Organic Housekeeping

Organic Housekeeping: In Which the Nontoxic Avenger Shows You How to Improve Your Health and That of Your Family, While You Save Time, Money, and, Perhaps, Your Sanity 
by Ellen Sandbeck


I've been making an effort, one small step at a time, to detoxify our home.  We've switched to some personal care products that contain only natural ingredients, found a dish soap and a laundry detergent that are free of chemicals and additives, and are working towards using up the rest of our conventional cleaners so that we can begin using more basic solutions (lots of vinegar, I imagine).  So, naturally I was interested in this book when I saw it mentioned in a magazine.  While Organic Housekeeping contains tons of practical advice for nearly every housekeeping task you can imagine, I chose to skim most of the book and thoroughly read only the first chapter, which lays the foundation for why we should bother with "organic housekeeping" in the first place.


Sandbeck makes the argument that in this day and age, we clean too much and for the wrong reasons.  We create more work than needs to be done, and we harm ourselves in the process.  This paragraph from the book sums it up:

Many of us who live in the developed world have gone well beyond satisfying our basic physical and emotional needs.  In fact, we have gone so far that some of those basic needs are no longer being met.  We seem to have forgotten what our ancestors knew quite well: The only real reason to do any cleaning at all is in order to maintain our health.  If that cleaning happens to make our homes and our clothing look prettier, so much the better.  But if we clean just for appearances, rather than for health, we may end up rubbing our burning eyes, scratching our rough, reddened skin, and suffering asthma attacks while wearing soft, fragrant, toxic clothing in gleaming homes that make us dizzy with the aerosolized essence of mountain meadows.  Then we can look out the windows and watch the robins fainting on our perfect lawns.

And if that lovely image isn't enough to get you to ease up on cleaning (and certain cleaning products), listen to this: 

In 2002, researchers at the University of Glasgow officially discovered that doing domestic chores lowers people’s spirits; all other known forms of exercise elevate them.  Professor Nanette Mutrie, who is on the Scottish Executive’s national physical task force, said, “With vigorous exercise, the effect is clear; the more you do, the better it is for wellbeing…With housework it is the opposite – the more you do, the more depression you report.”

I plan to locate this report and post a copy on the refrigerator.  Then, anytime a member of my household is frustrated with the mess, I'll just point to the report and show him or her my smiling face.  I'm fairly certain, though, that as far as this idea is concerned, organizing does not fall under the general heading of "domestic chores."  Nothing lifts my spirits like a good round of alphabetizing the spice cabinet or labeling the craft bins.


This first chapter of the book also talks a bit about clutter in our homes.  I am completely against clutter (a place for everything, and everything in its place!), but I can't seem to escape it.  This may have something to do with the 3-year-old who seems to follow in my footsteps around the house, undoing everything that I have just done.  Sometimes Keith suggests that we should aim to limit our possessions to just 10 items, and while I think this is a bit extreme (not to mention impossible if we want to brush our teeth, wear clean underpants and eat food on a regular basis), I do think there is something to be said for getting rid of all the extra stuff that accumulates in our home.  The following are a few inspiring quotes from the book on the topic of clutter:

Space – living space – Is much more valuable than the clutter it contains.  Do your best to maintain and preserve your domestic open space. 

If something is bothering you, do something about it!  If you trip over it, move it out of the way for the hundredth time, notice it’s nonfunctional and impossible to repair, have grown out of it, or realize that it stinks – move it, put it away, sell it, jettison it, recycle it, or send it to Goodwill.  If you do this every day, your house will be in better shape than ever before.

May all the objects in your home be either useful, necessary, or well loved...

Owning more than you can take care of is not only uneconomical, it is unenvironmental.  If you have more lumber than you can store successfully, you might as well give it to someone who can use it.  If you think you are saving money by keeping it, you are mistaken.  After plywood, for instance, has warped due to weather exposure, you will have to pay to dispose of it.  If you had given it away while it was still usable, the recipient would probably have been happy to pick it up.

And, my personal favorite (and my new mantra whenever I'm tempted to store something away, save something for a more important/special purpose, or buy a newer and better version of something we already own):

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without.”