Lifestyle & Home - Books

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up

Lifestyle & Home

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The book that sparked a revolution and inspired the hit Netflix series Tidying Up with Marie Kondo: the original guide to decluttering your home once and for all.ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL BOOKS OF THE DECADE—CNN Despite constant efforts to declutter your home, do papers still accumulate like snowdrifts and clothes pile up like a tangled mess of noodles?Japanese cleaning consultant Marie Kondo takes tidying to a whole new level, promising that if you properly simplify and organize your home once, you’ll never have to do it again. Most methods advocate a room-by-room or little-by-little approach, which doom you to pick away at your piles of stuff forever. The KonMari Method, with its revolutionary category-by-category system, leads to lasting results. In fact, none of Kondo’s clients have lapsed (and she still has a three-month waiting list). With detailed guidance for determining which items in your house “spark joy” (and which don’t), this international bestseller will help you clear your clutter and enjoy the unique magic of a tidy home—and the calm, motivated mindset it can inspire.

The Minimalist Home

Lifestyle & Home

USA TODAY BESTSELLER • A popular minimalist blogger and author of The More of Less shows you how to methodically turn your home into a place of peace, contentment, and purposeful living.One of today's most influential minimalist advocates takes us on a decluttering tour of our own houses and apartments, showing us how to decide what to get rid of and what to keep. He both offers practical guidelines for simplifying our lifestyle at home and addresses underlying issues that contribute to over-accumulation in the first place. The purpose is not just to create a more inviting living space. It's also to turn our life's HQ—our home—into a launching pad for a more fulfilling and productive life in the world.

The Backyard Homestead

Lifestyle & Home

This comprehensive guide to homesteading provides all the information you need to grow and preserve a sustainable harvest of grains and vegetables; raise animals for meat, eggs, and dairy; and keep honey bees for your sweeter days. With easy-to-follow instructions on canning, drying, and pickling, you’ll enjoy your backyard bounty all winter long. Also available in this series: The Backyard Homestead Seasonal Planner, The Backyard Homestead Book of Building Projects, The Backyard Homestead Guide to Raising Farm Animals, and The Backyard Homestead Book of Kitchen Know-How. This publication conforms to the EPUB Accessibility specification at WCAG 2.0 Level AA.

The Laundry Book

Lifestyle & Home

Do laundry right the first time with The Laundry Book, the ultimate reference guide for all things laundry.If you’re like most people, laundry is a never-ending chore that you want to spend as little time, effort, and money on as possible, and no one has ever properly taught you how to tackle this chore. Laundry influencer Zach Pozniak and his father, Jerry Pozniak, owners of the luxury dry-cleaning company Jeeves New York and fabric-care experts break down this tedious task into playful and easily digestible pieces for a straightforward, easy-to-navigate book that can live in the laundry room and make doing laundry even enjoyable.Zach and Jerry provide authoritative information and advice as third- and fourth-generation dry cleaners on all matters of fabric care, including: Science-backed and -tested tips and techniquesHow to save time, money, and the environment by doing laundry correctlyAn A-to-Z stain removal guideWhat ingredients to look for when buying laundry productsHow to read clothing care labelsHow to extend the life of your clothesWhen to call in the professionalsand much more!This guide cuts through the noise and educates you on best practices for clean, vibrant, stain-free, and long-lasting results.

The Repair Shop

Lifestyle & Home

'Heartwarming, magical and uplifting'In today's throwaway culture, there's a counter movement growing that urges us to 'make do and mend'. The BBC's BAFTA Award winning The Repair Shop has brought this waste-conscious message to an even wider audience, with its regular viewing figures of 7 million in the UK alone, cementing itself as a classic series in the vein of Antiques Roadshow.This new book concentrates on the show's much-loved experts, including woodworker and furniture restorer Will Kirk, clock restorer Steve Fletcher, metalworker Dominic Chinea, silversmith Brenton West, leatherworker Suzie Fletcher, upholsterer Sonnaz Nooranvary, and seamstresses Julie Tatchell & Amanda Middleditch - aka The Teddy Bear Ladies. Each of the experts shares their own stories and their repairs, capturing in the process the magic and ethos of the barn. Includes quotations and Q & As from the experts as well as Jay Blades on some unique restoration collaborations.With the focus on the experts themselves, readers will feel as though they're stepping straight into the 'workshop of dreams' and experiencing first hand the magic of the barn.

