This summer I spent a lot of time scraping off chip paper, replacing it with smooth paper and creating an office space I want to work in. On my office walls I have 2 long strips of chalkboard in an amazing blue colour. I bought a big tin of special chalkboard paint thinking I’d need to use loads of it …
Hydroponics v Soil v Light Growing Comparisons
In a nutshell – I’m testing different growing methods to see which comes out best. This month it’s spinach. I love my Ikea Vaxar Hydroponics unit but I wasn’t very impressed with the taste of the lettuce that came out of the first crop. To see if it makes a difference I’m trying (not terribly scientifically) to see if soil …
Ikea Hydroponics 3 months on, tips and hacks.
In a nutshell – I bought the Ikea Vaxar hydroponics unit as part of the Ikea Live LAGOM project. This is how it is 3 months after setting up with some growing tips and hacks. As a Live LAGOM participant I had to come up with resolutions that would help us live more sustainably. I chose growing salad all year …
First indoor salad crop from hydroponics kit
In a nutshell – 7 weeks ago I started some seeds off in a hydroponics unit bought through the Ikea Live LAGOM project. This is our celebration meal with the first crop. I’ve been growing 3 different types of lettuce in the grow house for the last 7 weeks and today we started eating it. We can kiss goodbye to …
7 weeks from seed to salad – indoor hydroponics
In a nutshell – how quick it is to produce your own salad indoors, even in mid winter. 48 days after planting seeds we have a good crop we can start eating this weekend. They are growing in the darkest room in the house, under Ikea VAXAR lights, bought as part of the Live LAGOM project. You can read about …
Growing Salad indoors with Ikea Live LAGOM
In a nutshell – as part of the Ikea Live LAGOM project I get to spend their money on an indoor growing kit. I’m aiming to grow my own salad indoors all year round with the help of the VAXAR grow house. My house is a two up two down with a ground floor extension the width of the house. …
Ikea Hydroponics Indoor Gardening – First Thoughts
In a nutshell – as part of the Ikea Live LAGOM project I am aiming to grow all my salad indoors, all year round. Ikea gave me £300 to spend on Ikea products to make my life more sustainable. I’ve been coveting an indoor growing kit for some time but I didn’t have the money to spend on one, nor …
Will making your bed every day make you happier?
I don’t often make my bed properly. I aim to, but there is usually a cat on it when I’m in a bed making mood so I leave it all undisturbed. I love the feeling of smooth clean sheets though and when a friend reminded me of this video I thought it would make a good mini challenge. Adm. McRaven …
Winning at Winter – make it clutter free, frugal, thrifty and fun
I’ve been working on a gorgeous collaboration with upcycling expert Vicky Myers and the very clever Claire Lyons who is the frugal family expert. Between us we have come up with a solution to make winter fun, frugal and environmentally friendly too. It is a workbook full of things you can do to make four winter weeks much better. Winning …
Feel the fear and draw in that nice new sketchbook
I don’t like or enjoy drawing. So, although I’m a professional designer in my day job I still feel a deep anxiety when I need to draw something. Despite my hatred of putting pencil to paper, I love new sketchbooks. My gut reaction with a new sketchbook is to hoard it away because it feels too good to use. This …
Writing a personal manifesto instead of making resolutions
The end of the year is nigh. Before the new year I want to reflect on this one, learn from my mistakes and celebrate things that have gone well. Next year brings some exciting changes – I’ve been accepted on a MA Design postgraduate course starting in September. It will take me 3 years part time and I could possibly …
Making Christmas easier this year and next
Christmas, which is meant to be a time of giving and gratitude can easily end up being really stressful instead. Lovely Dawn from the less-stuff Facebook group came up with the idea of a list of strategies to help cope with this Christmas, while preparing for the next. This post is written with help from Dawn, Anna, Toets, Su, Esther, …
How to choose the perfect notebook
At the start of each new year I begin a new journal in a notebook. I’m not restrictive about what goes in it, although it generally holds lists of things to do for work and notes from meetings. I sometimes scribble down recipes, ideas or just doodle in it. My journal goes with me everywhere and choosing the new one …
Why I pay for things I can get for free and what I do if I can’t pay
There is a lot of free stuff around, especially on the internet. This article explains why it makes me happy to pay for things when I don’t technically need to. What do I get for free I design websites on a platform called WordPress which is a huge database driven by things called plugins. Plugins do everything from annoying pop …
Random acts of zero waste kindness
I’ve been feeling a bit flat recently. I’m working hard and getting nowhere, and the car is about to snuff it. I was unrealistically hoping my most recent book would hit the best sellers list and I could give up the day job. Keeping control of clutter is easy enough but supporting hundreds of others to do it takes energy …
What being an ethical business means to me. Video with Jen Gale
