The Gentle Art Of Swedish Death Cleaning

*The basis for the wonderfully funny and moving TV series developed by Amy Poehler and Scout Productions* A charming, practical, and unsentimental approach to putting a home in order while reflecting on the tiny joys that make up a long life. In Sweden there is a kind of decluttering called döstädning, dö meaning “death” and städning meaning “cleaning.” This surprising and invigorating process of clearing out unnecessary belongings can be undertaken at any age or life stage but should be done sooner than later, before others have to do it for you. In The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning, artist Margareta Magnusson, with Scandinavian humor and wisdom, instructs readers to embrace minimalism. Her radical and joyous method for putting things in order helps families broach sensitive conversations, and makes the process uplifting rather than overwhelming. Margareta suggests which possessions you can easily get rid of (unworn clothes, unwanted presents, more plates than you’d ever use) and which you might want to keep (photographs, love letters, a few of your children’s art projects). Digging into her late husband’s tool shed, and her own secret drawer of vices, Margareta introduces an element of fun to a potentially daunting task. Along the way readers get a glimpse into her life in Sweden, and also become more comfortable with the idea of letting go.

Döstädning, or the art of death cleaning, is a Swedish phenomenon by which the elderly and their families set their affairs in order. Whether it's sorting the family heirlooms from the junk, downsizing to a smaller place, or setting up a system to help you stop misplacing your keys, death cleaning gives us the chance to make the later years of our lives as comfortable and stress-free as possible. Whatever your age, Swedish death cleaning can be used to help you de-clutter your life, and take stock of what's important. Margareta Magnusson has death cleaned for herself and for many others. Radical and joyous, her guide is an invigorating, touching and surprising process that can help you or someone you love immeasurably, and offers the chance to celebrate and reflect on all the tiny joys that make up a long life along the way.

A charming approach to putting your life in order so your loved ones won’t have to? There’s a word for it in Swedish: Döstädning, literally, ‘death cleaning’. Swedish-born Margareta Magnusson is, in her words, ‘aged between 80 and 100’. When her husband died, she had to downsize her home. The experience forced her to recognise the power of ‘death cleaning’ and the concerns that must be addressed in order to do it with thought and care. Done well, the approach not only makes things easier for your loved ones later on, it allows you to revisit the lifetime of memories accumulated with your things. From clothes and books to stuff you just can’t get rid of, stuff that only matters to you, The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning offers indispensable advice on questions you will inevitably face when sorting through a lifetime of objects: How do you deal with your secrets? Tackle photographs and letters? Avoid heirs fighting over your belongings after you are gone? This charming, practical book based on personal experience and anecdotes will guide you in making the process uplifting rather than overwhelming: it focuses on the importance of living — even through death cleaning.

Winner of the 2015 RBC Taylor Prize Winner of the 2016 Forest of Reading® Evergreen Award™ After almost twenty years of caring for elderly parents—first for their senile father, and then for their cantankerous ninety-three-year-old mother—author Plum Johnson and her three younger brothers experience conflicted feelings of grief and relief when their mother, the surviving parent, dies. Now they must empty and sell the beloved family home, which hasn’t been de-cluttered in more than half a century. Twenty-three rooms bulge with history, antiques, and oxygen tanks. Plum remembers her loving but difficult parents who could not have been more different: the British father, a handsome, disciplined patriarch who nonetheless could not control his opinionated, extroverted Southern-belle wife who loved tennis and gin gimlets. The task consumes her, becoming more rewarding than she ever imagined. Items from childhood trigger memories of her eccentric family growing up in a small town on the shores of Lake Ontario in the 1950s and 60s. But unearthing new facts about her parents helps her reconcile those relationships with a more accepting perspective about who they were and what they valued. They Left Us Everything is a funny, touching memoir about the importance of preserving family history to make sense of the past and nurturing family bonds to safeguard the future.

