De-Clutter your Life!

So my big thing these past couple of days has been to de-clutter my life, my home, my work, my thoughts--everything!!!

Sure, many people go thru that organizing faze at one point in their lives, especially in a new year, but for me its not about finding pretty boxes to box up more STUFF in, its about making life long changes.

Just like changing your thinking about living more green, cleaning up your life is another great way to make an even bigger statement about living green.

Tonight I tackled cleaning out the office closet. We've already cleaned the garage recently so the inside of the house was next. Which I have been avoiding for some time now. But I was growing tired of feeling like all my "stuff" was closing in on me.

UGH. cleaning the office was not fun. It was the ONE room I didn't care to do. I swear the office is like the landing place of things that didn't make it into the garage. AND once the stuff got in here--it had babies or something.

I recently read a book where the main character talked about how she dreamed of living in a small house where there was hardly anything in it and everything was white.

Now don't get me wrong, I love having color in my home. You almost have too having kids or else my walls would show smudge marks everywhere.

But her idea of living so simply has always appealed to me. If I didnt' have so much clutter in my home I think I would feel like the house was cleaner and more tidy. If I didn't have a bunch of knick-knacks or tiny "things" I wouldn't feel like I was so crowded. There would be less to dust at least!

But its true really. If I just had less stuff I wouldn't feel like my STUFF was overwhelming me.

SO I started today.

Started cleaning out all my stuff in my house ( again, cause we do this I swear once a year) and really taking a serious look at if I really NEED what is in my home.

Do I need that ceramic thingy?

Do I really need 15 extra blankets?

Why am I saving this thing again?

Is having 25 plates really necessary?

Ok some of those questions don't relate to me, but I was just trying to get you all thinking about the things in your house.

Since I've turned over the new leaf of not buying something unless I've seriously thought about if I needed it or not. Living up to my Wallet Buddy Values. But I also need to take a serious look at what I already have. Sure I'm not adding to my pile as quickly, but I do need to pare down my stuff.

Give my stuff to someone who really wants it or needs it.

So take a look at your stuff. I'm sure a shelter, a school, a hospital, a church, the Goodwill, Craigslisters, Freecycle or maybe a friend would like your stuff. Having less clutter means less mess to clean up anyway. It works out great for everyone!

*Please note the pictures above is NOT my office. Its just some random picture from this site here. *

New Uses for Old Things...

Sooo obviously switching out my old non-green stuff to more eco-friendly things isn't always easy. Especially when I don't want to throw out the non-eco friendly thing!

Take my Swiffer Wet Jet for instance.

I love that thing, but lets face it throwing away the pads and cleaning with not so earth friendly cleaner each time isn't exactly Green. (Besides I hated that cleaning stuff for the Swiffer--it always left a film!!) My friend Mary mentioned she was using her Swiffer with washcloths so I decided to do it myself.

So what I did was take a washcloth and fold it in half and secure it with my old rubber bands for my hair on each side. My Swiffer had the Velcro on the back and that helps secure it in place. I walk around w/ a spray bottle of vinegar and squirt the offending spot and presto, its all clean again. I usually wet my washcloth just a little bit to catch dog hair and to really scrub the floor.

Of course this isn't the best way to really CLEAN a floor. But for quick jobs it does the trick. And I'm using an old thing and its like its new again! Plus I didn't throw it in the trash to replace it with a more eco-friendly option.

Thanks for your great idea Mary! Remember people that being green doesn't mean investing in expensive Green options. Really it means just thinking outside of the box and using what you already have. And you're being thrifty at the same time! (See previous post on being thrifty)

**Update: After using my redesigned Swiffer over the past 2 days I have discovered that its better to not fold the washcloth in half, but to instead just wrap it around the Swiffer. Makes it so the washcloth doesn't fold all over the place while cleaning.***

Amazing Power of Vinegar

I have been using Vinegar to clean for years now; way before my Green Epiphany! Here are some handy tips I got from someone else about how to use it. Personally I use it as a air neutralizer in my kitchen, for cleaning and disinfecting. I love it and if it gets on me or my pets lick it--no worries!!!

