Little House in the Suburbs: Backyard Farming and Home Skills for Self-Sufficient Living


Deanna Caswell - 2012
    Readers will learn the fundamentals of gardening--from what, when and how to plant--presented with options for container gardening, raised-bed gardening, traditional gardening and even covert gardening where they blend edible plants into their flowerbeds. The authors will draw from their real-life experiences as they teach readers how to keep bees, chickens and even goats in their backyards while still keeping the peace with their neighbors and their municipalities. Seventy-five recipes will show readers how to turn the eggs, honey, beeswax, goat milk and plants they harvest in to natural skin care products and non-toxic cleaning products. Readers will also find plenty of ideas for cute handmade gifts for family and friends. Finally, in true homesteading fashion, readers will find advice on how to build community in their neighborhood with babysitting co-ops, meal co-ops and barter systems.

Talking Dirty with the Queen of Clean


Linda Cobb - 2000
    Offers advice on how to clean a multitude of household objects including everything from the kitchen sink to leather car upholstery, and provides tips on how to use tea to clean wood and vinegar to remove rust.

Your Spacious Self: Clear the Clutter and Discover Who You Are


Stephanie Bennett Vogt - 2007
    . . IN HERE!Behind our stress, clutter, and confusion is an infinitely spacious place one might call stillness or joy. This is our natural state of being, but we usually don't experience it, because we are caught in a web of material possessions, desires, and fears.Our clutter often becomes another member of the family that we feed, house, and lug around. In "Your Spacious Self," author and professional space clearing expert Stephanie Bennett Vogt shows us that it's not our stuff but the holding on to it that creates a force field of stuck-ness that clouds our perceptions and paralyzes our lives.Clutter is not just the junk spilling out of the closet. It is anything or thought that prevents us from experiencing who we truly are. With daily tips, meditations, and a decluttering checklist, "Your Spacious Self" will show you how to: CLEAR THE CLUTTER in your home and in your lifeREVEL IN YOUR OWN SPACIOUSNESS, a place of stillness and joyLET GO OF THE PEOPLE, PLACES, AND THINGS that no longer serve the joyous being that you areRadical in its message and elegant in its simplicity, Your Spacious Self offers a new model that combines the ancient wisdom of space clearing with the modern practicality of clutter clearing. It teaches us that clearing is not just something we do but is also a powerful way to be--one small step, drawer, or moment at a time.

Simple Matters: Living with Less and Ending Up with More


Erin Boyle - 2015
    At once pragmatic and philosophical, Simple Matters is a nod to the growing consensus that living simply and purposefully is more sustainable not only for the environment, but for our own happiness and well-being, too. Boyle embraces the notion that “living small” is beneficial and accessible to us all—whether we’re renting a tiny apartment or purchasing a three-story house.   Filled with personal essays, projects, and helpful advice on how to be inventive and resourceful in a tight space, Simple Matters shows that living simply is about making do with less and ending up with more: more free time, more time with loved ones, more savings, and more things of beauty.

Use What You Have Decorating


Lauri Ward - 1999
    In Use What You Have(r) Decorating she shows readers how to do it themselves-quickly identifying the ten most common decorating mistakes, offering simple principles to correct them, and giving DIYers a proven system for making their home look better than they ever dreamed it could. Filled with dramatic before-and-after photos, this guide shows anyone how to turn "ho-hum interiors into inspired spaces without undertaking bank- breaking shopping sprees" (Ladies' Home Journal).

Simply Clean: The Proven Method for Keeping Your Home Organized, Clean, and Beautiful in Just 10 Minutes a Day


Becky Rapinchuk - 2017
    In Simply Clean, Becky will help you effortlessly keep a tidy house and build habits to become a neat person—no matter how messy you may naturally be! Simply Clean features: -A 7-Day Simply Clean Kick Start and the 28-Day Simply Clean Challenge, to turn cleaning from a chore into an effortless habit -A designated catch-up day, so you’ll never have to worry or stress when life gets in the way of cleaning -Step-by-step tutorials for speed cleaning hard-to-clean spaces -Dozens of recipes for organic, environmentally conscious cleaning supplies -Many of Becky’s famous checklists, schedules, and habit trackers No matter how big your home or busy your schedule, the Simply Clean method can be customized to fit your life. It really is possible—in just ten minutes a day, you can create a cleaner, happier home.

