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Clean Design: Wellness for your Lifestyle
Designer Robin Wilson shares tips and tricks to detoxify and beautify your interior spaces and to help you create a more stylish and healthy home. Author Robin Wilson, plagued by allergies and asthma since infancy, has become an expert in Clean Design--creating allergen-reduced home environments that comfort and protect families. Using Wilson's four principles of design--sustainable, reusable, recyclable, and nontoxic--every room in the home, from attic to basement and entryway to bedroom, can look sensational and stylish while reducing ''your wheezing and sneezing.'' Clean Design leads to amazing fewer allergy symptoms and asthma attacks, easier breathing, and better overall health. Whether building a new home, renovating, or simply updating the design of their current home, Wilson offers suggestions for the best eco-friendly, healthy, nontoxic furniture, wall and floor coverings, and window treatments to dramatically improve indoor air quality and reduce household exposure to dust, pet dander, pollen, mold, dust mites, smoke, household chemicals, airborne toxins, and other allergy and asthma triggers. By making eco-friendly design choices, you will not only protect yourself and your loved ones, but also contribute to the health and sustainability of our planet at the same time. Using traditional solutions, new methods, and some of her grandmother's secrets, Wilson empowers you to incorporate Clean Design into your home, influencing your lifestyle, increasing your family's wellness, and proving that ''eco-friendly can be beautiful!''
- GenresNonfiction
192 pages, Paperback
First published April 7, 2015
5 people are currently reading
382 people want to read
About the author
Robin Wilson
89 books9 followersRobin Wilson (born September 26, 1969) is an expert in the Clean Design, wellness and sustainability advocate. She is the founder of Robin Wilson Home, an interior design firm based in New York City – and she is chief creative officer of the licensing division of her eponymous brand which has generated over $80 million in branded revenue from textiles and cabinetry since 2010.
Wilson’s design work emphasizes the integration of eco-friendly and sustainable design with a focus on social good. Her clients have included Panasonic USA, the White House Fellows office, and the Lake Nona Laureate Park development. In addition, she has worked on showhouses, and for both residential, developer and commercial clients.
She is author of 'Clean Design: Wellness for Your Lifestyle' (Greenleaf, 2015). Her first book was 'Kennedy Green House: Designing an Eco-Friendly Home from the Foundation to the Furniture' (Greenleaf, 2010), with the foreword written by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. She is an ambassador to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America and she has served on the Board of the Sustainable Furnishings Council.
In May 2013, her furniture line, Nest Home by Robin Wilson, premiered at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) in New York.
She regularly appears on the speakers circuit, on television and offers commentary in print on design, wellness, sustainability and allergy & asthma issues.
Wilson’s design work emphasizes the integration of eco-friendly and sustainable design with a focus on social good. Her clients have included Panasonic USA, the White House Fellows office, and the Lake Nona Laureate Park development. In addition, she has worked on showhouses, and for both residential, developer and commercial clients.
She is author of 'Clean Design: Wellness for Your Lifestyle' (Greenleaf, 2015). Her first book was 'Kennedy Green House: Designing an Eco-Friendly Home from the Foundation to the Furniture' (Greenleaf, 2010), with the foreword written by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. She is an ambassador to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America and she has served on the Board of the Sustainable Furnishings Council.
In May 2013, her furniture line, Nest Home by Robin Wilson, premiered at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) in New York.
She regularly appears on the speakers circuit, on television and offers commentary in print on design, wellness, sustainability and allergy & asthma issues.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
June 25, 2015
While I initially was very interested in this book due to my own allergy and asthma issues it was quite a let-down. This book would be less than half it's size if it didn't repeat topics for each section of the home. I can literally sum up over 10 pages with this sentence: "Use nontoxic products when doing anything." Granted the book goes on to explain why, but it does so for each area of the home. And after the first three times of reading "avoid wall-to-wall carpets" and "use products that aren't harmful to the environment" I was tempted to just give up on the book. It didn't offer anymore information that allergy sufferers didn't already know, but it did harp a lot on toxins that products are made from. The problem was that wasn't why I picked up the book. Clean design does not necessarily mean Green design, so this book did little to assist me further in designing my home to be free from allergens.
May 22, 2015
Fantastic! And love that it was the GOLD award winner (Adult Books) for the 2015 Moms Choice awards
July 7, 2015
Awesome! Super helpful and full of great tips!
