5 Steps to Less Waste in 5 Minutes

...and you thought I was kidding when I said I was on a decluttering kick. After cleaning out my own home and pitching (almost!) everything, I can now say I am purged and devoid of any clutter...and house-related stress! And now, it's time to keep it that way. I've gathered a list of five handy rules for myself that I promise to follow, so readers -- keep me accountable!:

1. Invest in a battery re-charger
I can't tell you how many loose batteries rolled around in my "miscellaneous" drawer (and we all know "miscellaneous" is a fancy word for "junk"). I plan to purchase this battery recharger and from now on, I will only purchase rechargable batteries. No more need for spare just-in-case batteries again!

2. Go cloth
Yep, I'm making the switch. It pains me to see my monthly budget for paper towels, and the rolls take up so much room. From now on, I vow to go paperless in the kitchen, using only washcloths and cloth napkins for cooking and/or cleaning. I'm sure I'll keep you posted on my progress, but I'm super excited to tackle it (except for the whole laundry factor...).

3. Reject junk mail
I'm so excited for this step, as I have an aversion to throwing important papers away, and by important, I mean any. It's a horrid habit, and my mail pile is often so high that I can't see my husband's hairline over the stack. So, I'm vowing to visit mailstopper.tonic.com to stop the pile before it starts. Farewell, junk mail and hello, husband!

4. Go cloth (again)
I'll admit; I haven't gone cloth in the grocery yet. I can't help it; I love those paper bags and often re-use them to mail packages. Yet when I stumbled upon hundreds(!) of brown paper bags while cleaning this weekend, I knew it was time to say goodbye to my bad habit. I plan to store a few canvas totes in my car for last-minute grocery trips, and perhaps I can even treat myself to a Baggu. We'll see!

5. Refuse
You can't tell me you don't have hundreds of ketchup, taco sauce and soy sauce packets hiding in those kitchen drawers. And you also can't tell me you've used even one of them recently. Next time I hit the drive-thru, I vow to refuse extra condiments and/or paper napkins I won't use. Not only will my kitchen drawers smile, but so will my planet!

For additional quick and easy steps to reduce clutter, read more:
-Finally! Robots That Will Do Your Housework!
-Storing Power Cords and Cables the Right Way
-Chores Made Easy: Clean Out Your Fridge