Book: Space for Living

Well the relatives have left and I'm getting back to my old habits, like posting to this blog.

Here's a book I'm perusing today:

Space for Living: How to Create Multifunctional Rooms for Today's Homes.
by Liz Bauwens and Alexandra Campbell. Clarkson Potter Publishers, 1999. ISBN: 0-609-89899-x. It's books like this that can make you realize how much more you could do with your home.

Unhealthly furniture

I really don't like to read that even my furniture could be bad for me. Fortunately most of our upholstered furniture is new enough that harmful vapors probably are not an issue. But maybe I'll dust more.

Good advice if somewhat unwelcome. Protecting Yourself from Your Furniture

Under-Stair Storage Space

Pictures can really help you visualize an idea, so take a look at this post by Dornob, 10 Clever Under-Stair Storage Space Ideas & Solutions. Stairs can be real space hogs, but done right they can become a valuable storage area.

Myplace Laptop Table Notebook Workstation

I bought one of these back awhile ago and I have to say I like it. The Myplace Laptop Table Notebook Workstation is a pretty handy little lap table that you can use in bed or elsewhere. It folds flat (one of my requirements), has legs that can fold down for two different heights, which I've not seen on any other lap table. And it's actually wide enough that you don't have to be model thin to use it! There are two separate surfaces that can be tilted up or down as needed. The smaller one on the right has a built-in mouse pad. Over on the left side there's a small LED light that's flexible so it can be moved to where you want it (however you will not get lots of light from it). The larger surface has a lip on the bottom edge so that books (or netbooks) won't slide off.

It's an "As seen on television" advertised product so there are multiple places to buy them. Finally,, and most importantly it stores easily under a bed, chair, or in any other cubbyhole.

If you like working in bed, on the couch, or you're wanting to sit in a particular large comfy chair this is one solution. For me it means being in the same room as my spouse and thus a bit more sociable.

Slick space-saving desk design

I may have mentioned this before but I really like the Dornop site. They cover the design world and post blogs daily with lots of images to illustrate their points. Not everything they cover is related to my area of interest but one post that caught my eye is the Space-Saving Furniture: Home Office Desk & Storage Idea

Going paperless

The paperless office was a much predicted and totally unrealized forecast in the early days of digital. Ironically it appears that computers have resulted in offices (both work and home) having even MORE paper. But as individuals we can cut our paper usage and storage down. Several sites offer solid advice for accomplishing this. The first, and one of my favorite sites on the web, is Lifehacker, and their article, The Complete Guide to Going Paperless is spot on with great advice. I found one user's comments about electronic notary intriguing, I will have to read up on that one later. But as you can tell from other users' comments everyone has a different comfort level that has to be met.

I'm betting you can probably find some files, articles, clippings, etc. that could be scanned and utilized better if they were in electronic form. I challenge you to pick one you think would be more convenient if only it were digital and give scanning and storing it on your computer a serious try.

Mine is going to be all those dratted insurance claims sent to me by my health insurance. They often have multiple appointments, patients, and doctors listed making it impossible to sort properly. They end up in one file folder and stay there. I don't need to save the paper copies but do need to check dates, which doctor, and what's owed occasionally. I could create a word or excel list of the claims, list the basic information (date, doctor, what it was for, and for whom) and insert a link to the related electronic copy. That would not save trees but would free up some file cabinet space.

Even better I could check with my insurance company to see if they could email my claim receipts so that I wouldn't need to scan them myself. That would save trees and time.

Note: I since checked my insurance company's web site and they don't appear to offer electronic delivery by email. I can access my records (in a different form and layout) online but only back about a year or so. Which is probably all one needs. But I think I will call them and suggest this as an option. They'd even save postage, and what company doesn't want to save money?

Other related articles and sites:

• Seven Strategies for Going Paperless - check out the rest of their blog, A Small Notebook for a Small Home. It focuses on simplifying one's life and home and has some great ideas.


• Six tips for going paperless

And naturally there is a possible downside to going paperless, see this interesting article at Going Green: Going paperless has its costs

Lingerie laundry wash bags stop sock loss

Since I was talking about dresser drawer organizing in my last post it seems natural to bring up the use of lingerie and sweater wash bags when doing laundry. I've ended up collecting a few lingerie wash bags (see illustrations below) to protect my delicates when doing my laundry. These mesh bags have protected zippers that protect items while in the washing machine. Somewhere along the way it dawned on me that I could fill the sweater bag version (large bag) with socks and guarantee none of them would go missing.