September 30, 2015
I received this book through the Goodreads First Reads Program for an honest review.
This book is a home decorating book to show ways to decorate one's home by lessening the affects of allergies on family members. It is little things like taking one shoe's off to avoid traipsing in pollen and dirt that can really help. What she does not address is whether or not one can have a pair of shoes used exclusively in the house to protect feet while cleaning or cooking. I do not like dropping hot grease on unprotected feet. Now, I have not been fully tested for all of my allergies either. I have lived in a few homes in my life and know that allergies are based on many factors. Age of house, neighborhood pollutants such as trees and grasses, seasons of the year, and fireplaces. All of this has a major impact on family members with allergies. I do not know if I fully agree with keeping knickknacks and books to a minimum. Some knickknacks are necessary to show the inhabitants' personality and homes without books show a sense of ignorance. It is impossible to have a dust free home, but I do like clean furniture lines as opposed to the heavy furniture of yesteryear.
I decorate with books. As an avid reader I like having stacks of books that fit the mood of each room of my home. Cookbooks belong in the kitchen, glossy books belong in the living room sitting on a coffee table to be perused by visitors, serious books should be in the main entry way because they belong to the whole family. Personal books should be with each family member. Robin Wilson due to her allergies keeps the books in closed cabinets and that does not look homey to me.
I enjoyed her chapter on cleaning products, though. It seems that many store brand products do not work and she gives many natural recipes that really will clean the home and freshen the air. As a user of many bath and body products I find it hard to believe that these are things to keep out of my home. I enjoy perfume scented lotions and shower gels an would be lost without my morning ritual. There is no closet in her design for these items since she does not approve of them as they are asthma triggers. She uses baskets and shelving for most clothing items and tells how to find eco-friendly furniture that is good quality. This is a plus as much of the furniture is not well made on the marketplace.
Wilson gives a lot of advice on lighting and appliances. Appliances are expensive to run and the total electric bill needs to be taken into account when purchasing new appliances. Lighting was a good read for me as I do not understand all of the new light bulb options that are available on the market. This will help me to pick out lamps and tables as I need them in my life.The homes shown in this book are very white. That maybe because paint dyes are bad for allergies, I need a little color in my life, and this book does not show how one can incorporate color with allergic family members. The walls are too plain for my taste also. Pictures are somewhat important to me and this book only has one in the entryway.
This book is well-written and informative, but I could not see myself decorating my whole house in this style. I like the entryway ideas, but my new place does not have the space for one so it may only be a n umbrella stand. We will have to see.
This book is a home decorating book to show ways to decorate one's home by lessening the affects of allergies on family members. It is little things like taking one shoe's off to avoid traipsing in pollen and dirt that can really help. What she does not address is whether or not one can have a pair of shoes used exclusively in the house to protect feet while cleaning or cooking. I do not like dropping hot grease on unprotected feet. Now, I have not been fully tested for all of my allergies either. I have lived in a few homes in my life and know that allergies are based on many factors. Age of house, neighborhood pollutants such as trees and grasses, seasons of the year, and fireplaces. All of this has a major impact on family members with allergies. I do not know if I fully agree with keeping knickknacks and books to a minimum. Some knickknacks are necessary to show the inhabitants' personality and homes without books show a sense of ignorance. It is impossible to have a dust free home, but I do like clean furniture lines as opposed to the heavy furniture of yesteryear.
I decorate with books. As an avid reader I like having stacks of books that fit the mood of each room of my home. Cookbooks belong in the kitchen, glossy books belong in the living room sitting on a coffee table to be perused by visitors, serious books should be in the main entry way because they belong to the whole family. Personal books should be with each family member. Robin Wilson due to her allergies keeps the books in closed cabinets and that does not look homey to me.
I enjoyed her chapter on cleaning products, though. It seems that many store brand products do not work and she gives many natural recipes that really will clean the home and freshen the air. As a user of many bath and body products I find it hard to believe that these are things to keep out of my home. I enjoy perfume scented lotions and shower gels an would be lost without my morning ritual. There is no closet in her design for these items since she does not approve of them as they are asthma triggers. She uses baskets and shelving for most clothing items and tells how to find eco-friendly furniture that is good quality. This is a plus as much of the furniture is not well made on the marketplace.
