Subjects:  1. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    2. Cleaning & Caretaking - Household Hints    3. Do-It-Yourself    4. Equipment and supplies    5. Home Improvement / Construction    6. Home Management    7. Home economics    8. House & Home    9. Household appliances    10. Household electronics    11. Maintenance and repair    12. House & Home / Cleaning & Caretaking   

Editorial Review

Surprisingly, this is not simply a useful "how-to" book about natural cleaning. It is also a beautiful book--a pleasure to read and look at, with its lovely photographs and illustrations, accompanied by Kellar's accessible, conversational writing style.Read more

Reviews (8)

Healthy living can be time-consuming, but worth the effort!
I got this book from the library because my 8-month old is crawling around and I wanted a natural cleaner for the floors and basically everything natural to clean around the apartment. Not so non toxic
This book talks a lot about non toxic receipes, but most contained amonia and that's what I'm trying NOT to use...

Absolutely beautiful cleaning book!
I first picked this book up while perusing in my local bookstore and then had to purchase it from Amazon right away.It is not only beautifully laid out and designed, but it gives a sense of beauty to the whole concept of natural cleaning.While everyone has their own ideas of what comprises "natural" cleaning, Casey's recipes are by far less harmful than most of what we American's can buy in the supermarket today and also considerably cheaper in many aspects.Overall a wonderful book and one which makes me want to check out all the books this author has produced! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    2. Cleaning & Caretaking - Household Hints    3. Hobbies/Crafts    4. Home Improvement / Construction    5. House & Home    6. House cleaning    7. Natural products    8. Recipes    9. Household hints    10. Reference works   

Reviews (2)

The Clean Sweep Team To The Rescue!
I'd never seen the TV show, so the first part of the book (Meet the Team) wasn't useful for me, but will appeal to fans.
Great Book, Designer Angelo Surmelis has outdone himself, again!!
This is a great recap to the show, and diehard fans will immediately notice that most of the book (even the cover and inside cover) are from the show's top designer - Angelo Surmelis.He's done an amazing job with designing the spaces as well as the organizational design elements (not to mention the furniture he designed).Each room is unique and offers readers a great guide to getting rid of clutter, while giving practical ways to redesign their space.Angelo truly is the "King of Color." Rock on! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    2. Do-It-Yourself    3. Home Improvement / Construction    4. House & Home    5. Orderliness    6. Storage in the home    7. House & Home / Cleaning & Caretaking   

Reviews (4)

It's great
A true cleaning gem that will get your cleaning done in a jiffy, just you wait and see. No matter what kind of job you need done, whether it's moving drapes and heavy curtains out into the wings, or packing up furniture for winter wear, you'll find some useful tips from the smart team of CLEAN TEAM. They've got their own website and they're not afraid to advertise it, but don't run away in disgust, Jeff Campbell is actually a pretty relaxed pitchman.
Help for the cleaning impaired
This book gives specific advice for tackling major cleaning jobs around the house.The focus is not on hints and tips for tackling the details but on the approach to use and how to do it.Speed Cleaning, another book by Jeff Campbell, is for doing weekly cleaning.Spring Cleaning is for infrequent large cleaning jobs, but it also has advice for tackling the weekly cleaning the first time if you're starting out from way behind.If only I could get results just from reading the book. . .

Lot of good info, short form
I couldn't figure out how to clean the miniblinds effectively.Now I do.While apartment dweller won't need all the info, there is something for just about everyone who needs it.Their company sells the best and most interesting cleaning tools you've ever seen.Customer service is also five stars. They know their stuff, and this book is a good example of it.Also: Talking Dirt, the newest book. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    2. Cleaning & Caretaking - Household Hints    3. Do-It-Yourself    4. Home Improvement / Construction    5. House & Home    6. House cleaning    7. House & Home / Cleaning & Caretaking   

Reviews (12)

