If I Made a 100 Things List

I'm not quite to this point of minimalism yet, but I love imagining what 100 Things I would keep if I whittled things to that number. I don't usually include things like furniture or dishes, just a list of my personal items ~ as if I were a world traveler with only a bag full of stuff. I especially love creating this list when I feel the need to de-clutter. It reminds me of what I really use and helps me let go of the rest.

My Imaginary 100 Things List:

Things:

• Laptop & charger
• Laptop case/purse
• Phone & charger
• Camera & batteries
• Tripod
• Kindle fire
• Sunglasses
• Glasses
• Contacts
• Hair dryer
• Comb
• Curling/flat iron
• Hairspray
• Travel makeup bag
• Toiletries bag
• Journal
• Bible
• Favorite pen
• Art supplies {one bag}
• Lip balm
• Lotion
• Water bottle
• Travel mug
• Good coffee
• Carry-on suitcase

25

Books: 
{Yes, I have a Kindle but I'd store some of my books because I can't quite give them up. This is my list today.}

• Juicy Pens and Thirsty Paper
• Bird by Bird
• Steal Like an Artist
• Daring Adventures in Paint
• Flying Lessons
• Painted Pages
• Creative Call
• Hidden Art
• A Beautiful Mess Photo Book Idea
• Pride and Prejudice
• Harry Potter (all 7)
• Crooked River
• Fairies of Dreamdark
• Julie and Julia
• Eat, Pray, Love
• This I Know
• For Women Only
• Seven
• A Million Miles in a Thousand Years

25


Clothes ~ all seasons:
{In my imagination, I'd probably store one season in a box at my friend's house, while traveling with the other}:

• T-Shirt
• T-Shirt
• T-Shirt
• T-Shirt long-sleeve
• T-Shirt long-sleeve
• Blouse summer
• Blouse summer
• Blouse summer
• Blouse winter
• Blouse winter
• Blouse winter
• Swimsuit
• Shorts
• Shorts
• Skirt
• Skirt
• Little black dress
• Casual dress
• Jeans
• Jeans
• Pants wool
• Yoga pants
• Sweater
• Sweater
• Cardigan
• Cardigan
• Sweatshirt
• Jacket military
• Jacket professional
• Trench coat
• Wool Coat
• Hat
• Gloves
• Pajamas
• Underwear/socks{one zipper pouch}
• Ballet flats
• Decorative flats
• Wedge sandals high
• Wedge sandals medium
• Gladiator sandals flat
• Flip-flops
• Toms
• Boots
• Loafers
• Moccasins
• Hiking boots
• Tennis shoes
• Scarves {one small bag}
• Jewelry {one bag}
• Wedding ring

50


I'm curious, what would be some of the things on your list if you pared down to 100?

Summer Capsule Wardrobe No. 2

For July's capsule, I added more tops since it's unlikely I'll need more than one cardigan during July. I have two skirts this go-around because I wanted a breezier variety for the bottom items. I'm reusing a few of the items I put in the last capsule because I love them and wear them often. After all, the point of this is to have less clothes and use the ones I have, right?

So here's the breakdown of what I'm wearing in July:

• a wrap blouse
• bohemian blouse
• graphic t-shirt
• comfy t-shirt
• tie-die t-shirt
• summer dress
• pencil skirt
• a-line skirt
• shorts
• cardigan

This is a more casual wardrobe for summer vacation because I know this is what I'll actually be wearing.

I'll post the 25 outfits from this set of 10 items on the last Friday of this month, July 25th.

Hope you're enjoying something beautiful about today! (I'm celebrating the front moving in this week, yay for lower temperatures!)

Cozy Minimalist: Walls

I thought it'd be fun to share what I perceive as the balance between minimalist cold and minimalist cozy. I'll use my entry wall for an example.

I humorously refer to myself as a "cozy minimalist". I love learning about minimalism and whittling down my stuff, but I also love things to feel warm and inviting. When I think of cozy, I think of quilts, cushions, carpets, pillows and color!