Wilson gives a lot of advice on lighting and appliances. Appliances are expensive to run and the total electric bill needs to be taken into account when purchasing new appliances. Lighting was a good read for me as I do not understand all of the new light bulb options that are available on the market. This will help me to pick out lamps and tables as I need them in my life.The homes shown in this book are very white. That maybe because paint dyes are bad for allergies, I need a little color in my life, and this book does not show how one can incorporate color with allergic family members. The walls are too plain for my taste also. Pictures are somewhat important to me and this book only has one in the entryway.
This book is well-written and informative, but I could not see myself decorating my whole house in this style. I like the entryway ideas, but my new place does not have the space for one so it may only be a n umbrella stand. We will have to see.
April 15, 2015
This book was provided to me through a Goodreads giveaway. Thank you to Robin Wilson, the publisher, and Goodreads for giving me the opportunity to read it. This is my honest review. No compensation was given.
I was hoping that this book would focus more on the "design" part of the title rather than the "clean" because I am trying to define my style and I am becoming interested in interior design. I thought this would be interesting for me to read in that respect, but this book focused on the cleanliness and the non-toxicity of the home more than anything.
I do have some skin allergies and my mother has asthma so there are definitely some useful tips in here for my family, but since our allergies are not very intense, most of the information in this book is much more extreme than any of us need.
This book is targeted towards people who have very bad allergies and who may need to take some extreme measures such as tearing out all of their carpeting and picking furniture on it's ability to be cleaned and the stains on the wood in order to keep their family healthy. It would probably be useful for people in those situations, but not for the majority of the population.
There were some other issues with the book as well. The first section of the book goes room by room, explaining what can be done in each to help limit toxins. The second section focuses on explaining cleaning methods and why certain things are bad for you. felt the room-by-room explanation really needed the context and explanation that is provided in the second section first. The two sections should be reversed in my opinion.
It started feeling really repetitive after a while as well. Each chapter started the exact same way and the tips and tricks for each room could be applied to almost any room after a while. You end up reading the same tips multiple times if you read the entire book. I think it would work better on a website or as a reference book rather than the format they are trying for here.
Also, a lot of it seemed like common sense. Vacuum regularly if you are allergic to dust, get a sump pump if your basement leaks, etc.
Overall, I think this book works for certain audiences, but not for everyone.
I was hoping that this book would focus more on the "design" part of the title rather than the "clean" because I am trying to define my style and I am becoming interested in interior design. I thought this would be interesting for me to read in that respect, but this book focused on the cleanliness and the non-toxicity of the home more than anything.
I do have some skin allergies and my mother has asthma so there are definitely some useful tips in here for my family, but since our allergies are not very intense, most of the information in this book is much more extreme than any of us need.
This book is targeted towards people who have very bad allergies and who may need to take some extreme measures such as tearing out all of their carpeting and picking furniture on it's ability to be cleaned and the stains on the wood in order to keep their family healthy. It would probably be useful for people in those situations, but not for the majority of the population.
There were some other issues with the book as well. The first section of the book goes room by room, explaining what can be done in each to help limit toxins. The second section focuses on explaining cleaning methods and why certain things are bad for you. felt the room-by-room explanation really needed the context and explanation that is provided in the second section first. The two sections should be reversed in my opinion.
It started feeling really repetitive after a while as well. Each chapter started the exact same way and the tips and tricks for each room could be applied to almost any room after a while. You end up reading the same tips multiple times if you read the entire book. I think it would work better on a website or as a reference book rather than the format they are trying for here.
Also, a lot of it seemed like common sense. Vacuum regularly if you are allergic to dust, get a sump pump if your basement leaks, etc.
Overall, I think this book works for certain audiences, but not for everyone.
June 8, 2015
Enjoyed the book! Full of beautiful designs. Has wonderful new cleaning advise and old forgotten ones. Loved the fact that at the back of the book Robin Wilson listed all the companies used in the book. Thanks
August 8, 2015
Good tips, but some would require more effort than I am interested in investing. We don't deal with the same health concerns as she does.
June 2, 2017
If you have allergies and want to make your home more habitable and free of allergens this is a good book. A little preachy, but filled with solid information on decorating and green cleaning.
December 6, 2015
Advice, generally good, but the author is trying to sell you something other than this book.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews