Country Living Simple Country Wisdom: 501 Old-Fashioned Ideas to Simplify Your Life

230 Pages·2011·11.9 MB·English

by  Susan Waggoner

Copyright © 2011 by Hearst Communications, Inc.
All rights reserved. The written instructions and photographs in this volume are intended for the personal
use of the reader and may be reproduced for that purpose only. Any other use, especially commercial use, is
forbidden under law without the written permission of the copyright holder.
Every effort has been made to ensure that all the information in this book is accurate. However, due to
differing conditions, tools, and individual skills, the publisher cannot be responsible for any injuries, losses,
and/or other damages that may result from the use of the information in this book.
This book was previously published as a hardcover.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Waggoner, Susan.
Country living : simple country wisdom / Susan Waggoner.
p.cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 978-1-58816-850-4
1. Home economics. I. Country living (New York, N.Y.) II. Title.
TX158.W343 2008
640—dc22
2008018776
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
First Paperback Edition 2011
Published by Hearst Books
A division of Sterling Publishing Co., Inc.
387 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10016
Country Living is a registered trademark of Hearst Communications, Inc.
www.countryliving.com
For information about custom editions, special sales, premium and corporate purchases, please contact
Sterling Special Sales Department at 800-805-5489 or
CONTENTS
FOREWORD
the home that welcomes
1
WHAT MAKES
A WELCOMING HOME?
2
CLUTTER CONTROL
3
WHAT MEETS THE EYE
behind the scenes
4
THE ELEMENTS OF CLEAN
5
THE TAO OF LAUNDRY
in the kitchen
6
KITCHEN WISDOM
7
THE A–Z OF FOOD
8
BETTER LIVING
THROUGH BAKING
harmony
9
IN THE GARDEN
10
A GREENER LIFE
_________________________________
FOREWORD
The opening words of Leo Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina strike an instant response in
the heart of almost every reader: “Happy families are all alike; every unhappy
family is unhappy in its own way.” We think not only of families we have
known but of houses and homes themselves. A home is more than a collection of
fabric and furniture, of rooms and walls and objects. It is a thing in itself, with a
personality of its own and an aura that both reflects and influences all who come
its way. Tolstoy might just as well have written, “Happy homes are all alike;
every unhappy home is unhappy in its own way,” for that is how it seems to us.
As you can imagine, we spend a good deal of time seeing, thinking about, and
knowing what makes a home special—the kind of homes we’d like to spend
more time in, the kind of homes we like enough to invite Country Living readers
into. Unhappy homes are like patients in a doctor’s waiting room, some with
obvious ailments—clutter or neglect—and some with disturbances less obvious,
like the home that looks just fine but is so aggressively orderly there’s no space
left for living. Happy homes, like Tolstoy’s happy families, all have a wonderful
familiarity to them. They hum with energy and efficiency. They are not at war
with those who live there, with a million tasks waiting at every turn, but glow
with the promise of comfort and respite.
How to achieve this just-right harmony could be the study of a lifetime, for it
isn’t just a matter of having clean fresh sheets or an inviting guest room—it’s a
matter of knowing how to have them with as little fuss and waste as possible, so
you can spend the precious resource of time with your friends and family, and
enjoy the art of living in a home that’s in harmony with itself and its
environment. Author Susan Waggoner, self-described student of old ways as
well as new, has gathered the best of her knowledge to share here. Whether it’s a
no-scrub trick to make bathroom faucets gleam, creating a garden guaranteed to
attract birds and butterflies, or simple nocost ways to slash energy consumption,
her tips will help us all to live in homes that are more efficient and less
demanding, with less clutter and more room for all that’s joyous in life.
The editors of Country Living