Very practical...gets you started right away!
I really should not be writing a review of this book yet because I have only read the intro and first two chapters!I'm really excited, though, and want to share.This book is great--and I am seeing results in my home already. The book offers practical suggestions that you can implement right away.As I have said, I just started Chapter 3, but I have already straightened my entryway and family room--the rooms covered in Chapters 1 and 2.I like the fact that you can get up during the middle of a Chapter and make a change, however small. The book is that practical.For the family room, the Queen suggested looking at the room with pen and paper in hand to see exactly what the clutter and disorganization was made up of.I did that and learned that my blankets (you know, the ones you throw over yourself when you are watching a great TV show) had no "home".I immediately followed a tip in the book and put them in a wicker hamper that I already had.Voila!Problem solved. In my entry, the kids backpacks and my purse had no home; they were never in the same place for two days in a row.I placed an old bench I had in there.Now the kids can sit when they put their shoes on and I know where their backpaks and my purse are--on that bench!Again, I am just getting started and these are small steps but they have made me feel good.I'm getting things started and making small but effective changes.I can't wait to read m o r e !My only regret is that I bought the ebook and it seems that I am unable to print it.I wish I had a hard copy to take with me to read during those few precious moments I have to do so!
A waste of time and money
Given the glowing ratings by previous reviewers, I expected good things from this book. I kept it aside for my beach reading on our holiday - thank goodness I brought something else. This book cromprises a bunch of no-brainer solutions that my seven-year-old could easily come up with and, rather than prescribing solutions that really conquer clutter, provides tips on ways to stash it out of sight...presumably so the reader has room for more clutter.

Unusual, but highly practical, ideas for storage and more
Most books about clutter boil down to: look at what you've got, decide whether you want what you have, and figure out what to do with what remains. It is in this last category -- figure out what to do with what you keep -- that this book really shines. It contains a pile of suggestions for kitchen organization and some particularly helpful ideas about dealing with bedrooms and closets. Read more

Subjects:  1. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    2. Do-It-Yourself    3. General    4. Home Improvement / Construction    5. House & Home    6. House cleaning    7. Housekeeping    8. DIY    9. House & Home / General    10. Household hints   

Reviews (1)

STAIN BUSTER!
I have not been this pleased with a book purchase in a long time!I read a piece in The New York Times that sparked my interest and purchased Field Guide to Stains.And let me say, that the stain removal techinques I've tried really work!What's more it's an interesting read and the close-up photos of the stains are not only hilarious, but very useful for identification.This book will get a lot of use around my house. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    2. Cleaning & Caretaking - Household Hints    3. Do-It-Yourself    4. Home Improvement / Construction    5. House & Home    6. House & Home / General    7. Household hints    8. Self-Help & Practical Interests   

Features

• Abridged

Reviews (6)

A must for the Victorian fetishist
Anyone who fetishizes the Victorian life as a model for living should own this book, either in the facsimile edition or the Oxford abridged version.

Simple life?I think not!
This book is written in such a way that you are drawn into the past and standing alongside the mistress of the house...planning your day and making sure the "household help" do their jobs well.It certainly reminds us of the benfits we have currently - with washing machines, dishwashers, automobiles, pre-packaged food and yes,fast food, yet still don't have enough time to do all the things we need/want to do.How would you like to dress your own cow or help make every article of clothing you wear (even though the "hired help" did most of it)?A brief introduction to the book instills in the reader a sense of where Mrs. Beeton arrived at her thoughts for "proper household management."She seems to have been frustrated by societal changes she was witnessing and wanted her "good ol' days" to return. It is a book I highly recommend not only for the history, but for the entertainment value.I could not put it down once I started.

Oh no it is abridged!
How silly to describe this as "an almost forgotten classic"when this is the most famous English cookery book ever published. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    2. Do-It-Yourself    3. Europe - Great Britain - General    4. General    5. Home Improvement / Construction    6. Home Management    7. Home economics    8. House & Home    9. Food & Drink / Cookery    10. History / Great Britain    11. Literature/English | British Literature | 19th C    12. Social history    13. United Kingdom, Great Britain    14. Women's studies    15. c 1800 to c 1900   

Reviews (4)

The Short Review
So small and compact. Great reference book!

The Short Review
So small and compact. Great reference book!