Handy vinegar tips

- To remove calcium buildup on kettles and electric jugs, boil the kettle with half a cup of white vinegar and leave to soak for a while. Rinse with fresh water, reboil with same and your kettle should now be calcium deposit free.

- Place a small container of vinegar in your toilet and bathroom to eliminate odors.

- A half cup of vinegar added to a toilet bowl left overnight removes bowl odor. The smell of the vinegar will also dissipate overnight.

- A cotton ball soaked in vinegar and applied to bruises for an hour is said to speed up the healing process.

- Vinegar on minor burns and many sorts of stings can alleviate pain.

- For cleaning your dishwasher, vinegar frozen into ice cubes, then a couple added to the bottom of the dishwasher just prior to a cycle is an effective alternative to using heavy chemical cleaners.

- Old, stiff paintbrushes can be revived by dipping them into heated white vinegar for a couple of hours, followed by a rinse in soapy water. Beats using turpentine!

- Vinegar can be used as a nappy soak; simply add half a cup of white vinegar to the water in the nappy bucket

- Use it as a broad leaf weed killer - spray it neat onto the leaves of weeds, being careful to avoid plants you wish to keep. A mix of vinegar and salt can be used to keep weeks and grass out of driveway cement joins.

- Vinegar can be used as a bench top disinfectant; but it's a good idea to wipe over at night in order that the smell dissipates.

- For pet owners, white vinegar poured onto pet urine mishaps on carpets, then blotted up with paper towel will prevent staining and odor.

- Save money on washing pre-spray by spraying neat vinegar on deodorant and other stains on garments just prior to washing.

- Spray a 50/50 mix of vinegar and water onto soap scum on shower screens, leave sit then wipe or rinse off.

- Neat vinegar sprayed onto mould affected bathroom/shower tiles will kill the mould.

- Vinegar can be used as a fabric softener by adding half the amount of vinegar as you would of your usual softening agent.

- I've seen many suggestions that a tablespoon of vinegar can be used as a replacement for hair conditioner.

- Vinegar can also be used as a glass cleaner either mixed with water or used neat in a spray bottle.

- Use full strength vinegar to polish chrome and stainless steel

- Use a 50/50 vinegar and water mix to clean your iron. Add the mixture to your iron and allow it steam itself clean

- Pour boiling white vinegar down a clogged drain to remove the obstruction

- Used in an fine atomizer, vinegar is effective as room deodorizer

- Ants hate vinegar; so spray it around doorways and other areas they frequent to repel them
... not to mention vinegar is great for chips and salad dressings :).

These tips really only scratch the surface of this versatile and environmentally friendly substance. How many toxic cleaning products could you replace with vinegar? Do you have a handy vinegar tip?

Non-Toxic Cleaner Ideas

here's some great sites that teach you how to mix cleaners properly and what to use on what!!

check it out:
Non-Toxic Home Care

Clean & Green Page from Geocities

Soap Kitchen

Bastyr Center for Natural Health

Tips from my Green Buddy JEN!

My friend Jen has been a much better "green person" then I have for YEARS now! Here are some of her tips to add to going green..

• Vinyl shower curtains/liners, terrible for landfills, when you can purchase a hemp shower curtain (I think they're around $60). I don't know if I've ever seen cotton ones, I've seen a lot of hemp ones. Hemp is naturally anti-mildew.
• I know vinegar is a natural fabric softener. Seventh Generation has a liquid fabric softener. I like to use fabric softener from the brand Ecover, it smells really good.
• One of my favorite cleaners is Bon Ami, it's a powder kind of like Ajax, only it's all natural, has no odor, and is amazing! That you have to go to a place like Marlene's to find it though.
• Another tip, if you really want to disinfect something, kill the germs, or even whiten, use peroxide.
• If you make your own cleaners, you can always add essential oils to spice it up a little. Like if you do half water, half vinegar (a good multi-purpose, you can add essential oil like lavender, lemon, or your favorite oil). Tea tree oil is actually a pretty good disinfectant, I add that to my cleaner, plus I actually like the smell. Apparently, there's apple scented vinegar too, which I've never found, but in my book "Clean House, Clean Planet", the author talks about it.

Thanks for your tips Jen!! Keep 'em coming!!!