exciting news!

becoming minimalist has moved.  please visit us at our new address: http://www.becomingminimalist.com/

also, don’t forget to update your bookmarks as all new posts will be entered on the new site.  we hope you’ll like the new look even more as we don’t change any of our content or stated goals.

christy’s story

yesterday, christy shared her personal journey with me as a comment on this blog. her story is similar to ours. i found it encouraging to me as we continue to become minimalist. and because one of the purposes of this blog is to encourage you to minimalize, i thought i’d post it here for you to read as well. so with christy’s permission, here it is:

“I have spent the last 10 months de-cluttering and simplifying our home and lives. I did one round of simplifying and when I started looking at my things more critically, I realized that the first go-around was really the tip of the iceberg.

It all started rather unspiritually last Halloween. I was schlepping to the door for trick or treaters. I was embarrassed at the state of my house and thinking about Christmas and it all just came to a head internally.

The thought occurred to me – - I live in a darling little victorian house that could be the epitome of home and warmth, but it feels cramped and messy. And I knew Christmas would be here before we know it and that will mean *more* decor and clutter. Talk about missing the point and skipping the whole peace and reason for the season.

So I decided that night to start the next day removing as much clutter and reorganize so that in a few weeks when the Christmas season hit, I was going to enjoy my little house and cramming it full of people and things I really loved.

I worked my TAIL off and it made a huge difference in our Christmas and in my mental clutter. I started to look for things that had meaning in my stash of Christmas decor and somewhere along the process, I started to see *all* my things in a new way….I wanted to be surrounded by things I love and not by stuff I should keep. I re-thought what I wanted our living spaces to be like and how they could serve our family better. For example…while a rocking chair emotes a feeling of warmth and comfort, how practical is it when my wrestling little boy gets it in the head and floor space is at a premium?

And in the 10 months since, I have kept at it…paring down our entire house- – basement to bathroom – -every drawer and corner. I’ve taken countless overflowing carfuls of possessions to the thrift store and there isn’t a single thing I wish I’d kept. That concept has been sobering to me say the least…I had *that* much stuff that was “out of sight out of mind”. Oy…no wonder we’re consider the “haves” of the world. And I’m still finding things weekly that I can purge.

To me, this isn’t about if I have 100 things or 1000. It’s about living on the least I can. It’s about spending less time thinking about stuff and more time loving people. It’s about living in the present and not being caught up in the past or waiting for the future. It’s about seeing everything I have as a huge blessing.

Am I down to the bare minimum? Probably not, but I’m working on it. But I feel like I’ve discovered a new way of living that involves real thought and priorities and creativity. I ask myself questions now when dealing with my things…Will I really use this thing (and not just in theory!)? Is it in the most sensible place for it? Would it mean more to someone I love to have it? And most importantly “Just because I CAN buy something, does it mean I have to”?

And this desire for simplicity has spilled over to how I spend my money and my time too.

For me it’s an obedience thing. I have been given by God a huge heart for the less fortunate of the world. So how can I possibly justify being excessive and wasteful if I care about the poor?

I am really enjoying reading your blog from start to finish and thank you for your transparency. Blessings to all of us as we find explore this journey we’re on and God’s best for us.”

thanks for sharing your story, christy. the comments on this blog are my favorite part… in a small way, i feel like i get to meet new people. and it’s my privilege to meet you. God’s blessing on your journey as you strive to focus less and less on the material and more and more on the eternal.

related posts:

• about us
• the journey begins

today…

…turn to more important matters than transporting gold to your grave.  ~Credenda~

structube modern furniture

we’re taking some relatives to montreal tomorrow to show them the city.

whenever we visit montreal, we always make a stop at one of my favorite minimalist furniture stores: structube.  it’s like minimalista, but more affordable.  specifically, i’ll be looking for a new clock for the wall in my redesigned office.  i’ll let you know if i find anything… in the meantime, check out some of structube’s furniture design.

related posts: minimalista; operation: minimalist office complete

two by two

today i ran into some interesting advice from christine over at organize magazine  for my linen closet.  she wrote: “a bed requires only two sets of sheets, period – one to wash, and one to wear. the rule of twos applies to towels as well: two bath towels, two hand towels and two washcloths per family member. (have some extras for guests, but not too many.)”

i can’t think of any good argument against the two-by-two rule.  looks like i’ve got some more work to do.

 you can read the whole article about organizing solutions for your linen closet right here.

hans hofmann on minimalism

i found inspiration this afternoon from hans hofmann who was once labeled the “artist of the century” by american heritage magazine. he said…

“the ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak.”

becoming minimalist is ultimately about removing the unnecessary so that we have room in our lives for the necessary – brilliant.

related posts: humor; minimalism – the heart’s desire of most

modern doors direct

if i could start all over and money wasn’t an issue, i’d buy my doors from modern doors direct. a nice idea for a minimalist home. i love the hidden hinges idea!

related posts: minimalista furniture

minimalism and children

reader caron recently asked:

“how do your children feel about living the minimalist lifestyle?”

my simple answer is “very well. better than i expected. and better than their parents in many regards.”

to give you a little background, my son is 5 and my daughter is 2. my daughter has had little input in our minimalizing, but we have worked hard to include my son in the process. we feel that it is important for him to understand what is happening and feel included in the process. wefirst noticed his better-than-expected attitude when we minimalized his bedroom. he loves reading and we were dreading the process of going through his books. but we were shocked when he pulled out far more books to sell at our garage sale than we envisioned. next, he picked out more stuffed animals than we had pictured. thirdly, he cared little about his clothing and didn’t object at all to removing the things from his dresser top. after his bedroom came the big test when we moved downstairs to his toys. again, we were surprised that he had little hesitation in getting rid of many toys that he no longer uses. i even wrote about it here.

the only hiccup that we have encountered was when we removed the toys from our living room and moved them downstairs in the newly formed toy room. as a compromise, we decided to keep some of his books on a shelf in the living room and reminded him that he could still play toys in that room – he just had to return them to their new home downstairs when he is done.

the thoughtful question from caron has caused me to ask the follow-up question: “why exactly has it gone so well? why has my son adjusted so much quicker than his parents?” and i think there are a number of reasons.

1. he didn’t pay for the things that we’re discarding.
2. he’s still got more stuff than he could possibly use in one day.
3. his security is not found in his possessions. his security is found in his stable family.
4. his memories are not wrapped up in his possessions but in the people he loves.
5. he doesn’t look for joy in his possessions. he finds it in living life to the fullest.

which makes me think that we’ve all got a lot to learn from 5 year olds.

related posts: benfit #2 – the example for your kids, operation: basement, day 1

two minimalist blogs that i read daily

well, almost daily.

• zenhabits.net – covers a variety of topics relevant to life.  the section on simplicity is a can’t miss!
• unclutterer.com – fresh, insightful, funny… what else is there?

wedding clutter

i am currently away from my house this week and unable to accomplish any of the projects on my “to minimalize” list.  before i left, i had been working in the basement going through some old storage.

as i was clearing things out, i found three boxes of items from our wedding – and that’s not even counting the unopened gifts.  unable to make a decision, i put them in the middle of the floor.

during my business trip this week, i stumbled upon an article about the very decision i was unable to make – how to handle wedding clutter.  i found it helpful in sorting out the decision that i need to make when i return early next week.  here’s the article: wedding clutter. and next week, i’ll let you know what we decided…