Winter purging...

Most people jump on the spring cleaning bandwagon, but for me January has always been the month where I feel the need to clear out and make things lighter.  I'm not a minimalist, but I do follow the tiny house philosophy that less is more.   Here are a few ways I clear out our clutter:

Cooking.  Last week I purged our tiny kitchen.  I took stock of what was there and cleared out anything that I hadn't used this past year.   There were several pots and pans and a few bowls that were never touched, so I let those go.  In doing this I have paired down my kitchen utensils to only what we really use.  In a tiny 9 x 12 kitchen this is a must!

Paper.  Another thing I do several times a year is donate all of my magazines to the local hospital waiting room.  I only subscribe to a few magazines, but boy how those things pile up quickly!  I simply black out my name and address and drop them off to the hospital.  They always appreciate them and it frees up clutter from our home.

Clothes.  We have all heard about the closet clean out rule- if you haven't worn it in a year let it go.  I'm horrible at this one.  I hold a piece and think "I paid a lot for it" or "Maybe it will fit again someday". I am going to be really hard on myself this year and remind myself that whatever I paid for it, if I'm not wearing it than it's a waste.  Also, being a size 2 again?  Ain't gonna happen, so let it go.   I'm planning on cleaning out my closet this morning.  Wish me luck.

Movies.  I'm awful about buying movies.  The "Oh I loved that movie!" takes over and I cave in an buy a movie that I never watch again.  They take up space and collect dust.  So I am planning on packing them up and seeing if our pediatrician would like the kid ones to show in the waiting room, and take the grown up movies to the hospital for patients to watch.

Kids toys.  I follow the same rule as the clothes closet.  If you haven't played with it in a year- give it to a child who will.  One thing we do every November is have the kids go through their things and pick out ten items to donate to the women's and children's shelter.  It gives them the sense of giving and clears out their room for the upcoming presents that are sure to take up space.  Then I go back through their rooms in November and purge whatever items  they have not touched in a year.  It's important to me to show them that "owning" something is not justified if you are not using it.  Let it go to another child who will own it and USE it.

Knick Knacks.  I love vintage finds.  I have a plethora of bits and bobs I've collected over the years.  I have begun the process of going through those treasures and keeping ONLY what I absolutely love.  The rest I am selling off or giving away.  It feels good to see the pieces that I really love and not just things laying about that I have to dust.

I hope that some of my tricks and tips help you.  I find that with each down size move we make I am happier with the simplicity of our surroundings.   Less truly is more.

Happy New Year ;)

Going with what you love...

When I made the decision to go with Carrara marble countertops everyone tried to talk me out of it. The kitchen designer, the countertop installer, even my mom.   I have had my heart set on these countertops for years.   Yes, I know marble stains, etches, and shows wear.  I'm okay with all of that because that's what I love about it.  It's hard working and takes a beating, but all those imperfections mellow out into a beautiful patina.  Rather like people do ;)

at the stone yard- Master Tile Colours in Houston...

our honed Carrara marble slab...

Just to give a bit of perspective of how far we've come, here are the before shots of our tiny tudor kitchen.  The room, yes- it's a R O O M, is 9x12 with one doorway in and out...

I knew the soffits had to go.  The ceilings are only 8 feet, so we needed more vertical space.  Once those were out we had our electrician come in and add four canned lights on a dimmer switch.  Drywall was next, and then just last Saturday our cabinets arrived.  The original cabinetry was a good quality and in 1969 had been custom built in the kitchen.  However, the layout of it was a bit wonky what with a recessed pantry to the right of the sink and a wall oven on the other side of the room.  So we had to gut it completely.   I went with Kraftmaid cabinets in Mushroom (no glaze or distressing).  I wanted a very clean look to this kitchen and chose Shaker style on the cabinets.  I also made the decision to not have any upper cabinets.  There will be open shelving on the wall to the left of the sink as well as the L shaped wall to the right of the sink.

 My finger was channeling "where's Waldo" in these shots...

Looking into the kitchen from the doorway.  Notice the ripped out trim- the only solution to getting the oversized corner cabinet into the tiny room!

Corner near stove...

pantry wall...

sink wall...

Marble is being fabricated this week and will be installed by Monday.  The wood floors and stairway are being finished up today and tomorrow.  I am also having the house professionally cleaned to get all of the construction dirt out of there before we move in.  PODS arrive Tuesday and Wednesday.  It will be interesting to see what fits and what will go.  I love the idea of purging and keeping only what we need and what we love.  Living intentionally, simply and with less clutter.

This entire summer we have worked so hard to create a home that reflects the life we want to lead.  Now it's time to make that dream our reality.

Bring it.

Pre-editing...

This weekend we packed up the kid's rooms and tackled the pantry.  Apparently 2011 was a good year...for spices to expire.  This just reaffirms my mission to keep only what we need/use on hand and NO more.  To my trash men, I apologize in advance.  The bags, they are many.

Even while packing I am seeing that we have far too much for this new smaller space of ours.  We are going to have to edit, and I am determined that nothing will get unpacked if there isn't a use for it or we don't love it.   For those of you who are local to me plan on a sale sometime in July.  A lot will be going!

Quality over quantity.  I began reading Sarah Susanka's The Not So Big Life and it's one of those books where I find myself shaking my head "YES" a lot and making the fist pump of agreement.   It's like she got into my head and put everything I was thinking into a book.

I thought I would share another charming shot of our soon to be tiny tudor townhouse.  This is the kid's bathroom- my favourite feature?  That lovely diamond corner window.  Swoon-worthy.

Real Estate photo

The plans are to gut this bathroom and replace the yellow tile with white subway tile on the walls and shower, with a dark large subway tile on the floor.  We will use a dresser converted with a sink as the vanity area, then add a lovely mirror and light fixture.  The room will get a fresh coat of paint as well.

But that window- she stays right where she is.