The Simple Living Handbook

Lifestyle & Home

Where did all this stuff come from? I don’t have time for a life. I need to get away! Ever feel this way? Society is quick to fill our minds and homes with all the latest gadgets, tools, obligations, and entertainment, but what happens when it all doesn’t fit? The Simple Living Handbook is a how-to memoir about creating a life that has space for what really matters to you.Lippincott’s road to simplicity started in the fall of 2010 when she was on the verge of a breakdown. Her life was basically “normal”—husband, two kids, comfortable home, three home businesses—but she felt like she was running a rat race. She was desperate for more time and space to focus on family, health, and her own interests. So she and her husband decided to cut back on clutter—drastically. Now the family of four lives in a one-bedroom apartment with only the possessions they actually need and use; they stick to a simple diet of only whole foods “that God would recognize”; and they have managed to become productive without feeling busy. They’ve never been happier or healthier.Through personal stories, advice, and tips, Lippincott teaches how to make the hard decisions necessary to simplify your home and your schedule. Beyond that, she addresses the hidden emotional hoarding that threatens to keep our souls running in circles. Through her inspiring story, readers will learn to take a step back, reassess priorities, and commit to making space for those people and things that really matter.

The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning

Lifestyle & Home

*The basis for the wonderfully funny and moving TV series developed by Amy Poehler and Scout Productions*A charming, practical, and unsentimental approach to putting a home in order while reflecting on the tiny joys that make up a long life.In Sweden there is a kind of decluttering called döstädning, dö meaning “death” and städning meaning “cleaning.” This surprising and invigorating process of clearing out unnecessary belongings can be undertaken at any age or life stage but should be done sooner than later, before others have to do it for you. In The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning, artist Margareta Magnusson, with Scandinavian humor and wisdom, instructs readers to embrace minimalism. Her radical and joyous method for putting things in order helps families broach sensitive conversations, and makes the process uplifting rather than overwhelming.Margareta suggests which possessions you can easily get rid of (unworn clothes, unwanted presents, more plates than you’d ever use) and which you might want to keep (photographs, love letters, a few of your children’s art projects). Digging into her late husband’s tool shed, and her own secret drawer of vices, Margareta introduces an element of fun to a potentially daunting task. Along the way readers get a glimpse into her life in Sweden, and also become more comfortable with the idea of letting go.

Back to Basics

Lifestyle & Home

Over 200,000 copies sold—fully updated! Dye your own wool, raise chickens, make your own cheddar cheese, build a log cabin, and much much more.Anyone who wants to learn basic living skills—the kind employed by our forefathers—and adapt them for a better life in the twenty-first century need look no further than this eminently useful, full-color guide.Countless readers have turned to Back to Basics for inspiration and instruction, escaping to an era before power saws and fast-food restaurants and rediscovering the pleasures and challenges of a healthier, greener, and more self-sufficient lifestyle.Now newly updated, the hundreds of projects, step-by-step sequences, photographs, charts, and illustrations in Back to Basics will help you dye your own wool with plant pigments, graft trees, raise chickens, craft a hutch table with hand tools, and make treats such as blueberry peach jam and cheddar cheese. The truly ambitious will find instructions on how to build a log cabin or an adobe brick homestead.More than just practical advice, this is also a book for dreamers—even if you live in a city apartment, you will find your imagination sparked, and there’s no reason why you can’t, for example, make a loom and weave a rag rug. Complete with tips for old-fashioned fun (square dancing calls, homemade toys, and kayaking tips), this may be the most thorough book on voluntary simplicity available.

Household Papers and Stories

Lifestyle & Home

Mrs. Stowe had early and very practical acquaintance with the art of housekeeping. It strikes one at first as a little incongruous that an author who devoted her great powers to stirring the conscience of a nation should from time to time, and at one period especially, give her mind to the ordering of family life, but a moment’s consideration will show that the same woman was earnestly at the bottom of each effort.

