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

by Joshua Becker

What if the problem isn’t that we don’t own enough stuff or aren’t managing our stuff well enough? What if the problem is that we’re living in the homes that advertisers and retailers want us to have instead of the homes that deep down we really want and need?

All-Natural, All-Purpose Cleaner Combine 1 teaspoon borax, ½ teaspoon washing soda, and 1 teaspoon liquid Castile soap in a spray bottle. Add 2 cups warm distilled water. Add a few drops of the essential oils of your choice (such as lemon, lavender, or orange). Put the spray top on the bottle and shake well. Use on bathroom surfaces, kitchen counters, and elsewhere. —courtesy of Katie Wells, Wellness Mama4 Ready-to-Go Laundry Soap Grate an unscented bar of soap (such as Dr. Bronner’s or Ivory) until finely ground. In a large bowl, mix bar of grated soap, 1 cup washing soda, and 1 cup borax. Store in a closed container. Use between 2 tablespoons and ¼ cup per laundry load. —courtesy of Katie Wells, Wellness Mama5

All You Need in the Kitchen Mark Bittman is the New York Times’s “minimalist cook” and author, whose books include: How to Cook Everything, The VB6 Cookbook, and The Food Matters Cookbook. Bittman says you can do virtually all the cooking you need to with just these cooking supplies.6 Use this list as your guide when minimizing your kitchen: eight-inch, plastic-handle stainless alloy chef’s knife instant-read thermometer three stainless steel bowls sturdy pair of tongs sturdy sheet pan plastic cutting board paring knife can opener vegetable peeler colander small, medium, and large cast-aluminum saucepans medium nonstick cast-aluminum pan large steep-sided, heavier-duty steel pan skimmer slotted spoon heat-resistant rubber spatula bread knife big whisk food processor salad spinner Microplane grater coffee and spice grinder blender knife sharpener