A Commitment to Minimalist Living

Keesha

Keesha

🐟
Location
Canada 🇨🇦
Here are 7 small steps for the Beginner Minimalist


1/. Write it down.
Make a list of all the reasons you want to live more simply
2/. Discard Duplicates
3/. Declare a clutter free zone - choose an area of your home as an example of how you’d like your entire environment to be
4/. Travel lightly - take less things
5/. Dress with less - discard things you never or rarely wear
6/. Simplify meals - make a menu before shopping.
7/. Save $1,000 for emergency funds


The idea of living a minimalist lifestyle has intrigued me for a while but especially now that I’m aging. Watching my parents age I’m learning many things of ‘what not to do’ that I’m taking with me and one main thing is to get rid of stuff while I can.


With Dementia setting in with old age, it only seems practical to want to de clutter and only have the things around that matter. It’s so much easier to find things and it offers more space for doing the things you enjoy the most.


Some of the things on the list I definitely have. There are a few clutter free rooms, theres an emergency fund, and we try to simplify meals by buying what’s on sale and creating a menu from that.


This is extremely important to me but I have decided to really crack down and actually do this.


Commitments for this week :


⁃ create a dumpster pile
⁃ drop off duplicates to goodwill
⁃ go through closet and purge
⁃ collect things for consignment shops


I’m determined to do this so am making myself accountable.
Nagging about how I am doing is encouraged. We need to start decluttering as a pre-step to downsizing.

So far I’m going through a room at a time. It gets completely stripped, cleaned and painted and the stuff that goes back is drastically limited.
 

I found that putting everthing you own into a sea container, and only taking out what you use during the following year, automatically downsizes things.

Goodwill loved me for the donations


So did the hoarders down the path
 
Good luck, y'all. :D I am not a minimalist and have no desire to be. This is our home and I'll live in it the way I want until I die, then the kids can deal with it. (Payback for all those hours I spent chauffeuring them and sitting on wooden benches watching their sporting events.) I don't have a lot of clutter but I enjoy my things, so I'll just do what I do.
 
Haha. I don’t have kids to leave it to.
I’m going to take it slowly. I’ll sell some stuff on our free local online places and throw a lot out.
Thats the most difficult thing is throwing stuff out but I ONLY want stuff around me that has personal value to me and / or family. We have so much stuff that we never use.

My parents may have to sell their home soon so we are the ones that have to go through that and they have a lot of stuff.
We aren’t sure what to do with their stuff yet but my dad’s workshop is a bit scary. :eek:nthego:
 
I am a believer. The books are/were the hardest to get rid of, I love books. The grandchildren were arguing over who would inherit them, lol, packed them up and sold them to a used book store, problem solved.

When we moved, two years ago, we let the children and neighbors clean out a lot. In the new house, we have very little. I question every purchase. The kids took most of his tools and recently we had to buy a small sander. Really thought before the purchase, but finally the bathroom door closes correctly, yay.
 
I can identify!! - my son dropped in the other day and I took him to my cd/dvd collection - he took less than six and said ' that'll do dad' - it was then that I realized that if the family didn't want them then no one did - so I bagged them and offered a couple of bags to my fil who is a horder and my wife put the rest in the spare bedroom cos she wants to look through them and she's a horder!

I look around now AND could even start again. I think there are those who can do it and those who can't that's it! but I remember and old cliff richard song once very famous "travellin light" - 'got no bags or baggage to keep me down - I'm travel so light my feet don't touch the ground'

it's a work in progress - did my stand alone filing cabinet the other week - anyone got one of those still - so much paper work - look at it this week and still needs culling. Got dinner suits I'll never use again - well probably not!
 
fmdog44 said:
Why not have a yard sale?
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I have been wanting to have a yard sale for a long time now but I decided against it after the things people said they were like.
They said unless you plan on giving away everything then yard sales are a waste of time. Plus I’m not sure how I’d feel about
haggling over price with a distant neighbour.

Anyway, most people claimed that some people can become aggressive and I’m not sure how I’d handle that type of thing.
I can be confrontational when pushed. I’m not afraid to back down.
Its left a bad impression in my mind so I’m hoping some other members add some positive comments about having them.
Im still sitting in the fence about it.
I’m not exactly a social butterfly.

We have one room full of stuff and I would like to use that room as a hobby/music room once more.
 
Would love to have a yard sale but I live in a condo. The Salvation Army is coming by for a pickup next week. A lady is picking up 5 boxes of books tomorrow. Youngest daughter wants the Agatha Christie books, another picked out the cookbooks she wanted. I am slowly getting there and just keeping things that bring me pleasure. Keeping and using the china and crystal for now. I would like to move to a smaller condo in the next few years. My girls have nicer things than I do and they have taken what they want for now. Grands are not interested in material things right now and that is good. Told everybody a couple of years ago to give me gift cards for birthdays and Christmas now and I can buy what groceries etc. I need now. So far they have complied as I am through with a lot of dusting, etc. Got a lot of gift cards for the holidays and its been nice to splurge every now and then for something special at the grocery store that I would not have bought otherwise.
 
My house is clutter free...

Unfortunately my barn and shack are not.....

I have labeled containers of so much stuff...I can't part with.

Things I got when my daddy passed, that have absolutely no meaning to anyone but me....

It really is ridiculous why I can't part with them, no one will ever know what they mean.

I have, in the past gotten rid of a lot, the mood just has to strike me and then I can do it.
 
I don't have a lot of clutter, but not minimalist either. I like my few framed prints, gave away most of my books at least 10 years ago, just keeping my art books.

I just gave my large crock pot to my ex daughter in law since I only used it for pulled pork which I can do in my little $10. crock. Or a low oven.

Keesha, you have a great plan. I'm more a spur of the moment type and will unload a box or a bag or two now and then. I never did have a lot of clothes or shoes.
 
Most of our stuff collectively is from duplicates, books, tools, and materials from sporadic hobbies like sewing, jewelry making so I have bins of unused fabric, notions, trims, etc., and then beads, wire and gemstones. These are items that I’ll sell.

The extra clothes I have is mainly from the fact that I lost weight and then kept some of the sizes just in case I gained it back.
I’m no longer entertaining that idea and will throw out clothes out that don’t fit me.
 
Seeker said:
My house is clutter free...

Unfortunately my barn and shack are not.....

I have labeled containers of so much stuff...I can't part with.

Things I got when my daddy passed, that have absolutely no meaning to anyone but me....

It really is ridiculous why I can't part with them, no one will ever know what they mean.

I have, in the past gotten rid of a lot, the mood just has to strike me and then I can do it.
Click to expand...
I’m a bit the same. I get attached to material objects because they represent happy memories and it feels as though throwing the things away would be disvaluing and disrespecting the givers. It’s an emotional thing.
 
My reason for painting is because one room hadn’t been painted in about 15 years. At one point in time I actually liked the colour. Now I wonder what the heck was I thinking. The hallway had ball marks on the walls from playing with the dogs.
Theres nothing that will spruce up a house quicker than a fresh few coats of paint. With lighter colours it gives the room an illusion of being bigger. It’s really nice. I’ll take pictures when one room is all finished. I need to frame the window.
 
Keesha said:
I’m a bit the same. I get attached to material objects because they represent happy memories and it feels as though throwing the things away would be disvaluing and disrespecting the givers. It’s an emotional thing.
Click to expand...


True...It's like if you just throw it away you are throwing away a part of you....

Pieces of me....and there are so few left.
 
Seeker said:
True...It's like if you just throw it away you are throwing away a part of you....

Pieces of me....and there are so few left.
Click to expand...
Exactly. The crazy thing is that I have so many handmade things at my parents house that I’ve made over the years and a couple of things my deceased brother made that I would like to keep. That’s going to be tough going through their house. It’s quite an emotional thing.

Aren’t you looking after your mom now and what did she do with all her stuff?
 
Keesha said:
I have been wanting to have a yard sale for a long time now but I decided against it after the things people said they were like.
They said unless you plan on giving away everything then yard sales are a waste of time. Plus I’m not sure how I’d feel about
haggling over price with a distant neighbour.

Anyway, most people claimed that some people can become aggressive and I’m not sure how I’d handle that type of thing.
I can be confrontational when pushed. I’m not afraid to back down.
Its left a bad impression in my mind so I’m hoping some other members add some positive comments about having them.
Im still sitting in the fence about it.
I’m not exactly a social butterfly.

We have one room full of stuff and I would like to use that room as a hobby/music room once more.
Click to expand...

DON'T DO IT!!!

I certainly won't be having a yard sale. First off, I helped a friend with one a while ago and it was NOT a pleasant experience. Many people are rude and aggressive and expect you to basically give stuff away. Some are thieves; some bring little kids who knock stuff off tables and break it. Secondly there is the huge amount of work in bringing everything outside and setting up and then carting everything that didn't sell back in. AND the fact that you don't really make much for all that work and hassle. Also, if you've got a lot of glassware or knick knacks, people just don't buy that stuff any more

I just give my unwanted stuff to someone I know needs or wants it (like kitchen stuff to a young couple just starting out, for instance) or take it all to one of our local thrift shops.

I'm not a minimalist, but I'm just trying to get rid of the detritus of years of living in the same house.
 