In a nutshell – Ethical Business Coach Jen Gale interviewed me for a Facebook live as part of her ‘Meet the Changemakers’ series. I got to rant at length about integrity, why my design business is ethical (spoiler alert, I don’t overcharge and I am clear about my pricing). I spoke about working with clients on their websites rather than …
Real Life Bullet Journalling – when the Cat Pukes on February
In a nutshell – there is no need to be intimidated by beautiful to-do lists and elegant diaries. I use the bullet journal method to suit me. As well as running less-stuff I’m a self employed single parent with around 40 clients at Naked Website Design, an old house that needs almost constant maintenance, a son who needs to get …
Optimal Living Daily – little podcasts with lots of useful info
In a nutshell – Optimal Living Daily is a series of podcasts about productivity, health, finance and business. They saves you the bother of hunting out the very best authors who are read daily in short bursts. If you are at all interested in learning new ways to manage your time and life better, then I totally recommend the OLD …
Things to do for free on uninspiring winter weekends
In a nutshell – a few ideas for things to do on a uninspiring winters weekend. None of them involve money, some need no energy at all. I’ve added some to keep kids amused too! Staying warm: make a cosy winter corner with a comfortable chair and a warm blanket, settle in by the fire for a good read. nap …
Zero waste Valentines without the clutter or crap
Valentines day is getting out of hand. From light up plastic roses to teddy bears with heart shaped balloons. Do you really need or want any of that? Do you know anyone who would like these throwaway gifts for more than a week at most? In collaboration with Vicky from Vicky Myers Creations this post has some ideas for Valentines …
Adventures with Family Cloth (washable loo roll)
‘Family Cloth’ is a rather twee way of saying ‘washable rags you wipe your bum with’. Bumbaclot is a Jamaican insult but it describes these bum cloths perfectly. Warning – this post is a bit gross! How does it work? You can use a dry cloth to wipe when you wee and you can wet the cloth to wipe when …
Unusual Zero Waste Present Ideas
It is not easy to find presents for people sometimes, especially people like me who don’t want clutter! I’ve compiled a list of gifts that are zero waste or will help you reduce your environmental impact in some way. Unless stated, these are not paid for links, I am not benefitting from advertising the products on this page. If you …
Why I’m going zero waste this Christmas
Christmas is a time of giving but I don’t want to give burdens. I especially don’t want to burden the planet up with more stuff that goes to landfill. So this year, I’m attempting a fully zero waste Christmas. My relationship with Christmas is pretty complex, basically I hate it. I love getting people presents but not when a seasonal …
How boycotting a brand can make life easier
Cutting down the amount of choice you have when you go shopping can make life much easier. This is not a judgmental or campaigning post, it is about choices and picking your own battle. Why I boycott Nestle When I was in my 20’s I was lucky enough to travel around South East Asia. I had the most extraordinary time …
Random acts of zero waste kindness
I’ve been feeling a bit flat recently. I’m working hard and getting nowhere, and the car is about to snuff it. I was unrealistically hoping my most recent book would hit the best sellers list and I could give up the day job. Keeping control of clutter is easy enough but supporting hundreds of others to do it takes energy …
Zero Waste Week 2017 – budget ways to be zero waste
At the end of just 5 days of Zero Waste Week I have 2 bags of rubbish. One is a plastic bag full of wet newspaper from the cats litter trays. The other is a smaller bag of stuff I cannot recycle. The main problem I have is the thinner type of plastic, cellophane and the packaging that spinach comes …
Zero Waste Week 17 Day 5 – Making useful stuff out of the useless
In a nutshell – it is Zero Waste Week 2017 and I’m trying out ways of extending the life of old things. This week I turned a useless duvet into 16 useful things. I’ve been making Morsbags for a while now but the bag of clean rags going into the recycling was bothering me a bit. Zero Waste Week was …
Zero Waste Week 17 Day 4 – wins and fails
A demoralising amount of plastic Sods law dictated that this week, Zero Waste Week, would be that week that things run out. So I’m left with loads of plastic bags that used to contain loo roll, pasta, spinach and peppers. More than usual! I had heard that you can fuse plastic together by ironing but then I found this tutorial …
How to make cosy slippers from an old wool jumper
This was originally an extra large lambswool jumper that got into the washing machine by accident. I’m not sad about it, it originally came from a second hand market stall so it has had plenty of use. If you don’t have a shrunk jumper to hand this would work with fleece too. The important thing is that the cuff is …
5 Easy Zero Waste Life Hacks
This quick list has some ideas for making zero waste part of life. There are all easy, minor hassle options that can save you money too. Save stale bread I love sourdough bread but it gets pretty hard after a couple of days. Whizzed up in a blender it makes the most amazing breadcrumbs to sprinkle on top of baked …
Zero Waste Week 17 Day 3 – Bloody cat food pouches
This attempt at upcycling has put me into a VILE mood. I’ve got 2 cats. I was going to rescue just the one cat but when we went to pick him up we were told he hated children. So do I sometimes but I tend not to bite them or jump at their faces with my claws out. So, in …