Indoor plants are a fantastic way to bring the outdoors inside, no matter what time of year it is (and, with temperatures starting to drop, windows and doors will likely be spending more time closed!). Not only can plants breathe life into a room, but did you know they can also, literally, breathe fresh clean air into your home as well?!?
Sadly, our indoor air can become even more polluted than outdoor air(!) due in part to everything from VOCs in paint to all of the horrible things we track in on our shoes and then send airborne!
Just take a look at what some of the most common household plants can “do” for your home!:
- Areca palm – this one is the top purifier and also humidifies the air as it cleans! (Lady palm and bamboo palm also do an amazing job!)

- Peace lilies – also a great all-around air purifier, and incredibly easy to maintain.
- English ivy – fantastic for removing airborne mold (up to 60% of airborne mold in just six hours, by the way!).
- Spider plants – great at removing 100% of the carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide from the air in only 24 hours.
- Boston ferns – another great over-all air purifier but especially for removing formaldehyde from the air.
- Rubber plants – great for cleaning out those VOCs.
To reach maximum effectiveness, it’s recommended to have at least one 6” plant per 100 feet of living space.
Amazing, isn’t it? Actually, it’s exactly what I would expect Mother Nature to provide… something to clean-up our dirty work (and dirty air!).




To me, Thanksgiving has always felt like the holiday with the greatest “green potential”. There are no gifts, costumes, candy or extra, elaborate frills. It’s simply about family gatherings, feasting on the bounty of the season and giving thanks for everything we have. There are so many ways to avoid over-abundance… (well, with the exception of over-eating!)
Sometimes it’s easy to get so consumed with planning and preparing for a vacation that we forget about the home we’re leaving behind.
Who doesn’t love a fabulous recipe?!?! This one isn’t even in jeopardy of getting rudely rejected by your family, because it’s not meant to please an appetite… it’s all about chemical-free cleaning.
properties that are both anti-viral and anti-fungal.
At the start of every summer, as the temperature rises, my husband and I seem to have the same discussion… when to turn on the air conditioning!
When making the decision to “go green” the list of “should nots” is equally as important as the “shoulds”… 

It has long been a mission of mine to tell readers of dangers in products that we don’t typically consider potentially harmful. Mattresses happen to be one of those products.

(This giveaway is now closed for entries.)
Spring is one of my favorite times of the year. Everything feels new and there is something very refreshing about sitting back and seeing things literally spring to life. One thing that does need our assistance, however, is our home. Unfortunately there is NOTHING refreshing about a house that has been closed for months on end.

Everyone knows the standard list of ways to go green in the bathroom (and I’m not talking about all of those green beers you’re planning to drink next week for St. Patrick’s Day!). I’m talking about turning off the water while you brush your teeth, low-flow shower heads, water efficient toilets, chemical-free cleaners, short showers and low-volume baths… okay, you’ve heard them all, but what about those little things you overlook?
