#665 – Declutter Your Spice Cabinet: From Chaos to Cooking Bliss

#665 – Declutter Your Spice Cabinet: From Chaos to Cooking Bliss

#665 – Declutter Your Spice Cabinet: From Chaos to Cooking Bliss

In this episode of Clutter Free Academy, Kathi Lipp and Tonya Kubo tackle one of the most deceptively frustrating spots in your kitchen: the spice cabinet. If you’ve ever bought a second (or sixth) bottle of basil because you couldn’t find the first one, or had cumin avalanche onto your counter, this one’s for you. The duo shares budget-friendly, sanity-saving solutions to bring order and accessibility to your most flavorful clutter zone. 

In This Episode You’ll Learn: 

  • Why your spices should spark joy—and scent 
  • Kathi’s five-tiered spice strategy (yes, really!) 
  • Creative storage options for tiny kitchens, RVs, and big Costco-sized bottles 
  • How to group spices for ease: singles vs. blends 
  • The $13 Amazon tool that might change your dinner routine forever 

 

 

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Sabbath Soup: Weekly Menus and Rhythms to Make Space for a Day of Rest

Kathi Lipp gives readers an easy-to-follow process for meal planning and prep, so that they can enjoy a full day each week of real rest and refreshment.

Could you use a break from cooking (and everything else) once a week? Not only is rest vital for your mind and body, it’s good for your soul too. God designed us to enter into Sabbath rest one day per week, but as you know, meals still need to be made. Your family still needs to be fed.

Sabbath Soup includes convenient, seasonal meal plans that take the guesswork out of shopping and cooking. More than just a collection of delicious recipes—including main dishes, breads, breakfasts, desserts, salads, sides, and yes, soups—this is your guide to establishing a weekly rhythm and routine of meal planning and prep that allows you to have a true day off.

Do something good for your soul and experience the peace that comes with a full day dedicated to spending time with God, family, and friends. Savor your Sabbath as you proudly proclaim, “Soup’s on!”

Order your copy of Sabbath Soup: Weekly Menus and Rhythms to Make Space for a Day of Rest here.

Links Mentioned:

Download the Free Guide:
Spice Cabinet Makeover PDF– A step-by-step plan to sort, toss, and organize. 

 

FYI: Some product links are affiliate links. If you buy, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Thanks for your support! 

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Meet Our Guest 

 

Tonya Kubo

Tonya Kubo is the illustrious and fearless leader of Kathi Lipp’s Clutter Free Academy Facebook group and the Clutter Free for Life membership program. A professional community strategist, she believes everyone deserves to have a place online where they feel like they belong. Raised by a hoarder, Tonya knows firsthand the pain and isolation that comes from living in conditions others don’t understand. She wants better for her family and her cluttery peeps, which is why she is passionate about the compassionate slow-and-steady approach that makes Clutter Free unique. She lives in the heart of California with her husband, Brian, their two spirited daughters, and one very tolerant cat. Visit tonyakubo.com to find out more about her community work, or email her at tonya@kathilipp.org to discuss the Clutter Free Academy podcast and programs.

Tonya Kubo Picture
Transcript

Kathi Lipp (00:54) 

Well, hey friends, welcome to Clutter Free Academy, where our goal is to help you take small, doable steps to live every day with less clutter and more life. And guys, just welcome to our spiciest episode ever. 

  

Tonya Kubo (01:10) 

the puns. 

  

Kathi Lipp (01:12) 

Well, okay, we should let you guys know you don’t have to hide your kids for this this isn’t spicy like book talk spicy this No, no, no and you guys We we are here to talk about your spice cabinet very exciting right Tonya 

  

Tonya Kubo (01:19) 

Yeah, there’s no chili pepper spiciness on this one. 

  

Super exciting. I mean, if you like to cook, it’s definitely exciting. 

  

Kathi Lipp (01:35) 

Yes, and we are just going to take advantage of some of our experience with organizing our spices and how to get that from going from cluttered and chaos to cooking optimized. That’s exactly what we want. 

  

Tonya Kubo (01:53) 

Yeah. And so Kathi, I’m just curious. I first of all, I’m loving the series that we’re doing where we’re taking like these small sections of the house that plague all of us so much when it comes to clutter. They just get out of hand easily. And I know that I’m not alone because we have this episode. So I know that you have the same problem where the spice cabinet drawer, whatever you like to do with your spices, like goes cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs. So 

  

Kathi Lipp (02:04) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Tonya Kubo (02:23) 

Talk to us about yours. 

  

Kathi Lipp (02:25) 

Well, okay, I can talk to you about before, before I found the solution that actually works for me, because I’m gonna save that till the end, as you know, Tonya, I’m very proud of my spice system. yes. 

  

Tonya Kubo (02:34) 

Okay. 

  

I know you are. I know you are. And I 

  

haven’t seen the latest one, I don’t think. 

  

Kathi Lipp (02:44) 

Okay, 

  

so well, I think you’ve seen part of it, but yes well there are layers much like a spicy stew. There are layers to my spice cabinet. Well, okay. So for years I tried different things. I did your traditional spice rack where you know, it was hanging up in the kitchen, but I didn’t love that because I I’m never the only time I ever owned spices where their containers matched. 

  

Tonya Kubo (02:47) 

Okay. 

  

Ha ha! 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (03:14) 

was the 

  

Tonya Kubo (03:14) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (03:14) 

day after I got married. Like somebody gave us a spice container. So I’ve had the kind that spin on your cabinet. I have the kind on the wall. But I also, not every spice company is equal. And some of them have spices that I really like. And then there are others like, I’m not a fennel person. Like fennel, my mom apparently, 

  

Tonya Kubo (03:16) 

Got it. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (03:40) 

was addicted to fennel and anise. So black, black licorice flavors when she was pregnant with me. I can’t stand either of those. So like, I don’t need any of those. But you know, they come in different sizes, different containers, like, and what is a spice? I mean, I know what a spice is. But also, we have other things like the baking soda, baking powder, vanilla paste, all that kind of stuff. 

  

Tonya Kubo (03:45) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Hahaha 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (04:07) 

So mine was kind of a jumble some of it looks super organized, but I wouldn’t say it was super functional and I would just waste time You know because some of the spices were behind other spices And then I’d run low on the spice and I’d re buy that spice only to find out. I actually had that spice somewhere 

  

Tonya Kubo (04:10) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (04:31) 

Spices should not be this big of an issue in a human’s life. It just shouldn’t be. How’s your spice situation? 

  

Tonya Kubo (04:40) 

Yeah, 

  

equally frustrating, but in different ways. Because for us, like before I even met Brian, so like we’re going back a lot of years, I always bought re refillable spice containers. So I had a selection of spice containers, and then I just buy like bulk spices in bags and go in like that, and I replace it, which is awesome. 

  

Kathi Lipp (04:44) 

Okay? 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah, okay. 

  

Tonya Kubo (05:06) 

They have a little label on them. They’re beautiful, except for the cumin, which somehow got too close to a burner is halfway melted. But aside from that one, right? It’s beautiful. But the problem is I don’t actually have enough. think I have 24, which works for like the main spices. But you know, Mr. Kubo is a big fan of the Trader Joe’s seasoning blends. And I am not devoting a label to 

  

Kathi Lipp (05:08) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Right. 

  

yeah, I get it. 

  

Tonya Kubo (05:34) 

a seasoning blend that may or may not have a long time shelf life in our house. And I already have my other ones full. 

  

Kathi Lipp (05:42) 

Yes, and you know, I just saw a TikTok where a woman who’s neurodivergent has a Trader Joe’s spice. I think it was the pizza spice that they just discontinued and she was heartbroken. And yes, I can see not wanting to dedicate a whole label to something because you’re not, you’re not. 

  

Tonya Kubo (05:47) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Okay. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah. 

  

Kathi Lipp (06:08) 

discontinuing basil. Like, yes. 

  

Tonya Kubo (06:11) 

Right, well exactly. 

  

And like a lot of mine are like single spices or single herbs, right? And so with the blends, it doesn’t make sense to put the blends in there, because we go through various blends. And then we’re back to the issue that I think you were alluding to, right? So I’ve got some that are like in the little tiny short containers, like the half an ounce or whatever. Then I’ve got some that are in that four ounce container. 

  

Kathi Lipp (06:16) 

Mm-hmm. Yes. 

  

Right. 

  

Mm-hmm. Right. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Tonya Kubo (06:37) 

Then I’ve 

  

got some we’ve gotten from Costco, right? So they’re ginormous and they barely fit in the cabinet. And part of it is I have to rely on my memory to let me know like, okay, am I looking in my refillable spices? Do I look in the cabinet or do I look in the drawer? Three locations, Kathi, three. For spices. 

  

Kathi Lipp (06:41) 

Yeah. 

  

Right. Right. 

  

I get it 

  

for spices. It should not be this much drama. But if you like to cook or you’re forced to cook, spices make everything better. And so we’re gonna need to figure out this spice situation, right? 

  

Tonya Kubo (07:14) 

Mm hmm. Yeah. We and well, we need to figure it out. And I think what, Kathi, we owe it to our listeners to give them a variety of options. Right. And so I think what we can do is I think we have enough time before we cut to commercial to go through a couple of options and then we’ll take our break. How does that sound? 

  

Kathi Lipp (07:26) 

Yes, absolutely. 

  

Okay, 

  

I think that sounds beautiful. Okay, so the first thing I think you need to do is we need to declutter your spices and people, know, declutter your spices. But I’m guessing if you do any amount of cooking, you have a couple of basils, you have a spice that you tried from Trader Joe’s and you realized it’s nobody’s favorite or 

  

Tonya Kubo (07:45) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Can I tell 

  

you which one that is? Trader Joe’s seasoning salt. It is the worst thing I’ve ever tasted and I figured out why. It has a bunch of celery salt that, and in my mouth, celery salt tastes bitter. I like celery, but celery salt is very bitter to me, overpowers the whole thing. I hate it. 

  

Kathi Lipp (08:04) 

Yeah, do tell. 

  

really? 

  

Okay. 

  

Yeah. Okay. and you, 

  

yeah. Okay. See guys, if you don’t like celery salt, Tonya just saved you four bucks. And yes. So again, you guys know I’m not a huge fan of pull everything into the middle of the room and sort it out, but we are talking microspaces here. Your spices in most houses are microspaces. 

  

Tonya Kubo (08:43) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (08:47) 

So I am going to encourage you to take everything out of the cabinet and I want you to do some things like check for expiration dates. Now, I will say this. I’m not worried if your cilantro is expired. The only thing, you you’re not going to die of cilantro poisoning as far as I know, but your spices get less effective the older they are. 

  

Tonya Kubo (09:14) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (09:16) 

So if you can’t smell the spice, you need to toss it. If you have six basils, maybe take a couple of unopened ones to the food pantry or give them to a friend or something like that. And then one thing you can do, you can group them. Now, I’ll tell you how I group mine. I have a couple of different ways. So we have your basic set of spices and then I have my blends. 

  

So I have two different areas for that. So my basil is not, my basil spice is not next to my bohemian spice because the bohemian is a blend, the basil is a regular. you know, so there’s herbs, ground spices, baking essential, and also let’s keep the things that we use the most towards the front. So if you have a cabinet or something like that, but, 

  

Tonya Kubo (09:56) 

Mm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (10:14) 

Here’s why we’re gonna go through so many different iterations of space spice organization is because in every place I’ve lived I’ve had to organize differently because my kitchen layout has been different and you just have to work with what you have because none of us here are Remodeling our kitchen cabinets because of basil. We’re just not doing it so 

  

Tonya Kubo (10:25) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Right. 

  

Kathi Lipp (10:39) 

The first thing I want to talk about is a tiered shelf or expandable rack. So this is very simple. This is part of my solution. This is part of the solution I have for things like my vanilla bean paste and my I have a cinnamon shaker and I have a powdered sugar shaker and I have baking soda and baking powder and all these different kinds of things. 

  

Tonya Kubo (10:52) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (11:06) 

And those are not going to fit into my spice rack situation, but they do fit on these tiered, think of them as stairs. And so if you were putting your humans on the stairs, you could put tall people in the back and then shorter people up front. But even if they were kind of the same height, you’d still be able to see the people in the back because they’re on a taller step. That’s the same thing I do. 

  

Tonya Kubo (11:16) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm, right. Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (11:34) 

Some of my spice blends and things like that that they’re a little bit bigger a little bit more awkward You these come in bamboo and by the way, we’ll have links to all of these You know Amazon links to all of these in the back mine are white plastic and they expand so they fit into the space in your cabinet and Yeah, it makes it so you can see everything at a glance. So like I have some barbecue seasonings there 

  

things like that that I don’t use all the time, but I want to know about. And so we’ll put those links in there. 

  

Tonya Kubo (12:12) 

Awesome. my gosh, this is so helpful, Kathi. And especially, I really liked the idea of keeping the, I’ll call them the single ingredient spices separate from the blends. Cause I think that is incredibly helpful. So, okay. So you’ve told us like we first got to declutter. We got to pair it down, consolidate, toss, whatever you need to do, but let’s pair it down so that we don’t have six basil. Cause that 

  

Kathi Lipp (12:23) 

He has. 

  

Yes. 

  

Mm-hmm. Yep. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Tonya Kubo (12:41) 

would be a problem for most of us, maybe not all of us. Then you talked about the of the simplest storage solution it sounds to me is this expandable like shelf sort of stair step thing. Do you feel like it’s the most affordable solution too? 

  

Kathi Lipp (12:48) 

Yeah. 

  

Right? 

  

Oh yeah, by far the most affordable. You I think those things you can buy them for like 10 to $13 and that’s really gonna amp up your space. But I think the next most affordable one is, and here’s the thing, I would never personally use this solution. Cause I feel like a kitchen drawer is about the most valuable space in your entire house. But I know for some people, this is the magical solution. And this is, it’s a pullout spice drawer. 

  

Tonya Kubo (13:12) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (13:25) 

or you know, what it does is you can pull out the drawer, the spices are laying down in the drawer, but they are segmented out. so there are a couple of pullout drawers we can talk about. That’s one where you can pull out just one of your cabinet drawers or your kitchen drawers and those spices are laying down. There’s another one that I think is really interesting. 

  

Tonya Kubo (13:35) 

Hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (13:51) 

that I have not tried, but I might at some point, especially in our RV where space is limited. And this is like, it’s a pull-out, and we’ll have pictures of all of these in the notes, but this is like a pull-out cabinet, pull-out rack where the spices are standing up. So you can, it’s both sides, it’s like toy soldier rows of spices where you can see them standing up. 

  

Tonya Kubo (13:54) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Okay, 

  

so it goes in a cabinet, but it’s a drawer system that fits inside a cabinet versus having an organization system that fits inside of a drawer. 

  

Kathi Lipp (14:22) 

Yes. 

  

Exactly. there I’ve I’ve confused us. I get it. I really have Yes 

  

Tonya Kubo (14:32) 

No, it’s okay. I summarized it. We’re good. This is the 

  

beauty of having two of us here. Well, and the reason I wanted to pull that out and clarify is because I think there are a lot of people who do prefer some kind of drawer based system. So having a solution for the people who do want to use their own drawer, right? But make that work for them is helpful. And then also for somebody who 

  

Kathi Lipp (14:50) 

Yes. 

  

Yes. Right. 

  

Tonya Kubo (15:00) 

maybe has a little extra cabinet space, but that doesn’t work for them because they don’t like the cabinet layout, then they can get a drawer system to insert. my gosh, this is really actually, it’s quite creative, Kathi. 

  

Kathi Lipp (15:06) 

Right. 

  

Yes. 

  

Mm-hmm. I 

  

I really I I think if you can solve this problem You can improve your nighttime cooking routine by a solid seven percent Yes, yes 

  

Tonya Kubo (15:24) 

Ooh, I like a solid 7%. Not too high, 

  

not too low. This is good. Okay, let’s cut to commercial really quick. Pay some bills. We’ll be right back. 

  

my gosh. So we are back talking about, think one of the most valuable pieces of real estate in your home, which is the space you allocate to spices. Cause it seems like a small space, but it can get out of hand really, really quickly. And Kathi is walking us through a variety of solutions on how to tame that incredibly chaotic area. So you heard us before the commercial break. Now we’re coming back. Kathi. 

  

Kathi Lipp (15:48) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Tonya Kubo (16:05) 

Talk to me about what I think is everybody’s practice when it comes to organizing. I think most of our listeners are probably already shocked that we haven’t brought it up. 