This has helped
This is a great reference book.Always there and its so compact.It helps me get my familys tough stains out too@ ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    2. Do-It-Yourself    3. Genealogy    4. Home Improvement / Construction    5. House & Home    6. Laundry    7. DIY    8. House & Home / General    9. Household hints   

Reviews (13)

Every woman needs this whether they think they do or not!
The most invaluable thing I learned from Passoff's brilliant clutter-free plan is that women are so unhappy because their goals are so vague. She teaches you how to have specific goals and to work on them one thing at a time-not concentrating on the entire picture-because you can't ignition if you think about China!
Caring about clutters
I recently bought three books on getting rid of clutter. This is by far the best of the three for me. Michelle Passoff is patient, caring and concerned for the readers wellbeing. The other books seemed to order me to do things and I just do not respond to the 'tough-love' method.
You need this book
This book is amazing. It walks you through every obstacle to clearing your clutter. I wouldn't part with it because you can pick it up again and jump back in when you are starting to slide back into your cluttering ways! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    2. General    3. Home Improvement / Construction    4. House & Home    5. House cleaning    6. Self-Help    7. Popular psychology    8. Self-Help / General   

Reviews (1)

Lots of helpful hints
This book is a good resource for uncommon (but viable) methods of cleaningwhile also focusing on ways to save the earth, such as using non-toxiccleaning elements (alcohol, vinegar, baking soda, etc.) rather thanchemical products that can harm children and pets.This is a great guidebook when you have exhausted (or even before you have exhausted) youroptions and/or your wallet. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    2. Cleaning & Caretaking - Household Hints    3. General    4. Home Improvement / Construction    5. Home economics    6. House & Home    7. Housekeeping    8. Self-Help    9. Reference / Personal & Practical Guides   

Reviews (6)

It works!
A very useful book to gain control of my home. So many helpful ideas to manage and keep my home in order.

How to Organize Your Entire House and more
"This book shares all the information you will need to create a successful, easy-to-maintain system for your family. By learning the basic skills of an organized parent, you can react in a calm professional manner so that you control your household, rather than allowing it to control you." ~Debbie Williams
VERY BASIC
This is a very very basic book on organizing your home. If you were just beginning a system of organization, didn't know where to start at all, or had not read another book about organization; then this might the book for you. Read more

Subjects:  1. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    2. Family & Relationships    3. Family Relationships    4. Family/Marriage    5. Home Improvement / Construction    6. Parenting - General    7. Home economics   

Editorial Review

Stuff, stuff and more stuff! Facing towering piles of your own accumulated artifacts, all out of storage space, and feeling you can never get organized and out from under it?!? Here's a common sense book about how to organize and do away with the unnecessary stuff in your life, create space and feel terribly virtuous about it at the same time! Do you know anybody who doesn't need this book? I don't. ... Read more

Reviews (13)

Frivolous but Compelling
First, let's be blunt. Aslett got a free book out of the letters and emails sent to him by fans of Clutter's Last Stand. This book has very little Aslett and very little practical advice other than "toss it." It consists of personal stories of being a prisoner of clutter, the wilder the better.
A clutterholics dreambook
Here it is - a book cluttered with clutter comments.Kinda thin on the help, but heck! what are you going to do when all those junkies get rid of their stuff or want to share how their life doesn't go well because of all their junk! Don turns their comments into cash and sells it back to us!He's not dumb, and he doesn't have to have his file clutered after he keeps cluttering up more books about clutter.Too much clutter?Buy all his books and let them clutter your life!I feel I got taken by the cutiesies!OK one more piece of clutter to get out of my life!

Inspiring!
I thought this book was excellent! Don Aslett has a lively, easy to read style. The book is a compilation of testimonies from people who have either a problem with clutter or who have finally overcome their problem with clutter. It is inspiring, interesting and helpful. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    2. Conduct of life    3. Home Improvement / Construction    4. House cleaning    5. Orderliness    6. Self-Help    7. Stress Management    8. Household hints    9. Popular psychology   

Reviews (1)