This seems opposite of what I imagine an avid minimalist would own. I assume their home would not have fluffy things and would be mostly neutral. I'm not there yet. For now, I prefer to reduce my stuff from overwhelming-chaos to simple-cozy. This feels doable to me.

I love having color all around me {artsy girl}, so obviously my decor reflects that. My husband loves black and white photography, so we have that in the living room. The combination of the two keep our home's style a bit eclectic but it's a good representation of us.

I hung this small selection of my art in a loose arrangement. I didn't want it to appear too aligned, but still wanted some form to it. I decided on six pieces because I thought it was a good number to showcase my style without going overboard.

What do you like on your walls?

In My {Goodwill} Bag

With all the chaos with our house in May, we lived temporarily in a rent house of a friend. I only had four pots (sauce pan, soup pan, casserole dish and skillet), a few silverware, plates and cups. And you know what?

It was wonderful.

There were no leftover dishes in the sink. Every night I could fit everything in the dishwasher and voila, it was done the next morning. We didn't have much to mess up, so very little got dirty.

It once again made me aware of how much excess I have at home. I returned to dust filled kitchen cabinets and the task of washing everything in them. I found myself tossing more and more into giveaway bags (and sometimes trash) thinking thoughts like:

"It's been years since I used this." 

"I don't remember having this." 

"This is worn out, why was I keeping it?"

"Where did this come from?"

"What is this?"

If I didn't know what it was or hadn't used it in a really long time, I put it in giveaway. I wish I'd taken photos of that first batch, but I was too busy at the time. However, I thought it'd be fun (and hopefully encouraging) to periodically show what's in my goodwill bag.

Today I have:

• Frankenstein pillow (above)
• Diaper cream (above) - my kids are teens, ha, no need for this anymore.

• Karaoke machine 

• Sponge rollers

• Child's sleeping bag ~ my kids have outgrown it.

It's been super freeing to be giving things away each week to people I know who might want it and then to Goodwill for the rest. Our home seems much more spacious and I hope to continue moving in that direction.

Do you find it hard to give things away? Or do you give away stuff away as soon as you bring something new into the house?

Summer Capsule Wardrobe 2014

It's always thrilling for me to see how many outfits I can make from ten pieces. I get a little obsessive about it. Sooo, I thought it'd be fun this summer to let you see how many outfits can be made from so few pieces. The set above is the first capsule I'm going to work with.

This set is not all the clothes I own, but I'd like to experiment with wearing only these. In July I may switch out the jeans for another pair of shorts or another dress. But I want to play with this little group for now.

Since I'm trying to be less consumeristic with my purchases, I'll list where each item came from. While making the list, I was happy to see that most of these pieces I didn't even purchase myself. Here's the break down:

• Blue Gap t-shirt (hand-me-down ~ sister)
• Black v-neck t-shirt (hand-me-down ~ mom)
• Teal shorts (thrift store)
• Summer dress (hand-me-down ~ daughter)
• Black blouse (hand-me-down ~ sister)
• Purple blouse (hand-me-down ~ sister)
• Army-green skirt (thrift store)
• Cream long-sleeved cardigan (hand-me-down~ sister)
• Black short-sleeved cardigan (hand-me-down ~ daughter)
• Red jeans (thrift store)

Yes, I have some rather colorful pieces but I really love bright colors ~ they make me smile. I tried to stay away from too many patterns. If I had a monochromatic color palette I might add more patterns. With bright colors, I've focused more on solids to keep it from being too overwhelming.

All the tops go with all the bottoms. The only article of clothing not compatible with all the other pieces is the black cardigan ~ I don't particularly like black on black but a scarf might help it work. If the black cardi becomes a big hindrance I'll switch it out too.

Have you ever experimented with a capsule wardrobe?

(See the 25 outfits I created in this post!)

Five June Goals

Time to review last month's goals. Here's what I did/didn't accomplish in May:

1. Read a book outside. Check! It was lovely.

2. Get a cheap pedal exerciser to use under the desk while writing or watching movies. This didn't happen, but I'm hoping it will soon.

3. Paint my desk before moving it into my studio. No, but I did manage to decoupage it (that's close to painting, right?).

