Wise Words: Live within your space means

image from the book cheap chic

'You should love and use everything in your home and live within your "space means", like you live within your financial means.'

-Stacey Platt

Decluttering for Better Health

I consider anything that doesn't serve me and helps me live my best life to be clutter. Recently my husband and I got rid of our microwave for several reasons: (1) we rarely used it, (2) it was ugly and taking up valuable counter space, and (3) we'd rather not ingest radiated food (According to Carolyn Scott, microwaves transform the chemical makeup of foods on a cellular level. While the little waves are heating up, they mutate the food -and mutated food not only loses it texture and taste, it loses all its nutrients and causes us to ingest radiation).

L: counter before with microwave; R: counter after with wheatgrass

We used the newly freed up counter space to grow our own wheatgrass and install a juicer. Not only is it a much healthier thing to have in our home, I think it looks a lot better too! Now I just have to be consistent with growing the grass, making the juice, and drinking it everyday. Admittedly it's somewhat time consuming but wheatgrass is highly alkaline and the health benefits are absolutely worth it.

Paring Down: Laundry Products

A few of you emailed me asking about small space solutions for your laundry spaces. I myself have a small space.-so I hear ya! One tip is to pare down as much as possible the products you have. It's easy to go on product overload especially if an area is cluttered and you don't realize you already have a certain type of product and so go out and buy another one.

Take a look at your current stash. Gather everything in one area and group like items. Look at how much space you have and consider giving away any multiples to allow room for everything to fit nicely. Don't pour them down the drain or throw them in the trash though! A lot of laundry products are toxic so please take them to your local household hazardous waste collection center if you don't want to give them away.

If you decide to keep multiples, commit to using them. Place the items which are closest to being empty in the most accessible spot-like the front of a shelf. Multiples can go right behind, down below or up top.

The goal is to pare it down to just a few products-preferably ones that multi-task and/or don't take up a lot of valuable space. When buying new products remember bigger isn't always better or more economical -be sure to check the price per load.

Here's a look at my picks:

OxiClean Free -non-chlorine solution for removing stains and whitening {great for white linens!}
Method Laundry Detergent- plant based, non-toxic, biodegradable, and comes in a compact bottle


The Laundress Delicate Wash -another non-toxic, biodegradable product -this one for delicate items
Dryer Balls Although they're a reusable alternative to dryer sheets, I've come to discover {and been turned off by the fact} that dryer balls are made of PVC {Polyvinyl chloride = toxic plastic}. A better alternative? Wool dryer balls or vinegar.
Vinegar - to soften fabric, reduce static and prevent wrinkles

Do you have a favorite laundry product?