Life is a journey and like most of journeys leaves behind emotional memories as well A LOT of stuffy clutter... Time to get back your living spaces has come! Learn how to free yourself from useless personal belongings by downsizing and organizing your home in just 10 minutes a day per 30 days! Because your happiness is that of your loved ones... How many times entering your house, office or any other living space of your day-to-day activities, find yourself pretending not to see ALL THAT MESS around you? The room just doesn't feel as spacious as it used to, you might think... Would you like to do something (maybe tomorrow?) but the memories (and laziness...) connected to those things will just hold you... Everyone's life, for different reasons, leads us to buy, receive and gather an incredible amount of things. Things, which over time broke, were no longer used and then set aside. This is why these accumulate on the bottom of the wardrobes, in the closets, on the shelves of bookcases and in any corner of our house. But one day someone will have to throw them away...and rest assured that this won't be an easy nor emotionless task to your loved ones... The practice of starting to clean up yours stuff as you approach your later years is quite common in Scandinavia, where it is lived without embarrassment or taboo, but rather as a sign of great civilization. This noble practice, the Swedish Death Cleaning that has come to the forefront in recent years, provides you with a systematic approach and most effective strategies to get rid of your mess by decluttering your life, home and living spaces, making your later stages as smooth and stress-free as possible. Contrary to what one might think, the conceptual framework behind the Swedish Death Cleaning is in itself not limited to a specific age alone, as persons of different ages can also learn from its concept of minimalism and live a clutter-free life. Designed, optimized and arranged in a 30 days challenge, this workbook will provide you with unmatched daily step-by-step guide taking you through the whole process of death cleaning in just 10 minutes a day. You'll get access to easy and proven day-by-day best practices that will exactly shows you the activities and exercises to be carried out, as well as when and how to perform them. All this by helping you with the essential and powerful daily checklists featured in this book to assist you implementing your decluttering process to a healthy and happy life. Here is what you'll learn: Introduction to the noble art of Death Cleaning, what is it and the importance of starting it to a Happier Life regardless of age; The importance of decluttering in the Stress and Financial management; Tips and strategies to declutter your useless stuff overcoming clutter emotions; Stop hoarding unnecessary items and live an essential and happier life; The detailed 30 days challenge that will guide you through a step-by-step process to declutter your life, day by day, week by week, room by room and item by item; Learn and apply mind decluttering techniques; You know it's time to take responsibility for the things you own taking care of them before they become a burden to your friends and family. Always remember that what your loved ones will need are your memories not just piled junks! Are you ready to get rid of clutter once and for all? Don't let things take control of your life! Scroll up and hit the BUY NOW button and join the 30 days Challenge to get back your life!

In the spirit of The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning and The Joy of Less, experience the benefits of buying less and sharing more with this accessible 7-step guide to decluttering, saving money, and creating community from the creators of the Buy Nothing Project. In their island community, friends Liesl Clark and Rebecca Rockefeller discovered that the beaches of Puget Sound were spoiled by a daily influx of plastic items and trash washing on shore. From pens and toothbrushes to toys and straws, they wondered, where did it all come from? Of course, it comes from us—our homes, our backyards, our cars, and our workplaces. And so, a rallying cry against excess stuff was born. In 2013, they launched the first Facebook Buy Nothing Project group in their small town off the coast of Seattle, and they never expected it to become a viral sensation. Today there are thousands of Buy Nothing groups all over the world, boasting more than a million members, and 5,000 highly active volunteers. Inspired by the ancient practice of gift economies, where neighbors share and pool resources,The Buy Nothing, Get Everything Plan introduces an environmentally conscious 7-step guide that teaches us how to buy less, give more, and live generously. At once an actionable plan and a thought-provoking exploration of our addiction to stuff, this powerful program will help you declutter your home without filling landfills, shop more thoughtfully and discerningly, and let go of the need to buy new things. Filled with helpful lists and practical suggestions including 50 items you never need to buy (Ziploc bags and paper towels) and 50 things to make instead (gift cards and salad dressing), The Buy Nothing, Get Everything Plan encourages you to rethink why you shop and embrace a space-saving, money-saving, and earth-saving mindset of buying less and sharing more.

Hearty bites for the heavy-hearted “He had a life-long love affair with deviled eggs, his homemade canned fig preserves, and buttermilk served in martini glasses garnished with cornbread.” —Obituary from Gulfport, Mississippi So-called “funeral food” is having a moment. Comforting casseroles; jugs of sweet tea; creamy, cheesy potatoes—all these foods provide sympathy and sustenance for the bereaved. The Southern Sympathy Cookbook includes unexpectedly humorous obituaries and anecdotes alongside staples of Southern funerals such as: Three Bean Salad with Bacon Vinaigrette Fried Chicken Pulled Pork with Homemade Barbecue Sauce Biscuit Cinnamon Rolls Whether feeding a congregation, delivering a meal to a friend in need, or cooking with weekday leftovers in mind, home cooks will embrace these recipes, guaranteed to comfort and to please a crowd.

Even you can get your sh*t together! Tidy the F*ck Up is a funny, down-to-earth parody of Marie Kondo’s The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, where you’ll be handed the most useful tools for keeping your crap clean and organized without all the pressure. In this book, you’ll discover useful ways to figure out what to do with your sh*tpiles in an approachable, care-free way, and you’ll say farewell to the hair-pulling stress of marathon cleaning. Tossing all your junk in a closet doesn’t make it any less of a clusterf*ck, but approaching it little by little and making use of some helpful hints can do a world of wonders for all your sh*t, the comfort of your space, and your general sanity. With this hilarious guide, you’ll learn how to: Become a decision-making bad*ss Get rid of the sh*t you don’t need and keep the sh*t you do Live life after a clusterf*ck! And more! With a lighthearted tone that the finest sailors would admire, Tidy the F*ck Up will help you make your house a f*cking home.