4. Grow an herb plant. Yes! Not one but three little plants growing in my kitchen window.

5. Have a picnic. No, but I plan to do this before it gets too hot.

Now for June goals, here we go:

1. Berry picking. This is on my list every year and I still haven't done it. Maybe this will be the year!

2. Decorate my house. With everything off the walls, it's given us a chance to have a fresh start. I've got some fun arrangements planned.

3. Clean up and cutify the backyard. I don't expect it to be landscape perfect, but I'd like to feel confident taking friends out there and not shutting the shades to hide "the jungle".

4. Finish some new upcoming features for this blog (hint: it involves capsule wardrobes)!

5. Swim. I love swimming and although my kids are old enough to go to the pool without me, I really want to get some time in the water before it turns warm as bath water in August.

What are you hoping to do this June?

{See May's goals here and July's goals here}

Spring Days

I'm exuberant about these warm days, the last few have been chilly, but for the most part we've enjoyed beautiful weather. I'm drinking in all the color!

What's your favorite part about spring?

5 Reasons to Live Simply

A few years ago, some hard losses awakened me to the fact that my life was too focused on things that didn't matter (like the latest gadgets) and I was letting the real stuff slide by. It put into focus what I wanted to pursue. Discovering minimalism helped me de-clutter my life and embrace living. Life is short, I want to live it to the fullest.

Here are five reasons I've found to live simply:

1. To reduce stress. 

We are a culture full of stress. We're busy from morning to night and still feel as though we haven't accomplished enough. We put this pressure on ourselves and feel it looming over us. But living simply is deciding what things are truly needed versus what is just busy-ness. We often buy into what culture and advertising feeds us, we guilt ourselves into doing things that we think we "should". 

My good friend and I often tell each other to "stop shoulding yourself". If you find yourself saying, "Oh I should..." stop and evaluate why you're saying that. Do you really believe this is something you need to do? Or is it because of someone's expectations? Maybe it's because you're afraid no one else will do it? 

Those are not good reasons to add things into your life that you don't feel a strong love or a strong passion for. We spend enough time working to make a living, we don't need to add extras that we don't really care about.

My son is involved with sports and there have been moments I've felt guilty for not letting him sign up for many various sports a year. But when I examined that guilt, it was about disappointing my son, not really what I felt was right for him or our family. When I could pinpoint my reason, I knew I didn't want us to be that busy and that he could really focus on the sports he loves if we limit his choices.

2. To cut out the time suckers. 

Some years ago when my kids were young, I discovered Flylady ~ a woman who encourages you to de-clutter your things. I did so at the time but didn't completely grasp what degree my stuff was ruling me. That realization happened later on when we were cleaning out my grandmother's house. 

My grandmother was still alive but moving in with my Mom and Dad. Everything was laid out so that her children and grandchildren could take whatever they wanted of it. She wanted us to have what she was no longer able to enjoy. My grandmother was a good housekeeper, she had a small house and yet, there was all this stuff! 

It finally clicked for me that at the end of life, this stuff has to go somewhere. Someone has to deal with it. I decided then that I didn't want to keep anything that I don't actually use. I don't want trinkets in a cabinet that I spend time cleaning because I'm accustomed to them, but not because I love them anymore. 

Getting rid of excess and keeping only those things I love is a better use of my space and time. Now I actually wear what's in my closet instead of cramming stuff in and trying to find what I'm looking for. Reducing busy-ness and clutter gives back time to my day. It lets that time to go to something I actually care about, which leads to my next point.

3. To own your own life. 

It's okay to say no. Saying no gives you the freedom to say yes to the things you are really care about.

I have a passion for helping and teaching others, but if I also feel the need to go to every PTA meeting, church function, or neighborhood cook-out I'm invited to, then I might not have the time I need to focus on that.

During basketball season, our family is gone many nights of the week to go my son's games. During that time of year, I don't say yes to much else. I know that I'll be maxed with games. I want the pace of our life to stay slow and steady so I decide what is priority at that time.

