Real Life Minimalists Update: Francesca

Every Monday I post Real Life Minimalists, a profile of one of my readers in their own words. If you’d like to participate, click here for details.

Today, I’m thrilled to share an update from Francesca, who was featured as a Real Life Minimalist in 2011 and 2013. It’s wonderful to follow her journey over the years! Visit her blog to read more about her experiences.

Francesca writes:

It’s been a long time since I first decided to throw everything out, pay off my debts and get my act together…and as time passes this remains a continually evolving lifestyle that I love, cherish and challenge each day.

Back in the 2000s I was wildly dissatisfied with life. I had a large debt (inherited and self-inflicted) and an infatuation with buying, spending, accumulating and generally allowing myself to let life rule my thinking. I was a pitiful pawn in my own game and a caricature of a grown-up. I could spout all the right things to my parents and those around me, on the surface I had my crap together.

But I did not.

I began to think that if filling my life with endless distractions wasn’t making me happy, then perhaps clearing it of them might be the way to go.

Over the last 10 years I have completely emptied my life of everything that no longer serves me. I’ve been lucky enough to have been featured on missminimalist.com twice before, outlining the various stages of my downsizing, and now here I am in 2018.

I know being, staying and evolving as a minimalist is a continuous progression and with my personality type, I have always needed to remain vigilant.

But the one thing I hadn’t counted on was finding and loving a man who had exactly the same focus as me. When I met D, I was immediately struck by his love for all things nature, simple living and frugal. When we moved in together you wouldn’t even have known two homes had blended. We had only the very basics and that was enough. There was no stuffing of cupboards, or drawers…there are so many places in our home that remain empty…yet there’s nothing missing.

I haven’t had any sort of spending or shopping relapse in years, I spend roughly once a week. This is our weekly food shop. I don’t buy anything superfluous to our needs. I still write down everything I spend and as a result there’s no chance I can accidentally buy something I don’t need. All bills are automated and regularly checked. The decor in our home is sparse. I got rid of everything years ago, though we do have a jar of heart shaped stones we collected from various trips to beaches over time.

The biggest change in my life has been my wardrobe and love affair with make-up. I used to own over 200 pairs of jeans and dresses of a similar number. I owned nail polishes and lipsticks in the hundreds, and now…not even one. I own about five dresses and a few more pairs of jeans. I wear very few items, less than 33 (of the famed Project 333). It’s probably a good thing I have managed to whittle this right down as D and I are working towards tiny house, off-grid living within the next four years.

Everything is falling into place, our savings are on track, we are very tunnel-visioned. I feel my continued success at staying minimalist is due in some part to my own tenacity, but also very much improved by having a side-kick with a shared vision. If I had to give anyone any advice about being minimalist and living within their means, I would definitely say to find a strong support. Whether it’s a partner, websites, books, or videos, don’t do it alone. It is possible to be successful and reclaim your life by yourself. It is inherently more doable with a strong support network. I would also say, don’t give up. In the early days I had many shopping relapses. I would seriously hate my behaviour, but after picking myself up, I’d remember how far I’d come and move on.

Buying stuff and accumulating only made me unhappy and feel like I couldn’t manage myself. Living with so much less, and I mean literally hundreds of thousands of things less, has brought me back to life and what is important to me. And what’s important certainly has nothing to do with the right shade of lipstick, the right bottle of wine or the restaurants I (no longer) frequent.

If you want to keep up with our journey towards off-grid living, tiny house life and our empty cupboards, please visit us at https://frannyanddanny.blogspot.com.au.

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{If you’d like to learn more about minimalist living, please consider reading my book, The Joy of Less, A Minimalist Living Guide, or joining my email list.}