  

Kathi Lipp (16:17) 

Are you talking lazy Susans? Okay, and I will say this is part of my, I apparently, I don’t think I realized it until we did this episode that I have like a five, five layer solution to all of this, but it’s just, it’s where we’re at. It’s what works. And so I have a lazy Susan, very tall lazy Susan that I keep things like, you know, the Costco size, 

  

Tonya Kubo (16:19) 

I’m totally talking lazy Susans. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah, it’s what works. 

  

Kathi Lipp (16:46) 

containers of They’re the blends, you know, so the those kind of things. I keep them on the lazy Susan. I also keep some other You know like seasoning salts and things like that on there and that is just you know You turn around you’re doubling or tripling your space The problem is whatever on the inside of that lazy Susan will never be seen again Yeah, so you either you either have to not care about it 

  

Tonya Kubo (16:59) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

I was gonna say it never sees the light of day. 

  

Kathi Lipp (17:16) 

or you just have to promise yourself that you’re not gonna fill up that space. But really, where is there a space in your kitchen that has not been filled? 

  

Tonya Kubo (17:24) 

Never. Now I have a question about the lazy Susan though. So my experience with lazy Susans, it doesn’t take long before eventually they don’t quite spin as smoothly as they used to. And so then that’s what drives me up a wall. Cause I’m like, I have what looks like a lazy Susan, but it is not lazying around for me. 

  

Kathi Lipp (17:25) 

Right. Yes. 

  

Okay. 

  

Mm-hmm Yes, okay 

  

So you may have to turn that thing take everything off turn it upside down and see if there’s anything blocking the mechanism Or you mention may just have too much on it Yeah, and it’s well it’s probably too stuffed and it’s getting stuck in a corner or something and so maybe you just need a little TLC 

  

Tonya Kubo (17:50) 

Hmm. 

  

it never occurred to me that that could be a problem, but that’s probably the problem. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Alright, okay, so, lazy Susan, what else do we got? 

  

Kathi Lipp (18:09) 

Yeah, 

  

okay, so if you are super super tight on space in your kitchen So these are some I’m gonna give you some rapid-fire solutions that I have used in spaces like Our RV where there there is no space the space doesn’t exist. So one of those things is There are under cabinet Storage for yeah, so you can see all that. I think that that is ideal for somebody who says 

  

Tonya Kubo (18:15) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Hmm. 

  

Mmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (18:38) 

here are the eight spices I’m going to use. I am not bringing blends into my kitchen. I will make the blend. So that’s an option for that. Another thing that you might want to consider is a holder for the side of your refrigerator. If many refrigerators are not magnetized on the front anymore, 

  

Tonya Kubo (18:43) 

Right. 

  

Kathi Lipp (19:03) 

but they are on the side. And so there are so many great storage solutions. So if you’re working in a tiny apartment or an RV, or maybe it’s a work kitchen cabinet, and you just have a little bit of space, one of those magnetized things will help it so you don’t lose that shelf in your kitchen that is so, so valuable. So something along those lines, thinking outside the box is really, really helpful in those situations. 

  

Tonya Kubo (19:16) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah, 

  

well, I mean, exactly, right? It’s like, you really just have to look at your kitchen and go, you know, what, what is my usable space and what makes the most sense to put here and be willing to be creative. Cause to your point, I’ve seen a lot of knife organizers, for instance, that could go on the side of the fridge, that are magnetized side of the fridge or side of the stove. And of course these are for people who do not have children. Cause I could just see how that would work. 

  

Kathi Lipp (19:38) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Right. Yeah. 

  

Exactly. 

  

Abby. 

  

Tonya Kubo (20:02) 

But just be exactly. But 

  

you know what? Spices could be a safe thing to magnetize to the side of my fridge. So I love that creativity. But I hear a rumor that maybe Roger told me, maybe Roger didn’t tell me, who knows, that you have actually a super duper favorite solution to spice organization. Lay it on us. 

  

Kathi Lipp (20:08) 

Yeah. Right. 

  

We’re 

  

my goodness. 

  

You know can spice organization actually be life-changing. I don’t know But if it could be this would be the one it’s from a brand called utopia and it’s not it’s y-o-u like you topia and It is I it’s so interesting. So it’s a plastic Set of shelves that when you pull it out when you pull out a shelf 

  

Tonya Kubo (20:32) 

You 

  

Okay. 

  

Kathi Lipp (20:56) 

it drops down so you can see all of the spices on that shelf. And of course, I’ve labeled the edge of each shelf so I know what’s on there. But this, it lays it out so beautifully. You know I do a cooking show every Wednesday on Facebook. And I love it. Every time I need a spice, I can just go there and I know I have it. And so part of 

  

Tonya Kubo (21:21) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (21:25) 

keeping that system working. I have one for my basic like basil and then I have another set that is for my blends like Bohemian. And I love it so much because I can see at a glance what I have. I keep those at least two thirds full. I feel like that’s kind of the, that’s when I need, I know I need to get something else unless it’s a crazy expensive spice like saffron. 

  

Tonya Kubo (21:31) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Okay. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah. 

  

Kathi Lipp (21:55) 

Saffron, 

  

you know, if we’re gonna wait till we get down to the bottom before we’re my goodness, right? Because yeah, that’s a different tax bracket if you are or you live in a different country where saffron is not quite that expensive Yeah that and vanilla holy cow, but I love this so much. It makes it so much It’s so easy. You can see what you have at a glance It doesn’t matter that I buy some of my spices from savory spice 

  

Tonya Kubo (22:00) 

The last thread! 

  

is easier to get. 

  

Kathi Lipp (22:24) 

and some of them from Whole Foods and some of them from Safeway because nobody sees them but me. I just keep them all behind there and it fits most of your containers. So I do have a couple where I’ve doubled up on some of those little containers and it just looks it looks nice and it makes me it makes me smile every time I use it. 

  

Tonya Kubo (22:31) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah, well, and I think that’s important, right? Because if we have to eat, I mean, the truth is, is we have to eat, we don’t necessarily have to cook. But if we have to eat and we choose to cook, we should have a measure of enjoyment in the cooking experience. And to your earlier point, the frustration, having like the spices fall out on you or fall onto the cabinet when you’re trying to get to something that really can take, even if you enjoy cooking, that can rob the joy from. 

  

Kathi Lipp (22:56) 

Right. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yes, yes. 

  

It really can. 

  

Tonya Kubo (23:17) 

So now I have a hard question, Kathi, because you know me, I like to throw you curve balls now and then. You have laid out a lot of solutions and you know, our listeners and our Facebook community members, we struggle a little bit with some decision fatigue. Notice how I put myself in that picture just now? Yeah, I said we, it wasn’t the royal we. And so with so many choices, how do you help us decide? 

  

Kathi Lipp (23:20) 

Okay, I love a good hard question. Let’s do it. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Sure. Yes. 

  

I can actually answer this pretty easily. You need a tape measure. You need a tape measure. Yes, but you know what? The tape measure helps you decide what actually is going to work for your space. And so you may think, youtopia that Kathi’s talking about, that will change my life. And then you go to measure your cabinet and you’re like, it would change my life if it fit, but it doesn’t. 

  

Tonya Kubo (23:47) 

Okay. 

  

That was not what I saw coming, but okay. 

  

Hmm. 

  

Yeah 

  

Kathi Lipp (24:13) 

So 

  

I’m not going, so you can do this through process of elimination. So get a tape measure out, check these links that we’re sharing with you on Amazon and see what will actually fit for your space. And I would just say, give yourself a half inch grace on most of these things because not that I think they’re lying to you, but just to make sure that it can fit well. And really consider a combination. What I’ve really used, 

  

Tonya Kubo (24:17) 

Mmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (24:43) 

is the youtopia spice organizers, the lazy Susan, and the stair stepping shelves. And that fits all of my needs. And if I can’t fit it in one of those things, I probably don’t need it. It would be a very rare thing that I would need something outside of. 

  

Tonya Kubo (24:50) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah. And I think that’s just a great thing to remember. It’s like, if this doesn’t work, like, first of all, how likely is it that the solution wouldn’t work? And if it didn’t work, what would be the circumstance that would make that the case? And then how do you work around it? my goodness, Kathi. Okay. So I feel like it is important to remind our listeners of all the resources that are available. We have mentioned a lot of things in this episode. Please do not walk, but run over to the show notes. 

  

Kathi Lipp (25:17) 

Mm-hmm. Yeah. 

  

Yeah. 

  

Tonya Kubo (25:32) 

Click the link that’s in your player and you want to definitely pay attention to all the resources that we have for you there. So we will give you a link to the Clutterfree Academy Facebook group just in case you want to talk this through, share some before and after pictures, see other people’s before and after pictures. We will have a link to a downloadable PDF resource for you and a quick spice checklist. This whole series includes 

  

resources that you can download and print out or use on your device, whatever makes you happy. And Kathi mentioned this, but she kind of snuck it under, so I want to reinforce it. You can catch her cooking live on Facebook. That is her author, Kathi Lipp page, every Wednesday. If you just go to the page, it’ll tell you what time the next one is. And you can see her kitchen live and in real time. 

  

Kathi Lipp (26:22) 

Yeah, and here, let me just give one more little piece of encouragement here. When you are looking at ordering these things, look on Amazon and oftentimes there will be a note that this item is often returned. Now, it always blew me away that the reviews are like a 4.7, but the item is often returned. 

  

Tonya Kubo (26:41) 

Mmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (26:49) 

and 

  

that’s because people ordered it and it didn’t fit in their kitchen. we, know, us cluttery girls, we love to take a flyer and just, you know, we want to order when the mood hits us and we can’t find the tape measure, so we’re not gonna worry about it. Take the extra five seconds to go find that tape, or five minutes, let’s be honest. Go find that tape measure, measure the space, so. 

  

Tonya Kubo (26:53) 

Yep. 

  

Kathi Lipp (27:15) 

because I want you to have wins. Tonya and I want you to have wins in every part of this. And I’m also gonna say one other thing. Tonya, you and I both do an extreme amount of cooking. Most of the food we eat, we cook. You and I both buy spices from Costco. Don’t buy spices from Costco if you’re not cooking on the regular. I will say, I guess there is another portion to my spice. 

  

Tonya Kubo (27:26) 

Mm-hmm. Yep. 

  

Kathi Lipp (27:43) 

You know what I’m holding on to to those really big jars I keep those in my garage and when I’m refilling my spice containers one thing I’ve discovered I don’t know if this holds true for you. I’m never shaking spices into a soup or a casserole I’m always measuring them. So I take those stupid little shaker tabs off Because I don’t use them but when I refill I refill with a piece of paper that I’ve fashioned into a cone because 

  

Tonya Kubo (27:58) 

Mm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (28:11) 

If I’m refilling spices, I’m refilling a lot at the same time. And I don’t want my basil to get into my cumin, or let’s be honest, more likely the other way around. And so I’m just using that paper to do it over and over and over again. So those are my last little hits. 

  

Tonya Kubo (28:19) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

I love it. I 

  

have a little itty bitty baby funnel. It is the tiniest cutest funnel you’ll ever see. Can’t tell you where I bought it, but it works really well. All right. Well, Kathi, thank you so much for sharing these tips with us, helping us to spice up our kitchens. And listeners, I just want to say thank you for hanging out with us. We appreciate the fact that you lend us your ears. You have been listening to Clutterfree Academy. Now go create the clutter free life you’ve always wanted to live. 

  

Kathi Lipp (28:30) 

do you? Yes. I love that. 

  

I love it. 

  

Woohoo! 

 

More Posts 

#665 – Declutter Your Spice Cabinet: From Chaos to Cooking Bliss

#663 – Coat Closet Decluttering Secrets: A Step-by-Step Guide

#663 – Coat Closet Decluttering Secrets: A Step-by-Step Guide

In this Clutter-Free Academy episode, Kathi Lipp teams up with her favorite clutter co-conspirator, Tonya Kubo, to address a common household nemesis: the overflowing coat closet. Perfect for those with or without a traditional coat closet, Kathi and Tonya share innovative tips and strategies to transform any space into a functional launch pad for daily success. 

Listeners will discover the surprising power of matching hangers and learn how to repurpose their coat closet space with hanging bins, command hooks, and even a USB rechargeable light for those darker nooks and crannies. In addition, Kathi and Tonya delve into the emotional connections tied to clothing and how to overcome them in order to achieve a streamlined, organized coat closet. 

Whether you’re tackling seasonal rotations or maintaining a tidy launch pad, this episode is packed with actionable advice to help you maintain a clutter-free lifestyle all year round. Plus, be sure to check out the downloadable resource and join the conversation in our Clutter Free Academy and Clutter Free for Life communities! 

 

Click here to be notified when the next podcast episode is released!

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Sabbath Soup: Weekly Menus and Rhythms to Make Space for a Day of Rest

Kathi Lipp gives readers an easy-to-follow process for meal planning and prep, so that they can enjoy a full day each week of real rest and refreshment.

Could you use a break from cooking (and everything else) once a week? Not only is rest vital for your mind and body, it’s good for your soul too. God designed us to enter into Sabbath rest one day per week, but as you know, meals still need to be made. Your family still needs to be fed.

Sabbath Soup includes convenient, seasonal meal plans that take the guesswork out of shopping and cooking. More than just a collection of delicious recipes—including main dishes, breads, breakfasts, desserts, salads, sides, and yes, soups—this is your guide to establishing a weekly rhythm and routine of meal planning and prep that allows you to have a true day off.

Do something good for your soul and experience the peace that comes with a full day dedicated to spending time with God, family, and friends. Savor your Sabbath as you proudly proclaim, “Soup’s on!”

Order your copy of Sabbath Soup: Weekly Menus and Rhythms to Make Space for a Day of Rest here.

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Meet Our Guest 

 

Tonya Kubo

Tonya Kubo is the illustrious and fearless leader of Kathi Lipp’s Clutter Free Academy Facebook group and the Clutter Free for Life membership program. A professional community strategist, she believes everyone deserves to have a place online where they feel like they belong. Raised by a hoarder, Tonya knows firsthand the pain and isolation that comes from living in conditions others don’t understand. She wants better for her family and her cluttery peeps, which is why she is passionate about the compassionate slow-and-steady approach that makes Clutter Free unique. She lives in the heart of California with her husband, Brian, their two spirited daughters, and one very tolerant cat. Visit tonyakubo.com to find out more about her community work, or email her at tonya@kathilipp.org to discuss the Clutter Free Academy podcast and programs.

Tonya Kubo Picture
Transcript

Kathi Lipp (00:09) 

Well, hey friends, welcome to Clutter-Free Academy, where our goal is to help you take small, doable steps every day to live with less clutter and more life. And I am here with my favorite Clutter co-conspirator. It is Tonya Kubo. Hey, Tonya. okay. It’s time for us to come out of the closet on this one. Do you have a coat closet? Okay, see, easy. Your solution is here. 

  

Tonya Kubo (00:23) 

Hey, Kathi. 

  

No. 

  

My whole house 

  

has two closets. That’s it. 

  

Kathi Lipp (00:40) 

I Tonya I don’t even know I can’t oh my goodness you know what you 

  

Tonya Kubo (00:45) 

It’s okay. It’s okay. 

  

I wish I had a coat closet. Not gonna lie. 

  

Kathi Lipp (00:51) 

You’ve made your house work without a coat closet. Okay, so let’s talk about this in some generalities. We have a coat closet. I don’t know if you remember what that coat closet looks like, but it did not come with the house. It’s a built-in. So it’s very different kind of situation that doesn’t work for everybody, but it’s really helped us. 

  

Tonya Kubo (00:59) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mmm. Yes! 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (01:20) 

Can I just say our coat closet can become a catchall? And yeah, it’s not great. And so I want to talk coat closets today. I think a lot of listeners will identify this, that I have spent many years avoiding opening my coat closet, afraid that random stuff is going to fall out. But today we are going to share a game plan to fix that. 

  

Tonya Kubo (01:49) 

Oooooh! I like a good game plan even if it doesn’t apply to my specific situation. 

  

Kathi Lipp (01:50) 

Yes. 

  

It’s a big promise, I’m not gonna lie. You know what, and if you don’t have a coat closet like Tonya, think of this maybe as what is your launch pad? What is the launch pad for getting out of the house? Because we all have to have that. So this is not going to directly impact you, but this may give you some ideas. 

  

Tonya Kubo (02:05) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah, so you mentioned that your coat closet got a little scary. So why don’t you start us off with like, were the biggest challenges that you were facing before you got on top of it? 

