It's Garage Sale Time Again!

Today my family and I took a country drive to a flea market at a tiny, old school. I found a pair of pewter, pillar candle holders from Bombay, India for $2. This is the kind of thing you are looking for to create your wabi sabi home. Items such as this, which are made of natural materials and are not new and mass-produced, or are vintage or antique, that have the patina of a bygone era, take time to collect. The wabi sabi home evolves organically. One does not run out to the mall and buy a complete room's worth of things. You must be willing to leave spaces in your home bare until just the right item can be found. Creating space for something new is part of the process.

The danger to be avoided with garage sales is buying worthless stuff just because it is cheap. Stick with the principle of only purchasing those items which you believe to be beautiful and/or know to be useful. If it is new, it should be handmade. And for every item you buy, plan to give two things you own away! That way you are not accumulating clutter, which goes against the wabi sabi aesthetic. Think quality, intrinsic meaning, and things that tell a story. Imperfect beauty is a virtue. Frayed edges, chipped paint or wood, and rusted metal are not only allowed, but desired!

Wabi sabi is a Japanese tradition, and another way of that culture is to rotate your prized possessions seasonally. Think about how you bring out certain decorations for Christmas, and then you pack them back up for the year. You may also bring out special items for Easter, Halloween and other holidays. If you rotate what you have on display in your home, then you won't be tempted to set everything you own out at once, so you can more easily practice the art of restraint. Another advantage is that it's like having new things every few months! You bring them out and think, "Oh, I forgot about this wall hanging (or rug, pottery piece, or basket)," and you have the chance to fall in love with it all over again. Think also of asymetrical design, like you would find things in nature. A couple of budding branches in an old pottery vase placed alone on a fireplace mantle would be so wabi sabi.

When you head out to flea markets and garage sales, it is helpful to make a list of particular items you need, for instance, wicker chairs for you porch. I have found that when I make a wish list, I'm much more likely to find the treasure, and at just the right price! So put on your comfortable shoes and sunglasses, pack a snack and take a reusable bottle of water with you, and let your wabi sabi adventure begin!!

Spring on the Modern Homestead

With temperatures in the 70s today, it is time to think about preparing for spring! Whether you live out in the country, in a town, suburb, or urban center, you can begin a return with me to the homesteading approach to living. I already have flowers budding and blooming in my yard! The robins, doves, and other birds have returned, and before you know it, the time will come to plant your garden. So for now, make a list of projects you want to accomplish this spring. Using either a notebook or individual note cards, write the name of each project at the top, and then a list of steps and materials needed to complete it. And ladies, it is fine to make lists for your husbands, too!

Meticulous cleaning is an obvious spring endeavor, but I want you to go deeper this year. It is hard to keep a cluttered house in reasonable order. So throw open the doors and windows, and start looking around. Do one room at a time. The bedroom should be a sanctuary, so always keep this room clean, dusted, vacuumed, and uncluttered. A peaceful room encourages peaceful sleep, and a messy room does just the opposite. Also set up at least one outdoor living area which is a sanctuary. This can be a screened (or not screened) porch, a patio, a bench in the yard next to a birdbath, the stoop at the top of your apartment steps, or a tree house. You need areas to which you can retreat while sorting out the rest of your spaces.

We will enlist the help of The Wabi Sabi House, by Robyn Griggs Lawrence, in order to visualize our pared down homesteads. Colors are earthy, the outdoors connects with the inner dwellings, natural materials are used, sound is reduced, life flows with the seasons, beauty is imperfect, and tranquility prevails. Oh, and there is a noticeable absence of stuff. Decorations are sparse but make a statement and are not mass produced. Nor is the interior stark. Handmade and vintage objects, unique treasures associated with cherished memories, and well-worn, well-loved artifacts abound. The home is homey and is a respite from the clamor of the outside world. Nothing is allowed that doesn't have meaning, usefulness, and/or beauty (and preferably contains all three!).

Some say that we can't return to a past era and way of life, as the protagonist played by Owen Wilson in the movie, Midnight in Paris wished fervently to do. I can relate to him. I have always felt that I belong to another time. A more romantic, more glamourous,  more magical, or more innocent time. Yes, we live in the here and now. You could replace your car with a horse and buggy, but you probably won't. Still, you could check your email less often, say, only once a day. Limit television viewing to 5 hours a week, or turn it off for a whole month (gasp!). For the love of God, at least unplug your children. Cell phones should not go to school and should be handed over at bedtime. A TV should never be in a child's bedroom (or yours either), and neither should a computer or video games.

I'm going to give you food for thought and track my own progress this spring. Let's see if we can, after all, turn back the clock just a smidgen to the days when humans were vitally connected to the earth, when kids played in the backyard using their imaginations, clothes were hung on the line, and women baked their own bread. Let's just experiment. Change our habits. Reinvent ourselves, our families, our lives! Let's wake up from our malaise and breathe the new air. A little at a time, one day at a time, here on the modern homestead.