Eco Homes 101

joe friday’s grrl asked:


I come from a long line of messies, who keep lots of unnecessary stuff that we will probably not use again, or wouldn’t miss if it was gone. I’m now a single mom of two teens, and they’ve adopted the family tradition. We’re not exactly hoarders, in that there’s plenty of space to sit down and live comfortably. Guests don’t mind visiting our home at all, and seem to like like to “cozy” and lived in feel of it. But we get pretty disgusted ourselves and depressed when we look around, and the task of decluttering seems monumental. We do it it spurts , but it never seems to stay that way.

Here’s the thing: We now live in a large, older home, but I want to build a very small, eco-friendly house soon. I would really like a house with clean, contemporary line, minimalist in terms of furniture and ’stuff’. Actually, the house wouldn’t be big enough to accommodate a lot of stuff; only 900 sq. ft. I feel like we would be so much happier, and less anxious and stressed in that kind of environment. Is it likely that we can accomplish such a change in lifestyle?
Sometimes, I want to just let somebody come in, tell them what absolutely needs to be kept, and let them have at it. For us to just leave the house until they’re done.

MINNIE