Rare is it for retail to exist as the main motive behind a Live Simply post, such was my instantly smitten state when I happened upon the Rosanna line of decorative trays. Helped in no small part by my recent jaunt to France, I experienced minor heart palpitations as I scrolled through the collection, finding each one to be more charming than the one before it. It gets better. Not only are they ridiculously delightful ...

In my experience, most people's spaces are disorganized due to a failure of maintenance. Upkeep, on its most basic level, may be defined as: putting stuff back where it belongs. Upkeep becomes markedly easier when it's a task in which you're constantly engaging, rather than one you put off until an area escalates beyond the point of requiring mere routine maintenance. See, if you put it away right away--at the moment at which you are ...

1. I am beginning to see that only I am the master of my life, and I, alone, set the tone for this day. 2. I am becoming ever more capable of conquering all the trivial nuisances which may arise throughout the day; I have a choice to become undone by them, or to hold steadfast to my inner calm, instead letting them roll right past, rather than push through, me. 3. I've decided that ...

A little while ago I received one of the loveliest invitations which went something along the lines of, "Come Live Simply in France for a week, why don't you?" And since no one in their right mind has ever turned down such an offer, I packed my bags, and was on a Lufthansa flight to Frankfurt, and Frankfurt on to Paris. And Paris, oh Paris. The magnificence that is. It was my first visit, and ...

Often I get asked about the nut and bolts of organizing--literally. If you thought a hook is a hook is a hook, well, you're off it, if ever you were on. There are various jobs that call for specific hooks (good to know), and, conversely, hooks that will apply in myriad scenarios (equally good knowledge to have in your hardware arsenal). And so, I present you with Hooks 1o1 and such. Swing Hook As illustrated ...