Any minimalists/minimalist wannabees?

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I have been listening to the Minimalists podcast for about a year now and have gotten rid of things in fits and spurts for most of that time (I think I found the Minimalists after reading the Kon Marie book) and we’ve become much more intentional about the things coming into the house. With an upcoming move likely I’ve been reinspired to reduce even more.

I’m curious to hear how others have had success with living with less and maybe areas in which you’ve struggled.

One area of success for me has been clothing. The children and I have about 2 weeks worth of outfits and that feels about right for us.

One area I struggle is with the children’s artwork. I want to keep it all; but, it goes in a box and I never see it again; so, really, what am I holding on to? Even knowing this I really struggle to let it go.
 
JetteZ said:
One area I struggle is with the children’s artwork. I want to keep it all; but, it goes in a box and I never see it again; so, really, what am I holding on to? Even knowing this I really struggle to let it go.
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I’m headed in that direction and it’s hard to downsize.

With the artwork, maybe compromise by scanning or photographing their work and only saving a few pieces. Then you or the kids can still flip through the work held on a thumb drive (very small)
 
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Theo520 said:
With the artwork, maybe compromise by scanning or photographing their work and only saving a few pieces. Then you or the kids can still flip through the work held on a thumb drive (very small)
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Absolutely, what I’d love to do is have it projected on our TV as a screen saver type rotation; it’s the time it would take to actually do it which becomes the impediment. It’s much easier to complain about it. 😆
 
JetteZ said:
Absolutely, what I’d love to do is have it projected on our TV as a screen saver type rotation; it’s the time it would take to actually do it which becomes the impediment. It’s much easier to complain about it. 😆
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If you do it with a camera instead of a scanner, it can go quick.

Set up a white sheet backdrop behind a table or easel and put the camera on a tripod. Have one of your kids help by swapping the artwork. I did this route when a relative passed you had collected a massive amount of art and objects. It will be a fun afternoon project for the kid and you.

For editing the photos, I installed the free Picasa software from google. After a quick crop and light adjustment, they came out clear and ready to share. Picasa also allows you to add comments for future reference
 
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My wife and I downsized 10 years ago and there is always a temptation to upsize because it always seemed to limited. Our home is about 1,000 sq ft. No basement, small garage. But it is paid for. Whenever I think about upsizing I think about the mortagage, which I guess now wont even be tax deductible. So we stay.
 
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Where I struggle is with children’s things. I don’t want to get rid of any of her toys or clothes that are in good condition because we want more children, but they take up a lot of room and we’re in a small apartment.
 
Rosalie said:
Where I struggle is with children’s things. I don’t want to get rid of any of her toys or clothes that are in good condition because we want more children, but they take up a lot of room and we’re in a small apartment.
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Yeah, that’s tough. I think it’s about being constant of what you keep and the space it takes. My friend with 5 ended up with bins of clothes–more than a clothing store. She has a bin for both genders of every size for every season. Do you know how many 0-3 girls summer clothes you can fit in one of those 20-gallon bins? Probably a few hundred if not a thousand.

I take just what I need. There was a blogger who had a good list of what kids would need and dosn’t keep more than that. Under 1 it’s like 5 sleepers, 5 onesies, etc. So if you ht more than that, bye bye.

I use those “use your own vacuum” bags. I LOVE them. I get a years worth of clothes and the nursing blankets in a bin. That’s newborn, 0-3, 3-6, 6-9 and 9-12 plus all the random newborn baby things like the Moby wrap. I’ve thinned to make it the most gender neutral as possible for future kids.

My husband and I can never be true minimalists because we’re makers. He has a full workshop downstairs for woodwork and some metal work. Upstairs, I have fabric, yarn, snaps, zippers and such things.

In reality, it works out really well. No, we’re not true minimalists, but we really live the anti-consumerism parts of the theory.

For instance, our house needed new windows. They were not much better than a hole in the house. They’d lost their vacuum so they were as efficient as single pane windows. Hubby researched baught well-rated windows and even made trim from rough lumber. The cost to us was around $1k for 3. The quote from Anderson for exactly what we now have was around $8k. So yeah, we have stuff, but it’s vital to our living style.

