As Spring moves toward Summer and the outdoors beckon, it’s easy for clutter to get out of control inside our homes. Paper can be a necessary nuisance. It will pile up if you let it. Here are 5 easy strategies to get paper clutter in check and enjoy summertime activities.

#1 – Cancel unwanted catalogs and other types of paper mail

Catalogchoice.org is a free service that will send merchants your opt-out request on your behalf. It’s a non-profit organization on a mission to stop junk mail for good. If want to support their cause, they’ll gladly accept your donation.

#2 – Cancel magazine and paper newsletter subscriptions

Go digital where you can... Read the rest

If you’ve ever remodeled your kitchen, painted a room, or tiled a surface, odds are you’ve had extra material hanging around for years. If you feel uncomfortable throwing it in the trash, what do you do with it? Instead of letting it go to waste, give it new life! Here are several ways to re-purpose unused building material in an environmentally-friendly way.

Use Them

There are countless uses for scraps of wood, partial cans of paint and stacks of tile. Get in the creative spirit and build or give new life to something.

Wood

• Raised garden bed
• Storage unit
• Bookshelf
• Birdhouse
• Picture frame
• Comfortable fire (untreated wood)

Paint

• Home touch-up
• Chair, dresser or table
• Undercoat primer (mix same paint types together)
• Arts & crafts project

Tile

• Beverage coaster
• Kitchen backsplash
• Outdoor planter box
• Home address sign
• Mosaic (tabletop, counter, garden path stepping stones, etc.)

You’ve decided it’s time to do something with that box of jewelry you inherited. But it’s hard to know which, if any, to keep. It’s helpful to set a timeline to review the jewelry pieces and decide what you want to do with them. Here are three questions that will help move you through the decision-making process:

Some pieces can invoke strong emotions while others have a story to tell. Does it fit? Will you wear it? If the answer is ‘yes,’ and an item has special meaning to you personally, keep and enjoy it... Read the rest

Homeowners all seem to have this item lurking around. It’s left on a shelf in the garage, or underneath a workbench or tucked away in a shed. What is it? It is leftover paint and other liquid coatings; primers, varnishes, sealants and shellacs. If we have lived long enough in our homes, we usually repaint either the interior or the exterior or both. We can’t guess precisely how much paint it will take, so we overallow. This means that we end up with excess paint. In fact, Americans don’t use about 10% of the paint they buy. This amounts to 78 million gallons of unused paint every year... Read the rest

Modern couples typically do not order china and crystal for their wedding registries, or at least not like the old days. In fact, couples are marrying at older ages now and prefer online registries at places like Amazon, Home Depot or Honeyfund (for honeymoon trips). Many Millennials are choosing experiences, not seldom-used items that merely take up valuable space. We remember visiting older relatives and seeing the china and crystal in museum-like china cabinets. Then, it was passed down. Ask anyone. They will tell you about that box of china they have in the attic or garage or some inaccessible place in the kitchen... Read the rest

Does your playroom look like a tornado has hit? Do you find toys everywhere in your home? Are you constantly stepping on Legos or picking up puzzle pieces? I can relate. Having had three children in a ten year span, I know what having too many toys looks like. When my youngest was a toddler and the oldest was in junior high school, there were tons of toys for all age groups all over the floor of my house. I also had a girl and two boys which meant having additional toys to please each gender. I fell prey to the marketing of the era... Read the rest

Make the Heart of Your Home Easier to Use

 
The kitchen is the heart of your home. It is increasingly being used for multiple purposes. It’s where family and visitors gather to prepare meals, have conversations, and build memories. As our lives become more casual, the kitchen becomes more important. It is the central meeting area for the family. By following some simple rules of accessibility you can make your kitchen one that is more comfortable and easy to use for everyone. Universal Design principles will reduce fatigue and allow for safer and more efficient use of your kitchen.

To start, the layout should be one that allows for flow through the three major areas of use: the refrigerator, the sink and the cooking area (stove, oven or microwave)... Read the rest

I have many pleasant memories of camping with my family – the beach, hiking, fishing and eating around the campfire. Everyone would dutifully unload the car upon our return, but then everyone would disappear. Somehow, it always fell upon mom to clean the camping supplies and put them away. I remember trying to put everything back where it came from, but somehow, it wouldn’t fit on the same garage shelves. How was this possible? Wasn’t it there before? Well, yes and no. We always seemed to buy new camp gear during each trip although we kept all the old gear for back-up... Read the rest