Keesha said:
Exactly. The crazy thing is that I have so many handmade things at my parents house that I’ve made over the years and a couple of things my deceased brother made that I would like to keep. That’s going to be tough going through their house. It’s quite an emotional thing.

Aren’t you looking after your mom now and what did she do with all her stuff?
Click to expand...

It IS a very emotional thing!
 
Butterfly said:
DON'T DO IT!!!

I certainly won't be having a yard sale. First off, I helped a friend with one a while ago and it was NOT a pleasant experience. Many people are rude and aggressive and expect you to basically give stuff away. Some are thieves; some bring little kids who knock stuff off tables and break it. Secondly there is the huge amount of work in bringing everything outside and setting up and then carting everything that didn't sell back in. AND the fact that you don't really make much for all that work and hassle. Also, if you've got a lot of glassware or knick knacks, people just don't buy that stuff any more

I just give my unwanted stuff to someone I know needs or wants it (like kitchen stuff to a young couple just starting out, for instance) or take it all to one of our local thrift shops.

I'm not a minimalist, but I'm just trying to get rid of the detritus of years of living in the same house.
Click to expand...
Since I consider you a very sensible woman, I will take your word on this.
Due to my medical conditions, it could very well turn into a nightmare. :hide: I think I’ll pass. Listing the expensive stuff is the only way I’ll donit then. I’m not good with dealing with aggressive people.
 
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I tell my clients to take pictures of those large sentimental items that they haven't used in many years and that their kids don't want, but they just can't seem to part with. It's really quite ridiculous...some of my clients maintain 2 or more storage units for that kind of stuff, in some cases stuff they haven't even SEEN in years, and have stated they won't ever use again!

One of my clients has told me several times that she needs to take Ron and me to her storage units so that we can see what's there and pick out whatever we want, preferably a LOT of whatever we want, as a "wedding gift." She's serious, and is hopeful we will furnish our entire house with her stuff so that she can move some of it along!!!

I haven't moved into his house yet. We need to finish the remodel of his master bedroom and bathroom complete with a new, large, walk in closet. Meanwhile I'm slowly going through my stuff and getting rid of things, especially because we're combining households and so there are a lot of duplicates. I downsized a whole bunch several years ago when I moved, so it's not like there's a bunch of stuff. And we're both tidy, uncluttery types, so we don't really collect much. Even so, it's amazing what accumulates. I went through his laundry room cabinets and drawers last weekend and organized everything. It was the one room in his house that was a big disorganized. He was amazed at the number of duplicates of things he had stashed in different places! We got rid of so much stuff and now there's so much room in every cabinet and drawer, rather than the entire space being crammed!

Keesha, I admire your dedication and accountability! You go girl!!!!
 
Keesha said:
Since I consider you a very sensible woman, I will take your word on this.
Due to my medical conditions, it could very well turn into a nightmare. :hide: I think I’ll pass. Listing the expensive stuff is the only way I’ll donit then. I’m not good with dealing with aggressive people.
Click to expand...

It really was an AWFUL day (or more accurately an awful weekend, because the whole thing took up most of the weekend, what with the taking out and taking back in and all and then figuring out what to actually DO with the stuff) and as an added bonus, it was VERY hot. I'm also glad it was her stuff and not mine, because I don't think I would have been able to sit there quietly and listen to people say stuff like "that's the ugliest chair I've ever seen" and are you really asking $2 for this piece of junk?" Heat tends to make me even crabbier than usual, and I'm not sure I would been too polite about my suggestions about what they could do with their $2.
 
Butterfly said:
It really was an AWFUL day (or more accurately an awful weekend, because the whole thing took up most of the weekend, what with the taking out and taking back in and all and then figuring out what to actually DO with the stuff) and as an added bonus, it was VERY hot. I'm also glad it was her stuff and not mine, because I don't think I would have been able to sit there quietly and listen to people say stuff like "that's the ugliest chair I've ever seen" and are you really asking $2 for this piece of junk?" Heat tends to make me even crabbier than usual, and I'm not sure I would been too polite about my suggestions about what they could do with their $2.
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I’m not very tolerant of impatient people. At one time I was a total push over but I’ve done a complete one eighty and definitely lean toward the complete avoidance. That haggling thing would drive me insane and I could see myself possibly losing it to.
Plus I think this would be too hard in our dogs. They aren’t used to many visitors. My girlfriend and her husband come over occasionally. Much less since I don’t allow her to invite herself over when it suites her. She’s been sulking ever since but my family comes first. Always!!!

Thanks for sharing truthfully. You and I seem to have an equal amount of tolerance for general society, which is ......
slim to none. :lofl:
 
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