Becoming Minimalist Archives - Our Greenish Life

So, almost 10 years after getting married, while pregnant with our third child and 1.5yrs after returning from overseas, we fiiiiiiiiiiinally have our own real grown up home (thanks hubby). And being pregnant, I’m in overdrive on the nesting and wanting to make our home, a HOME. Unpacking boxes from a) our childhoods, b) Durban living and c) Vancouver, we are surrounded by awesome stuff (and some not so awesome) and all I can think about is un-stippling the walls and buying scatter cushions.

This is our baby’s room. And that’s me 3rd trimester pregnant, not panicking at all.

Hubby is a DIY one. Thank you God. Really. I’d happily choose DIY man over chef man. He is so handy I have lists FOR HIM, and sometimes get a little panicky if I imagine him dying… random but true. Because, well, he does a LOT. (Here is what is running through my head on an average day nowadays)…

We need a king size bed before baby arrives, which means we need the base from our 4 year olds’ room, which means we need bunks for the boys (hubby to make) so baby can have our toddlers cot. Reshuffling the whole family. No biggie.
We need to un-stipple the walls, pronto.
We need a headboard (hubby to make), with matchy matchy bedside tables (hubby to make as well).
Did I mention un-stippling the walls?
We need frames around all the mirrors in the house (hubby to make).
A complete re-haul of the kitchen (oh you know, as you do).
I need scatter cushions.
I’m desperate for a frame jewelry display (hubby to make).
Replace all lights switches and redo lighting throughout the house.
and and and and aaaaaaaaaaaand.

And allllll I can think about is how tiny our pillows look on our new king bed (which we now have – YAY) and how I need scatter cushions to make it look better. Never-mind the built in desk and shelves which have been ripped from the boys’ room, and the half un-stippled walls in the baby’s room and the double bed sitting in the family room waiting for it to be made into a murphy bed in the guest room (which is not yet fully unpacked) and and and aaaaaaaaaand. (Sounding familiar?) So often I just flop on the couch and watch Wimbledon with a bowl of pre-made cake icing and a spoon.

And while there are HUGE house projects on the go – I’m having a split personality moment between not buying unnecessary nonsense and ‘stuff’, and wanting to remain SO minimalist the rooms echo, and spending my retirement annuity on frames, new towels, pot plants, mason jars, fancy light fittings and the latest Breville coffee machine. So while I convince myself daily to NOT buy scatter cushions (and rugs and a new fireplace which is becoming more and more urgent), I’m enforcing – military style – many of fellow blogger Joshua Becker‘s thoughts surrounding keeping the home clutter and stress free. Think Zen.

So here they are. I feel like we’ve been given a clean slate with our new house so minimalist already, that building great habits (maintaining minimalism) can only better things. Even when I DO find the perfect scatter cushions.

15 Clutter Busting Routines for any Family: (Joshua Becker)

Disclaimer: for us non North ‘Mericans (not facing the most un-believ-able political circus), don’t be put off by words like junk-mail, garbage, coat closet and trash. You know what they mean.

1. Place junk mail immediately into a recycling bin. Take note of the natural flow of mail into your home. Placing a recycling container prior to your “mail drop-off zone” can catch most of that junk mail before it even reaches your counter. And as an added bonus, you’ll begin to look through less of it too (think advertisements).

2. Store kitchen appliances out of sight. Toasters, can openers, coffee makers… they all take up space. And while it may not seem like much space by looking at them, the first time you prepare dinner on a counter without them present, you’ll quickly notice the difference. If you think it’s going to be a hassle putting them away every morning, don’t. It takes less than 6 seconds to put each appliance away… once you’ve found a home for it that is.

3. Remove 10 articles of clothing from your closet today. Go ahead. If you are typical, it’ll take you roughly 5 minutes to grab 10 articles of clothing that you no longer wear and throw them in a box. Your remaining clothes will fit better in your closet. Your closet will be able to breathe again. And if you write “Goodwill” on the box when you are done, you’ll feel better about yourself as soon as you drop it off. Most likely, you’ll find yourself inspired to do it again.

4. Fold clean clothes / Remove dirty clothes immediately. The way I handle clothes these days is one of the biggest clutter changes I have made in my life. Unfortunately, I used to be a “throw-them-on-the-floor” guy. But now I handle each one right when I take it off. Dirty clothes down the clothes chute. Clean clothes back to the hanger or drawer. That’s it. It’s really that simple. How do the dirty ones magically appear clean and folded in my closet you ask… I’m not sure. You’ll need to ask my wife.

5. Kids’ bedroom toys live in the closet. Not on the floor. Not on the dresser. But in the closet. And when the closet gets too full of toys, it’s time to make some room. Hint, it’s usually safe to remove the toys at the bottom of the pile.

6. Kids pick up their toys each evening. This has countless benefits: 1) It teaches responsibility. 2) It helps kids realize that more isn’t always better. 3) The home is clean for mom and dad when the kids are in bed. 4) It’s a clear indication that the day has come to an end. Gosh, you’d think with all these benefits it would be easier for us to get the kids to do it…

(I have to butt in here. Growing up, my hubby had what his family called ‘Tidy Up Time’ at 5pm every night. He was 1 of 4 so you can imagine the mess. This is one of his most scarring memories as a child and he HATED it. Now that we have noise-making mud balls of children ourselves, and we’re moving from big block Duplo to small block Lego, he is ready to reinforce it. Too funny.)

7. Fill your containers for the garbage man. Use every trash pick-up day as an excuse to fill your recycling containers and/or garbage cans. Grab a box of old junk from the attic… old toys from the toy room… old food from the pantry… old paperwork from the office. If once a week is too often, do this exercise every other week. You’ll get the hang of it. And may even begin to enjoy trash morning… okay, I won’t go that far.

8. Halve decorations. No seriously, I mean it. Grab a box and walk through your living room. Remove decorations from shelves, tables, and walls that aren’t absolutely beautiful or meaningful. You may like it better than you think. If not, you can always put them back. But I’d bet my wife’s old high school yearbooks that you won’t return all of them.

9. Wash dishes right away. Hand washing some dishes takes less time than putting them in the dishwasher. This applies to cups, breakfast bowls, dinner plates, and silverware. If hand washed right after eating, it takes hardly any time at all. If however, hand washing is just not an option for you, be sure to put used dishes in the dishwasher right away. Nobody likes walking into a kitchen with dishes piled up in the sink or on the counter… and it’s even less fun eating in there.

10. Unmix and match cups, bowls, plates, and silverware. Uniformity makes for better stacking, storing, and accessing. If there is a souvenir cup or mug that is so important to you that you can’t live without it, that’s perfectly fine. Just don’t keep 5 of them. Mom, any chance you are reading this?

11. Keep your desk clear and clean. Drawers can adequately house most of the things needed to keep your desk functional. And a simple filing system should keep it clear of paper clutter. The next person who sits down to use the desk will thank you.

12. Store your media out of sight. Make a home for dvd’s, cd’s, video games, and remote controls. They don’t need to be in eyesight, you use them less than you think. And if you remove them from your eyesight… maybe you’ll use them even less.

13. Always leave room in your coat closet. There are two reasons why coats, shoes, and outerwear keep ending up scattered throughout your home rather than in your closet. The first reason is because your coat closet is so full, it’s a hassle to put things away and retrieve them quickly. Leave room on the floor, on the hangers, and on the shelves for used items to be quickly put away and retrieved. The second reason is because you have kids… but you’re on your own with that one.

14. Keep flat surfaces clear. Kitchen counters, bathroom counters, bedroom dressers, tabletops… After you clear them the first time, keeping them clean takes daily effort. Receipts, coins, and paper clutter just keep coming and coming… it’s just easier the second time around.

15. Finish a magazine or newspaper. Process or recycle immediately. If you’ve finished the paper product, process it and rid yourself of its clutter immediately. Good recipe in there? Put it in your recipe box and recycle the rest. Good article that your husband will enjoy? Clip it and recycle. Article that your friend will enjoy? Clip it, mail it, and recycle (or better yet, search for it online and send it that way). Coupon too good to pass up? Cut it out and recycle. Stacks of magazines and newspapers serve little purpose in life but to clutter a room.

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh – are you feeling all light and breezy like me?

Featured Image credit: www.thedormyhouse.com

Two days ago, a friend of mine was robbed. Badly. Her house completely cleared out by criminals. I wanted to vomit listening to her talk about how quickly, silently and professionally it happened. Poof. Gone.

And now she has the tedious task of trying to itemise everything that was stolen and claim from insurance. Please, I can barely remember what I have in my handbag and I stare into it everyday – how on EARTH are you supposed to remember what was in that bag in the back cupboard. Spare linen, towels, Christmas decorations, that old tennis racquet?

Yes, she recognises that it is only stuff and that her family is safe. Yes, she is feeling the overwhelming emotions of how invasive and personally uncomfortable this kind of intrusion is, and yes, she has cried about the loss of her grandmothers wedding ring and her exceptionally sentimental items which are now probably on the black market. And yes, this is NOT okay.

We are privileged to own these things. Most of the world is much poorer than we are. And so, how can one not understand that there are less fortunate people everywhere desperate to steal and sell something to provide for his/her family, or replace their contents that were destroyed in a shack fire. I’m not using this post to open the ‘white privilege’ can – just to acknowledge the other stories so often not heard. This still does NOT make it okay. (It just raises lots of questions which I’m not going to ask here or now).

And so to avoid further (and very real) fear of trying to protect every THING we own with exorbitant insurance costs, anxiously double checking locked doors, paranoid we are being watched and targeted, feeling obsessive-compulsive about a strange noise in the night or whether we pulled our phone from its car charger when we left the car, how can we distance ourselves from this often very real way of thinking and living in South Africa.

I remember in Vancouver, feeling like everything was temporary. It was a great way to live. We drove an old 1997 Honda Accord called Seymour (see-more) because all we wanted it for, was to get from A-B and that is what it did. And if I scraped the wheel rim on the pavement – well whahh – no big deal. We swapped clothes and baby paraphernalia between friends and while we like nice stuff (and bought nice stuff) we didn’t need to accumulate because we couldn’t keep it forever. We value respecting each others things (ask my kids how I shout at them when they throw books) and know full well the result of buying cheap, buying twice. So we are not necessarily regulars at the Chinese shops, nor Woolworths, and yes, we do have some very lovely things I would be very upset if they were ever stolen. But we were able to fit all of our early contents into 14 boxes that sailed from Vancouver to SA, and this made life (and certain decisions) much simpler and happier. There’s something very healthy about living with little. And my minimalist friend Joshua Becker hits the nail on the head for me OFTEN.

In no way am I saying that my friend is materialistic or a hoarder. In fact I think she is one of the few who are not. This incident has simply made me think about my own life, and my own stuff and the importance I place on them, the value I expect them to add to my life and whether that is right or not. Also, it’s making me wonder how much less worry-filled my life can be, by intentionally owning fewer things. And I’m inspired and deeply challenged by this thought.

I’ve read about those people who buy nothing but food and regular household needs for a year. No new clothes, no coffees out, no spontaneous splurging. They challenge themselves to not go out and spend (and appreciate what they have and make the best of it). While I’m not one of those, I’m intrigued by them and cannot deny that they must experience an unbelievably extraordinary year.

Besides, stuff creates dust and mess. And nobody needs more of that.

Tag Archives: Becoming Minimalist

How to Remain Minimalist when all you want to do is buy more Scatter Cushions

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