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.
I love this story from Patti! She tells us how she reached a tipping point with her possessions, then started down the road of joyful decluttering. Check out her blog to read more of her thoughts.
Patti writes:
Hi dear readers! I’m Patti – long time reader of this site, first time writer!
My journey with minimalism began about two years ago, so you might say I’m still a minimalist newbie when it comes to downsizing, streamlining and decluttering.
I had struggled with keeping my space organized and tidy ever since I was a young child. I loved doing projects, whether it be drawing comics, playing with Legos, or reading books and yet I always seem to leave a mess in my wake! It drove my parents crazy every time they looked into my room and saw an apocalyptic war zone of clutter.
Fast forward to 2016. I had been living in South Korea for almost 8 years. I had gotten married just a few years before and my husband and I were living in a very small apartment together. My stuff was overflowing, filling almost every nook and covering almost every surface. My husband is a natural minimalist and is an awesome enough person not to criticize my messiness. However, I knew enough was finally enough. I had a broken sewing machine in a corner which propped up a towering pile of books I hadn’t read in years. I couldn’t close my bulging drawers even though there was nothing I liked wearing. I was exhausted just looking at all my stuff and felt too overwhelmed to do anything about it.
A friend had posted a picture of “The Joy of Less” on her Facebook wall and I was very curious about it. I bought it on Kindle and was immediately hooked. I worked hard on keeping my surfaces clean and to keep only the things I loved. It was a challenge! It was such a struggle for me since I held a lot of sentimental value in my possessions. I took a lot of baby steps in decluttering. As I started implementing the strategies in the Joy of Less more and more, I began feeling so free! I began actually thinking about having Experiences over Possessions. Instead of holding on to all the tea packets that I would honestly never get around to drinking, I started visiting new coffee shops with friends. I began to pare down my wardrobe to the clothes that I knew could fit me and looked nice. I since then have become very careful in clothes shopping, only buying something I know I will wear and being more creative and adventurous with what I already have. In fact, I’ve only been clothes shopping once since I’ve been back in the States!
My husband and I (with our 6-month-old son!) have since moved back to the United States. Now that I’m a mom, I’m even more conscientious of the things I buy and use. I’m thankful for libraries and the freedom to check out any children’s book I want and then give it back when I’m done! I feel so much joy thinking about the experiences my son will have growing up and using the library. This is one of the joys that embracing minimalism has given me.
I’ve started a blog (www.pattiwarren.wordpress.com) to document my “Learn a New Thing a Month” challenge as well as my own personal musings. Feel free to take a look, follow and comment!
Thanks again for reading!
{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.}
Patti, I can relate to the feeling of exhaustion when looking at a pile of STUFF. I had that experience in our garage before I cleaned it out! Congrats on being a (relatively) new mom. I think the minimalist lifestyle will make motherhood easier and more enjoyable. Now I’m going to pop over to your blog and have a look around!
Isn’t it interesting how a moment of clarity can change one’s whole perspective on clutter? All of a sudden, we can see that our possessions have been hijacking our space, time, and life. I have been decluttering for several years and I still notice things I can happily live without. Every time I make a discovery like that, it makes me so happy! One more thing -out!
I have never had many things. When I worked in an office I made a chart of all the clothes I had and all the combinations I could make. I only had solid colors. I remember I could go almost a month without repeating. I also changed accessories with the seasons. Most of my clothes and most of my jewelry is second hand.
I have been a minimalist for years, but I could completely relate to the pile of tea bags! I am such a food hoarder! I look forward to reading about your journey on your blog.
I fill bags and boxes with things to give away. People move or clear out an older person’s house and pass things on to me. I teach a lot of classes on upcycling. All buttons are sorted by color. Ribbon is rolled and sorted by color. Full skeins of yarn to go knitters and crocheters. Large sheets of paper and rolls of paper go to art teachers. If I get a box of greeting cards, I keep two of each design and pass on the rest. Large pieces of fabric to go quilters or children’s theater groups. I was given a 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle missing several pieces. I kept 200 or so pieces and recycled the rest. Silk flowers are pulled apart and stored flat. I have been to garage and rummage sales where there are huge bins of paper, silk flowers, or yarn.
I have one plastic shoe box for each type of art supply. I keep only what I will need for one class on each type of project. There will always be more paper, fabric, buttons, or yarn. I was given so many boxes of greeting cards that I passed on all of them. I filled bags with small toys for the free table at the food pantry. Junk mail is for word games. I don’t need much. A local craft store is going out of business. I called my friend to let her know. I like the unique.
I have given away so much that my dresser and night table are empty. My adult daughter, who is working 3 part time jobs and has ADHD, has been living with us. Every week, I continue to give a big bag to Goodwill and another bag or two to the local food pantry. They want clothing, small toys, craft supplies, and other odds and ends for their free table. My daughter has been slowly getting rid of her many toys, stickers, and art supplies. I do origami, make collages and do a lot of volunteer work. I bought your book “Lightly” . I bought the hard copy. I used to have two book cases full of books, now I have only two small shelves.
I continue to donate a bag of two to Goodwill each week. My neighbors give me key chains, jewelry, and small toys for the local food pantry. I just gave away four decks of cards. I give my kids money and my son is using his to take his family on a road trip to Mt. Rushmore. The kids are not interested in amusement parks. I keep giving craft items away.
I enjoy helping others to clear their homes. Just a few days ago, I suggested a friend should store all her post it notes in one place. Then she would know how many she had. If I store all my similar objects together, I see how much I have.
My friend’s husband died a few months ago. He used his basement for crafts. She found 8 bottles of Elmer’s glue of various sizes. He could never find it so he bought more. I gave her some money, poured some of the big bottles together and donated them to the library and local museum. I kept one bottle. This was in March. She called me a few days ago. During this shutdown, as she kept clearing the basement, she found more bottles of glue. I continue to empty drawers and shelves. The craft items I keep each fit in one small tackle box. I have one for papercrafts, one for drawing and coloring, and one for crochet. If things start to fill up, things get given away. Today, I removed 26 items from my craft collection. I am 70 years old. I keep what I think I will use in 6 months. More is given to me when the world is normal. I also recycled many plastic containers my daughter brought here that have no matching lids.