Have you ever met those people that just make everything they do look so easy. Well I have recently, our fabulous new neighbors Megan and Chris. I thought that after our move a few months ago I was doing good keeping the clutter down and trying in my own way to be a Charlotte version of a "minimalist" (using the term very gingerly here). Well after seeing the neighbors house I must admit that I look like a complete hoarder, not so great when you have a blog about cutting back (gulp, and sigh!). So I asked Megan to write a guest post for the blog on how she does. Remember this blog is all about the simple things we can do in our day to day to help reduce, so without further ado here is the fabulous Megan to help me, I mean us, on some easy ways to do that. Read it, good advice coming from someone who actually knows what she is talking about!
Greetings and salutations! I am Megan, Charlotte’s neighbor. When I’m not creating tongue-twisting alliterations (see: blog title), one can usually find me residing in my 500 square foot abode. In fact, for the past six years, all three homes I lived in were 500 square feet or less. As a double dare to my life, I added another roommate to the minute living space mix, my fiancé, Chris! (I will exercise my mathletic prowess here: that means 250 sq. feet per human.) Here our four ways that I maintain moderate minimalism:
1. Identify What Brings You Happiness and Invest in that: A year and a half ago, I sold nearly all of my worldly possessions and travelled to Argentina with Chris. Moving is a great opportunity to edit your life as it imposes an evaluation of what to keep, even in less extreme circumstances than mine. I found that the sickening sum of the material items I had accumulated over the years couldn’t bring the happiness that a single meaningful conversation provided. It was a significant lesson: things don’t make me happy; experiences and people do.
2. Be Mindful of Purchases: When we returned to the states, we did so with a Camry that was halfway full! We rented a small space knowing that the more room you have, the more you will need to fill it. Still, when a 500 square foot house echoes, it’s time to start filling it up! While it was tempting to buy ready-made objects and expedite the furnishing process, we opted to re-purpose older furniture and were pleasantly surprised with how rewarding it was. For the first two months, our backyard became a DIY workshop (sorry neighbors!) and one-by-one, we filled our space with a style that we crafted. Literally!
3. Walk Away: While I love to do-things-myself, I draw the line when too many tools are involved. Shopping can be a little overwhelming for me with the agro salespeople and so.many.options. To cope with this, my strategy is to take flight instead of fight! In other words, I put the item down and bounce! If I continue thinking about it, I will return to purchase it, but more often than not, I find that I can’t even remember what I had picked up.
4. One-in-one-out: I traffic the material items entering my house like an imposing bouncer at a club! Before I purchase or accept one item, another item must vacate to make room.
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