I can repair clothes and make them, I’ve made curtains and couch covers, I’ve made the blankets to subtly replace that one of my kids got addicted to (soft fleece with a cotton border) and can’t live without. I’ve repaired knobs and handles and even electronics.
 
I am a minimalist wannabee. I want to live in tiny house and wear a monochromatic uniform everyday. But alas, I am part of a family.

It’s hard to be a minimalist with kids! They get lots of gifts, even if you actively weed out stuff they just have a lot of stuff. They go through a lot of clothes.

For me, I am aiming for 33 items of clothing (not counting undergarments, but counting shoes and jackets) (based off the 333 challenge). Currently I have LESS than 33 items of clothing that I wear, I’m actually working up to 33 items!

We are living at my dad’s house right now while we build our dream home, 1200 sq ft for a family of 5! I plan to be very mindful as we move into our new house, not bring in any junk.

As far as artwork is concerned, we occasionally put some up, but 95% of it gets covertly tossed. How many of your childhood pictures are still hanging around your parents house? Maybe a sample from each grade level at best? If they’ve forgotten about it, it’s gone.

I did see a picture frame that opens on the front for children’s artwork I’m thinking of getting though, a fellow mom mentioned it. It holds up to 50 pages, so you just keep putting the new ones in front of the old and it stores them together, so you can keep each child’s most recent artwork on display and store previous ones. You could then put them in a file after say, each year (50 pages is almost a page per week).

Here is a link:

 
I am so intrigued by minimalism.

I have some collections I enjoy–not ready to give them up.
I take half my clothes to the goodwill when I change out my closet (I thrift shop and yard sale and get hand me downs a lot, so the clothes accumulate rapidly)

I have become more mindful in my shopping, however.

Some day I may take the leap!
 
0Scarlett_nidiyilii said:
I am so intrigued by minimalism.

I have some collections I enjoy–not ready to give them up.
I take half my clothes to the goodwill when I change out my closet (I thrift shop and yard sale and get hand me downs a lot, so the clothes accumulate rapidly)

I have become more mindful in my shopping, however.

Some day I may take the leap!
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I’m blessed. My mom is about my size and is ANYTHING but a minimalist. So every couple of years she cleans her closet. I get an entirely new wardrobe! I haven’t done it much since college, but I do have a lot of really nice things.

For me, the hardest thing is having to deal with maternity items. I try to go pretty light because I only use them for a half dozen months…but it’s not like I want to get rid of them, either when I’m not in need of them. So that leaves me with a closet of unwearable items when I’m pregnant (I’m thin and like things well-fitted) or a drawer full of unwearable items when I’m in not in maternity clothes.
 
I do have a big storage ottoman full of knitting and sewing things! I’m hoping to make my daughter’s spring/summer wardrobe. And I made everyone scarves for Christmas. At first I did try to get unisex clothes, but I love dressing her in sweet little preppy dresses. Maybe I should get those vacuum bags…We only have the walk in closet and a coat closet so everything has to be shoved in there.
 
Well, I made some progress purging out a grocery bag full of Christmas ornaments… until my mom saw them and took them to use in her space (she lives with us).

I might have to start decluttering like I do the kids’ broken bits - under the cover of darkness and into the neighbor’s bin. 😂
 
Dark colored garbage bags, make sure the sounds are turned off or batteries are removed/dead. 😃
 
I am minimalist with some things, others no.

My kitchen counters have nothing on them. I get stressed out with too many things cluttering things up, so I have all basics put away. Even coffee maker is off the counter in a cabinet. If there is no room, I get rid of old before putting away new.

Same with the rest of the house, no extraneous items. It’s so much easier to clean.

But every time I decide to purge my closet, the next week I’m looking for something I got rid of.☺️
 
…I need to do this. I started out so well, but now everything is cluttered and messy and it’s overwhelming.
 
I am too visual to be minimalist. I like to see things I consider beautiful, or that hold memories for me, or that are useful. I like to see things “that bring me joy.” (The Magic of Tidying.) That does not mean I like clutter or untidiness. I know when I have enough of something.
 
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