soap (the most natural one you can find) to be sure that you get great results. Sure, that’s an added expense but it may be the best way to go with very hard water - like I have.  I only have to buy one small bottle of commercial soap every three months. For me, it's well worth the extra few cents.

The homemade dish soap that I make doesn't hurt my hands. But, it may bother yours - washing soda and borax are fairly strong chemicals. So, be prepared to use gloves for dish washing if you notice any skin redness or itching.

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TOP SHEETS BEGONE: A ZERO-ENERGY WIN/WIN

You know you really don't need them. And, despite the fact that your mom and grandma used them... and even though sets come with them, that doesn’t mean you have to use them. It's a European custom that's time has come. SO, OUT WITH THE TOP SHEETS. You can sleep just as well or better without them. And it can save on energy, too.

Beds in several European countries - if not all - have a duvet, a bottom sheet, but no top sheet. While the European duvet, is a bit thicker and warmer than a top sheet, it’s still usable most of the year. And, it's about the same as making a bed with a spread, light blanket or comforter. So, unless the bedroom is around 90 degrees in summer, a spread or light blanket - preferably cotton or bamboo - or a lightweight comforter is what's called for, anyway.

I know I always need a light blanket because my husband insists on air conditioning in the night. He sweats a lot, even in a room that I find comfortably cool - or cool enough - and says the sweat wakes him up. Anyway, the top sheet almost always could be found kicked down to the very bottom of the mattress or slid totally off the bed - all this making for more clutter and confusion in the early morning.

 

Beyond that, my husband is an above-the-sheets and on-top-of-covers sleeper. He’s that way both summer and winter. As for me, I do my best to stay covered up all night but often find myself half awake, tugging to get back some control of my bed real estate. That’s because my husband, free from all bedclothes restrictions and sleeping soundly, usually traps me in a small space on my side of the bed and with almost all the bed linen pulled under his body. So, sans top sheet, I may still have to contend energetically for bed space and cover but, at least, there’s one thing less to fight over.



Beds without top sheets look just as good.

My awakening to this brighter future happened – in a flash - this past week when I ripped off the top sheet and made the bed without it.  Before, it was a real chore and I did it grudgingly.  I find it easier to make the bed and it looks just as good in less than half the time. Now, I've sworn to always make the bed this way.

So, I've just revived this clutter-busting custom that I did years ago when I lived alone. That leaves me with one less chore in the morning. It's ever so much easier to throw a light comforter or spread over the bed than to actually make it - top sheet and all.

And having less total sheets means more room in my closet. And I do appreciate the extra space. That, since I don't actually have a linen closet but make do with a couple of plastic bins in the master closet. So, I’ve cheerfully given my top sheets to the thrift store to be recycled by someone – who still likes top sheets or even better yet wants to make bottom, fitted sheets out of them or convert them into curtains.

Also, without the added top sheet, more dirty clothes fit into the washer along with the coverlet and pillowcases. And that means water and detergent savings. It also means that you have one item less to fold up before storing it somewhere.

The top-sheet disappearance is a part of my zero-energy campaign – that being, both using less outside energy and also less housekeeping energy. So, to me, at least, living without top sheets is a definite win/win.

 

THINGS TO DOWNSIZE RIGHT AWAY: CASE #1 – LARGE, FLUFFY BATH TOWELS

Even if you haven’t gone through some major economic emergency that has forced you to reduce your former household size, you probably have some kind of plan to downsize and/or take the clutter out of your house. You know - in your heart of hearts - that having all those possessions is getting to be a burden and your soul longs for a lighter material life.

Downsizing seems to be about people's stuff, but it's really about their attitudes and values. And nobody says the process is easy. In fact, many people report a lot of emotional baggage around letting go. We, understandably, tend to identify with our possessions, so downsizing, for any reason, means a confrontation with who we think we are – our very identity. For example, many people with shelves and shelves (and walls) of books say that all those books mean something to them. Can that possibly be true? Of course, not. But their own identity is tied up with trying to be that person who would read all that (and more). You have to let go of that fantasy self and find a new one who says: “I’m only going to live so many more years, and the chances I read or need to look up something in all of these books is close to zero."

It’s the person that has to change. And, beside books, here's a list of other "sticky" possessions that most people find it hard to part with:

Collections of photos, mementos, and family "treasures"

Antiques and favored furniture

Clothing and other “creature comforts”

Stuff they thought they’d use in the future

On the brighter side, and if I’m reading correctly a lot of blog posts, many people report both happiness and relief when they get rid of clutter and downsize. Here's the nitty-gritty  - we all know that it isn’t good to hold on so much to the past, and things are a lot of our past. Too much energy is involved in maintaining all that baggage. And, properly done, we can let go of what we no longer need and create a better future for ourselves. So, I'm challenging you to take that step and make a healthy commitment to look ahead – instead of behind.

At any rate, it isn’t necessary to begin downsizing and reducing clutter with our very most treasured possessions. We can begin elsewhere. There’s a lot to choose from. In this post, I propose just one change that you can do today to declutter and downsize. And it doesn’t have to affect your identity or your creature comfort.

Case # 1 - The Large, Fluffy Bath Towel

Here, I talk about a creature comfort – the bath towel – and how I changed my attitude toward it over the years.

When I was a child, we didn’t have “nice” towels in the bathroom at our house. Well, most of what we had to dry ourselves with after bathing were called bath towels but, clearly, they were leftover items from years of use. My Mom, true to her past in the Great Depression and WWI, was thrifty and didn’t throw towels away until they were literally rags. Then, she used them for rags.

Tending to be small – just big enough for the purpose that they were intended for - our towels were thoroughly wet when you got through drying. That was a fact of life, and, as far as I could tell, no one seemed to worry themselves about it.  The towel, one for each of us, was hung up in the bathroom and used for a week – drying out in the approximate 24 hours between baths. We didn’t have a shower back then. When hair was washed, a second towel, often the dirty one from the week before that was still in the hamper, was brought into action.

Back in those days, regular people - those who weren’t "rich" - made no effort to put out matching towels and wash cloths. Maybe, in the living room or the bedroom, but the idea of bathroom décor just wasn’t heard of.

So, as a child and teenager, I had made comparisons and felt somewhat left out, seeing that our better-off relatives and friends had newer looking and comfier towels. Later, I saw sets of large towels with matching wash cloths in magazines and on the TV. They were ever so large and fluffy. That spelled out luxury to me.  I vowed that, someday, I would have sets of plush  towels and wash cloths that would grace my (dreamed of) large linen closet. And that they would be the heavy, fluffy type. I guess I bought in, big-time, to the media hype of having the "boutique hotel experience."

So, what happened over the years? Well, my husband and I finally got good paying jobs and the cost of cotton items got cheaper, due to foreign trade. Yes, and, for a long time, I prided myself on buying and using large, fluffy bath towels.

Years, later, came a life-changing set of crises – children then on their own, thankfully. At the end of all that, my husband and I were forced to move across country and downsize our living quarters. In the condo that we gave up – the one that I thought would be our retirement home for the rest of our lives - there was a sizeable linen closet and nice bath. So, bathroom decor, including nice towels, was, if not a priority, at least a possibility.

But, from there, my husband and I went to live in just one room in the house of a friend - along with a shared bathroom. So, a lot of downsizing went on. No furniture was taken with us, and only clothing and some personal items made it that far. Of course, I hadn't gotten rid of all of my beloved “creature comforts.” Yes, I had traveled cross-country with four of my largest and most plush bath towels along with matching wash cloths.

Also, at about that time, I began to adopt greener alternatives and started blogging about Earth-friendliness. So, a lot of things came under scrutiny. Those included washing procedures – energy-related things - like always filling up the machine to capacity, using cold water, choosing less harmful detergents, etc. I also found out that cotton, although the products are available to us fairly cheap, have a huge impact on water use and that the people who collect cotton and make the towels do so under terrible working conditions with wages that don’t even feed them well.

That’s about the time I began to look at my fluffy bath towels differently. They took up a lot of space in the closet. They took up too much room in the washer. They didn’t dry as fast as other clothes in the dryer. Also, I had, over the years, lost a lot of my former interest in matching towel sets. Bathroom décor no longer was a priority in my life.

That’s when I decided to change out my old bath towels for smaller, light-weight ones and give my old ones to a local charity. I found a couple of "downsized" towels at the thrift store and purchased another two - half the length and one-quarter the the weight of the older ones. To my surprise the new ones worked fine, and I’m happy enough using them - no regrets. So, now, I’ve solved one volume–related, material problem surrounding bath towels use. And, oh, I'm still working on some of the social and ecological ones.

By the way, I’ve yet to convince my husband. He still has his old towels. Anyway, he’s not likely to buy himself any new towels, and so eventually his towels will be lighter by wear, if not by intent. My pledge is that I’m not buying any larger, fluffy towels for me or for him.

So, this is my take on bath towels. You can get along very well without all those large, fluffy towels. Get rid of them and buy smaller, lighter versions. If you balk at buying more stuff when you already have towels, here’s an idea. Cut those big towels in half and make a pretty crochet edging around the “new” towels. I’ve wanted to that with my husbands’ towels and made my intentions known.  So far, he hasn’t let me do that.

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TAKE GRANDMA'S 100 THING CHALLENGE

Despite the materialistic hype that's pounding at us every day, having overflowing basements, closets, garages, and drawers doesn’t make us better or more attractive people. And, it won't make us miraculously happy either - quite possibly the opposite. I think a lot of us feel that in our bones, but where do we start? A book and blog have been written about this dilemma. It’s about the 100 Thing Challenge, and it tells us how one person pared down his worldly possessions to an amazing, minimalist 100 things. He says that he’s been convinced by his experience. Here's what he recommends to reach such a goal: "Reduce (get rid of some of your stuff); Refuse (to get more new stuff); and  Rejigger (your priorities)."

I bet you'll feel joyful and spiritually uplifted, too, if you take on your own minimalist challenge. This is, of course, a tough choice to make. Many, if not most, US households have so many extra things. So, paring back to 100 – even a 1000 - things may seem like a monumental task. It’s clearly a decision that shouldn't be taken lightly – especially when there are other family members who may not want to sign on to such an ordeal.

Grandma's 100 Thing Challenge

It’s a smaller challenge, by far, than living with only 100 things but I believe it’s something we all can do and feel good about. It makes minimalism a work in progress. So, start out slow and do a little at a time. That way, it won't be so much of a burden. You’ll know that you can halt the process if suddenly you see (or feel) the need. My challenge to you is to give up one thing - duplicated in function or unused in several months - in your home every day for 100 days. Then, if you like the results you can continue giving up some more things for another 100 days, and so on. Maybe, then, you'll find just the right number of things for you - 100, 200, 300, etc.

Whatever the number of things you can get rid of, you'll be living without that much household disorganization and have more time to do meaningful things for yourself and others. Like many others, the very clutter and dust-accumulation around may be so depressing that you go out to shop for new things or plan more vacation trips - just to get out of the house.

I believe that people find grace through balance, and we can only achieve this when we take control of our own lives (not having our belongings own us) and pursue what's really important. Possessions, beyond a bare minimum, just get in the way. Having a suburban McMansion, despite the TV and movie hype, isn't “living the good life”. When we endlessly acquire more things, including duplicating stuff in our homes, we never settle in and enjoy what we've got.

Over and over, we’ve mistakenly told ourselves that life wouldn’t be complete without this "special" thing we are buying. But just as soon as this thing is brought home and tucked away, we start out the next day to the mall or the big box store to look for the next "special" thing - in what ends up being a never ending process. We mindlessly seek that momentary reward of finding that next thing - whatever it is and whether we need it or not. With this kind of consumerism, we are the dog chasing our own tail. You can just stop that cycle.

This is what the 100 Thing Challenge is about. If you try for a certain period - say, two or three months - to not buy anything beyond your basic needs, while recycling and repurposing all you can, you'll have a great sense of liberation. You will find that very few things make the new purchase cut - a useful tool, a book, a good wine, a small gift for someone who needs cheering. And, hey, you don't have to ditch family photos and heirlooms. The very best can be incorporated, into your new, organized lifestyle or given to a loved one who promises to cherish them.

Grandma's take on this challenge
If you remember, I already recommended the wardrobe editing challenge. For me, personally, wardrobe editing meant paring back to a total of 50 items. I continue to practice the wardrobe discipline - just buying a new item - usually the thrift store variety - when I really don't like something I have or have worn it out.

I give back the no-longer wanted items to charity or tear them apart, to use as fabric strips (or yarn, in the case of sweaters) to make needlework and other craft projects. I must say that I've seldom regretted giving something away or had a hard time replacing an item that later I found I needed. My personal goal is to have only enough needed for daily life and make absolutely no frivolous purchases. That means taking home nothing that hasn't been considered for at least a week. I’ll cheerfully give up just about anything with only a few exceptions. My rule is: If I haven't used it in three months, I can probably live perfectly well without it.

So, here’s where I’ve started with my own paring down process. Everything is fair game right now, except:
- Stuff that’s my husband’s
- Some few books
- Good quality and super useful tools for crafts and for fixing things.
- Collections count as one item. If everything goes in one small case, I count it as one item. But I can and will edit objects from any collection that I have.

I’ll know I’m well on my way to winning this challenge when all my personal things, including clothing, fit comfortably into a tiny room room or one small commercial storage locker.

Steps to begin your 100 Things Challenge
Put one item in the Challenge Box every day for 100 days.
Things that are "just trash" need to go out and not be included in this box.
Start out with duplicated items. Then move on to things that haven’t been used in 3 or more months
Make a list of what goes in the Challenge Box and add boxes as needed.
Take a picture of each box as it fills up, if you want a visual record.

After 100 days, you'll have accomplished these things
- Big “give-away” pile for charity
- Plans and organization to have a garage sale. To make sure that most stuff goes, try labeling a majority of items with "Make me an offer." (You might try selling the really valuable things on EBay.)
- Happier for having a lot less to store and/or dust.
- A bit more money in your pocket or savings account because you are thoroughly aware of what it means to buy and hold on to so many useless things.

Where to from there
So, I hope you start out your minimalism challenge by choosing to get rid of 100 things. You'll find it's true that the less you have, the less you have to worry about. You’ll amaze yourself at how free you feel - no longer burdened by the need to organize, store and maintain all that stuff. Just keep on paring down and you’ll feel even better. And that relief can be extended to other areas - if you're both convinced and brave. (You might try a week-long camping trip to see if 100 (or even less) items are enough to live with on the short term.) Besides your belongings, you could then move on to other minimalistic challenges that can cover other areas that tend to complicate our existence and contribute to the carbon burden of the Earth, such as:
- New digital gadgetry
- Media consumption
- Costly dietary items
- Non-essential energy and water use
- Long-distance and long-commute travel

Related posts
EDIT YOUR WARDROBE
EMBRACE A SIMPLE HOME
REDEFINE YOUR PRIORITIES, REMAKE YOUR LIFE

Knit up some lacy curtains for a seasonal look that’s always in style

Before the days of full house heating and air conditioning, it was the custom to put down thick carpets and hang heavy drapes on the floors for winter and then to lighten up in spring and summer with lacy curtain panels and colorful throw rugs. Well, Grandma Susan still recommends that practice. Window opening, at least from time to time, continues to be a good idea, helping to get rid of stale house odors and reminding us of the need to wash windows.  And seasonal window dressing is fun. So, how about lightening up in spring and summer with some lacy curtains? Here’s the pattern for lacy curtain panels that I’m knitting right now to cover up the bottom half of the two small windows in my bedroom.