101 Easy Homemade Products for Your Skin, Health & Home: A Nerdy Farm Wife's All-Natural DIY Projects Using Commonly Found Herbs, Flowers & Other Plants


Jan Berry - 2016
    In this incredible resource, Jan Berry teaches you the basics of making your own skin care and hair care products, health remedies and household cleaners—then how to customize them into truly unique and personalized items! You’ll learn how to make:- Honey, Rose & Oat Face Cleanser- Cool Mint Body Wash- Basic Calendula Lotion- Floral Salt Foot Scrub Bars- Basil & Lime Lip Balm- Lavender Oatmeal Soap- Violet Flower Sore Throat Syrup- Thyme Counter Cleaner- Lavender Laundry Detergent- And so much more!All of the projects are easy to make and use commonly found herbs, flowers, oils and other natural ingredients. No fancy equipment or previous experience required! If you don’t have a certain ingredient on hand, Jan provides tips on how to substitute and what works best. Going green has never been easier or more affordable. With this book, you can use local, natural ingredients to make something beautiful, effective and good for you and your family.

Homebody: A Guide to Creating Spaces You Never Want to Leave


Joanna Gaines - 2018
    This comprehensive guide will help you assess your priorities and your instincts, as well as your likes and dislikes, with practical steps for navigating and embracing your authentic design style.Room by room, Homebody gives you an in-depth look at how these styles are iterated as well as how to blend the genres you’re drawn to in order to create spaces that look and feel distinctly yours.In each chapter are practical takeaways to help problem solve potential pain points in your home. A fold out design guidebook at the back of the book offers a place for you to take notes and sketch out your own design plans as you make your way through the rooms.The insight shared in Homebody will instill in you the confidence to thoughtfully create spaces that you never want to leave.

GREEN CLEAN: The Environmentally Sound Guide to Cleaning Your Home


Linda Mason Hunter - 2005
    The latest front is the home, as households across the country adopt new ways to keep their homes clean and healthy-and ways to do it that are good for the environment. Green Clean is the definitive, step-by-step guide to cleaning better while using nontoxic, eco-friendly products. Room by room and stain by stain, Green Clean breaks down environmentally conscious cleaning into simple principles and easily mastered techniques that let readers set their own goals and develop their own cleaning plan. Also included are recipes for safe, simple, and economic cleaning solutions and the lowdown on the best eco-friendly cleaning products on the market today. Green Clean is an indispensable reference for today's home.For more green info: www.hunterink.com

Outer Order, Inner Calm: Declutter & Organize to Make More Room for Happiness


Gretchen Rubin - 2019
    In a new book packed with more than one hundred concrete ideas, she helps us create the order and organization that can make our lives happier, healthier, more productive, and more creative. In the context of a happy life, a messy desk or crowded coat closet is a trivial problem–yet Gretchen Rubin has found that getting control of the stuff of life makes us feel more in control of our lives generally. By getting rid of things we don’t use, don’t need, or don’t love, as well as things that don’t work, don’t fit, or don’t suit, we free our mind (and our shelves) for what we truly value. In this trim book filled with insights, strategies, and sometimes surprising tips, Gretchen tackles the key challenges of creating outer order, by explaining how to “Make Choices,” “Create Order,” “Know Yourself–and Others,” “Cultivate Helpful Habits,” and, of course, “Add Beauty.” When we get our possessions under control, we feel both calmer and more energetic. With a sense of humor, and also a clear sense of what’s realistic for most people, Gretchen suggests dozens of manageable steps for creating a more serene, orderly environment–one that helps us to create the lives we yearn for.

Bobbi Brown Makeup Manual: For Everyone from Beginner to Pro


Bobbi Brown - 2008
    Bobbi looks at everything from skincare basics to every aspect of facial makeup--from how to find the right color and type of foundation for any skin tone to how to apply every detail of eye makeup (Brows, Eye Liner, Eye Shadow, and Eye Lashes) no matter your eye color and shape. Of course there are never-before-seen tips on blush, bronzer, lip liners, lipstick, etc. And Bobbi looks beyond the face with informative chapters on "Hands and Feet" and "Body Skin Care." Each chapter has thorough step-by-step basic directions for makeup application and easy-to-follow photographs and line drawings, along with Bobbi's expert, yet assuring, advice. Plus, there's a groundbreaking section of the book that will be of special interest to women who've wanted to know how makeup stylists do what they do: the top beauty secrets only these artists know, essential equipment to keep on hand, how to break into the business, and how to work with photographers and celebrities. Breathtaking photos of the finished faces-from everyday looks to exotic runway style-along with advice on putting it all together for every woman, make this a book like no other.BOBBI BROWN'S MAKEUP MANUAL will be the only book any woman will need to look absolutely fabulous.

