(source)
We've made an amazing amount of progress so far! In a bit less than two weeks, the only areas of the house that we have left to go through are the kitchen, basement and garage. Turns out that although we did have a lot to cull, we really didn't have a lot of clutter. I've always applied minimalism to my life in quite a few ways, so how we've already been living has made a huge difference in making this an easy process.
The criteria for what we're keeping in our lives can be summed up by this quote.
"Have nothing in your homes that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful." ~William Morris
This is how we're determining whether to keep (as well as purchase) things. It needs to serve a purpose, whether that's a functional purpose or as something beautiful for us to look at, like a piece of art. Really, though, it goes further than this a bit. Our aim is to keep even those things to a minimum to make what we have mean more.
So far, we've hauled three car loads of stuff to the thrift store, sold many CD's to a local music consignment shop (and donated the rest) and I've listed a half dozen pairs of shoes along with several workout dvd's on ebay. We already have more open space in our house and that feels so wonderful! With that open space comes less stuff to clean & maintain and more peace of mind. The more we declutter and cull, the more decluttered and at peace my mind is.
I'll be posting more specifics in the future along with a lot of tips. For now, I'd like to leave you with a list of resources that I've found extremely helpful and inspirational.
Books
The Joy Of Less by Francine Jay is a book that I can't recommend enough. If I had to pick out only one resource to recommend, this would definitely be it.
The Minimalist Woman's Guide To Having It All by Meg Wolfe is a short e-book that provides you with the basics.
Blogs
Miss Minimalist (Francine Jay's blog)
The Minimalists
Zen Habits
Living Simply and Green
On The Green Road- I especially enjoy this one because it's about 2 women living full-time in a restored, eco-friendly Airstream that they pull with a bio-diesel truck.
Weaselmouth- Another blog of full-time Airstreamers who really simplified their life to live their dreams.
Minimalist Packrat- She even has a list of minimalist blogs on her site if you want to find even more!
If one of your goals for 2012 is to simplify your life, any of these books and blogs are a great place to start.
This is how we're determining whether to keep (as well as purchase) things. It needs to serve a purpose, whether that's a functional purpose or as something beautiful for us to look at, like a piece of art. Really, though, it goes further than this a bit. Our aim is to keep even those things to a minimum to make what we have mean more.
So far, we've hauled three car loads of stuff to the thrift store, sold many CD's to a local music consignment shop (and donated the rest) and I've listed a half dozen pairs of shoes along with several workout dvd's on ebay. We already have more open space in our house and that feels so wonderful! With that open space comes less stuff to clean & maintain and more peace of mind. The more we declutter and cull, the more decluttered and at peace my mind is.
I'll be posting more specifics in the future along with a lot of tips. For now, I'd like to leave you with a list of resources that I've found extremely helpful and inspirational.
Books
The Joy Of Less by Francine Jay is a book that I can't recommend enough. If I had to pick out only one resource to recommend, this would definitely be it.
The Minimalist Woman's Guide To Having It All by Meg Wolfe is a short e-book that provides you with the basics.
Blogs
Miss Minimalist (Francine Jay's blog)
The Minimalists
Zen Habits
Living Simply and Green
On The Green Road- I especially enjoy this one because it's about 2 women living full-time in a restored, eco-friendly Airstream that they pull with a bio-diesel truck.
Weaselmouth- Another blog of full-time Airstreamers who really simplified their life to live their dreams.
Minimalist Packrat- She even has a list of minimalist blogs on her site if you want to find even more!
If one of your goals for 2012 is to simplify your life, any of these books and blogs are a great place to start.
Very inspiring--I brought home some boxes from work so I can load up some clothes for the Goodwill. It's a start, I guess. Anything that'll make getting dressed in the morning less of a hassle can only be a good thing.
ReplyDeleteI think everyone should go through and declutter often. Even though I did, it wasn't on a deep enough level and often enough so I had to do too much before I moved. My goal would be able to have enough stuff and have it all be essentials so I could easily move and not have to get rid of loads beforehand.
ReplyDeleteWhat a perfect quote! So succinct :) Thanks for the resources and inspiration! Happy New Year! :)
ReplyDeleteWow seems like you have really made a ton of progress! You are so inspiring, keep it up! I'm hoping to follow in your footsteps in the upcoming months :)
ReplyDeleteSounds like you're making great progress! Thanks for the blog links, I'll definitely check them out.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year Molly!
I first heard that William Morris quote last year, and I think it makes a lot of sense. We shouldn't fill our homes with meaningless stuff.
ReplyDeleteZen habits is one of my favorite blogs too, though I'm still working on being more "zen" in my own life.
I really like your simplicity posts--lots of food for thought. :)
Stacy- that definitely is a good start! I guess that the average person only wears 20% of their clothing 80% of the time. Yikes!
ReplyDeletebitt- Moving is such a hassle already, so I can imagine that you were pretty rushed going through everything beforehand. We plan on doing a full sweep of our house once or twice a year, then just keep culling where possible the rest of the time.
Melissa- Happy new year to you, too! I'm glad you like the quote and hope all is well. :)
vava- I'm going to try to post about our progress, along with tips, at least once a week, so hopefully some it will help you when you feel up to it!
Rose- Happy new year to you, too! I hope you find some of the links useful and/or inspiring. The blogs are all really great!
Sage- I think working more "zen" into our lives is an ongoing process. I'm glad you're liking these posts! I'm really enjoying doing them. :)
You've inspired me to do some actual cleaning. It's definitely overwhelming.
ReplyDeleteSV- You're right, it can be very overwhelming. Start small and who knows, you might be motivated to do more! :)
ReplyDeleteWow, that is so impressive! You guys went through so much so fast. Ah, it makes me realize how far behind I am. I'm going to click on one of those blogs right now. Thanks for the links.
ReplyDeleteblessedmama- well, we didn't have a ton to start with, so that made it much easier. Plus, it's winter, so I have much more time on my hands. :) I hope you find some of the blogs helpful!
ReplyDeleteWe happened to have a few old cell phones around and found a shelter that helps abused woman. Feels good to put these items to good use!!! Thanks for your inspiring writings!
ReplyDelete