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You Don’t have to Be Bogged Down with “Stuff”

So just what is a minimalist lifestyle? Why is this so much more than an approach to décor? What does it really mean? “Get everything you want, by discovering you already have it.” Essentially, a minimalist lifestyle simply means reducing the clutter, scaling back your possessions and aiming to say and do more with less. It means appreciating a few things instead of having a huge amount of clutter that you don’t really need or want.

We often see minimalism as an approach to certain designs for devices from companies and on an increasing number of websites. Here, the all-important maxim to follow is ‘communicate, don’t decorate’. That means that unless something is serving an actual purpose, it doesn’t belong in the design. A website doesn’t need a patterned background, it doesn’t need unnecessary menus and it doesn’t flourish filling up every bit of white space.

Every single element should serve a purpose, whether that is to guide the viewers’ eyes in a certain direction, to communicate some key information, or to facilitate an important interaction. If a button doesn’t do anything, it doesn’t need to be there!

Applying Minimal Design to Your Home

This same theory can then be applied to décor. Of course, you don’t need to communicate anything as such when it comes to your home’s decoration but you can accomplish something similar when looking at items of furniture etc.

Minimalist items of furniture are items that are utilitarian in as much as they don’t have lines or decorations that don’t need to be there.

That means that they will be made up of straight lines and they won’t feature things like swirly handles, or unnecessarily elaborate feet. Everything serves a purpose. With that serving as the basis for your décor, you can then continue with that basic concept by adding just a few items that you need while staying away from the temptation to add extra decoration that will serve no real purpose.

This minimalist concept allows for better interactions. By having fewer distracting elements, this approach is able to more effectively direct users to the right points on the screen and encourage the right interactions. It also allows a website design to more effectively scale to different screen sizes when users change devices and it creates more ‘space’ which makes the experience more calming and enjoyable. All these same concepts may apply just the same to your home. When you start removing unnecessary decorations and clutter, you start to make interacting with your home much simpler.

When there are fewer items on your desk, you’ll find that you can find what you want that much more quickly and easily. Likewise, when there is less clutter generally in your interior design, you’ll have less clutter in your visual field. This will make your space that much more calming and relaxing and also make it much easier to keep clean and tidy. And that in turn means you’re now spending less time cleaning and less time digging around for things.

Your home will be clean and attractive more often and you’ll have more time and energy to do the things that you enjoy doing and actually use your space! Your home serves a function. That function is to support the lifestyle that you want to live. So, if an item in your home is not serving that role, then the simple solution is to remove it! And then you can breathe more easily.

Minimalism as a Reaction to Materialism 

More and more people are starting to realize the benefits of actually having less clutter and fewer items and this is resulting in a situation where they are happier with just a few beautiful objects rather than feeling the need to go out and buy everything they see advertised on TV. And what does that lead to as a result? Greater satisfaction and happiness with fewer items!

This makes a massive difference because it means that you’re now going to be happier and spend less time thinking about the things that you don’t have. And you’ll have more money to spend on those select few items and on the things that really make you happy. This is the perfect antidote to our modern, materialistic culture and it is also the very same theory that has been preached by numerous philosophies and spiritual practices for centuries. Happiness doesn’t come from what you own, it comes from what you do with what you own.

You can be the richest person in the world but be incredibly stressed and unhappy. Why? Because you have created a lifestyle that still pushes the limits of your budget. You’ve been accustomed to a certain quality of life that costs a lot of money and involves a lot of hard work. Maintaining this lifestyle takes a lot of effort and yet you are still always thinking about the things that you don’t have and the things you want.

You don’t stop to take a moment and just enjoy the things you have and objects of incredible value and beauty end up being lost in all the noise and losing their value to you. Minimalism is about getting the very most out of what you have and this applies to your personal life. Taking a gratitude attitude means waking up and feeling so lucky that you’re with your partner. It means being overjoyed with your children and with your health and with your freedom.

It means not looking next door and wishing that you had the neighbor’s widescreen TV. It means not wasting money on junk and it means being present. And of course, minimalism means that your happiness isn’t tied up in physical possessions. It means that you can get enjoyment out of your own mind rather than letting that small scratch on your car ruin your day. Life is there to be enjoyed and there is so much out there to be enjoyed right now.

If all you can think about is how much you want the latest toy or gadget though, then you’re not going to have time to stop and enjoy those things. You have to work harder, stay in the office later. But what you don’t realize is that you already have everything you need. It’s time to relax and enjoy it! Many thinkers agree that this is the secret to happiness.

To be able to truly appreciate things and let go of unnecessary stress, distracting desires and that gnawing sense of dissatisfaction. Of course, in a capitalist world, where every company under the sun is constantly showing off its wares, this can be incredibly difficult. 

Declutter Your Closet

When it comes to clothing, most of us have far more than we really need. If you take a good, honest look through your closet, you will find that you have much more than you use. In fact, most people wear only a small percentage of their clothing over and over, and neglect the rest.

Why You Should Declutter Clothing

Having too much of anything takes up not only physical space in your home, but mental space as well. When you are looking for something to wear, having too much clothing makes you feel like you are searching through endless piles of stuff and yet still cannot find something suitable. When you declutter, you will be able to quickly find outfits that you love. This will save you time, and keep your stress levels low.

How Does It Make You Feel and Look?

As you are sorting through your clothing, think about how the item makes you feel. Do you look at it and feel excited to wear it? When it is on your body, does it make you feel and appear attractive and ready to take on the world?

Clothing is much more than a cover. It is a part of who you are, and how you feel in it is the image of yourself that you are presenting to the world. Keep only the clothing that makes you feel confident, and causes you to be proud of who you are.

Are You Keeping It Out of Obligation?

Many of us are harbouring clothing out of guilt, given to us by well-meaning friends and family. Unless someone knows your taste 100% of the time, clothing generally does not make an appropriate gift. Too often we are given an item and then feel stuck with it for an undisclosed amount of time, and we never quite feel right getting rid of it.

If you are keeping clothing you hate just because you feel loyal to the person who gave it to you, go ahead and get rid of it. This will make room for items you love, and you won’t feel guilt every time you glance at it, knowing that it hasn’t been worn and will probably never be.

Have You Worn It in the Past Year?

A good rule of thumb is that anything not worn in the past year you may decide to let go. The reason for the rule of a year is because certain items of clothing and accessories have particular yearly events that they are appropriate for, and it’s ok to keep a few of those special items.

Also, many locations have seasons that are very distinct in temperature. You will have clothing that you don’t ever wear in summer, but faithfully make use of every winter… or vice versa. If you didn’t wear it in the past year’s appropriate season, it is likely that this item is no longer needed, or that it no longer flatters who you have become.

Once you have made choices about what to get rid of, you can throw away any damaged items, sell a few select items and give away the rest to those in need. Organize what is left, and you will see what a difference it makes in your life when you have in your closet only what you need and love wearing. Enjoy your new organized closet and never search for hours for a lost item again.