A Few of My Favorite Simplicity Sources

Jan 26, 2011 by Eliza Cross

Do you love the idea of being debt free, spending less and saving more? Would you like to get organized and eliminate clutter? Are you looking for specific ideas to save time and reduce stress? These blogs and websites are some of my personal favorites, with plenty of practical advice and inspiration.

Simple Living

• Zen Habits – Leo Babauta’s addictive blog, with the subtitle “Smile, breathe and go slowly,” is one of the top 25 blogs in the world.
• Rowdy Kittens – Tammy Strobel pared down her possessions to just 100 items, and her blog is a fascinating read about the authentic, minimalist lifestyle.

Simplifying Your Finances

• The Simple Dollar – Trent Hamm’s inspiring blog was borne of what he calls his ‘financial meltdown’ in 2006. I appreciate his real-life examples and down-to-earth personal finance advice.
• Get Rich Slowly – This blog covers frugality, saving, and investing with a wealth of personal finance topics from getting out of debt to beating procrastination.

Great Food

• The Pioneer Woman Cooks – This is the recipe section of Ree Drummond’s award-winning blog, and I love her accessible, yummy recipes and instructive photographs. If you like her blog, you will love her cookbook!
• Stone Soup – a blog about minimalist home cooking, with great recipes and gorgeous photography.
• Eggs on Sunday – for ideas and recipes about cooking with whole, natural, seasonal ingredients.
• I absolutely love the King Arthur Flour blog, which has inspired many baking adventures here including making pitas from scratch. You’ll find recipes and photos posted by various members of the company’s staff as well as plenty of readers’ comments about improvements and substitutions for the recipes.
• From Argentina with Love is written by my friend Rebecca Caro, with incredible recipes and photos from her many travels to Argentina.
• Cooking with Michele is also written by a friend, personal chef Michele Morris, and I love her real-life, home-kitchen tested recipes and photos.
• Piece of Cake is a fun blog to visit when you’re in the mood to make a special dessert; I constantly find surprises there like Nutella Cupcakes.

Home Organizing

• FlyLady – I love the FlyLady’s warm, understanding tone and the Baby Steps she suggests for creating small habits to manage a busy home.
• Unclutterer - Daily tips with tons of ideas for creating a clutter-free home and office.

Gardening – Favorite Seed and Plant Companies

• Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
• Fedco Seeds
• Heirloom Seeds
• Johnny’s Selected Seeds
• Seed Savers Exchange
• Seeds of Change
• The Tasteful Garden
• Territorial Seed Company

Favorite Publications:

• GRIT
• Mother Earth News
• Natural Home magazine
• Organic Gardening magazine
• Organic Style magazine
• Small Town Living

Fun Reading:

• The Lara Blog:  To live is to fly, and other scribbles

I always love discovering sites and blogs that relate to happy simple living, and welcome your recommendations!

Happy simple living!

Eliza

Delightful Eliza Cross is the brains and creativity behind Happy Simple Living, a new website about just that, after five years of writing the Urban Homesteader blog, chronicling the journey of one average urban family trying to create a more sustainable home and garden, without spending a lot of extra money in the process.