Lacy panel curtains add charm to any room.

 If you’re like me, you don’t want heavy drapes hanging in the windows in your bedroom (and other areas, too) in spring and summertime. My Mom, Dad, sister and I lived with my grandparents for several years when I was small. It was then that I first remember watching the almost scary seasonal behavior, orchestrated by my grandmother, that was known as Spring Housecleaning. In order to give almost everything in the house a good scrub, this annual ritual added up to almost two weeks of drudgery. The end result was a squeaky clean house with new summery fabrics on floors, windows, and elsewhere. The warm season choice for slipcovers was chintz, chenille for bedspreads, and lace for the windows.

I remember that later, when we lived in our own house, Mom followed at least a part of my grandmother’s customs – at least the part about seasonal fabric changes but without so much rigorous Spring Housecleaning. I am proud to say that I carry on the tradition of seasonal fabric changes. And, continuing this practice (with or without much seasonal cleaning)  provides me with a psychological boost that’s very comforting.

Lacy curtains – and not necessarily vintage ones
Lacy curtains allow you to enjoy the beauty of daylight while maintaining some level of privacy. And they have an airy quality that billow so nicely in the breeze. Who wouldn’t enjoy that?  In particular, I’m recommending the old roller shades rolled up to the top in the day and a lacy, flat panel below. It’s a carefree, summery and minimalist style. The best part is that you can make your own curtain panels with a simple knitting pattern. 

Right now, I’m working on curtains for the two windows in my bedroom. My curtains will fly for a while at least, fluttering in the springtime balmy breezes before the temperature here in SO TX reaches 100 degrees every day and only “cools down” to about 85 at night. We sweat during the day but at night we turn on the air conditioning. So, later, my lacy curtains will be hanging motionless – still letting in the light but with the windows kept shut to block the heat of the day (as much as I regret it for aesthetic and ecological reasons). Sigh!

While it probably seems intimidating, you can easily knit your own lace curtains if you have a little time on your hands. It isn't as difficult as it appears. My own windows are quite small and the café-type panels I’m making are 18” X 34” – covering approximately the lower half of the windows. (I venture to say that it will take me 2 to 3 weeks of leisurely knitting to finish the project.)

Condo knitting
Here’s the Condo (two different size) knitting needle deal. The stitches made on the bigger needle are loose and lacy and the stitches on the smaller needle(s) provide structure – thereby avoiding a tendency to see uneven, saggy or pinched, spots. It’s best to use the size needle indicated for your yarn and then choose how much bigger you want the other needle to be. You’ll get different results depending on the size of the needles you use.

Obviously, you’ll want to use a distinctly larger second needle for lacy effects. It’s a technique that was popularized in the 1970s. Some say it became so widespread when the Hippies of those days were busy making lacy – and, they say, somewhat saggy - knit ponchos. Condo knitting makes fabric like that worked by multiples of YO, K (yarn wrap-over, then knit) and STO (stitch two together). That combination creates large open stitches. Luckily, condo knitting is even easier. You knit with both the large gauge needle and the smaller one, making “normal” knitting stitches. No yarning over or stitching together is necessary.

To make this curtain panel, all you need are two basic knitting stitches (knit and purl) and three pattern rows. There’s just one minor variation on one of the knit rows, but I can assure you won’t have any problem doing it. (Personally, I don’t like to knit difficult things that require counting stitches and am always looking for variations on patterns that can satisfy my desire for interesting results without worrying about fancy stitches. What’s more, this is a lacy pattern. As such, it's based on making holes, so small errors in knitting – that almost always plague us - aren’t easily seen.)

Bamboo yarn
This time I’m using bamboo knitting yarn. It’s a fairly new entry item that’s become quite popular. It’s a green product (renewable resource) with a lot of beauty that wears well and even has some natural antibacterial properties. Bamboo, a grass, is harvested and distilled into cellulose; then spun into yarn. It’s somewhat more expensive than most cotton and synthetic yarns.