  

Kathi Lipp (02:29) 

Okay, so can we, is there a word that’s multi-seasonality? okay, I just made, yeah, I get to make up words. I love that so much. So what the problem was is there were too many things living in that closet at the same time. You know, we had not only, granted, where we live, we need to keep some different things in our coat closet. 

  

Tonya Kubo (02:36) 

You just made it up, Kathi. That’s okay. You are an author. You are allowed to make up words as much as you want. 

  

Hmm. Okay. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (02:59) 

Like a lot of our listeners do live in snow country, so they may need to keep a snow scraper in that coat closet. Most of our listeners don’t need to keep bear spray in there. But you know. 

  

Tonya Kubo (03:08) 

I was just gonna 

  

say, but in your coat closet you have to keep bear spray and pain reliever. 

  

Kathi Lipp (03:13) 

We do. 

  

And pain reliever, have some different drawers that we’ll talk about in a different episode. But the major coat area, you know, we were keeping our spring coats in there and, you know, that little summer jacket and the big heavy winter coat. There was just, there was a lot going on and it was just a great place to stash stuff. And yeah, it got a little… 

  

Tonya Kubo (03:19) 

Yeah. 

  

Kathi Lipp (03:41) 

It was out of control, we couldn’t find things. Things were not there when they needed to be and their coats sometimes got jammed in because we ran out of hangers. Random items on the base of it. Just, I mean, no real system, no real system. 

  

Tonya Kubo (04:00) 

Yeah, well, it sounds like it had quite the impact on just the day to day life, right? Like just it takes more time to do things when you have to like devote time to digging through. 

  

Kathi Lipp (04:05) 

Yeah. 

  

Why do we own seven hats if we can’t find one when we need to leave the house? Like these are, yeah. Or why do we need six dog leashes if there’s never anywhere they’re supposed to be? And it wasn’t that it made me late for stuff, you know, because anywhere I’m going, it’s gonna take an hour and a half. So I left plenty of times. But we would forget stuff all the time because, you know, what was hidden was forgotten. 

  

Tonya Kubo (04:15) 

Or the right one. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Right. So can you walk us through sort of what was the first move there? 

  

Kathi Lipp (04:47) 

Okay, so I’m not normally a big fan of this, especially for large areas, but for this coat closet, I will recommend pulling at least categories out at all at once. So things like pulling out all the coats, or maybe pulling out all the scarves, or hats, or things like that. 

  

Tonya Kubo (04:56) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. Okay. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (05:15) 

And then really deciding what did we actually need? Do I actually wear this coat? If not, it got donated. Donating good things, things in good condition. We didn’t have a lot of stuff that was in bad condition, but if it was rarely worn, one question was, okay, maybe I only wear this once a year. I have a fancy coat, okay? I have a. 

  

Tonya Kubo (05:21) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (05:43) 

It’s not fancy, but it’s a nice coat. got it for a business trip in Chicago. I rarely wear it. Does that need to be in the front hall closet? I consider that prime real estate. So I just decided to keep that in my bedroom closet and I could pull it out when I needed it. So it’s really curating what we needed in each category. Why do I have seven beanies? 

  

Tonya Kubo (05:50) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Okay. 

  

Hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (06:13) 

I don’t know, because they were, I don’t know. Yeah, maybe somebody gave me one. Let’s be honest, they were on sale at Costco. Let’s just be honest. So there were things like that, but I don’t need all of those. So the first thing really was removing those extra coats. You asked me what the first step was, it was removing extra coats and things that just didn’t need to be there. 

  

Tonya Kubo (06:14) 

I was gonna say, why did you have seven meetings? mean, no judgment, just curious. 

  

Right. 

  

Okay and then what came after that do you think? 

  

Kathi Lipp (06:45) 

So that’s when we, I don’t know about you, Tonya, but there was just so much nonsense, so much nonsense. Like why were tools in there? Explain to, why? I don’t know. I think, just for now, it’s so true, it’s so true. And then why was there mail in there? Like that’s not where the mail goes. 

  

Tonya Kubo (06:58) 

Well, cause you put it there just for now until you decide where you really want it, right? 

  

no, no, I understand. I will explain why there was mail there. Because you came inside the house and you had the mail in your hand and you had your coat on. And so you put the mail down so that you can take off your coat. But while you’re taking off your coat, another idea entered your brain. And so you pivoted around and you went to go take action on that other idea, completely forgetting. 

  

Kathi Lipp (07:13) 

Okay, please tell me. 

  

Yes, yes, yeah. 

  

Yes. 

  

Go. 

  

Tonya Kubo (07:36) 

that your mail is inside the coat closet. The same thing is also what happens to your remote control. Mine’s usually in the fridge. 

  

Kathi Lipp (07:42) 

my goodness. my goodness. Okay, I’ve never done that. That’s impressive. I have to say. Ours gets lost in the bed sheets all the time. And then in the middle of the night, we’re like, why? Why did friends just pop on? Because Moose was walking across the bed. Yes. Okay, we each house has its own problems, right? Yeah. So to really decide, like each space in your house has to have its own purpose. And so I need 

  

Tonya Kubo (07:47) 

all the time. 

  

You 

  

No. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (08:10) 

It’s okay for me to put the mail on the front table as long as I’m putting the mail the same place each time and the coat closet is probably not it. 

  

Tonya Kubo (08:15) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah, the coat closet’s not it because a coat closet has a door. You will never see the mail again. That’s just what happens. Okay, so, you know, I hesitate to ask this question because I think some people are gonna roll their eyes and go, gee whiz, Tonya, it’s a coat closet. You can’t have emotional connections to your coats. But I happen to know that our listeners and our community members who are over in Clutterfree Academy and Clutterfree for Life struggle with emotional connections. 

  

Kathi Lipp (08:25) 

Yes, exactly. Yes. 

  

Tonya Kubo (08:51) 

to items that other people don’t understand. So I’m curious, was there any of that as you were going through your coat closet, anything where you felt emotionally connected to having it there or where you really felt strongly about needing it to be there just in case something were to happen? 

  

Kathi Lipp (09:08) 

Okay, so not this version of the coat closet, but I will talk about the version we had at our house in San Jose and That was the army green jacket that I had in Japan and You know what? Okay, so Some of the best memories I had in my life before I married Roger Happened in that army green jacket now. I will also say 

  

Tonya Kubo (09:15) 

Hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (09:37) 

I did not wear that same size army green jacket for a very long, pretty much my whole first marriage and much of my second marriage, but I couldn’t get rid of it. And so what finally made me get rid of it, this is so embarrassing. I had some dog treats in it apparently, and we had a little bit of an infestation at our house. And yeah. 

  

Tonya Kubo (09:46) 

Yeah. 

  

Hmm. 

  

yeah, that happens. 

  

Kathi Lipp (10:05) 

And so we had to get rid of the jacket. yeah, it hung in my house without being used for years and years and years. And what I wish I would have done was give it to somebody. Because there’s some kid, some emo kid would have loved that jacket. I could have given it to Lily at some point, right? Yes, yes. 

  

Tonya Kubo (10:16) 

Yeah. 

  

Yes, yes! 

  

You totally could have given it to Lilly. You totally could have. 

  

Because she was definitely in an army green phase before she was in her black on black phase, which is where we’re at right now. 

  

Kathi Lipp (10:33) 

Yes, and 

  

we all have some of those things that it’s like, okay, I’ll get back into it. Or you know what, maybe somebody will come visit me at the house and they need an army green jacket. know, like, these are all things. And when you have chaos like that, you don’t use the stuff that you have. It’s really, we stash things in there because we’re thinking we’ll deal with it later. Like you said earlier, 

  

Tonya Kubo (10:46) 

Right. 

  

Kathi Lipp (11:01) 

But today, let’s all handle that. Let’s handle our business, Tonya. Let’s, yeah, yes. 

  

Tonya Kubo (11:05) 

Yeah, let’s handle the business for the here and now as 

  

it comes. So, okay, we’re gonna take a quick break, but when we come back, you are gonna talk to us about matching hangers. I’m very curious about hearing more of this. Hanging bins and more. All right, so we’ll see you after the break. 

  

Kathi Lipp (11:18) 

Yes, okay. Yes, yes. 

  

Tonya Kubo (11:26) 

All right, well, welcome back. So Kathi, I can’t remember if I heard this on a Facebook live you did or if it was something you did in our membership community, but I have heard you in the past say that matching hangers can transform the look of any space that has hangers instantly. I need you to tell me more about 

  

Kathi Lipp (11:34) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Okay, so you said in our last podcast episode that you think every space in our house could potentially be one that brings us joy when we go there. And can I tell you one of the cheat codes to joy is matching hangers. And here’s what I love about that. And it doesn’t have to be expensive hangers. I will tell you for my personal closet upstairs, I have those thin black. 

  

Tonya Kubo (11:57) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

I believe that. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (12:16) 

Velvet hangers the joy hangers Roger hates those with a fiery passion Okay, is it because they are Superman and they feel like they have to get dressed very quickly and the velvet slows them down Is it a textural issue? What is it for these guys? Okay, I Like them like that. Yes. Yes in our one of our guest rooms. We have matching 

  

Tonya Kubo (12:17) 

Mm-hmm. Yeah. 

  

Brian feels the same way. I love mine. 

  

Brian says they’re too thin. That’s why I like them. I like them because they’re so thin. 

  

Kathi Lipp (12:43) 

red plastic hangers. They’re not fancy, but they get the job done. But in my coat closet, we have, and I’ve got a link to them. They’re just wood hangers. They’re not crazy expensive, but they look so nice. And here’s a couple of reasons why I like them. One, the hangers go back to the closet they’re supposed to go to. Can I say that again? The hangers go back to the closet they’re supposed to. 

  

Tonya Kubo (12:44) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

you 

  

Kathi Lipp (13:12) 

So Roger doesn’t have wood hangers hanging out in his closet. I don’t have white plastic hangers from his closet hanging out in mine. And it curates your closet. If you have 12 hangers in your closet, maybe that’s eight for your coats and then four for guests. That’s plenty. That’s what we need. And there are only two people living in my house. Your house, but it also makes it look put together. It’s a very simple way. 

  

Tonya Kubo (13:31) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Right. 

  

Kathi Lipp (13:41) 

for it to visually come together very, very quickly. I love them. And it prevents coat pileups, know, those hangers that, you know, they just make me want to keep the space looking good. 

  

Tonya Kubo (13:54) 

Yeah, yeah, I could see that. Well, and especially, like I can even see an application just household wide if everybody had their own like designated hanger, then you’re putting laundry away. It’s very easy to pick out whose stuff is whose. So I really like that idea. So, okay. So, but there’s some things I think that go in coat closets. I say I think because I currently don’t have one, but I used to have one. 

  

Kathi Lipp (14:03) 

Yeah. Right. 

  

Yes. 

  

Mm-hmm. Right. 

  

Yes. Yeah. 

  

Tonya Kubo (14:18) 

that don’t go on hangers, hats, 

  

gloves, grocery bags. I mean, it depends on what you do, right? What do you do about that stuff? 

  

Kathi Lipp (14:23) 

Yeah. 

  

Yes. Okay, 

  

I’m gonna give you the best solution. I got these hanging baskets. They’re three tiers of hanging baskets. They hook on just like a hanger. So it’s got two hooks and it takes up a little bit of space, but we have one for gloves. We have one for scarves. We’ve got one for those grocery bags. I want you to think about it like this. 

  

Tonya Kubo (14:37) 

Okay? 

  

Kathi Lipp (14:51) 

What do I need to launch when I go out of the house? And if I open that coat closet, mine has two doors. That’s why if you’re watching the video here on YouTube, you will see me opening with two doors. But if you have those spaces, you can just open up and say, here’s everything I need to leave the house. And so having those hanging bins, 

  

Tonya Kubo (14:57) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Okay. 

  

Kathi Lipp (15:17) 

gives you things like, we have one for all of our moose supplies, know, so those, you know, poop bags and leashes and collars and things like that, reusable bags, bear spray, like there’s a space for everything. So nothing is on the bottom floor of that coat closet that you don’t want to be there. 

  

Tonya Kubo (15:21) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Great, okay, so you are always so good. This is the problem when we reverse roles is Kathi, you are always so good at counting us out and I have not been counting us out. So when it comes to decluttering the coat closet, so step one was you got rid of the coats you no longer wear. Step two was you don’t advocate this normally, but in the case of a small space like a coat closet, pulling everything out that doesn’t belong and then going through it and only putting the stuff back that makes sense. And then. 

  

Kathi Lipp (15:50) 

Yeah, that’s okay. 

  

Yes. 

  

Right. Right. 

  

Tonya Kubo (16:09) 

For step three, we talked about the matching hangers and just how that just feels good to look at. And then step four is hanging bins for the small items, the hats, the gloves, the grocery bags, bear spray in your case. All right, take me to step five. 

  

Kathi Lipp (16:13) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

It feels great. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah, so we like to have in our coat closet our car keys wallets purses and Yeah, we’re putting a lot in that coat closet so I want to be able to see what I have and we we introduced the USB rechargeable light that you can put in by a magnet This is another great place for it if your coat closet doesn’t already have a light 

  

Tonya Kubo (16:44) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (16:58) 

Or maybe your coat closet is in a hall where there’s a light outside the hall, but there’s not one inside. May I highly suggest, and we’ll put it again in the show notes, this USB light that is just installed with a magnet. You don’t need to rewire anything. It will give you, you can see into every nook and cranny. But the other magical thing in here, the thing I cannot live without, command hooks. I love. 

  

Tonya Kubo (17:24) 

yes, we like those at our house 

  

too. 

  

Kathi Lipp (17:26) 

Yes, 

  

I love a good command hook. So I use a command hook. I personally, I do have a bunch of different purses for different activities. I like a good handbag, but my wallet is on a loop. And so I can just hang my wallet on a command hook. We can hang all of our keys on a command hook. You can also put, if you want to do, 

  

Tonya Kubo (17:36) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (17:54) 

like your grocery shopping bags. If you don’t wanna put them into one of those hanging bins, you could put those on a command hook. You can use those for a million different things and they just make your life so, so much better. Dog leash, other small items, you use accordingly. 

  

Tonya Kubo (18:02) 

Mmm. 

  

Yeah, and so with the command hooks, you and we’ll link to those in the show notes as well. Those are nice because they attach with adhesive in most cases. And so you don’t have to worry about making holes anywhere or like, I don’t know, but if I have to put a screw or a nail in something suddenly that feels like home improvement and I’m not all about that life. 

  

Kathi Lipp (18:23) 

Yes. 

  

Yes. 

  

Yes, right. 

  

It’s a different level. What we’re talking about here, everything that we’ve shared about is A level. Or is it D, you know, is it F level? Let’s say it’s F level and A level is redoing your bathroom. No, we’re talking about stickers and hooks. That’s what we’re talking about here. Magnets, yes. 

  

Tonya Kubo (18:37) 

Yeah. 

  

Yeah. 

  

Right. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah, and so Kathi, you are the person who taught me about seasonal stuff, right? Because I grew up in a studio apartment with my mom, I’m used to everything being in one space all at the same time. But the last episode, we were talking a little bit about seasonal stuff, and we’re talking about seasonal stuff now with the coat closet especially. How do you rotate things or do you? 

  

Kathi Lipp (19:05) 

Right. 

  

Right. Right. 

  

Yeah. 

  

And, Tonya, let’s also say you grew up in central California, where the seasons are not quite as different as they are in Minnesota. Right, exactly. And broiling hot, yes. So, yes, but living up here, I have definitely learned about seasonality. And so we just have a little space in our garage for out of season. So the same bin is either 

  

Tonya Kubo (19:28) 

Cold, not cold. That’s all we got. 

  

Yeah. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (19:49) 

summer or winter right now because we’re recording this in February, it’s going out in March. We have all of our bug spray, our sunscreen, all of that kind of stuff out in our garage in a bin and inside we have our scarves, our gloves, our ice scraper, that kind of thing. So think of your coat closet or your launch pad, whatever it is. 

  

Tonya Kubo (20:11) 

Mmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (20:16) 

as one of the most valuable pieces of real estate in your house. And when you redo this, keep everything out of there that you are not potentially going to use in the next week or so. So like right now, I don’t have my summer jacket hanging in there. Yeah, and so just what I could open up and say, you know what? I have a purpose for almost everything in here in the next couple of weeks. 

  

Tonya Kubo (20:30) 

Okay. 

  

Yeah. 

  

Okay, one more question, Kathi. What about the floor? Because I know some people have a strict, like, nothing goes on the floor rule in a closet. I know that you happen to be a space maximizer, so I have a feeling that you’ve got some solutions there. 

  

Kathi Lipp (20:47) 

Yes. Yeah. 

  

Right. 

  

Guess. 

  

So here’s what I would say with that is that, you know, if I leave room for things like when my kids had backpacks for school, or if you have a folding grocery cart, if you live in a really urban area, you probably have a folding grocery cart that needs to go somewhere. Or do you have a bag of library books that need to be returned? You know, what? 

  

Tonya Kubo (21:12) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (21:30) 

whatever I grab on my way out, I also, if I was going to work every day, I might have my computer backpack there. Right now, those things are probably existing in your living space because on the floor of your coat closet is nonsense because that’s what was on the floor of my coat closet. So, you know, 

  

Tonya Kubo (21:39) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (21:59) 

So what I personally have on the floor of my coat closet, and my coat closet isn’t like a full length thing, it’s a half length thing, but I have cooler bags because when we go to town, I’m going to use a Costco cooler, at least in the winter, to put in my fresh meat and stuff. In the summer, we’re bringing our Yeti. Like that’s a different thing. But… 

  

Tonya Kubo (22:19) 

Mm-hmm. Yeah. 

  

Kathi Lipp (22:23) 

What do you actually use and need to be there? It should not be long-term storage for things you don’t touch all year. It’s things that you actually use. And if your kids could put their backpacks there, if you could put your work backpack there, I think that’s a great use of space. 

  

Tonya Kubo (22:30) 

Yeah. 

  

Okay, and so now we get to the part where we’ve got to talk about the nemesis of all of our cluttery peeps. We’ve got the coat closet all beautifully decluttered, organized. How do we keep it from getting junked up again? 

  

Kathi Lipp (22:45) 

Yes. 

  

Mm-hmm. Right. 

  

Yeah, so when you bring new items in, remove something old. You know, the one in, one out. You know, when you think about coats, we probably don’t need 40, okay? Roger and I both need a nice coat. Think church or going out to dinner. An everyday winter coat, an everyday lighter coat, and a raincoat. If I get a new coat, I get rid of an old one. 

  

Tonya Kubo (23:11) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (23:23) 

Now, you may have more coat needs, that’s okay. But do you have 20 coat needs? And do they all need to be in that coat closet space? What if you picked the three or four coats that you use most of the time and use that? And then also, as you’re changing things over from winter to summer, just clear it out. 

  

Tonya Kubo (23:24) 

Okay. 

  

Kathi Lipp (23:52) 

Do I need to get rid of more coats? Do I need to get rid of some of these scarves? The other thing is, do you need seven scarves? Do you need 12 beanies? Do you need all of those mittens and gloves? Think about what do you actually use and what do you actually need? That’s the maintenance you need to do. And can I tell you, once you get this set up, your maintenance is gonna be so minimal. It’s gonna take five minutes. 

  

Tonya Kubo (24:18) 

Well, I was gonna say like maximum would be about 20 minutes a week, right? Like five minutes a day. If you can just do a quick swipe through, especially during the times of year where your coat closet is in more heavy use. 

  

Kathi Lipp (24:22) 

Yes. Yes. 

  

Yeah. 

  

Right, absolutely. 

  

Tonya Kubo (24:33) 

my goodness, Kathi, thank you so much. These have been great tips. I especially appreciate all the resources that we’re going to have available in the show notes, mainly because that’s how I access them after the episodes as well. Like I probably use our website more often than anybody else around here. Any final thoughts, encouragement, tips that you would give to our listeners? 

  

Kathi Lipp (24:40) 

Mm-hmm. Yes. 

  

I love it. 

  

How do you want to start your day? If your coat closet could be your launch pad to say, this is where my keys are. This is where, maybe you keep your lunch bag there after work or something like that. But how do I want to approach my day each day? Do I want to be able to find things in there easily? Do I want to be able to know where my coat is? 

  

I think the reason that we don’t use our coat closets so much is because they’re filled with nonsense. At least that’s why I wasn’t using it. Instead of thinking, you know what, this is a tucked away space for things that I use every single day. Your space should be stuff that you use at least five out of seven days a week. So if you think about it that way, it’s really going to curate what belongs in that space and what doesn’t. 

  

Tonya Kubo (25:28) 

Mm-hmm. Yeah. 

  

beautiful tips. So we’re gonna curate what belongs in the space and what doesn’t. And we’re doing that by, just to summarize the steps, removing the unwanted coats, unwanted stuff that’s extra in that space. We’re gonna pull out the items that don’t belong, get matching hangers. You’ll thank us later, cause they’re beautiful. Hanging bins are ideal for those things that don’t hang. And then of course, command hooks, get that rechargeable light. I don’t know about you, but I’m running out to get one today. 

  

Kathi Lipp (26:05) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

They’re so great. 

  

Tonya Kubo (26:16) 

and 

  

rotate things seasonally. Not everything needs to live in the same space, same time all year long. Now, I believe we’re going to have a download available with all these tips in our show notes, right? You’re so excited. This was all Kathi’s idea, guys. I would never think of this, so just know that. Kathi thought of this because she knows you well. And we want to hear, so we want you to download that resource from our show notes, but then we want to hear from you over in the free Facebook group and you can find 

  

Kathi Lipp (26:22) 

Mm. 

  

We are! Yes! 

  

Tonya Kubo (26:44) 

all the links, all the information in the show notes. Kathi, thank you for letting me interview you. This has been so much fun. 

  

Kathi Lipp (26:51) 

my goodness. 

  

You know what? And I love doing this because it inspires me in these spaces and I need the inspiration just like everybody else. 

  

Tonya Kubo (27:00) 

Oh, I feel the same way. listeners, I just want to say thank you for hanging out with us for this 25 minutes or so. You have been listening to Clutterfree Academy. I’m Tonya Kubo with Kathi Lipp. Now go create the clutter free life you’ve always wanted to live. 

 

 

More Posts 

#665 – Declutter Your Spice Cabinet: From Chaos to Cooking Bliss

#661 – The Hidden Link Between Loneliness and Clutter

#661 – The Hidden Link Between Loneliness and Clutter

In this enlightening episode of Clutter Free Academy, Kathi Lipp sits down with Kristin Strong, author of “Praying Through Loneliness: A 90 Day Devotional for Women.” Together, they uncover the intertwined relationship between clutter and loneliness, offering actionable steps to create a more welcoming space and build connections within our communities. Whether you’re struggling with isolation due to clutter, life circumstances, or anything in between, this episode promises to equip you with practical, faith-driven insights to overcome loneliness. Don’t miss this valuable conversation that could inspire you to transform both your living space and your heart. 

Click here to be notified when the next podcast episode is released!

Also, stay up to date and sign up here to receive our newsletter.

As mentioned by Kathi:

Sabbath Soup: Weekly Menus and Rhythms to Make Space for a Day of Rest

Kathi Lipp gives readers an easy-to-follow process for meal planning and prep, so that they can enjoy a full day each week of real rest and refreshment.

Could you use a break from cooking (and everything else) once a week? Not only is rest vital for your mind and body, it’s good for your soul too. God designed us to enter into Sabbath rest one day per week, but as you know, meals still need to be made. Your family still needs to be fed.

Sabbath Soup includes convenient, seasonal meal plans that take the guesswork out of shopping and cooking. More than just a collection of delicious recipes—including main dishes, breads, breakfasts, desserts, salads, sides, and yes, soups—this is your guide to establishing a weekly rhythm and routine of meal planning and prep that allows you to have a true day off.

Do something good for your soul and experience the peace that comes with a full day dedicated to spending time with God, family, and friends. Savor your Sabbath as you proudly proclaim, “Soup’s on!”

Order your copy of Sabbath Soup: Weekly Menus and Rhythms to Make Space for a Day of Rest here.

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Meet Our Guest 

 

Kristen Strong

Kristen Strong is an author and speaker who specializes in writing about friendship, belonging, and navigating life’s transitions. As a military spouse married to a U.S. Air Force veteran of 26 years’ service, she brings unique insight into building community and finding belonging despite frequent moves and changes. Kristen has authored several books, including “Praying Through Loneliness,” “Friends Are Family We Choose,” “When Change Finds You,” “Back Roads to Belonging,” and “Girl Meets Change.” Originally from Oklahoma, she now lives in Colorado Springs with her husband David, and they are parents to three adult children, including twins. A regular contributor to (in)courage, Kristen’s writing focuses on helping women build meaningful friendships and find hope through life’s various seasons of change.

Tonya Kubo Picture
Transcript

Kathi Lipp (00:13)
Well hey friends, welcome to Clutter Free Academy where our goal is to help you take small doable steps every day to live with less clutter and more life. And I have a very special treat here today. As many of you know, I write for the Hallmark Day Spring organization, Encourage, and this is one of my Encourage sisters. Let’s just say I’m one of her little sisters because she has been doing this a lot longer than I have.

Kristen (00:38)
you

Kathi Lipp (00:41)
Guys, it is Kristin Strong and she is the author of the new book, Praying Through Loneliness, a 90 day devotional for women. And when I say that she is the author, we’ll talk more about that. Kristin, welcome to the podcast. I’m so thrilled to have you on here.

Kristen (00:54)
you

thanks for having me, Kathy. I’m so happy to be here too.

Kathi Lipp (01:02)
You know, it’s when we were originally talking about this book and I’m very excited because I got to be a part of this book and we’ll talk a little bit more about that later on. But, you know, I was like, I don’t know about praying through loneliness as necessarily a podcast episode just because I want to keep it centered on decluttering. My people show up for decluttering. I want to serve them for where they need. But the more I thought about it,

the more, you know, what kept coming to my mind is this phrase over and over again, clutter isn’t just about stuff, it’s about separation. And as I thought about it, you know, before I really went on my decluttering journey and got a little bit of freedom from all of this clutter, I remember it was very isolating. One of my, it’s a joke, but it’s not a joke, that 20 years ago,

If you showed up unexpectedly at my house for coffee, I would have served you on the front porch. I would often be embarrassed. Now, if I wanted to throw a party as long as I had two weeks notice and I killed myself, I wouldn’t say necessarily decluttering, but hiding all the clutter, I could do that. But I just found that…

Kristen (02:07)
you

Kathi Lipp (02:27)
I was in a place of shame and I was in a place of discouragement and fear that people would find out. And I think that a lot of people are in that circumstance that people don’t want to invite people over.

Kristen (02:31)
Mm.

you

Kathi Lipp (02:45)
or they don’t necessarily want their kids to invite friends over. Now, I’m guessing that clutter isn’t a struggle for you as much as it might be for some of my listeners, and maybe that’s not true, but I think we’ve all felt places of isolation and loneliness. What caused you to write this book? Where was the loneliness in your life showing up, Kristen?

Kristen (03:13)
Well, this may be surprising actually, the reason, how this book actually came to be is I had presented a book proposal, know, shopped it out to different publishers on a similar but different topic. the publisher really liked that. And actually that book is releasing in the spring.

Kathi Lipp (03:33)
Yeah.

Kristen (03:39)
But they, I thank you, thank you. But they, they had a, they’d already had like a couple of other books in a series of praying through serious praying through cancer, praying through infertility. And they really wanted to do a praying through loneliness. So as they read my proposal, they’re like, there’s really something here where we could.

Kathi Lipp (03:39)
Woohoo!

Mm, okay.

you

Kristen (04:01)
kind of also do a little pivot project that in line with these other two we’ve already done. And they asked me if I’d be interested in it. And you know, I’ve always really liked editing. And so I was like, yeah, I could just kind of get to get into the editing, you know, mucking the mire a little bit. And so that sounds, you know, like something I would like to do. And I felt at that point in my life really,

Kathi Lipp (04:09)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Kristen (04:28)
I’ve been a military wife for almost 20 years and certainly that brings up a recurring cycle of loneliness.

Kathi Lipp (04:32)
Yeah.

Yeah.

Kristen (04:38)
But I’d also lived in my kind of adopted hometown now of Colorado Springs, Colorado for over 10 years. And I started to understand how, you you can still, you can not move every whip stitch and still be real lonely. And so, you know, kind of bringing both of those into that, you know, as well as that follow on project I mentioned, you know, was, was something I was happy to talk about.

Kathi Lipp (04:55)
Yeah.

Yeah, I it’s interesting right because sometimes we can blame our loneliness on our circumstances but sometimes it is just The deeper truth in our life that we can be surrounded by a lot of people we can be a surrounded you know, we could have all the things that make it look like they should be fine and Inside still feeling that isolation and loneliness, you know

Kristen (05:21)
Mm-hmm.

Absolutely.

Kathi Lipp (05:37)
One one

of the interesting things about this book how many different contributors did you have to this book?

Kristen (05:43)
It was north of 45. yeah, yeah. So quite a few ended up contributing. You know, yeah, just the way it worked out. You know, I wanted to post a fewer contributors, but more pieces from each one. But then the way it kind of just worked out where people were, you know, were interested in just contributing one or two pieces. Then I was like, well, then that’s more voices. So that’s, you know, that’s great. So.

Kathi Lipp (05:46)
my goodness.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah, absolutely. We love to hear

more voices. I think that that’s really solid. Yeah, so the piece I wrote for this book actually was about chickens. thank you so much. You know, chickens will teach you a lot. And it’s so interesting because we had three old guard kind of chickens. We call them the OG, the original gangsters.

Kristen (06:13)
Mm-hmm.

It’s one of my favorites. I love it so much.

Hahaha.

Kathi Lipp (06:39)
And I didn’t

know this until I had chickens, but there really is a pecking order. There is a pecking order that the bigger battered chickens will let the lesser chickens know that they’re in trouble. And in this particular group, we had three old guard, and then we had Rocky and Bullwinkle, and Rocky was the smallest and the one who got picked on the most. And so when it was time to open up the coop, the three big girls would go,

Kristen (06:45)
Mm-hmm.

Kathi Lipp (07:08)
Into the run, you know where they could see everything and they they wanted to be the first out the door when I let them out so that they could go, you know, see if there were worms or see if there was a new blade of grass and Bullwinkle would go out with them too. But when the door would open Bullwinkle would go back into the coop and let Rocky know you’re you’re okay. It’s okay to come out and

Kristen (07:11)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Kathi Lipp (07:37)
I mean, I sit here and I think about it and it brings me to tears because I think about the way that I’ve needed some bullwinkles in my life to come back and say, you’re gonna be okay. I’m here with you. I’m not leaving you alone. I think in so many of my friends’ lives, whether they’ve been going through a divorce, whether they have

Kristen (07:43)
Mm-hmm.

Mmm.

Kathi Lipp (08:06)
a medical diagnosis that has made them feel isolated, or in the case of many of the people who are listening here today, we just need somebody to tell us that we’re gonna be okay. And I wonder what you read from all those contributors or what you, first of all, if you’re the bullwinkle, if you’re the one who’s wanting to let somebody know they’re going to be okay,

Kristen (08:19)
Mm-hmm.

Kathi Lipp (08:36)
How do you help the people who are struggling with isolation in your life? Maybe you’re not struggling, but you have a friend who’s going through a tough time. What did you learn from reading all these essays that might be able to help somebody who’s listening today, who wants to help that person who’s feeling isolated because of their clutter or because of something else going on in their lives?

Kristen (08:42)
Mm.

Mm.

Mm-hmm.

Well, you know, I think one of the great things I learned was what you shared, Kathy. You talked about the one more question, you know, just taking that time, you know, you you might ask somebody, well, how’s it going? And they’re like, doing OK. But you know how sometimes you can just sense like they’re saying they’re OK, but none of what I’m seeing is matching what they’re saying, you know. And so just I love the idea. And I’ve thought of that so many times since reading your piece about

Kathi Lipp (09:20)
Right, right.

Kristen (09:29)
just asking one more question, like even just, are you sure like it’s going okay, you know? And I just think that gives people that extra opportunity, that permission really, you know, cause you know, you don’t want to be a burden to people. And sometimes you think like, they don’t have time right now or they got a lot going on. And so I, you know, I’ll save it for another time. But when you ask, when you take a minute to go, are you sure everything’s going okay or…

Kathi Lipp (09:34)
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Right.

Mm-hmm.

Kristen (09:57)
you know, just probing a smidge deeper. It does a lot to give somebody that permission to feel they can share. And I would say that’s the other thing I learned is it’s not just, or had maybe re, I relearned perhaps, that it’s not just taking the time to ask those one more questions or to check in on your people. You know, send a little text, you know.

Kathi Lipp (10:13)
Mm-hmm.

Kristen (10:22)
take the time to tell them happy birthday when you remember things like that. But also then when you are like asking the one more question, it’s incumbent on the person on the receiving end to also be like, okay, I’m gonna, I just need to be vulnerable and share and not just refuse to do that. You know, it’s kind of both parts I think are really, really important in helping those.

Kathi Lipp (10:26)
Right.

Right.

Kristen (10:47)
you know, folks that are mitigating loneliness or going through a hard season of loneliness.

Kathi Lipp (10:53)
You know, it’s so interesting. I love how

God lines things up. We had our neighbor lost her husband three months ago, very unexpectedly, very quickly with cancer. And we had asked her to come over for dinner and she said, I’m not ready. And we said, we totally get it. And then she said, I think I’m ready. And so it was planned for Monday, you know, last Monday.

Kristen (11:03)
Mmm.

Mm. Ugh.

Kathi Lipp (11:22)
Well, the week before, I was doing a day-long coaching with two women who were part of a, are, one was the founder of Jessica’s House, which helps people in grief. And as we were going through the coaching, we were talking about what their audience’s fears are. And I’m like, let me tell you my fear.

Kristen (11:38)
Mmm.

Kathi Lipp (11:47)
I fear I’m going to say something stupid. I’ve got this woman coming to dinner on Monday and she said, you know, here’s something to say because instead of asking, how are you doing? The example you used was perfect. But like when you know somebody is going through grief, instead of saying, how are you doing? You just say, I’m so glad you’re here or I’m so glad.

Kristen (12:04)
Right, right.

Mmm.

Kathi Lipp (12:15)
that I get to spend time with you tonight. And it was, it got, and then she said, the other thing to do is to mirror the person in front of you. So if she’s crying, it’s okay to cry. But if she is telling stories about the person she loves, and she said, go with that, ask, how did you guys meet? How, you know, where were you living when you met?

Kristen (12:27)
Mmm.

Mmmmm

Kathi Lipp (12:43)
And it gave me ways to get connected and to bridge that awkwardness that I think so many of us, when we know somebody maybe is hurting or is maybe feeling isolated because of circumstances, I love that God lined that up for the Thursday before the Monday. And I got to go in with a game plan. And that’s what I feel like so much of your book is, is people who have said, I have been lonely, so.

Kristen (12:57)
Mm-hmm.

Mm.

Kathi Lipp (13:12)
this is what I needed and I’ve had people in my life and this is how I reached out. So here’s what I wanna do. We’re gonna take a quick break and we’re gonna come back and I wanna talk about when you are that person is isolated. How do you take those next steps? So we’ll be back with Kristen Strong in just a moment.

Kristen (13:29)
Mm.

Kathi Lipp (13:38)
Okay, friends, we talked about if you are the person who’s reaching back, if you’re the bullwinkle in the situation, you’re going back into the chicken coop and saying, it’s okay, Rocky, you can come out, they’re not going to terrorize you. But what if you’re the one who’s feeling isolated? It’s hard to be around people, especially, let’s talk about in the aspect of clutter, if you are feeling like what, so I want to give a couple of suggestions and then Kristen, I’m going to ask for a couple of suggestions.

Kristen (13:51)
you

Mm-hmm.

Kathi Lipp (14:07)
from you. So one thing is, I would love to see you create one clutter free space. Your house does not have to be perfect. In fact, perfect makes people uneasy. It really does. But is there a little space in your house? Could it be two chairs at the dining room table? Could it be one couch in your living room that has a little coffee table there?

Kristen (14:14)
Mm.

Mm-hmm.

Kathi Lipp (14:34)
and you could just bring out some coffee. And you know what? If it needs to be your front porch right now, let it be the front porch. Unless you’re in one of those cold places in the United States right now. But if you’re saying my clutter feels ice laying, then I’m gonna ask you, you know what? Get a gift card to Starbucks and say, you know, I’ve got this $20 gift card to Starbucks. I would love to share it with you. Can we meet at the one over on Bollinger and Miller?

Kristen (14:42)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Kathi Lipp (15:03)
You know, set

up a space. If you’re feeling isolated and you’re feeling like, I don’t even know if I reach out, I’m scared to reach out because I wonder if I’ll be rejected. How do you start to get brave enough to do that, Kristen? Or what is one step that somebody who is feeling isolated could take?

Kristen (15:20)
Mm-hmm.

I think, well, can I give like a tiny story with it? So, and I wrote about this in that subsequent project I mentioned, but when I was a newer military wife, I had two young, I had twin, I don’t know, they must’ve been two year olds at the time. And we lived on base in Albuquerque, New Mexico. when you, listen, when you live on base, like picture the most un…

Kathi Lipp (15:28)
Yes, please. I would love it.

Kristen (15:51)
sexy housing, know, it’s like, you know, it’s like wall to wall linoleum and there’s no carpet even there’s just like the linoleum floors that are for mica cabinets. Anyway, I invited our some of the group in the neighborhood I was we were getting to know I invited them over for dinner. And then I panicked to the day before I was like,

Kathi Lipp (15:53)
Right. Yeah.

Kristen (16:14)
my house is not up to snuff for company. So I asked the girl I was the most close with, Rebecca, we’re still good friends today, but I asked Rebecca, I said, if I bring all the food over, can you just have everybody at your house? I essentially invited, you know, with kids, like 25 people to her house. And so she graciously said yes, but you know.

Kathi Lipp (16:18)
you

Yeah. my goodness.

Kristen (16:41)
like I really put her on the spot there and just realized like that was not a friend move right there. Especially in we all have the same house. like it was extra silly of me. But I say all that to say that I get like being scared to invite folks over. And I just think that like anything in life, if the more you practice it, the more you get successful at it. And, you know, I there I

Kathi Lipp (16:58)
Right?

Mm-hmm.

Kristen (17:10)
I used to have this quote on our refrigerator and I think it was by I think maybe Irma Bombeck, but it said like, if you’re coming to see me, come on over. If you’re coming to see my house, call ahead, you know, and I just think, you know, I think most folks are coming to see you. It’s like you alluded to, Kathy, you know, I don’t want to go to a museum for dinner. I’m not going to relax. I’m going to be real tense the whole time. But I want, yeah, I I feel like a little bit of mess just

Kathi Lipp (17:22)
Right.

Right. Yes.

Kristen (17:38)
makes me like relax more and know that, you know, people don’t care.

Kathi Lipp (17:41)
Right.

especially if you’re bringing kids or, you know, it’s going to be, and I always think, you know, find that one spot in your house. Maybe it’s your backyard. Maybe it’s the kitchen table where you can just lean in and connect because here’s what I know. If you’re feeling lonely, there are other people around you who are feeling that same thing.

Kristen (17:46)
Mm-hmm.

Yes.

Mm-hmm.

Kathi Lipp (18:07)
and

so desperately needs somebody to reach out. And so, yeah, it doesn’t have to be in your house. It could be, let’s meet at the park and I’ll pack a picnic lunch for the rest of us. Do you have, right? It doesn’t have to be in your home, but at the same time, maybe saying, okay, if I can get my living room to where I know that nobody’s gonna sit on anything sharp, we’re good to go. Like, you know, that’s…

Kristen (18:12)
Yeah.

Mm-mm.

absolutely.

Yeah!

Kathi Lipp (18:36)
The baseline, that’s the baseline. What have you discovered about loneliness that you didn’t know before this project?

Kristen (18:38)
Yeah.

I think just how many different kinds of loneliness there are before this project. You know, and even when the publisher and I were going over it,

Kathi Lipp (18:51)
Hmm

Kristen (18:58)
it was very loneliness in terms of friendship, which is certainly a big valid kind of loneliness. But when I started talking with authors and they’re describing loneliness through chronic illness or loneliness because a close loved one died, the loneliness of looking different, the loneliness of being an empty nester, there’s just so many very, there’s so many.

Kathi Lipp (19:02)
Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Kristen (19:25)
kinds of loneliness. And the interesting thing is, is though we all experience loneliness, you know, often in different ways, the pain in the midst of it is the same. So then the help you can get from it, even if you’re reading a devotional in the book that, you know, you may not identify with what the author exactly went through, you will glean a lot from the takeaways that she offers.

Kathi Lipp (19:36)
Mmm, yeah.

You know, we’re talking a lot about loneliness and some very actionable steps. I really like practical solutions. But prayer is part of this as well. And, you know, for me, the prayer, what prayer does is even if I’m not being fully honest with anybody else, maybe I’m not even being honest 100 % with my husband because I don’t want him to carry my burden.

I don’t want my mom to carry my burden, but I can always be fully authentic with God and say, this is where my pain’s coming from. And I love that God is the God of creativity and may come up with solutions that I wouldn’t even think to broach. How has prayer broken that stronghold of loneliness in your life?

Kristen (20:19)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

think because it really does show me how when you have nobody else around to help with to help just to help you feel less lonely when you have nobody else around God’s presence is enough and you can never get to that point of knowing it’s enough unless you know he’s he’s

the only one you really have. And I don’t mean to say that. I don’t mean to exaggerate. know, you know, Corey, Corey Tinboom said in when she was in the concentration camp, you never know that Jesus is all you need until Jesus is all you have. I’ve never been that lonely. Thank you. Thanks the good Lord. But, but I have had times where, and a story I write about in the book where I was worried I was having a miscarriage. My husband,

Kathi Lipp (21:14)
Yeah. No.

No, I have not either. Right.

Kristen (21:41)
was the nature of his job was unreachable at the time. I’m going to the ER by myself, know, no family around, no friends that I feel like, you know, I can call it like about 10, 11 PM when that happened. So, you know, like I have had times when I’ve been lonely and, and yeah.

Kathi Lipp (21:44)
Yeah.

Yeah.

That is a depths of loneliness that not

everybody has ever experienced.

Kristen (22:03)
Yeah, and so but I also experienced the depth of Jesus’s presence in that moment, you know when That I wouldn’t have necessarily experienced if if I’d had a posse of people around me, you know,

Kathi Lipp (22:08)
Hmm. Yeah.

Yeah, absolutely. So guys,

if you are feeling that bitterness of loneliness and guys, I have been there, you I lived overseas. didn’t there was nobody who who, you know, I barely had people who spoke the same language as me because I didn’t know their language. There is loneliness there. But also, I know that when we experience that loneliness, God

Kristen (22:29)
Mm.

Kathi Lipp (22:47)
can meet us in that space and that place. And if you want to hear the stories of 40 plus other women who have been in that place and how God and others have met them, praying through loneliness, a 90 day devotional for women. Kristen, thanks so much for being on Clutter Free Academy.

Kristen (23:08)
thank you for having me. I love what you’re doing here, you and your community, and I’m grateful for you, Kathy.

Kathi Lipp (23:14)
My community is the best community. I mean, I’m not comparing, but I’m just going to say they really are the best human beings and friends. If you want to pick up this book for yourself or maybe for somebody you love, available. We’ll put the link in the show notes, but it’s available everywhere. You want to buy books. You’ve been listening to Clutter-Free Academy. I’m Kathy Lipp. Now go create the clutter free life you’ve always wanted to live.

Kristen (23:15)
You

 

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#665 – Declutter Your Spice Cabinet: From Chaos to Cooking Bliss

#659 Simple Soups for a Meaningful Lent Season

#659 Simple Soups for a Meaningful Lent Season

Are you looking for a simple way to bring more meaning to your Lenten season while also creating space for family connection? In this episode of Clutter-Free Academy, Kathi Lipp and Tonya Kubo share their love for soup and how it can become a meaningful Lenten practice for your family. 

For many, Lent represents a time to simplify, focus on what matters most, and create space for spiritual growth. Kathi and Tonya explain how incorporating a weekly soup tradition can help achieve these goals while also solving the “what’s for dinner?” dilemma. 

Listeners will discover: 

  • Why soup is the perfect one-pot meal for busy families during Lent 
  • How making soup can help reduce food waste and grocery bills 
  • The spiritual connection between slowing down for soup and creating space for what matters 
  • Six simple, delicious soup recipes that can be enjoyed throughout the Lenten season 

Whether you’re new to Lenten traditions or looking to refresh your practice, this episode offers practical ideas to help you slow down, simplify, and savor both your meals and your time together as a family. 

Click here to be notified when the next podcast episode is released!

Also, stay up to date and sign up here to receive our newsletter.

As mentioned by Kathi: Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons butter, divided

1/2 medium onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced (from recipe 1)

1/4 cup flour

2 cups low sodium chicken stock

1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg, optional

3 cups broccoli florets, chopped into bite size pieces

1 large carrot, grated or julienned

1 stalk celery, thinly sliced

2 cups half & half or milk

2 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese

 Instructions

 Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a large Dutch oven or pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook for 3-4 minutes or until softened and lightly golden. Add the garlic and sauté for another minute.

Add the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter to the pot. Once melted, sprinkle the flour over the mixture and whisk for 1-2 minutes or until the flour begins to turn golden in color.

 Gradually whisk in the half & half or milk, then pour in the chicken stock. Continue to whisk and cook, ensuring the mixture is well-blended.

 Add the broccoli, carrots, and celery. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 20-25 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.

 Stir in the grated cheddar cheese, salt, pepper, and optional nutmeg. Continue to stir over low heat until the cheese has melted and the soup is well-mixed. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed before serving.

Soup Recipes from Sabbath Soup

1. Chili Recipe

Ingredients:

  • 3/4 lb. ground beef
  • 1 cup chopped onions
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 (16 oz.) can stewed tomatoes
  • 1 (16 oz.) can kidney beans, drained
  • 1 (16 oz.) can tomato sauce
  • 3 tsp. chili powder
  • 1/2 tsp. basil
  • 1 (6 oz.) can tomato paste
  • 2 cups chicken broth

Instructions:

  1. In a large saucepan, cook ground beef, onions, and garlic until the onions are translucent and the meat is brown. Drain.
  2. Stir in un-drained tomatoes, drained kidney beans, tomato sauce, chili powder, basil, chicken broth and pepper.
  3. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes.

2. Cream of Mushroom Soup

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1/2 pound sliced fresh mushrooms (cremini recommended)
  • 1/4 cup chopped onion
  • 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon pepper
  • 1-2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce (to taste)
  • 2 cans (14-1/2 ounces each) chicken broth
  • 1 cup half-and-half cream

Directions:

  1. In a large saucepan, heat butter over medium heat. Add mushrooms and onion; cook and stir until tender.
  2. Stir in flour, salt, and pepper until blended; gradually whisk in broth. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.
  3. Reduce heat; stir in cream and Worcestershire sauce. Simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  4. Taste and adjust seasoning with additional salt, pepper, or more Worcestershire sauce to taste.

3. Five Spoon Interpretive Vegetable Soup

This is a flexible recipe for using up vegetables in your crisper.

Non-negotiable ingredients:

  • Stock (chicken, vegetable, or beef), approximately 4-6 cups
  • Oil (olive oil and butter preferred)
  • Salt and pepper

Cooking process:

  1. Cut up the aromatics — onions, garlic, and fresh herbs. If you have celery, add it at this point. Start sautéing in oil or butter until they get some color.
  2. Add heartier vegetables first — carrots, potatoes, turnips, and other root vegetables. Give them a few minutes. This is also when to add canned beans if using.
  3. Add other vegetables: squash, zucchini, tomatoes, green beans, asparagus, eggplant, and mushrooms. Let these get a little color.
  4. Can add canned vegetables (tomatoes, corn, green beans) and leftover meat at this point. Add thin vegetables like spinach, cabbage here too.
  5. Cover vegetables with broth.

Optional spice profiles:

  • Mexican: Cumin, chili powder, peppers, oregano, garlic
  • Italian: Basil, Italian herb blend, oregano
  • Indian: Tandoori spices, garam masala, curry, yogurt, coconut milk, tamarind, cardamom, cumin, coriander, cilantro, fennel, garlic, saffron

Taste and adjust as you go for the best flavor.

4. Minestrone Soup

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
  • 2 stalks celery, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 zucchini, chopped
  • 1 medium potato, peeled and chopped
  • 1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes
  • 1 can (15 ounces) kidney beans, drained and rinsed
  • 4 cups vegetable broth
  • 2 teaspoons dried basil
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/2 cup small pasta (like ditalini or orzo)
  • 2 cups chopped fresh spinach
  • 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Instructions:

  1. In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic. Cook until the vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes.
  2. Add the zucchini, potato, diced tomatoes, kidney beans, vegetable broth, basil, oregano, salt, and black pepper. Stir until everything is well combined.
  3. Bring the soup to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and let it simmer for about 15-20 minutes, or until the vegetables are soft.
  4. Meanwhile, in a separate pot, cook the pasta according to the package instructions. Drain once cooked.
  5. Add the cooked pasta and chopped spinach to the soup. Stir until the spinach has wilted and everything is well combined.
  6. Serve hot, garnished with Parmesan cheese if desired.

5. White Bean Chicken Chili

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 yellow onion, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 (14.5 oz.) cans chicken broth
  • 4 cans Ro*Tel mild diced tomatoes and green chilies
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander seed
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 pound diced cooked chicken
  • 1 (16 oz.) can cannellini beans
  • 2 ears fresh corn cut from the cob, or 1 can drained corn, or 1½ cups frozen corn kernels
  • Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

  1. In a soup pot, heat vegetable oil and sauté onion over medium heat until soft, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add in the garlic and continue to sauté for 1 additional minute.
  2. Pour chicken broth into pan. Then add the tomatoes, oregano, coriander, and cumin. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes.
  3. Add in chicken, beans, corn, and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer on low for 10 minutes.
  4. Serve with tortilla chips, lime, and avocado slices.

6. Greek Lemon Soup

Ingredients:

  • 4 cups chicken broth
  • 1/2 cup uncooked orzo or rice
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 3 eggs
  • Juice of 2 lemons (about 1/3 to 1/2 cup, depending on taste)
  • 1 cup shredded cooked chicken (optional)
  • Fresh chopped parsley or dill for garnish

Instructions:

  1. In a large pot, bring the chicken broth to a boil.
  2. Add the orzo or rice, reduce heat and simmer until tender. For orzo, this will be about 10 minutes, for rice about 18 minutes.
  3. Season with salt and pepper.
  4. While the orzo or rice is cooking, in a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs until well beaten. Continue to whisk and gradually add in the lemon juice.
  5. Once the orzo or rice is cooked, reduce the heat to low. Take a ladle full of hot broth and slowly add it to the egg-lemon mixture, whisking continuously. This process is called tempering and prevents the eggs from scrambling when added to the hot soup.
  6. Continue to slowly add another 2-3 ladles of broth into the egg-lemon mixture, making sure to keep whisking.
  7. Once the egg-lemon mixture is warmed, slowly pour it back into the soup pot, stirring the soup as you pour.
  8. Add in the shredded chicken, if using.
  9. Stir the soup over low heat for 2-3 minutes until heated through. Do not let it come to a boil.
  10. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.
  11. Ladle the soup into bowls, garnish with fresh chopped parsley or dill, and serve immediately.

Sabbath Soup: Weekly Menus and Rhythms to Make Space for a Day of Rest

Kathi Lipp gives readers an easy-to-follow process for meal planning and prep, so that they can enjoy a full day each week of real rest and refreshment.

Could you use a break from cooking (and everything else) once a week? Not only is rest vital for your mind and body, it’s good for your soul too. God designed us to enter into Sabbath rest one day per week, but as you know, meals still need to be made. Your family still needs to be fed.

Sabbath Soup includes convenient, seasonal meal plans that take the guesswork out of shopping and cooking. More than just a collection of delicious recipes—including main dishes, breads, breakfasts, desserts, salads, sides, and yes, soups—this is your guide to establishing a weekly rhythm and routine of meal planning and prep that allows you to have a true day off.

Do something good for your soul and experience the peace that comes with a full day dedicated to spending time with God, family, and friends. Savor your Sabbath as you proudly proclaim, “Soup’s on!”

Order your copy of Sabbath Soup: Weekly Menus and Rhythms to Make Space for a Day of Rest here.

Let’s stay connected

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  • Leave a note in the comment section below.
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Meet Our Guest 

 

Tonya Kubo

Tonya Kubo is the illustrious and fearless leader of Kathi Lipp’s Clutter Free Academy Facebook group and the Clutter Free for Life membership program. A professional community strategist, she believes everyone deserves to have a place online where they feel like they belong. Raised by a hoarder, Tonya knows firsthand the pain and isolation that comes from living in conditions others don’t understand. She wants better for her family and her cluttery peeps, which is why she is passionate about the compassionate slow-and-steady approach that makes Clutter Free unique. She lives in the heart of California with her husband, Brian, their two spirited daughters, and one very tolerant cat. Visit tonyakubo.com to find out more about her community work, or email her at tonya@kathilipp.org to discuss the Clutter Free Academy podcast and programs.

Tonya Kubo Picture
Transcript

Kathi Lipp (00:09) 

Well, hey friends, welcome to Clutter-Free Academy, where our goal is to help you take small daily steps to help you live with less clutter and more life. And I am here with the goddess of all things clutter-free. And I mean that in a very non-religious way. It is Tonya Kubo. Hey, Tonya. You know what? Because you contain multitudes. You contain multitudes. 

  

Tonya Kubo (00:28) 

Hey, Kathi. I like that I get a new title every time. It’s fun. 

  

Kathi Lipp (00:36) 

and that reflects in our titling of you. We’re gonna talk about one of my favorite things. We’re gonna talk about a couple of my favorite things. We’re gonna talk about lent and we’re gonna talk about soup. Well, you know, we’ll talk about food, but we’re also gonna talk about soup. And so as you know, soup is one of my favorite things. It’s also one of your favorite things. We are both soup fanatics. Can I just tell you, we don’t have a recipe for broccoli cheddar soup in 

  

Tonya Kubo (00:44) 

Okay? 

  

Okay. 

  

Mm-hmm. yes. 

  

Kathi Lipp (01:06) 

in saba soup but i made a broccoli cheddar soup last night that almost made Roger weep it was 

  

And I do have leftovers too bad you are several hours away from me. I will post the recipe I found it online. I tweaked it just ever so slightly but I think a part part of the reason that it was so good is I bought a bag of rolls from just a supermarket, but they were the Cheesecake Factory brown bread rolls 

  

Tonya Kubo (01:44) 

All of those are so good. 

  

Kathi Lipp (01:46) 

Right? And can I tell you, can I tell you what you have to look forward to in your older age? You start to become weird about things. Roger and I have become weird about butter. 

  

Tonya Kubo (01:53) 

Sure. 

  

I love 

  

how you said you start to as if I’m not already weird about things like butter. 

  

Kathi Lipp (02:06) 

Yes, this is true. As you know, I have a podcast I love called Wirecutter. And this is the New York Times and they do lots of blind taste tests and things like that. And they did the butter episode. And so this is what made us buy a butter bell. So we now have a butter bell and butter bells are a part of a life. We were already buying pretty much the right kind of unsalted butter, which is the Costco. It’s very highly rated. 

  

Tonya Kubo (02:12) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (02:34) 

lots of fat and everything. But now we are exploring all sorts of different kinds of salted butter. So the Costco New Zealand brand of salted butter is very highly rated. So we had the broccoli soup and we were a little under the weather. That’s why I made the soup. The brown bread and the New Zealand butter. And if I never have to have another meal again, it’s OK. 

  

Tonya Kubo (03:04) 

Yeah, yeah, I would die happy with that. That’s good. 

  

Kathi Lipp (03:04) 

Yeah, 

  

it’s really good. I will put the link to that broccoli soup recipe in the notes because I think other people would enjoy that and it goes along with our theme here. Now you grew up Catholic, but you are in rubbing shoulders distance of a lot of Lutherans and I grew up Lutheran and one thing that we did growing up 

  

Tonya Kubo (03:21) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (03:33) 

as a church, not necessarily my family, but as a church, is soup and lent were closely tied. Now, how was it in the Catholic tradition? 

  

Tonya Kubo (03:34) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Well, so in the Catholic tradition, you know, there would be it was more at home because I grew up in a really small town. So we didn’t have a lot of like parish wide Lenten events, but we had a lot of soup on Fridays. It was that, you know, and fish because my family’s Portuguese. So we’re all about the fish. 

  

Kathi Lipp (03:50) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah. 

  

Mmm. 

  

Yeah, 

  

yeah. So, did you understand growing up with the comp? Because I never really understood the… I just thought people liked soup, but apparently… Did you understand it growing up? 

  

Tonya Kubo (04:14) 

Eh. 

  

yeah, we had a wonderful nun who, you know, in second grade really explained Lent to us and Catechism. So, you know, understanding the idea of simplicity and kind of removing indulgence to really focus on the sacrifice that was, you know, Christ dying at the cross. 

  

Kathi Lipp (04:24) 

Okay. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah, so we’re going to give you the second grade understanding. So Lent, as far as what my religious tradition is, is about what are you going to give up so you can decide what you’re going to fast so you can decide what to feast. And so the fast was, you know, I remember every year they wanted us to give up chocolate. And I just thought, you know, diving into the deep end of the pool, right? 

  

Tonya Kubo (04:43) 

You 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (05:07) 

But a lot of things that we gave up were things like meat or sometimes it was dairy products. Like none of those are my favorites to give up. I’m not gonna lie. But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve just gone to eating more simply. like we may still have some chicken, but we’re not going to, and I’m not a hard and fast lenten person. I don’t feel like. 

  

Tonya Kubo (05:19) 

Hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (05:36) 

the more I give up the closer I am to God. But it’s for me it’s been planning simpler meals. So maybe instead of you know I love my chicken and wild rice cream of chicken and wild rice soup. That’s one of my favorites. But maybe during this time I’m going to you know our soup of the week is going to be a black bean soup. Or it’s going to be something simple like an onion soup or something. Something that doesn’t have 

  

Tonya Kubo (05:56) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (06:05) 

a lot of cost to it, doesn’t have a lot of ingredients, just trying to keep it really simple. And one of the things that we grew up being told is when we experience some physical hunger, can also, we can satisfy that with less so we can develop our spiritual hunger. And it’s just a time of 40 days to be able to concentrate. 

  

Tonya Kubo (06:28) 

Mm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (06:34) 

on the things that we would love for our lives to be more centered on. Is there something that you are trying to focus more on in 2025? 

  

Tonya Kubo (06:45) 

Well, I think for us, it’s now that, you know, I’ve got a high schooler, I’ve got an elementary schooler, the opportunities together around the table are so limited. And so I feel like, you know, I don’t want to spend an hour and a half prepping a meal and then not being able to get together around the table. Like I’d much rather something simple. 

  

like soup and then we actually can just focus on our time together. 

  

Kathi Lipp (07:16) 

Yeah, and one of the reasons I love soup is because I can make a decent size batch of it and it’s prep once, eat twice, three times. know, for your family, it might be less because there are more people. But for Roger and I, that soup is not just going to be dinner that night. It’s going to be lunch another night and then maybe enough to take to my mom’s house or to feed our neighbor or something like that. And so it does 

  

Tonya Kubo (07:28) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (07:47) 

really help us be able to focus on some of those things. It’s a one-pot meal too. That’s why I love it. Less dishes. 

  

Tonya Kubo (07:56) 

Well, it’s a one pot 

  

meal. I’ve said this before, right? It’s a great way to minimize food waste, take all the bits and stuff from the week and throw those into a pot with some broth and it almost always tastes delicious. 

  

Kathi Lipp (08:04) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah, it’s so true. And I love that because, yeah, like you said, when the vegetables are getting a little squishier, when the onions are starting to sprout, don’t throw those out, turn them into soup. When the celery’s getting a little flabby, don’t throw it away, turn it into soup. So. 

  

Tonya Kubo (08:25) 

you 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (08:36) 

Let me just give you my list of reasons. Well, we’re gonna take a quick break and we’re gonna come back and I’m gonna give you my list of reasons why I think you might want to consider a weekly soup tradition for lent. And I’m not the first to come up with this. We are not the first to talk about this. But if you can go into this season of simplicity with a focus already, and we’re also gonna share a couple of. 

  

my favorite recipes and we’ll include those in the show notes so that you’re going to be able to Really take that soup to the next level and it’s not next level of making it fancy To really be able to focus on the things that you care about. Okay, we’re gonna take a quick break come right back 

  

Okay, friends, we are back and we are talking lent and soup. Okay, so some reasons that we already love soup. One, it’s a one pot meal. Now I will say for that broccoli, there was a lot of chopping, there was a lot of shredding. So it was half a load of dishes, but it wasn’t cumbersome. And I was able to shred enough carrots, shred enough cheese that I was able to use that for other meals. Mostly, 

  

Tonya Kubo (09:40) 

Okay. 

  

Kathi Lipp (09:53) 

The the soups that we are focusing on during Lent are going to be meatless So I have some great meatless ideas of things that you are able to do I love soup because yes, you can make it once and you can eat it several times and that’s one of my As as the main cook in the house and you’re the main cook I you Brian cooks too, but you’re the main cook. Yeah 

  

Tonya Kubo (10:02) 

Hmm. 

  

Yes. 

  

Yeah 

  

Kathi Lipp (10:22) 

Any meal that will do double duty and will your family eat leftovers because lots of families won’t but mine definitely will Yeah, that’s a beautiful beautiful thing you’re using like Tonya said simple available ingredients and the thing that I love most is It gives us an opportunity to have some communal meals One of the fundraisers that we did up here in Omo Ranch 

  

Tonya Kubo (10:30) 

Yeah, mine will. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (10:51) 

was a soup night where 

  

everybody brought different soups. And I love what they did, Tonya. they took, everybody brought their own muffin tin and they put cups in the muffin tin and did different ladles of soup so you could try everybody’s soup. And then you had recipes you could take home. I love that idea. But I love also the spiritual side of this. Soup forces us to slow down. 

  

Tonya Kubo (11:01) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (11:20) 

You are not going to rush a pot of soup. And in fact, if you want to have soup on Sundays, which is a lot of people’s traditions, might I suggest you cook it on Friday so that you’re just reheating on Sunday and able to do that. Soup, you cannot rush eating soup. Soup is not something you can chow down on. It’s served hot. You have to slow down. You have to blow on it. 

  

Tonya Kubo (11:44) 

Mm-hmm 

  

Kathi Lipp (11:48) 

You have to be in the moment with it. And I think to me, soup is such a symbol of abundance that we have so much leftover from our week, that celery, that onion, that chicken, that rice, that we can create a whole nother meal out of it. Did you do the Stone Soup book when you were a kid? 

  

Tonya Kubo (11:59) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yep, yep, and we made stone soup in school. It’s so yummy. 

  

Kathi Lipp (12:18) 

Yes, 

  

I remember my contribution, because we also did stone salad, was mandarin oranges. that was super fun to be able to do that. If you’re not familiar with that, might I suggest, especially if you have younger kids, to do a reading of stone soup. And you can find that story online, but you could do that for part of your Lenten practice. 

  

Tonya Kubo (12:24) 

Mmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (12:45) 

I just think soup helps us focus on gratitude. Look at all the abundance I have that I can make something out of this. And one of my favorite type of TikTokers, Instagrammers, YouTubers are the people who are using food banks to be able to create their meals, right? And 

  

Tonya Kubo (12:49) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (13:12) 

What I love about these there, and I’ll put a link into one of my favorite ones, is their creativity. Like they don’t go to the food bank saying I need this, this, this, this. They receive from the food bank and they create, and I think soup is one of the meals that you could absolutely do that with. And if you’re looking to have a little bit more focus, many of you have purchased Sabbath soup. 

  

Tonya Kubo (13:24) 

Right. 

  

Kathi Lipp (13:39) 

Go in there and look at the prayers. I will add a couple into our show notes here so that you can also have those. They were written by one of mine and Tonya’s friends, Bethany Howard. She did a beautiful job with a lot of these prayers. But Tonya, I wanna talk about what are some of your favorite soup memories. We may not have the recipes here, but what are some of the soups that you grew up on for Lent? And then I’m also going to suggest 

  

Tonya Kubo (14:02) 

Yeah. 

  

Kathi Lipp (14:09) 

Some soup recipes and we’re going to give you links to those in the show notes 

  

Tonya Kubo (14:14) 

Yeah, so in my family during Lent, the two main soups would be a watercress soup and watercress soup. Yeah, well, and so part of why the watercress soup is such a memory is we would have to go harvest our own watercress because at that time you couldn’t buy it at the store. You can get it at stores now. 

  

Kathi Lipp (14:21) 

A watercress soup, I have never heard of that. So tell me more about that. 

  

my goodness. 

  

Tonya Kubo (14:39) 

But 

  

Kathi Lipp (14:39) 

Yeah. 

  

Tonya Kubo (14:40) 

so we would have to, I don’t know where it was, but we would go to this place. My grandfather would park on the side of the road and my mom and I would walk and it felt like forever. But like try to jump over rattlesnake holes and all of these things. Cause it grows as it sounds by water. And then so having to pick it up, we had to avoid the stinging nettle because stinging nettle also grew near it. So we would harvest the watercress and we would make watercress soup. And it’s usually a mix of 

  

Kathi Lipp (14:57) 

Yes? 