How to Keep House While Drowning

Lifestyle & Home

An NPR Best Book of 2022 USA TODAY BestsellerThis revolutionary approach to cleaning and organizing helps free you from feeling ashamed or overwhelmed by a messy home.If you’re struggling to stay on top of your to-do list, you probably have a good reason: anxiety, fatigue, depression, ADHD, or lack of support. For therapist KC Davis, the birth of her second child triggered a stress-mess cycle. The more behind she felt, the less motivated she was to start. She didn’t fold a single piece of laundry for seven months. One life-changing realization restored her sanity—and the functionality of her home: You don’t work for your home; your home works for you.In other words, messiness is not a moral failing. A new sense of calm washed over her as she let go of the shame-based messaging that interpreted a pile of dirty laundry as “I can never keep up” and a chaotic kitchen as “I’m a bad mother.” Instead, she looked at unwashed clothes and thought, “I am alive,” and at stacks of dishes and thought, “I cooked my family dinner three nights in a row.”Building on this foundation of self-compassion, KC devised the powerful practical approach that has exploded in popularity through her TikTok account, @domesticblisters. The secret is to simplify your to-do list and to find creative workarounds that accommodate your limited time and energy. In this book, you’ll learn exactly how to customize your cleaning strategy and rebuild your relationship with your home, including:-How to see chores as kindnesses to your future self, not as a reflection of your worth -How to start by setting priorities -How to stagger tasks so you won’t procrastinate -How to clean in quick bursts within your existing daily routine -How to use creative shortcuts to transform a room from messy to functionalWith KC’s help, your home will feel like a sanctuary again. It will become a place to rest, even when things aren’t finished. You will move with ease, and peace and calm will edge out guilt, self-criticism, and endless checklists. They have no place here.

The Encyclopedia of Country Living, 50th Anniversary Edition

Lifestyle & Home

#1 — The Best Country and Rural Living Books*#1 — 15 Best Homesteading Books for Beginners in 2021**For more than 50 years, this homesteading classic is the essential book of basic skills and country wisdom for living off the land, being prepared, and doing it yourself. Keep your family healthy, safe, and independent--no matter what's going on in the world. From homesteaders to urban farmers, and everyone in between, there is a desire for a simpler way of life: a healthier, greener, more self-sustaining, and holistic approach that allows you to survive and thrive—even in uncertain times.With its origins in the back-to-the-land movement of the late 1960s, Carla Emery’s landmark book has grown into a comprehensive guide to living a self-sustaining lifestyle. Learn how to live independently in this comprehensive guide, including how to:* Can, dry, and preserve food * Plan your garden * Grow your own food* Make 20-minute cheese* Make your own natural skincare products* Bake bread * Cook on a wood stove * Learn beekeeping * Raise chickens, goats, and pigs * Create natural skincare products * Make organic bug spray * Treat your family with homemade remedies * Make fruit leather* Forage for wild food* Spin wool into yarn* Mill your own flour * Tap a maple tree And more! Basic, thorough, and reliable, this book deserves a place in urban and rural homes alike.This 50th anniversary edition includes updated resources.* Bookscrolling** OutdoorHappens

Home Comforts

Lifestyle & Home

A classic bestselling resource for every household, Home Comforts helps you manage everyday chores, find creative solutions to domestic dilemmas, and enhance the experience of life at home.“Home Comforts is to the house what Joy of Cooking is to food.” —USA TODAYHome Comforts is an engaging and comprehensive book about housekeeping. It is a lively and readable guide for both beginners and experts in all the domestic arts. From keeping surfaces free of germs, watering plants, removing stains, folding a fitted sheet, cleaning china, tuning a piano, lighting a fire, setting the dining room table—this guide covers everything that people might want to do for themselves in their homes.Further topics include: making up a bed with hospital corners, expert recommendations for safe food storage, reading care labels (and sometimes carefully disregarding them), keeping your home free of dust mites and other allergens, this is a practical, good-humored, philosophical guidebook to the art and science of household management.

Simpler Living, Second Edition—Revised and Updated

Lifestyle & Home

1,500 Ways to Declutter, Organize, Streamline, and Reclaim Your Space and Your Time! Life moves too quickly these days, as technology, work, and personal commitments make it almost impossible to relax and enjoy life. Finding yourself stressed over the clutter in your kitchen or the mass of paper in front of your computer? Relax. This book will help. Filled with tips on how to uncomplicate your daily routine, eliminate stress at home and work, and more, this book will help you free up your time and your space so you can once again enjoy doing the things you love. Author Jeff Davidson has compiled more than 1,500 ways that you can simplify your life. Divided into sections for easy reference, this book will show you ways you can eliminate stress in your home, your personal life, and in your professional life. You will learn the six questions you should ask yourself before buying something new, the most efficient way to clean your pots and pans, the pay-ahead technique to get yourself out of debt, ways to make your commute more comfortable, and advice on hassle-free vacation planning for you and your family. This book is the guide you’ve been looking for to lead the peaceful, productive life you’ve always wanted.