When knitted up, bamboo yarn is breathably cool and has a shiny luster. It’s also strong and flexible and quite soft. On the negative side, this yarn tends to split a bit, so it’s best to wash by hand. It’s probably a better choice for things that don’t need to be washed so frequently. I like it because it has a cotton string-like quality but drapes better and is ever so much softer.

Make a Lacy Condo Knit Curtain Panel
Supplies
One set of smaller knitting needles, either the long straight kind or circular (I used # 9.)
One larger needle, either the long straight ones or circular  (I used # 17.)
Several skeins of sport-weight or worsted weight yarn – enough for your windows. (I used a total of 3 skeins of worsted weight bamboo yarn in a bright grape color. I began from what I had in my stockpile, and, as often happens, had to buy more at the store before I could finish the project.)
Crochet hook (to pick up lost stitches)
Scissors
Measuring tape
Yarn needle (if you want to hang it on a rod or hem it).

Instructions
Cast on enough stitches for the width you want for your curtain. I used 64 stitches, working on the length – vertical-wise – because my curtains were more wide than long. The panel I'm making is to be flat instead of gathered. You’ll have to make more knit fabric if you want gathered curtains.

Important: Make 5 rows of garter stitch with both small needles at first and to finish. This makes for stronger ends. Be sure to keep the yarn tension somewhat loose on all small needle stitches.

Row 6: Purl all stitches with the bigger needle.

Row 7: Knit all stitches with the small needle. For the entire row, use the variation that one stitch is knitted in the front of the loop and the next one in the back. This twists the stitches and keeps the work more even.

Row 8: Knit all, normally (with the other small needle and all stitches through the front loop).

Repeat Rows 6, 7, and 8 until the knitting is long enough, or wide enough, depending on how you’re knitting your curtain. Allow an additional inch or two for the top and bottom if you plan to run a curtain rod through the top and have a hem.  (I avoided these extra inches by using bright multi-colored, ½ inch grosgrain ribbon, tied in bows, to hang the curtain on the rod and choosing not to hem.)

Finish with garter stitch rows and bind off. Hang up your new curtains and proudly let them flutter in the wind. That should make you very happy.

EMBRACE A SIMPLE HOME

If you want to live simply, don't try to fit your home life into a pre-molded floor plan - even the one that you now have as determined by your outside walls. Instead try to make sense of the way you want to live. Think outside the blueprint and search your heart to create the simple home that you’ve always longed to enjoy. A simplified home will allow you to focus on what's important and relax more when you need to with the added bonus of cleaning less and consuming less - what with lowered energy use and need for fewer material things. (And, as I keep harping in this blog, the best way to help our planet is by consuming less.)

You can begin your adventure of embracing a simple home by making a mission statement - a few lines of text that cover what's true about your home life and minus all that's false. You probably should pass on this statement of purpose to other members of your household to see if there's some basic agreement regarding a common mission. Reflect on how you truly live or hope to live in the not-so-distant future. Don't let other people's purposes or rules guide you choices. Don't try to plan for what your life may look like in 10 or more years.

Look for ideas to create a master plan for simplifying your home - in magazines, catalogues, on the Internet, and in showcases. Most people simplify by downsizing - choosing to live in a smaller space - and using that opportunity to find greater organization. You can easily make this choice the next time you move. But even if you plan to stay in the same house for several more years - or forever - there are ways to down-size and organize - by cleaning out and closing off rooms that serve little purpose for your current lifestyle. Remember a simple home includes only the basics and doesn't need part-time use rooms - like guest rooms and even a separate dining room or living room often is not necessary. Many times, outdoor spaces can be a good substitute for additional or little used rooms. (Putting the hype for McMansions aside, we often can fully live our home lives in one, two or three rooms and be just as well off or better when it comes to some really important things in our lives - like time for family, creature comfort, and spiritual growth.)