So now my socks don't get inside pant legs or other strange places and they definitely don't get eaten by the washing machine. I still have socks go missing occasionally but it's pretty rare. This means less shopping, and since some of my socks are hand knitted less anguish. I must not be the only one to do this since Tide sells their own sock wash bag. There's plenty of wash bags available both online and at your local store.

Drawer organizers for clothes

In the fit of organizing that I mentioned in my last post, I also attacked my dresser drawers. I used a few of those spring-loaded drawer dividers (but higher ones) along with some sock & lingerie organizers. Everything has it's place, and in the case of socks they are even organized by color.

Some of you might think that's just too much trouble, but the better organized your dresser drawers are the less time you spend getting ready in the morning. I'd rather spend time folding and rolling in the evening or on the weekend then digging frantically in the morning while trying to get to work on time. For me it's worked out great, I pick out my clothes and then grab socks and what not to match. Because everything is organized ahead of time it takes only seconds to grab what I need. Which is good because I'm not a morning person and the less alert I have to be the better things work out.

An added bonus is when I'm folding and rolling after doing my laundry I can identify immediately which socks are missing mates and can put them aside so that I'm not dealing with them on work day mornings.

I ended up getting several of the sock boxes shown below, they work well and they ship flat which means less packaging. There are other options but these accommodated the various thicknesses of my socks. These and similar products are probably available locally (look for the area where they sell clothes hampers) or via some of the online stores I mentioned in my previous post.

Drawer organizers for the kitchen

In one of my fits of organizing fever I bought some drawer dividers for our kitchen drawers. They've turned out pretty well since it's easier to find things. Mine are simple separators and they fit well because they are adjustable depending on the size of your drawers. Which is good because I don't think ours are a standard size.

Mine are these spring-loaded Dream Drawer 2 Drawer Dividers, avaialble from Organize.com, Bed Bath and Beyond, Amazon, and others. I've found them in different heights and lengths, they're are easy to move, and you can take them with you if you move.

This site (one I'm a little too fond of) also offers a wide selection of what I call "drop-ins" because they are self-contained units that you can insert 'as is' into your drawers. They are expandable so they encompass more of the drawer space available.

Amazon has a variety including wooden ones such as this Axis Expandable Kitchen Drawer Divider.

Today I discovered this site, which has some pretty elaborate drawer organizers. My only criticism is that some of the products are permanent, which doesn't allow for changes either by you or by new owners if you ever sell your home. You also can't take them with you when you move, Lifestyle Systems: E-Z-Organizers.

Another site, and one I've ordered from myself, is Stacks and Stacks. They have a nice selection of drawer organizers for kitchen, office, and bedroom. You can spend a lot of money here so watch yourself!

Be sure to measure your drawers first before shopping online or in your local stores.

Cash for Clunkers

The Sierra Club has launched an online guide to help people interested in taking advantage of the "Cash for Clunkers Program." Or I should say CARS.gov, Car Allowance Rebate System, which is the official name. But 'Cash for Clunkers' sounds so much better doesn't it?

This sounds like a win-win, get old gas guzzlers off the roads by giving people a rebate so they can afford to buy a new, more fuel efficient vehicle. And to my surprise the old vehicles will be crushed and recycled, not resold. You get the rebate, as much as $4500, and if you're clever you'll also negotiate with your dealer for the scrap value of your old car.

Check out Sierra Club's recommendations for that new car. They'll show you how much you'll save each year on fuel.

Picture Frame Folding Table

I like this site a lot, Treehugger.com. They sometimes run articles that really hit my 'cool meter,' like this table that folds down from a picture frame

Additional links:
http://www.ivydesign.at/picture_table.html

DOD setting its sights on cleantech

It is a fact, whether you like it or not, that the needs of war aids innovation. If you can get the military interested in your product (and not have them classify it) it can help fund your innovation enough to take it to the commercial market.

That's why I find this article interesting, "Can the Military Find the Answer to Alternative Energy?

The fashion world encounters green living

Living green or at least starting to (in my case) can result in some interesting reading. Although not a few people/industries could learn a lot from my mother's waste not, want not philosophy in life.

Zero Waste—The Newest Eco-Fashion Innovation?

I had always assumed that waste fabric from the fashion industry was used for embellishments and matching accessories. Or at least sold to others who would turn the odd cuts into more products. Huh! So much for my fantasy of little cottage industries feeding off the larger companies.