Vegan Food Gifts: Spread the Vegan Love DIY-Style with 100 Inspired Recipes for Homemade Baked Goods, Preserves, and Other Edible Gifts Everyone Will Love


Joni Marie Newman - 2012
    From mouthwatering vegan baking mixes you can create, package, and label yourself, to DIY gift baskets, preserves, liquors, and more, you’ll find that perfect something for everyone, no matter what their views or inclinations. (No one can say no to a chocolate chip cookie after all—vegan or otherwise!)Vegan Food Gifts shows you how easy it is to create great homemade gifts that are not only kind and eco-conscious, but delicious too. So whether you are an expert chef or a beginner cook, a crafty genius or someone without an artistic bone in your body, you’ll find projects that not only suit your skills, but your budget too.Be the hit of the bake sale, the darling of the holidays, the hostess with the most-est, and more with Vegan Food Gifts.

Yankee Magazine's Vinegar, Duct Tape, Milk Jugs & More: 1,001 Ingenious Ways to Use Common Household Items to Repair, Restore, Revive, or Replace Just About Everything in Your Life


Earl Proulx - 1999
    The trick is figuring out what among these objects is treasure and what's trash. That's where Earl Proulx and the editors of Yankee magazine can help.Drawing on their own creative ideas--and those of ingenious Yankees all over New England--they've come up with more than 1,000 clever ways to put common household objects to uncommon and valuable uses. The result is a book that will benefit you in five clear ways.1. This book will empower you.Other people might be stymied when, say, Spot knocks a glass of grape juice on that elegant white rug. Not you. You'll be able to lift that stain yourself--without buying some expensive remover--just by applying a dab of shaving cream. Vinegar, Duct Tape, Milk Jugs, and More contains dozens of clever do-it-yourself ideas like this.2. This book will save you money.Need an attractive gift for a friend, a game to entertain the grandkids, a desk organizer for your home office? Forget the catalogs and stay away from the stores. As you'll see, you can make these items and dozens more in minutes from the leftover things around your house.3. This book will make your life easier.There's no need to stock a cabinetful of specialty cleansers. Vinegar, Duct Tape, Milk Jugs, and More will show you how to use common ingredients like salt, ketchup, baking soda, flour, yogurt, and, of course, vinegar to handle many of the cleaning tasks you encounter every day.4. This book will reduce the waste in your home.If you've ever regretted the amount of trash you throw out each week, here's the solution. This book will show you how to give a second life to everything from plastic containers to bubble wrap to panty house and more.5. This book will entertain you.Whether you settle on one of Earl's yarns, the story behind common objects like Post-It Notes and condensed milk, or the "My Way" tips from actual readers, you're bound to enjoy the fun side of this book.Vinegar, Duct Tape, Milk Jugs, and More provides no-fail ideas for every area of your home, and for many actitivites, from gardening to cooking, from travel to sports, and from crafts to games. Consider it your no-cost tool kit for all your needs around the home.Throw out a candle stub, some sour milk, that leftover bag of cat litter? Not on your life!You might think of these things as waste that's headed for the trash can, but there are hundreds of practical ways you can save money, time, and natural resources by reusing these and other common objects around your house. Follow Earl Proulx and the editors of Yankee magazine as they show you how to:Make a soothing facial mask from cat litterCover up furniture scratches with a dab of iodineTun an old teacup, a sandwich bag, and some sugar into an elegant pin cushionClean car grease off your hands with olive oilUnstick a window with the stub of an old candlestickClear a clogged showerhead with vinegarAnt-proof your home with lemon juiceMake an attractive country picture frame from an old six-pane windowEnd static cling with hair sprayStop foot blisters with duct tapeKeep bait worms fresh with coffee groundsMake an earring holder out of window screeningMore than 1,000 creative, fun, and ingenious tips

Cleaning Plain Simple: A Ready Reference Guide with Hundreds of Sparkling Solutions to Your Everyday Cleaning Challenges


Donna Smallin Kuper - 2005
    With plain and simple advice on everything from dusting and swabbing to polishing and vacuuming, best-selling author Donna Smallin shows you how to make the most of your valuable cleaning time. Hundreds of quick tips and practical solutions for every imaginable cleaning situation promise you the sparkling, healthy environment you want for your family.

The Minimalist Home: A Room-By-Room Guide to a Decluttered, Refocused Life


Joshua Becker - 2018
    He both offers practical guidelines for simplifying our lifestyle at home and addresses underlying issues that contribute to over-accumulation in the first place. The purpose is not just to create a more inviting living space. It's also to turn our life's HQ--our home--into a launching pad for a more fulfilling and productive life in the world.