The Ultimate Navy SEALs Bug-In Survival Guide

Lifestyle & Home

The Complete Navy SEAL Bug-In Guide for Home Fortification and Emergency Preparedness featuring Exclusive VIDEO CONTENT in Every Chapter and 3 Essential Survival Resources⚔️ Are you ready to protect your home and family with the same proven tactics Navy SEALs use in life-or-death situations?When disaster strikes—be it a natural catastrophe, economic collapse, or home invasion—will your home be prepared to keep your family safe? In today’s unpredictable world, having a solid plan is not just a luxury, but a necessity.“The Ultimate Navy SEAL’s Bug-In Survival Guide" gives you the tools to transform your home into an unassailable stronghold, using proven strategies from the world’s most elite warriors. No matter the crisis, you can rest easy knowing you have the knowledge to fortify your home and protect your loved ones with the same techniques used by Navy SEALs.In This Comprehensive Guide, You Will Learn How To:• Turn Your Home Into a Fortress: Discover how to secure your home’s entry points and eliminate vulnerabilities.• Master Navy SEAL Defense Tactics: Equip your family with essential self-defense and tactical skills.• Stockpile Essentials for Survival: Build and maintain long-term food, water, and medical supplies.• Develop a Family Emergency Plan: Create and practice drills to keep your family organized and safe.• And Much More!!Everything You Need, Inside Every Chapter:• DIY Projects: Hands-on, step-by-step guides that show you how to secure your home, build life-saving systems• QR Codes for Tools: Easily access 12 QR codes per chapter, linking you directly to the tools and resources needed for each project• And many more topics!????️ 3 Navy SEALs Bug-In Bonuses1. Bug-In Progress Tracker: Monitor your home security and stockpiling progress2. 50 Real-Life Tactical Scenarios: Ready-to-use response plans for real emergencies3. Preppers Survival Gear Checklist: A Navy SEAL-inspired list of essential toolsIn a world full of uncertainty, there’s no better time to invest in your family’s safety. By adding this book to your survival library, you’re not just preparing for the unknown—you’re giving your family the skills and strategies needed to thrive in any crisis.Are You Ready to Protect What Matters Most? Don’t wait for disaster to strike! Scroll up and grab you copy to turn your home into an impenetrable fortress and ensure your family’s safety no matter what comes your way!

Black & Decker The Complete Guide to Wiring Updated 8th Edition

Lifestyle & Home

For over 15 years, BLACK+DECKER The Complete Guide to Wiring has been the best-selling home wiring manual in North America. With this 8th edition, get the clearest, most up-to-date advice available.As the most current wiring book on the market, you can be confident that your projects will meet national wiring codes. You’ll also spend more time on your project and less time scratching your head thanks to more than 800 clear color photos and over 40 diagrams that show you exactly what you need to know about home electrical service; all the most common circuits, all the most-needed techniques, all the most essential tools and materials. Chapters include:Working Safely with WiringWire, Cable & ConduitBoxes & PanelsSwitches (including wall switches and specialty switches)ReceptaclesPreliminary Work (planning your project, highlights of the National Electrical Code, and more)Circuit MapsCommon Wiring Projects (whole-house surge arrestors, underfloor radiant heat systems, doorbells, backup power supply, and many more)Repair Projects (light fixtures, ceiling fans, lamp sockets, plugs and cords, and more)The information in this book has been created and reviewed by professional electricians under the watchful eye of the experts at BLACK+DECKER. You can find plenty of articles and videos about wiring online or in other publications, but only The Complete Guide to Wiring has passed the rigorous test to make it part of the best DIY series from the brand you trust.

The Ultimate Grid-Down Survival Guide

Lifestyle & Home

⚡️ As the world moves forward, preparing for the inevitable, will you stand by watching, or will you be among the resilient few who thrive against the odds? ⚡️In today’s unpredictable world, the security of your home and the safety of your family hinge on your preparedness for unforeseen events. "The Ultimate Grid-Down Survival Guide" is your comprehensive manual to not just surviving, but thriving when the unexpected strikes.From immediate actions for power outages to sustainable living solutions, off-grid power, water security, food preservation, emergency medical care, and securing your home, this guide covers all bases, ensuring you're prepared for any grid-down situation.In This Book, You Will Learn How To:????️ Master the first steps to take when darkness descends, safeguarding your family's safety in the initial critical hours.????️ Dive deep into the world of alternative energy sources, learning to sustain your home's power with solar, wind, and more, even when the grid fails.????️ Uncover the secrets to ensuring your water is drinkable and your food supply is stable, with techniques for purification, storage, and preservation that don’t rely on modern conveniences.????️ Equip yourself with the knowledge to handle health crises, stockpile essential medications, and utilize herbal remedies, all without a doctor’s help.????️ Discover strategies to assess and enhance your home's security, ensuring you and your loved ones remain unassailable even when society’s safeguards falter.????️ And much more!!Some of the Featured Step-by-Step Guides for DIY Projects Inside:• Emergency Survival Kit• Building Your DIY Solar Oven• Constructing an Evaporative Cooler• Building a Comprehensive First Aid Kit• Crafting a DIY Water Filter• And more...Whether you're nestled in the heart of the city or perched on the edge of the wilderness, this guide is tailored to empower you with the knowledge and skills needed to ensure safety and self-sufficiency in any critical scenario.By adding this book to your library you're not just preparing for the unknown; you're building a legacy of resilience, teaching the next generation the value of readiness and self-sufficiency. This isn't just a purchase—it's an investment in the future of your family and community.Don't wait for the unexpected to catch you off guard!Grab your copy to embark on a journey to master survival skills, ensuring you're equipped to thrive in any scenario, backed by the confidence of true preparedness.