Pleasing Prose
Jackie Williams is a friend of ours, a fellow collector of spud-abilia and appreciator of the potato, who haswritten several cookbooks as well as a fine food history work, Wagon Wheel Kitchens, Food on theOregon Trail.Happily we can say that her newest book is a superb sequel, looking in onthe pioneersonce they reached their new home bases. Jackie has researchedthis subject down to the last eggless cakeand translates all her findingsinto pleasing prose.Read more

Subjects:  1. Cookery    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Equipment and supplies    5. Frontier and pioneer life    6. History    7. Housekeeping    8. Kitchens    9. Northwest, Pacific    10. Regional & Ethnic - American - General    11. Regional & Ethnic - American - Northwestern States    12. Regional & Ethnic - American - Western States    13. Social History    14. United States - State & Local - General   

Editorial Review

Peri Wolfman has been organizing things for a long time. As a child, she kept her clothes neatly folded on a chair beside her bed, deciding it was easier to see everything at a glance that way. Then for many years she arranged striking displays at her noted store, Wolfman-Gold & Good. Here, she peeks into the closets, drawers, and medicine cabinets of willing victims to find answers to organizing the clutter of everyday life. The attractive photographs showcase a fashionable country approach: distressed cupboard doors, old canning jars arrayed on gleaming shelves, collections artfully arranged on a weathered table, timeworn wooden benches piled atop one another to hold books or assorted items, lots of wicker baskets. Also prevalent is a kind of industrial chic featuring banks of wire shelving systems, streamlined kitchens in which even the refrigerator is camouflaged, open shelves supporting row upon row of identical items (fluffy white towels, bottles of water, stacks of white china). If that style has appeal for you, you'll find plenty of good tips on what to do with lots of stuff in

Reviews (19)

An inspiration for the owner of a very small home
I love to pick this book up and just flip through the pages.The photos are beautiful.I find the storage ideas inside to be creative and lovely to look at, I especially like the photos of odd collections of things and how people have arranged them.On the other hand, this is not a "how to" book.It does not have weekend projects nor does it discuss how to get the clutter out of your life.It's just a lovely, inspirational book.

Are you AR?
This book reminds me of that Phil Hartman (sad...) character on Saturday Hey, Look How Straight My Stuff Is Stacked!
I was in need of serious clutter management, but instead, I got plenty of glossy photos, showing off their plates, china, etc., in addition to many "Shabby Chic" display set ups. It didn't have any examples I found usable in my "real" situation. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    2. Cleaning & Caretaking - Household Hints    3. Decorating    4. Decorating - General    5. Home Improvement / Construction    6. House & Home    7. Residential Interior Design    8. Storage in the home    9. House & Home / Decorating   

Subjects:  1. Amateurs' manuals    2. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    3. Do-It-Yourself    4. Home Improvement / Construction    5. House & Home    6. Log cabins    7. Maintenance and repair    8. Remodeling & Renovation - General    9. House & Home / Cleaning & Caretaking   

Reviews (3)

very motivational / helps you part with your junk
There are many books on getting organized, decluttering, and such, but Aslett's really are the best.They're laugh-out-loud funny, inspiring, and not bogged down in detail.And the best part is, they work.This is one of the few weight loss books that has made a big difference within a few days -- I just finished filling three large trash bags and boxing a room full of stuff for charity.Aslett's approach is successful because he starts from the premise that the more stuff you have, the more time and money and energy you spend dealing with that stuff, and before long, the stuff owns you.He helps you conquier the I=Might=Need=It someday syndrome and helps you see that keeping things you don't need/use/love just causes frustration. He helps you see that getting rid of stuff (rather than just organizing it into shelves, closets and other "junk bunkers" is liberating.He deals with clutter in all aspects of life in a way that really makes sense.For example, he discusses how taking a bargain vacation can really cost you in the long run.This book is a little more globally-conscious/environmental than some of the others, but not in an academic way.The book is easy to read and is one of the few books I've read on decluttering that I'll keep and I'll read again someday. It's focus is on decluttering, not cleaning or organizing.If you only want to organize things rather than pare down your things, this isn't your book.The only reason I gave this four stars (rather than five) is because I don't think it's quite as good as some of Aslett's earlier books, most notably Clutter's Last Stand.

