Day 19: Cleaning out the Cleaning Products

The Task:  Today I'm decluttering and making cleaning day simper by only surrounding myself and my family with products that I feel are safe and friendly!

Over the last year or so I have become increasingly careful about the products we use in our home.  But for some reason I was still hanging on to some commercial cleaning products, even though I refuse to use them!  (Please don't call Hoarders, I promise I'm getting rid of them!)

The Why?  I've read lists of most dangerous cleaners in our homes and some of the products I have in my cleaning basket were on those lists....but instead of ditching them I held on to them"just in case".   I have a can of a certain bathroom cleaner (hint, it rhymes with bubbing scrubbles) that I haven't sprayed in over a year.   What just-in-case situation was I saving it for? Just in case vinegar becomes illegal? Just in case I start to miss that burning sensation I get in my throat when I use it?  Just in case of what exactly?

The How:
 All my half used cans of  commercial cleaners have been boxed up and are ready for the next hazardous waste collection day in my community.

I now have a total of six cleaning products that meet all of my cleaning needs:

• a gentle dishsoap (I use this, in warm water, to clean almost any surface: cabinets, walls, the inside of my refrigerator.  And it's super for cleaning bathtubs.)
• vinegar (I put a splash in my mop water. I mix it half and half with water for windows. I use it full strength in a spray bottle to clean toilets)
• baking soda (Great for cleaning the kitchen sink)
• Peroxide (I mix with baking soda to make a paste for heavy duty cleaning, like cooked on stove top gunk and dirty grout lines)
• Rubbing Alcohol (for cleaning the microfiber sofas!)
• Tea tree oil (for disinfecting)

On top of being great cleaners in their own right, every one of these products has another use around the house as well.  Meaning less bottles of junk stuffed under my sinks and in my cleaning basket.   Yay for multi-purpose items!

{By the way, I wrote a guest post for a friends blog a couple months ago about how I clean my whole house without nasty chemicals.  If you want more info on how I do my chores using the 6 household products mentioned above, check it out!}

The Verdict:
If everything we knew about cleaning came from television commercials, it would be easy to think that we need a specific product to clean every surface in our home. Tub and shower sprays, toilet cleaner, counter spray, window and glass cleaner, specialty products for leather, stainless steel, stove tops,ovens and floors!  But really cleaning can be so much simpler than that.  People had clean homes long before grocery stores devoted whole aisles to cleaning products and television commercials started telling us that we could buy magical cleanliness in a can!

In my opinion, many of those commercial cleaners are often just selling us an illusion of clean.  Sure, a heavy duty spray on cleaner can make our tubs sparkle, but if it leaves our bathrooms coated in toxic chemicals,  that is not my definition of clean!

We are doing one small thing every day for a year to create a simpler, quieter, more intentional life. Take a moment to read all About Us, check out The Rules of our year long project and sign up for our RSS feed or "like" us on facebook so that you can follow our journey to radical simplicity!

Day 18: Umm....We Got Rid of our Bed

The Task:  Okay, we didn't get rid of the whole bed.  Just the bed frame.

The Why:  There isn't any deep spiritual meaning or underlying concern for the environment on this one....I was just really sick of cleaning under the bed.  I hate how dust accumulates there.  Why not just ditch the dust bunny zoo altogether and be done with it? Sounds like a good step to a simpler life to me!

Here's what it looked like under our bed the day we decided to ditch the bed frame.  I think I see a corn chip. Ewww.

I've wanted to do this for ages,and I finally got hubby on board.We removed the bed frame a few days ago and so far we love sleeping closer to the floor!

The Pros: 

• No more dust gathering under the bed.
• No more socks disappearing under the bed.
• No bed skirt to wash.
• The bed is easier to make, no tucking necessary.
• If I don't make the bed very nicely and just throw the duvet cover over everything haphazardly it looks more like a spread from the Anthropologie catalogue than a big ugly mess.
• It's safer for the kids who climb into our bed in the wee hours of the night and occasionally engage in middle of the day tickle fights, wrestling matches and unsanctioned trampoline competitions on our bed.
• I like the relaxed bohemian sort of look it gives to our bedroom
• The bed doesn't make any noise when we, um, you know....

The Cons:

• It's a little unconventional (which isn't exactly a big motivator for us anyways).

Also, we found we weren't using our nightstands for much (and they were too high without the bed frame raising the bed up) so we replaced them with one little basket to keep the books we are currently reading.  We had a sofa table in there too because we had nowhere else to put it...we got rid of that as well. The only furniture left in our bedroom is the bed and one dresser.  I love how big and open and relaxing it feels!

 The Verdict:  I realize this isn't for everyone, but I am thrilled to not have to clean under the bed anymore or squirm under there in search of lost socks.   Why keep something that just adds unnecessary mess and work to my life?

We are doing one small thing every day for a year to create a simpler, quieter, more intentional life. Take a moment to read all About Us, check out The Rules of our year long project and sign up for our RSS feed or "like" us on facebook so that you can follow our journey to radical simplicity!

Day 17: Decluttering the Makeup Bag

The Task: Dispose of expired makeup!

The Why:  I read yesterday that makeup actually expires. A quick Google search of the matter confirmed it.  Make-up doesn't last forever.  Duh.

I mean, it makes sense.  Ingredients break down over time.  Moisture breeds bacteria.  It just never occurred to me before.

In fact, I'm pretty sure that I acquired at least one of the lip glosses in the photo above when I was in college!  I'm not going to tell you how long ago that was, but I assure you, it was far more than the recommended one year shelf life of lip products. 