Nobody Wants Your Sh*t

Lifestyle & Home

Free yourself and your family from the f*cking clutter before you croak! Inspired by The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning, Nobody Wants Your Sh*t will light a fire under your untidy ass with humor and helpful organizing tips that you’ll actually want to use. Like a delightfully foul-mouthed best friend, this book dishes out the funny, unpretentious advice you need to hear most. You’ll discover how to deal with your sh*t like there’s no tomorrow, live in the moment without the f*cking mess, and make your life and your eventual death a hell of a lot easier. With this witty guide, you’ll learn how to:• ditch the d*mn indecision• get your sh*t together and feel fantastic• give your busy family a f*cking break• and more! Whether you’re getting ready to move in, move on, or just move your ass, Nobody Wants Your Sh*t will help you take control of your f*cking life.

The Art of Discarding

Lifestyle & Home

The book that inspired Marie Kondo's The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up, Nagisa Tatsumi's international bestseller offers a practical plan to figure out what to keep and what to discard so you can get--and stay--tidy, once and for all. Practical and inspiring, The Art of Discarding (the book that originally inspired a young Marie Kondo to start cleaning up her closets) offers hands-on advice and easy-to-follow guidelines to help readers learn how to finally let go of stuff that is holding them back -- as well as sage advice on acquiring less in the first place. Author Nagisa Tatsumi urges us to reflect on our attitude to possessing things and to have the courage and conviction to get rid of all the stuff we really don't need, offering advice on how to tackle the things that pile up at home and take back control. By learning the art of discarding you will gain space, free yourself from "accumulation syndrome," and find new joy and purpose in your clutter-free life.

At Home: Special Illustrated Edition

Lifestyle & Home

From one of the most beloved authors of our time—more than six million copies of his books have been sold in this country alone—a fascinating excursion into the history behind the place we call home. “Houses aren’t refuges from history. They are where history ends up.” Bill Bryson and his family live in a Victorian parsonage in a part of England where nothing of any great significance has happened since the Romans decamped. Yet one day, he began to consider how very little he knew about the ordinary things of life as he found it in that comfortable home. To remedy this, he formed the idea of journeying about his house from room to room to “write a history of the world without leaving home.” The bathroom provides the occasion for a history of hygiene; the bedroom, sex, death, and sleep; the kitchen, nutrition and the spice trade; and so on, as Bryson shows how each has figured in the evolution of private life. Whatever happens in the world, he demonstrates, ends up in our house, in the paint and the pipes and the pillows and every item of furniture. Bill Bryson has one of the liveliest, most inquisitive minds on the planet, and he is a master at turning the seemingly isolated or mundane fact into an occasion for the most diverting exposition imaginable. His wit and sheer prose fluency make At Home one of the most entertaining books ever written about private life.

Goodbye, Things: The New Japanese Minimalism

Lifestyle & Home

The best-selling phenomenon from Japan that shows us a minimalist life is a happy life.Fumio Sasaki is not an enlightened minimalism expert or organizing guru like Marie Kondo—he’s just a regular guy who was stressed out and constantly comparing himself to others, until one day he decided to change his life by saying goodbye to everything he didn’t absolutely need. The effects were remarkable: Sasaki gained true freedom, new focus, and a real sense of gratitude for everything around him. In Goodbye, Things Sasaki modestly shares his personal minimalist experience, offering specific tips on the minimizing process and revealing how the new minimalist movement can not only transform your space but truly enrich your life. The benefits of a minimalist life can be realized by anyone, and Sasaki’s humble vision of true happiness will open your eyes to minimalism’s potential.

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