Wonderful!
Absolutely superb! Quite possibly your best book yet.(The horror stories alone make it well worth the price.) I've long believed that there comes a point where your possessions own you, instead of the other way around. Why do so many people think they'll need things "someday?" Pack-ratting really is a rampant form of obesity. So I'm calling my furniture consignment dealer...today!

Not as good as the first
Of all the books Don Aslett has written about clutter, this one disappointed me the most.I was waiting for something that would inspire me to dejunk my life the way Clutter's Last Stand did.This was not the book. Lose 200 Pounds This Weekend is a kind of catalog of clutter.It divides clutter into various categories, sports clutter, paper clutter, etc, and suggests ways to get rid of them.It lists reasons to get rid of clutter, how it affects your life, and when to do it. If you are still wading through clutter, and need one more boost of energy, this might do it.However, I think rereading Clutter's Last Stand might be just as helpful. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    2. Do-It-Yourself    3. Home Improvement / Construction    4. House & Home    5. Household hints    6. Popular psychology   

Subjects:  1. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    2. Do-It-Yourself    3. Home Improvement / Construction    4. House & Home    5. House cleaning    6. Housekeeping    7. House & Home / Cleaning & Caretaking    8. House maintenance    9. Household hints   

Reviews (1)

Do I Dust Or Vacuum First?
When I don't feel like cleaning, and I usually don't, I get this book out and browse.Something in it will get done.Don makes it so easy and fun. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    2. Cleaning & Caretaking - Household Hints    3. Do-It-Yourself    4. Home Improvement / Construction    5. House & Home    6. House cleaning    7. Housekeeping   

Reviews (4)

Informative
Precise and to the point. The author gave an indepth analyses of the janitorial business from his point of view. Mr.Kravitz did a good job in explaining how to value a janitorial company in an event you decide to sell your company.

Very Imformatice and Inspiring
Mr. Kravitz,
CONFUSED ABOUT JANITOR BUSINESS THIS BOOK HELPS
I HAVE OWNED A COMMERCIAL CLEANING BUSINESS NOW FOR ABOUT A YEAR AND HAD SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT WHERE I NEED TO BE AND HOW TO GET THERE. THIS BOOK IS A MUST FOR SOMEONE STARTING OUT AND FOR SOMEONE WHO HAS SOME EXPERIENCE IN THE BUSINESS BUT NOT ENOUGH TO MOVE FOWARD. IT IS EASY TO READ AND YOU WILL FIND SOME GREAT HINTS ON HOW TO SUCCEED IN JANITORAL BUSINESS. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics / Small Business    2. Career/Job    3. House & Home / Cleaning & Caretaking    4. Building    5. Building cleaning industry    6. Business    7. Business & Economics    8. Cleaning & Caretaking    9. Janitors    10. Service Industries Management    11. Small Business   

Reviews (3)

Basic advice with a few gold nuggets
What's charming about the book is the author's positive attitude and humor. She gives great advice on what products to use and general techniques. However, this book is not a step-by-step manual. It seems written for people who have already housecleaned their whole lives and just need some pointers.
Clutter meetsClean and neat
This book is so exciting to me, the Title itselfis motivating. I read of it in a magazine, immediately went to Amazon! Sure enough, there it was. I ordered it and in a few days spent time reading it (still reading). It is so encouraging to finally find something that WORKS without making you feel defeated before you start.This booktells me what I need to make it simple,enjoyable and excited because I know if I follow this method I canhave a clean, unclutteredhouseall of the time...without the panic on hearing the doorbell ring and find my neighbor standing there waiting to be invited in. When we visited our son and family recently, I took the book to read on the way up and back,when his wife saw it , she wanted one. so I gave her mine, then regreted it all the way home, thinking "what if I can't find another? Not to worry, I did .Now, I'm busy reading more and doing more inless time.
good but...
this should b considered with other guides in its vien. i've read several housekeeping manuals. don't rely on just this one alone. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cleaning & Caretaking - General    2. Cleaning & Caretaking - Household Hints    3. Do-It-Yourself    4. Home Improvement / Construction    5. House & Home    6. Home & House Maintenance    7. House & Home / Cleaning & Caretaking