  

Uh-oh. 

  

Tonya Kubo (15:08) 

It’s watercress, sometimes onion, potatoes, and then broth, but it’s very brothy. It’s not like a thick potato soup. And then you just sip it, or if you wanna use a spoon. My grandfather liked everything cut bigger. He liked it to be chunkier. I actually blend it all together, and I like it to be smooth. 

  

Kathi Lipp (15:13) 

Okay. Uh-huh. 

  

Mm-hmm. Okay. 

  

So you’re using the present tense. Do you still make it? okay. I’m gonna have to try some. 

  

Tonya Kubo (15:34) 

yeah, I love it. If I can see the grocery 

  

store, I’m not going and harvesting my own too old for that. But if I can find it in the grocery store, cause it just takes three bunches and it’s a bitter green, but with 

  

Kathi Lipp (15:39) 

No, no, yeah. 

  

So just gonna say, 

  

tell me what watercress is because I’ve heard of watercress sandwiches, but I’ve always thought of those as like you cut the crusts off because they’re fancy. 

  

Tonya Kubo (15:56) 

Yeah, no, it’s a little bit bitter, but it’s so good with, I like mine. Like I said, potato, onion, good chicken broth is what I use. And then I like it with a lot of black pepper. So delicious. Yeah, it makes me very happy. I’m like, I’m going to go make that. 

  

Kathi Lipp (16:10) 

okay. you know what I got? 

  

You know what I got for Christmas this year that I am absolutely loving and is upping our pepper consumption is a battery operated pepper grinder. 

  

Tonya Kubo (16:19) 

Hmm. 

  

Ugh. 

  

One day, one day. So it’s that soup and then kale soup. I love kale soup. 

  

Kathi Lipp (16:28) 

Yes. Yes. 

  

Okay, kale 

  

soup I have had before and it was delicious. okay, do you have recipes you could share with us? Okay. 

  

Tonya Kubo (16:40) 

I do. Yeah. have a great, 

  

it’s funny as my watercress, my watercress soup recipe was like from Women’s World Magazine. Victoria Beckham, I think is who it was, but it was like, she swore by like watercress soup to get ready for award shows. And I’m just like, well, I just like to eat watercress soup. So I use that recipe still. And then I’ve got some great kale recipes. 

  

Kathi Lipp (16:59) 

interesting, okay. 

  

Yeah, that just sounds good. 

  

Okay, I can’t wait. Yeah, the kale soup I have is with bacon. So maybe that’s not the same kind of emphasis. Okay, so I’m going to give you guys a couple of my recipes. So I think chili is a great lenten soup because you can do it with beans, you don’t have to do it with any kind of meat or you can use up leftover meat. I’ve even done chili with ham, which sounds different. 

  

Tonya Kubo (17:23) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (17:38) 

But it’s really good, it’s a lot of, you’re using a lot of onions and beans and tomatoes, things that you have cans of. You can almost do the entire soup out of cans and there’s nothing fancy that anything has to go with that. I will say the cream of mushroom soup that I made last week, maybe my favorite soup I’ve had in the past six months. It was, 

  

Tonya Kubo (17:52) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (18:08) 

I don’t know that broccoli was pretty good too, but the cream of mushroom soup was a killer. has a lot, I like soups with a lot of onion in them. So that makes me super, super happy. And this is, this to me is the ultimate lenten soup. I call it the five spoon interpretive vegetable soup. So it’s basically cleaning out your crisper drawer and 

  

Tonya Kubo (18:16) 

Mmm. 

  

Mmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (18:35) 

You know, there’s kind of an order that things go into it with. You you start with the potatoes because you want to get those softer and you end up with things like kale or, you know, spinach because that’s the thing that needs the least amount of cooking. And then you keep tasting it to say, does it need more salt? Does it need more pepper? Could it use more garlic? That kind of thing. But that’s one of my favorites. There’s gosh, there are so many. 

  

Tonya Kubo (18:44) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Do you want to hear 

  

Brian’s favorite from Sabbath Soup? The minestrone. 

  

Kathi Lipp (19:06) 

Yes, yes I 

  

was just gonna talk about the minestrone. he likes it. I’m so glad Yeah, you guys it’s so simple, but it’s so good and 

  

Tonya Kubo (19:17) 

He loves minestrone 

  

soup in general, but yeah, he was, that’s his favorite out of the whole cookbook. 

  

Kathi Lipp (19:23) 

my goodness, I’m so glad. I love that people have favorites. Okay, I’m going to give you one more because I want to make sure that we have six soups here so we can have it for the six weeks. I’m trying to think of like what would, you know, I’m trying to think of our meatless one. You could do the white bean. Now it’s chicken chili, but you don’t have to have the chicken in it. If you want to go meatless, the white bean chili. 

  

Tonya Kubo (19:31) 

Hmm 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (19:48) 

Super simple super easy. You’ve got some sauteed onions in there that they’re just gonna put it over the top It’s gonna make you super happy. You could also do the lasagna soup without any Meat with it and yeah, let’s be honest sausage makes soup taste better. I’m not gonna lie, but 

  

Tonya Kubo (20:08) 

Yeah, 

  

my traditional kale soup recipe uses sausage because it’s delicious. What about the lemon soup in there, the Greek lemon soup? 

  

Kathi Lipp (20:12) 

Yes. Okay. 

  

Yeah, the Greek 

  

lemon soup. now that sometimes you can have that with chicken or without, but that’s my son’s favorite soup. And so, yeah, and I, so everything I’m talking about, I suggest a lot of pepper with, I’m not gonna lie. I like a peppery oniony soup. It’s gonna make it all taste better. So we’re not saying you go without taste, but maybe just approach the meal differently. What do I already have? 

  

Tonya Kubo (20:25) 

So good 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (20:46) 

What can I give flavor with spices instead of meat or high, you know, expensive ingredients? What can I do with things that I already have on hand to keep it simple? What does not require a lot of fussy cooking? 

  

Tonya Kubo (20:52) 

Mmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (21:08) 

Like, 

  

you I made that broccoli soup. It probably took me 25 minutes to put together, but none of it was fussy. It was a little bit more labor intensive because I used fresh broccoli, because I used a hunk of cheese instead of pre-grated cheese. But I also think that those two decisions gave it more flavor. So, you know, I’m willing to make those trade-offs because 

  

Tonya Kubo (21:25) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (21:36) 

the better the ingredients, the better the soup. But you don’t have to use expensive ingredients, just the best ingredients you have available. So we’re gonna put those six recipes in the show notes so that you don’t have to buy Sabbath soup in order to do all this. But guys, I’m just gonna say, what can you do to make your life simpler during Lent so that you can focus on the things that you 

  

Tonya Kubo (21:45) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (22:06) 

Focus on the attributes of God. Focus on the things that God wants for you during Lent to live a simpler life, to live a plainer life, but one that is not boring. It’s not flavorless, but you’re just creating space. And that’s what I want for you. And if you’re like, I don’t even know when Lent is, Kathi. I don’t even know what we’re talking about here. So it’s March 5th through April 17th. 

  

Tonya Kubo (22:21) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (22:35) 

So it’s coming early this year. Like it’s right around the corner, but you guys were gonna do this together. I’ll be posting some of those recipes. Tonya, thanks for talking about this with me. food is one of our favorites, not gonna lie. And friends, thank you for being here. You’ve been listening to Clutter-Free Academy. I’m Kathi Lipp. Now go create the clutter-free life you’ve always wanted to live. 

  

Tonya Kubo (22:37) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Thanks for having me. I love to talk about food anytime. 

 

 

More Posts 

#665 – Declutter Your Spice Cabinet: From Chaos to Cooking Bliss

#658 The All or Nothing Trap: Why Good Enough is Good Enough

#658 The All or Nothing Trap: Why Good Enough is Good Enough

In this episode of Clutter Free Academy, host Kathi Lipp is joined by her clutter buddy, Tonya Kubo, to tackle the all-too-common mindset of “if you can’t do it right, don’t do it at all”. Together, they explore how this thinking impacts our homes and hearts, and share practical tips on shifting to a more grace-filled, progress-focused approach. Listeners will learn about the power of small steps in creating a tidier home and how to redefine the standards of a clutter-free living space. Tune in to hear a bit about Kathi’s strategy for managing clutter and hear about the upcoming Clutter Free Bible Study which offers insights on decluttering beyond just your physical space. 

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Sabbath Soup: Weekly Menus and Rhythms to Make Space for a Day of Rest

Kathi Lipp gives readers an easy-to-follow process for meal planning and prep, so that they can enjoy a full day each week of real rest and refreshment.

Could you use a break from cooking (and everything else) once a week? Not only is rest vital for your mind and body, it’s good for your soul too. God designed us to enter into Sabbath rest one day per week, but as you know, meals still need to be made. Your family still needs to be fed.

Sabbath Soup includes convenient, seasonal meal plans that take the guesswork out of shopping and cooking. More than just a collection of delicious recipes—including main dishes, breads, breakfasts, desserts, salads, sides, and yes, soups—this is your guide to establishing a weekly rhythm and routine of meal planning and prep that allows you to have a true day off.

Do something good for your soul and experience the peace that comes with a full day dedicated to spending time with God, family, and friends. Savor your Sabbath as you proudly proclaim, “Soup’s on!”

Order your copy of Sabbath Soup: Weekly Menus and Rhythms to Make Space for a Day of Rest here.

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Meet Our Guest 

 

Tonya Kubo

Tonya Kubo is the illustrious and fearless leader of Kathi Lipp’s Clutter Free Academy Facebook group and the Clutter Free for Life membership program. A professional community strategist, she believes everyone deserves to have a place online where they feel like they belong. Raised by a hoarder, Tonya knows firsthand the pain and isolation that comes from living in conditions others don’t understand. She wants better for her family and her cluttery peeps, which is why she is passionate about the compassionate slow-and-steady approach that makes Clutter Free unique. She lives in the heart of California with her husband, Brian, their two spirited daughters, and one very tolerant cat. Visit tonyakubo.com to find out more about her community work, or email her at tonya@kathilipp.org to discuss the Clutter Free Academy podcast and programs.

Tonya Kubo Picture
Transcript

Kathi Lipp (00:11) 

Well, hey friends, welcome to Clutter Free Academy, where our goal is to help you take small, doable steps to live every day with less clutter and more life. And I am here with my friend, my clutter buddy. It is Tonya Kubo. Hey, Tonya. 

  

Tonya Kubo (00:26) 

Hey Kathi! 

  

Kathi Lipp (00:28) 

So I want to talk about something that I know that has been brought up a lot recently, especially in our paid group, Clutterfree for Life. And I know it’s something I’ve struggled with. You’ve talked about struggling with it. is. It makes me angry almost. If it’s the if you can’t do something right, don’t do something at all. If you, you know, OK. 

  

Tonya Kubo (00:47) 

Hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (00:56) 

I will say, you know, we say around here every time, you can have it half donkeyed or you can do it full donkeyed. I’m trying to say it because I know we have a lot of people listening with little ears on. you know, around here, we’re full donkey people. so, but I will say, okay, can I call out a relative here just for a second? 

  

Tonya Kubo (01:13) 

Thank you. 

  

Kathi Lipp (01:24) 

So I was helping somebody at their house recently and I had spent, I don’t know, two hours working on cleaning and vacuuming and doing all the things, right? And then I get done and the sentence was, thank you, but there are still streaks on the window. 

  

Tonya Kubo (01:36) 

Yeah. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (01:52) 

And like, okay. And my goodness, it was so defeating. I’m not going to lie. I’m still a little bitter about it. I am recovering though. And you know, it’s, it, it brings up so much from my childhood, not necessarily from my parents, but from teachers, from neighbors who were like, well, if you can’t do it right, why do it at all? And I have come to learn. 

  

Tonya Kubo (01:57) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Right. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Right. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (02:22) 

that that was probably the motto in every house that a cluttery person has ever grown up in. How did this manifest for you as you were a child going into adulthood? Is that something that you heard and who did you hear from? 

  

Tonya Kubo (02:42) 

No, so like never really heard those words specifically at home. I mean, I think very much if you’re a child of the eighties, that’s just what you were taught, right? Child of the seventies, child of the eighties. It’s like, you can’t do something right. Don’t do something at all. I know people who grew up in like evangelical circles. There was a lot of like, you’re supposed to do everything like you’re doing it for Jesus. Would you do it like that for Jesus? No. Or if you didn’t like that for Jesus, like really? 

  

Kathi Lipp (02:46) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah. Mm-hmm. 

  

Right, yes. 

  

Tonya Kubo (03:09) 

What do you think? That’s disrespectful to Jesus. But at home, again, I grew up with a hoarder who had a very interesting perspective on how other people should live. So I remember having to clean the house, like I’d be home alone, I’m supposed to clean the whole house, cleaning the whole house, and then being told that nothing I did counted because I had one fork in the sink. 

  

Kathi Lipp (03:12) 

Yeah. 

  

Hmm. 

  

Mmm. Ugh. 

  

Tonya Kubo (03:38) 

Right? It’s like the one fork in the sink negated the seven hours I had spent as, you know, a 12 year old cleaning an entire house on my own. And it was just always like, and then I remember, you know, going through high school, like, why should I do anything? 

  

Kathi Lipp (03:53) 

Absolutely. 

  

Tonya Kubo (03:55) 

Like why do anything 

  

if my best will never be good enough? And I remember my cousin who I’m very close with and we grew up, she would say, okay, here’s the deal, Tonya. We’re just gonna put the wind fork in the sink and we’re just gonna leave it there. And we will know between the two of us that when she comes home, she’s gonna complain about the fork in the sink, but see, we put it there on purpose. But it never mattered to me. 

  

Kathi Lipp (04:14) 

Mmm. That’s. 

  

That’s so hard as a kid. It really is. So the thing I want to think about here is one, how do we not do that to people we are raising? We still want, I don’t know, you know, I’ve grown up my whole life thinking we want excellence, but excellence, you know, yeah. 

  

Tonya Kubo (04:21) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Well, this all goes back to like my mantra, 

  

which I’ve said here on the podcast several times, which is if I don’t have to do it, I do not judge how it gets done. Because you know what the thing is, like, you know, my mom grew up in a household where there was one way that you folded things and that was the right way and everything else was wrong. So my mom grew up in an environment where if you didn’t fold a towel where it was perfect right angles and it had to be folded in thirds, 

  

Kathi Lipp (04:47) 

It’s so true, right? 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Tonya Kubo (05:08) 

The laundry basket got dumped out and you had to refold the entire load, not just the towels that were folded incorrectly, the entire load over and over and over again until every single towel was folded perfectly. So can I blame her for how she raised me? No, I can’t. 

  

Kathi Lipp (05:16) 

Ugh. 

  

I just gonna say, 

  

we need to give a little bit of a break to our parents who hopefully did better than their parents and hopefully we are doing better than them and our kids will do better than us. May it be so. 

  

Tonya Kubo (05:29) 

Right. 

  

Exactly! 

  

Mm-hmm. And I remember, 

  

yes, and I remember one time was when Brian and I were married and I was folding towels and my mom was over and she starts like in on me, right? About like, well, if your grandmother was alive, I’m like, well, number one, she’s not. And number two, why would you, I would tell her the same thing I’m gonna tell you. Why do you care you’re not folding my towels? They’re not going in your cabinet. It doesn’t matter. But I have carried that through, which means that Lily lives out of laundry baskets. I hate it with every fiber of my being, but you know what? 

  

Kathi Lipp (05:48) 

Right? 

  

Right, it’s not… Yeah. Yeah. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Tonya Kubo (06:04) 

She’s not asking me to find her clothes in the morning to get ready. It doesn’t affect me. So I just move on. 

  

Kathi Lipp (06:07) 

Right. 

  

Yes, it’s so true. And you know, I’ve had to fold my towels two different ways in my adulthood because in one cabinet they fit one way and in another cabinet they fit a different way. And now I live in a space where it doesn’t matter. So anybody can fold the towels. It’s okay. If you want to come fold towels at my house, I will give you the address that Google will send you to here. Yeah. So. 

  

Tonya Kubo (06:22) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah, exactly. You are happy to full-tell your way at my house, 

  

I’ll let you. 

  

Kathi Lipp (06:40) 

Exactly. 

  

So here’s something that’s so interesting though. Like what I finally had to figure out is if I wanted to live in a house that met my own very mediocre standards, I couldn’t wait till I had time so I could do everything at once. Nothing in my house will all be the right right quote unquote way at the same time. 