The How:  I just threw it all away.  I'm not a big wearer of makeup, as evidenced by the fact that the picture at the top is my entire makeup collection and that not one of those items was purchased within the last year.   Given all the undesirable ingredients that go into makeup, I'm not in a frenzy to run out and buy more.

The Verdict: Like I said, I'm not a big makeup wearer anyways.  If I really miss any of these products in the future, I will do some research on the Skin Deep Database or the GoodGuide to choose a product that I feel is safe and ethical. I know that giving up makeup altogether is not for everyone, but I really do recommend you dive into your makeup drawer and consider disposing of anything that may be older than your student loans...

Also, right now the idea of having a few less items to stash somewhere makes me giddy!  

We are doing one small thing every day for a year to create a simpler, quieter, more intentional life. Take a moment to read all About Us, check out The Rules of our year long project and sign up for our RSS feed or "like" us on facebook so that you can follow our journey to radical simplicity!

Day 16: Minimalizing the Bath Toys

The Task: Reduce our children's bath toys to a few small items.

The Why:  Okay, so I've been reading this book, The Joy of Less by Francine Jay.  It's basically a complete guide on how to get rid of all of your junk and become a minimalist.  While reading I am constantly torn between reading one more page and jumping up to dispose of half my house.  In fact, where I live it is a holiday today and my husband asked me yesterday "What do you want to do on the Civic Holiday?" and I said "Go through the entire house from one side to the other and get rid of....nearly everything?"   And in his profound wisdom and deep desire to relax and barbecue something, he said "um....no." 

Anyways, all this to say that I am really coming to see the whole "less is more" thing come to life in my home.  The more we declutter, the more we enjoy what we have. All my stuff is shaking in it's boots right now.

The How:  I kept three rubber duckies.   And got rid of 2 toy boats, a plastic frog, 4 more rubber duckies, a bunch of fishy toys, a plastic Winnie-the-Pooh and a set of washable bathtub crayons (oh, how I loathe those "washable" bathtime crayons!)

The Verdict: Honestly, I don't think my kids have noticed yet.  We boxed up the extra toys and put them in the basement weeks ago and my kids have been playing with the duckies and washcloths and the soap.  They pretend the duckies are boats, or sisters, or see monsters. They dip rubber duckies under the water and squeeze them to fill them with water and turn them into loaded water weapons. I will often sit on the bathroom floor and read to them from the Little House Series or my husband will read to them from whatever organic gardening tome he is currently reading.  Bath time is fun and relaxing and the extra toys are definitely not missed, which means that today that little box in the basement is making it's way into the donate pile.

Also, three little toys are easy to tuck away in a cabinet, easy to get out at bath time, and if they accidentally get left out on the edge of the tub they look cute, not messy!

We are doing one small thing every day for a year to create a simpler, quieter, more intentional life. Take a moment to read all About Us, check out The Rules of our year long project and sign up for our RSS feed or "like" us on facebook so that you can follow our journey to radical simplicity!

Day 13: Ditching The Microwave Oven

The Task: Get rid of the microwave.

The Why:  Why-oh-why would anyone in their right mind (that's debatable) get rid of their microwave?  We have a number of reasons!

1. We rarely use it.  With the exception of frozen veggies (which I've always cooked on the stove anyways), I can count on my fingers the number of times we've bought something with "microwave directions" printed on the package.  I want to get away from the notion that we have to have something just because everybody else seems to.  We don't.
2. I read once that you will use more energy in the life of your microwave powering the clock than actually heating things.  It doesn't really make sense to us to have an appliance that is sucking energy in standby mode for 23 hours and 58 minutes every day. Especially since our kitchen doesn't need another clock.
3. There are some serious reasons to be concerned about the health consequences of using a microwave oven.  My friend Beth has a post on her blog listing a bunch of articles that swayed her, and eventually our, opinion of microwave ovens.
4. And finally, food is not supposed to be fast.  Part of simplifying for us is to see food for what it is and appreciate it in it's natural forms and to take the time to prepare it correctly and healthfully. The microwave oven just doesn't seem to mesh with our goals anymore.

Plus, the top of our fridge looks so much happier and tidier and pleasant now that there isn't a big ugly microwave on top of it! 

 

Here are some of the things we formerly used our microwave for and how we are getting by without one:

• Melting butter or chocolate for a recipe:  We will often use a small pot for this instead, and it isn't difficult or time consuming. My oven is electric and has a heat vent under one of the back burners, so if I have the oven on for another reason I can melt or soften butter in a bowl placed on that back burner without using any extra electricity at all!

• Reheating coffee:  Reheated coffee really isn't stellar anyways.  I'm trying to just drink my coffee while it's still hot, which with 5 kids demanding my attention isn't always successful.  Sometimes, if our french press still has quite a bit of cooled coffee in it we will put it in a pitcher in the fridge and later make iced coffee with it.  Yumm!

• Making microwave s'mores when nobody is looking: Don't judge me, I know you've done this too!  But I've concluded that the inability to do this is probably a good development for my overall health.

• Heating leftovers: For things like soups I've discovered that it is actually much faster to reheat it in a pot than the microwave. Thicker things like casseroles I heat up in the oven, often alongside whatever I am making to accompany the left overs.

The Verdict:  In retrospect, I'm not certain that the microwave was ever actually adding any convenience to our lives at all.  And I really, really like the look of my kitchen without one!

We are doing one small thing every day for a year to create a simpler, quieter, more intentional life. Take a moment to read all About Us, check out The Rules of our year long project and sign up for our RSS feed or "like" us on facebook so that you can follow our journey to radical simplicity!