ArcaMax

If you think organizing your home or getting your personal affairs in order requires a lot of time, you might be right. However, if you feel that you just don't have enough time to spend on these tasks, then you're probably wrong. All you have to do is recognize little chunks of free time throughout the day.

This is the best idea ever. OK, ...Read more

At the tender age of 11, I made a solemn vow that when I grew up I was going to be rich. My plan was simple: Marry well.

I bless the day I married my husband, a man who is rich in character and unfailing love. I assumed his money would follow. While waiting for wealth to descend upon me, I made the near-tragic error of spending as though I were...Read more

There are plenty of things I won't buy at the dollar store. If it has a plug or a moving part, or claims to last "forever," I'm cautious. But there is one humble cleaning tool I buy there on purpose every single time, and I feel downright clever doing it.

Microfiber cloths.

Not the fancy, color-coded, premium-packaged ones promising laboratory...Read more

I don't care much for pain. In fact, I'll do almost anything to avoid it. I also know that pain can be a good thing.

The human nervous system triggers a sensation of pain to stop us from doing something that might cause a severe injury and to let us know that something may be wrong.

While we mostly think of pain in terms of physical wellbeing,...Read more

If you drink morning coffee, then it's likely you throw away used coffee grounds every day. If you don't, chances are there's a coffee shop nearby where you can get some; just stop by and see if they give them away. Here are some ideas for reusing them.

REPEL INSECTS AND FLEAS

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, coffee grounds ...Read more

There are so many good reasons to make your own household cleaners. It's cheaper, healthier and greener, too. The homemade household cleaners I share with you from time to time do not contain chemicals. That means you can always count on them to be nontoxic.

Dear Cheapskate: The copper post tops on my deck are becoming tarnished. Do you know of...Read more

By the time winter finally loosens its grip, our houses tend to feel a little tired. The air is stale, the light feels dimmer than it should be, and no candle -- no matter how pine-scented -- can convince you it's actually spring.

The good news is that freshening your home after winter doesn't require a shopping spree or a cart full of "spring ...Read more

While it's true that life is uncertain, there's at least one thing of which I am very sure: I will never be held hostage for refusing to iron.

Unlike Billie Jo Tyrrell, whose son Robert held her at gunpoint for six hours because she refused to iron his clothes, I love to iron. I'm not saying that I would be that thrilled to do it for a 29-year-...Read more

If there is one thing most people take for granted, it is food. U.S. supermarkets are always well stocked, and we don't think much about how all that food gets there. When pushed to consider it, I wager most of us assume there are huge warehouses somewhere filled with enough food to feed the nation for some unknown period of time.

The truth is,...Read more

If you speak English in your home, your kids are not likely to come out speaking Italian. Kids learn through observation and imitation. And they don't miss a thing. Children are shaped from the very beginning of life by the way their parents live. They are ever-attentive witnesses of grown-up behaviors. They take their cues from what they see ...Read more

Most household stress doesn't come from dramatic, headline-worthy disasters. It sneaks in quietly. It's the mail spreading like ivy across the kitchen counter. The leftovers shoved to the back of the refrigerator to "deal with later." The grit that magically appears anywhere people walk in and out all day.

None of it feels urgent in the moment....Read more

About 25 years ago, there was a pressure cooker renaissance in America. Our grandmothers knew the day would come that we would return to their favorite kitchen tool to make fast braises, stews, soups and casseroles. They just didn't know how we'd get there.

If you, like me, are a Nervous Nellie who grew up hearing stories about a great aunt who...Read more

Whether you want to look good or just feel better, makeup and skin care traditionally come at a significant cost -- but not if you're a dedicated cheapskate. While medications and beauty products you use must be safe, there's no reason that you have to pay exorbitant prices to accomplish the goal. Here are some functional hacks for saving time ...Read more

What I know about the art and science of negotiating I learned as a matter of survival.

Driven to save myself and my family from financial ruin, I jumped into the deep end of the real estate industry. I passed the state test to become licensed, but I knew nothing about negotiating. I was driven out of desperation to find a way to bring ...Read more

Trash bags don't look like liars. They're quiet. Unassuming. They don't beep, flash, or demand updates. They just sit there in a cardboard box, promising strength, freshness and heroic performance under pressure. And yet, if you've ever had one split open halfway to the curb, you already know something isn't adding up.

I started paying closer ...Read more

So, you planted a garden, lucked out when your property included fruit trees, stumbled upon a produce sale you just couldn't pass up, or joined a Community Supported Agriculture group. Good for you! Now what? What will you do with all that bounty?

Your choices are: 1) quickly consume your harvest before it spoils 2) give it away or 3) preserve ...Read more