  

Tonya Kubo (06:54) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. Yeah. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (07:10) 

Because even if I have people coming over, that probably means that my bedroom is the receiving end of some nonsense. I’m just gonna make do. And so some of the things I’ve learned and some of the things that have really helped me in getting the kind of house that I want are doing things in tiny sections. So. 

  

Tonya Kubo (07:19) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (07:35) 

Used to wait until I could wipe the whole counter down so I’d spray the whole counter and I’d wait five minutes and then I’d wipe it all down and How often do I have time for that? Not never but now I’ll just do hey I can do the counter above the sink. So I’m gonna squirt that down I’m gonna let wait for a couple of minutes and then I’m gonna wipe all that down and Does that mean it’s how I want it to be? No, but does that mean I am closer to how I want it to be? 

  

Tonya Kubo (07:51) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (08:03) 

And when I come to prepare lunch later on there’s going to be a clean place for me to be able to do it huzzah You know, i’ve talked about this plenty of times on the On the podcast that my oatmeal now cooks for two minutes and 33 seconds I don’t know why the time has changed it has changed that is plenty of time for me to get at least half the dishes unloaded And that makes me so happy and I know you you’ve 

  

Tonya Kubo (08:09) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (08:32) 

mentioned that you thought it took like 15 minutes 20 minutes to unload a dishwasher and When you heard me talking about oatmeal, you’re like, I can get that done in about four or five minutes. Yeah, you actually can Unless you have a much bigger dishwasher than I do but doing things in sections and by the way People will tell me all the time. Well, then how does the next person know whether those are clean or dirty? I’m like, well I tell them or they ask 

  

Tonya Kubo (08:43) 

Yup. 

  

Kathi Lipp (09:01) 

Like we have communication in our house, so it’s okay. And you know, he knows I am a serial half dishwasher emptier and it’s okay. That’s totally fine. But I have struck upon this, this idea for me, and this might be helpful to somebody else out there that I am working on my house two by two by one at a time. And what I mean by that is the space 

  

Tonya Kubo (09:02) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (09:30) 

is not going to be bigger than two feet by two feet and it’s not going to be deeper than one foot. And that’s a drawer or half of a drawer or half of the kitchen table or half of the living room table or half of a shelf in the garage. And because my brain tells me I’m going to wait until I have three hours on Saturday to clean out the garage. 

  

Tonya Kubo (09:36) 

Okay. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (09:59) 

There is no three hours in my entire life where I want to spend it cleaning out the garage. But 30 minutes at a time, 20 minutes at a time, most of the time it’s just 15 minutes at a time, these little things. Now, there are things that you should be excellent at. If you are giving your child medication, be the best medication giver you can be. Do everything you can to make sure that that goes well. 

  

Tonya Kubo (10:23) 

Yes. 

  

Kathi Lipp (10:27) 

When it comes to wiping down your counter, I’m okay if you get a D plus at that. And I’m okay if I get a D plus at that as well. And so, you know, I feel like one of the things that we have to do is retrain our brains against this all or nothing thinking. Tonya, we’re gonna take a little break and we’re gonna talk about an opportunity that’s coming up. And this is gonna be an opportunity for you to get a D plus in decluttering. 

  

Tonya Kubo (10:28) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (10:58) 

We’re going to practice getting rid of all or nothing thinking. We’re going to take a break and we’ll be right back. 

  

Okay, we are back and we are going to practice our eliminating our all or nothing thinking. And if you listened to the podcast last week, you heard us talking about the clutter free Bible study, what Jesus has to say about your stuff. And lots of times people want to do the Bible study, but they’re like, I don’t have the time. I, I, you know, I don’t want to show up less than for the Bible study. 

  

Tonya Kubo (11:33) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (11:34) 

I don’t know that I have time to do the homework. so Tonya you have three levels of Bible study participate, which I love by the way, because there I think I told you I did Beth Moore’s Breaking Free probably 

  

Tonya Kubo (11:41) 

I do? 

  

yes, you and half the nation. Including me. 

  

Kathi Lipp (11:54) 

Right, like I probably did it, yeah, 10 times. I still have 

  

the workbook because I’ve gone back and looked at it. But there were times where I was leading the study and there were times where I was just barely making it there in my pajama bottoms. And you know what the beautiful thing was? The pajama bottoms times, I had a leader who every time just said, I’m so happy to see your face. 

  

Tonya Kubo (12:06) 

you 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (12:23) 

You know, it wasn’t I could never do bsf. I know that people love bsf and they are transformed people but the the kind of study where if you don’t do your homework basically I I think the premise is you’re not allowed to talk unless you’ve done all your homework and You know, hey that works for a lot of people. That is not my jam 

  

Tonya Kubo (12:27) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (12:47) 

And so this is leaning more towards my benevolent leader in Beth Moore’s Breaking Free, how Tonya runs the Bible study. So can you tell us a little bit about the Bible study and your three ways that you can participate? 

  

Tonya Kubo (13:00) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

So the Clutter Free Bible study is It’s a series of videos. So you watch a video We have a downloadable workbook that you can print or you can fill it online. Whatever makes you happy So you watch a video you have your workbook reflection and then once a week we gather together in the Facebook group we do a Facebook live and We have our discussion so and that 

  

for some of you, you’re a Beth Moore study person, that’s easy peasy, right? And if you’re not a Beth Moore study person, that already feels like a lot. So the small, medium, and large tiers that I have come up with is the small version is you know what, this is important, and yet I do not have time for one more thing in my life. So what I will do is I will mark the calendar for the weekly live discussions and I will show up to those. 

  

Kathi Lipp (13:32) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Tonya Kubo (13:56) 

I’m 

  

just gonna show up, I’m gonna listen. you know, if Tonya asks a question that I feel like I can respond to, sure, I’ll answer that question, that’s fine. But I’m just gonna show up and I’m just gonna pay attention to the conversation. Medium is I own the study, so I either have bought it fresh or I bought it years ago and I’m pulling it out. I’m watching the e-course, so I’m watching the videos, I’m looking at the workbook, fill out the questions, don’t fill out the questions, totally up to you, right? But that is medium. 

  

I’m watching the videos, I’m at least reading through the workbook questions, and maybe even digging out my Bible app to look at what scripture says to make sure that what Kathi says the scripture says is actually what my Bible says the scripture says. That’s very important to some people, by the way. And then large is I’m gonna do all of that, right? So I’m gonna watch the videos, work on the workbook, I’m gonna participate in the live discussion, and I’m gonna pull out my… 

  

Kathi Lipp (14:27) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Hahaha 

  

Okay. 

  

Tonya Kubo (14:54) 

handy-dandy copy of Clutter Free and I’m gonna follow the reading plan, right? Because the Clutter Free book is a separate purchase from the Bible study, but some people love to go through the book in conjunction with the Bible study and that is going all out. That is whole donkey, as you like to describe it. That is going whole donkey and I think every year maybe about 

  

Kathi Lipp (15:12) 

Right. 

  

Yeah. 

  

Tonya Kubo (15:21) 

15 % of our study participants do the whole thing. A lot of people will start in one level and life happens as we get closer to Easter and they drop down a level. But by being able to pick whether you’re going small, medium, and large, it completely eliminates the pass or fail that most of us tend to put ourselves under. 

  

Kathi Lipp (15:29) 

Right. 

  

Yes. 

  

You know, I think about it, it’s kind of like exercise for me because I get down on myself so much for missing exercise. But, know, really, if I’m showing up once a week, that’s more than I was showing up. That was once a week more than I was showing up a year ago. And we’re looking for trajectory, not perfection. And yeah, we want. And so if you pick up a couple of things during this Bible study, 

  

Tonya Kubo (16:02) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Exactly. 

  

Kathi Lipp (16:13) 

That could change your life. It absolutely could. Okay, tell us a little bit about the weekly schedule just so people know what they’re getting into. 

  

Tonya Kubo (16:14) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yeah, 

  

so we’re gonna kick off February 28th. And that’s where I just, I’ll explain the small medium and large plan. I will answer any questions, but I’ll kind of talk about how we approach it, how it’s very easy and gentle. And that’s also where I explain to people, because a lot of people will enter into the Bible study assuming that their house is gonna be spick and span spotless by the end of it. I explained that the Bible study is not the kind of, 

  

decluttering process where you’re gonna see it play out in your house. It’s really about decluttering your heart and your emotions around stuff. Then we, it’s a six week discussion. So that goes from March 7th to April 11th. So you watch the videos, you do the workbook, then we come together and discuss like I mentioned. And then on Good Friday, which is April 18th, we will get together for a celebration. 

  

in advance of Easter and then on April 20th you get to have Easter with your family but you’re all done with the Bible study before Easter begins which I think is really important because we believe in holidays and rest over here in Clutter Free Academy and even when we lead a Bible study we want to build in periods of rest. 

  

Kathi Lipp (17:24) 

Guess. 

  

Yes. 

  

Absolutely. We love some good rest around here because we talked about guilt in our last podcast and the guilt keeps us from resting and until we have no choice but to rest. And that’s not how I want you to earn your rest friends. It’s really not. Okay. So what are people going to learn in this Bible study? 

  

Tonya Kubo (17:46) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

No. 

  

Yeah, so like I said, it’s not the kind of Bible study where you’re gonna clear out spaces in your home, but it digs deep into the heart of why you keep things, what the Bible says it means to be a good steward. Because again, so often in Clutter Free Academy, we assume being a good steward means we keep everything we’ve ever bought that could potentially be useful to somebody somewhere, even if not this century. And then we also kind of, 

  

Kathi Lipp (18:23) 

Right. 

  

Tonya Kubo (18:27) 

address the perspective of building new habits. Like one exercise that is a favorite that is part of the Bible study is going to a store like Target or Walmart, whatever you have in your area, and going into the store, walking around the store, and walking out without buying a single thing. Not because it makes you holier than anybody else to do that, but to prove to yourself that walking into a store does not obligate you to buy stuff. 

  

Kathi Lipp (18:54) 

Yes, it’s so true, right? 

  

Tonya Kubo (18:57) 

And 

  

people really believe that they can’t do it. And then they’re so proud of themselves when they can. you know, every year, people have some amazing experiences and their perspective shifts in incredible ways. And we have people who’ve been doing this every year with us since 2016. Grace Church, who’s been on the podcast before, she is the community manager over in our paid membership program, Clutter Free for Life. She joined. 

  

Kathi Lipp (19:00) 

Yeah. 

  

Mmm. 

  

Yeah. 

  

Tonya Kubo (19:25) 

  1. Like that’s how I first met her was when she did the initial Bible study and it was about three years in. So her third or fourth round with the Bible study where her big aha was that clutter was a boundary issue and that she had come so far in her life in asserting and maintaining strong healthy boundaries with people but she had no boundaries when it came to stuff.

  

Kathi Lipp (19:39) 

Mmm. 

  

Interesting. 

  

Tonya Kubo (19:53) 

And so, and she wrote this beautiful thing, which I need to pull out of the archives because we have it still, about how once she was able to make that association, the clutter shows that I don’t have boundaries around stuff. She was able to draw a really strong boundary about what could come into the house. And by having a strong boundary of what it was allowed in, that automatically reduced the amount of time and energy she had to spend in decluttering. 

  

Because if she could stop it at the front door, she never had to worry about when to get rid of it. 

  

Kathi Lipp (20:27) 

Yeah. it’s so interesting. Isn’t it interesting the folklore we have built up around our stuff and about keeping stuff. And I’m going to hurt Amazon’s feelings if I return this item. And, you know, it’s just all these things. It was very interesting to me, you know, because I’m I’m an over-politer and I don’t want to bother the person who’s waiting on us on the table and stuff like that. 

  

Tonya Kubo (20:34) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (20:55) 

And I just saw a TikTok recently where somebody said, you’ve got a normal request and you ask politely, you are doing better than 98 % of the people who come in. And it’s like, so me asking for more ranch or whatever it is, right? You’re not going to go back into the back kitchen and say, can you believe this woman? Can you? 

  

Tonya Kubo (21:05) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Yup. 

  

Right. 

  

Right? 

  

Kathi Lipp (21:23) 

And me returning things to an online retailer, that’s part of doing business. I am not offending somebody by doing that. But there is such folklore. If I go into a store, I need to buy something. Or if I use the bathroom, I need to buy something. You know what? I think I’ve paid for my bathroom trip about 1,000 times over. I think we’re good. 

  

Tonya Kubo (21:30) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. Yep. 

  

Right. 

  

Kathi Lipp (21:50) 

I’m you know, you said you’re not going to get rid of clutter, but we can see some of our members creating new habits. And so so tell me a little bit about that. What have you seen in the past in the Bible study? 

  

Tonya Kubo (22:00) 

yeah! 

  

Yeah, so new habits. So a lot of the habits that our members have created, so like, you know, using Grace as an example is stopping clutter at the front door, whatever that looks like. So that could be, you know, at work, somebody says, hey, do you want to take this? No, I’m good. Right? Because if I don’t take it here, right, because once it goes into my car, now it’s my job to figure out what to do with it. 

  

Kathi Lipp (22:17) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mmm, right. 

  

Yeah, 

  

it’s so true. 

  

Tonya Kubo (22:29) 

You know, 

  

for me, it was during the first Bible study that I started going through my mail over the recycling bin rather than bringing it into the house. So the only stuff that comes into the house is stuff I actually need or have to take action on. But a lot of folks have experienced complete shifts in their habits around shopping. So for some people, they broke the habit and Lent is such a great time for breaking habits that don’t actually benefit you. 

  

Kathi Lipp (22:37) 

Yeah. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Tonya Kubo (22:57) 

They broke their habit of automatically stopping at the grocery store or stopping at any store after work or shopping out of boredom. A lot of people recognize that they go, that Target, Walmart, those kind of super stores are an emotional coping mechanism. It’s where they go when they’re lonely. It’s where they go when they’re bored and they just kind of walk around the store and they tell themselves, well, it’s just free, right? Like it would cost me money to go to the movies. It would cost me money to take a friend out to lunch. 

  

Kathi Lipp (23:24) 

Hmm. 

  

Tonya Kubo (23:26) 

I go to Target and it’s free, but then they wouldn’t think about all the things that they would buy as part of their Target habit. We talk a lot about the dollar spot, right? Or the bargain bins at stores. well, it’s totally fine that I go to Target every single week. I know I’m picking on Target, but that’s just because that’s what we have where I live. But it’s fine that I go there because I only get stuff that’s at the dollar spot. Right, but five things from the dollar spot. 

  

Kathi Lipp (23:31) 

Right. 

  

Yeah. 

  

Right. 

  

Tonya Kubo (23:53) 

only cost you five dollars, but it takes up the space of five things. And it’s five things that at some point you’re going to have to get rid of. And did you need it to begin with? 

  

Kathi Lipp (24:03) 

And Tonya, the other thing I’m gonna say is stores are not dumb. They know that your house feels chaotic and their house feels bright and organized and it makes sense. And those mannequins give you ideas of how you could use those things. Those displays give you… 

  

Tonya Kubo (24:10) 

Mm-mm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (24:31) 

And 

  

if I just had this thing, then my life, I know nobody is saying this to themselves, but your amygdala is saying this to yourself. If only I had those plates, then the rest of my kitchen would come together. If only I had that mail organizer, I would never have clutter again. And so the displays, the advertisements are promising a life that feels like an escape from your house. 

  

Tonya Kubo (24:46) 

Mm-hmm. 

  

Mm-hmm. 

  

Kathi Lipp (25:01) 

And what we want your house to be is to be that sanctuary that doesn’t mean you feel like you have to leave it all the time to get that peace. That’s what we want for you. Okay, guys, we are going to have all the information on how to join the Bible study in the show notes, all the links. Mark your calendars for February 28th for the kickoff. 

  

Tonya Kubo (25:09) 

Exactly. 

  

Kathi Lipp (25:27) 

You can invite some friends if you know that they also struggle with some of these things. It is so much more fun to do it together. If you don’t have a friend that you can invite, then you’re gonna make friends. That’s what we want you to do. We’re gonna make friends who understand your cluttering language. Tonya, this has been great. Thanks so much for being with us today and for leading this. I know how passionate you are about. 

  

Tonya Kubo (25:50) 

Yes, and I hope that everybody listening will join us because it really is a good time. It really is. 

  

Kathi Lipp (25:55) 

Yeah, it really is. And friends, you have been listening to Clutter-Free Academy. I’m Kathi Lipp. Now go create the clutter free life you’ve always wanted to live. 

 

 

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