To create your simple home, assess your real needs and eliminate any excess. When you have a plan for the spaces you need for your lifestyle, then organize and declutter all areas. Minimize furnishings and decorative pieces in your plan. Use your walls wisely for extra vertical storage. Color can be part of a simple scheme - make use of it on walls, floors, curtains, cushions, etc.

As a place to start, here are the functions and basic spaces that just about all of us need:
- Calm place for individual relaxing, sleeping, meditation and prayer (bedrooms);
- Area for eating, preparing meals, and socializing (kitchen or great-room);
- Area for work at home, including office, laundry, gardening, and crafts (may be separate spaces or just  work areas in the already mentioned rooms).

BE SURE TO USE ALTERNATIVES TO CHLORINE BLEACH

Everyone seems to agree that disinfecting around the house and having whites clothes white are good things. Right? We used to use clorox or other chlorine bleach products to keep things white and clean. But, the news is out that chlorine bleach is not a safe product. Yes, your mother (and your grandmother) probably used it - as did most of us because we thought it was necessary. But don't continue to be fooled -chlorine bleach is a highly poisonous substance! It is a respiratory irritant and when mixed with other common household products, gives off a toxic gas. Chlorine exposure can harm your skin, eyes, and teeth and has been linked to birth defects. Yet it’s one of the most used chemicals - in drinking water, swimming pools, plastics, textiles, insecticides, paints, building materials, household cleaning products, and in white paper products (wood pulp is bleached to make paper).


Chlorine bleach is very hazardous to the environment. There are unintended byproducts of chlorine use (organochlorines and dioxins), and these do not break down readily and therefore bio-accumulate in our waste streams and eventually get into our rivers. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has found dioxin, a toxic byproduct of chlorine, to be 300,000 times more potent as a carcinogen than DDT. Yet chlorine bleach continues to be used, despite its dangers because it’s a cheap disinfectant to manufacture. Currently environmental groups are calling on manufacturers and government officials to ban the use of chlorine in all products. In response to these dangers, a number of important companies have begun to remove the use of chlorine and chlorine based plastics from their products.


There is also something that you and I can do. We can limit our use of this dangerous chemical by using chlorine bleach alternatives in our homes. Read the labels on the products on your cleaning shelf. Besides the bottle of bleach itself, you should check into chlorine use in automatic dishwashing detergents, chlorinated disinfectant cleaners, mildew removers, and toilet bowl cleaners.


The good news is that there are some good, inexpensive alternatives to use instead of chlorinated products. And many of these alternatives are a lot more eco-friendly.


If you want white, sweet smelling clothes, line dry your clothes in the sun. The UV’s in the sunshine are great for disinfecting and whitening your clothes. Also, half a cup of vinegar or borax in the laundry will brighten whites and colors and are good fabric softeners.


You can also make your own laundry soap at home. All you need is some borax, washing soda, and bar soap. It’s eco-friendly and can be made at a fraction of the cost of commercial products. You can find out how to make it with a search on the Internet.


Got stains on your clothes -- some will lift off when soaked in a half-bucket of cold water with a quarter cup of salt. Others can be treated with a paste of bicarbonate of soda or with a spray of full-strength hydrogen peroxide. And don’t worry about rinsing out these pre-treated items, they can safely be added to your regular wash. You can also use hydrogen peroxide, lemon juice, and vinegar for kitchen, bathroom and general cleanup around the house.


If you don’t have time for these kinds of alternatives, there are a number of commercial cleaning and clothes washing products without chlorine bleach. These are made with biodegradable, non-toxic, and 100% natural ingredients, and many don’t cost more than the chlorinated products. So spend a few moments looking at product labels and choose non-chlorine products that are also free of other worrisome ingredients like perfumes, phosphates, enzymes and petroleum.

DO YOU NEED A BROOM CLOSET?

This post has now become a part of Grandma Susan’s Almanac Calendar.
(See month of July.) -


 

HOME MANAGEMENT: find storage space in your home.

This article has now become a part of Grandma Susan’s website
(See month of September)-

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