You dictate what you spend your time on, don't let others dictate it for you.

4. To focus on the things you want to focus on. 

Do you find yourself saying, "I would love to do this or learn that, if only I had more time?" Let me tell you a secret, you probably have the time. That hidden time is most likely taken up by something else you allow to suck your time (I'm looking at you, Television).

Now, I'm not talking about neglecting our duties (we all need to eat and have clean underwear). But it's good to truly evaluate everything you do during the week. Can you let something go? Could some of those things be delegated to others?

Getting rid of stuff is a huge time saver. When you have less stuff ~ you have less to clean or keep up with. People rarely believe this until they try it. Just try it in one area of your home, maybe your kitchen. Box up everything and only leave the bare bones. 

Experiment on how easy it is to clean your kitchen and how one dishwasher load takes care of everything. The plus side is that your family might begin helping you with the dishes when they realize there are no cups and they're thirsty!

5. To enjoy life. 

We want to be participators of life, not just observers of it. Often what happens is that we're so numbed by keeping up with our overwhelming lives, we stop living. We stop engaging with life in a meaningful way. We let life happen to us instead of making life happen. Simplifying life is cutting out the excess so we can embrace what matters.

Instead of being so busy with meetings or overwhelmed with planning for events, we can go hiking, fishing, painting, or visiting parks with our kids. 

The simple life opens the door to space. Space to enjoy life, to give breathing room and time to explore the world around us. 

If our time is not filled to the brim with activities and busy-ness, if we are not consumed with keeping up with our stuff; then we can actually spend that time enjoying our one, beautiful life.

I'm still simplifying my life; it will probably be a continuous journey. But I'm getting freer and the more I experience this freedom, the more freedom I want.

What do you think of these reasons for living simply? Do you have other reasons you might add? Or maybe you struggle to simplify life; what keeps you from doing so? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

6 Simple Ways to Add Movement to Your Day

I'm not an avid exerciser. That's kind of an understatement, I actually hate exercise. I like swimming, walking around a museum, playing games, but to exercise just for the sake of doing it ~ no. I've never been able to get in the habit of that. I've always struggled with setting aside time to run or walk. It just seems so separate from my world.

Recently I read the book, Move a Little, Lose a Lot. According to the author, James A. Levine (from the Mayo clinic), you don't need to set aside time to exercise if you increase activity in normal, daily routine. All movements throughout your day help create a healthier life and higher level of energy if done on a consistent, daily basis. The trouble is, that we've become so sedentary we've forgotten how to add movement to our day.

Reading this book I realized how much time I spend sitting and with his suggestions I started incorporating movement into my regular routine. I've been doing this for almost a month now and I've seen a huge improvements in my energy level as well as some weight loss and muscle toning.  The more active you are, the more energetic you feel. I always thought it was the other way around and tried to conserve energy, but felt so tired all the time.  Now I'm more active and have much more energy to do the things I want to do!

Here are six simple ways I've added movement to my day and you can too:

1. Pace while reading. 

This is easier than it sounds. I pace around the house while I read a book instead of sitting. I read and research a lot, so this has added tons of movement to my day. It's become so natural I wish I'd always done it!  Also, walking while reading activates my brain in a way that helps me process the information and digest it quicker, so it's a win-win.

2. Walk around the house during phone calls. 

My ringtone has become a signal for me to stand up and walk, not fast, just a slow pace. Talking to my sister, friends or family can often add an hour or more of walking to my day!

3. Stand up while on the computer.

Since I do a lot of work on my computer, I moved my "desk" to a high counter to encourage standing and swaying from side to side while I type. If I really want to sit, a stationary ball is also helpful, it keeps me from staying completely inactive. {I'm also hoping to get a cheap under-the-desk pedal exerciser as another option.}

4. Do chores while listening to a podcast. 

I love listening to podcasts and used to listen to them in the car, but now I save them for chores and yardwork. This helps me keep working for thirty to forty minutes because I don't want to miss out on the podcast! Music works well for this too.

5. Walk while you're waiting. 

There are so many hours wasted on waiting, why not let them work for your health? I'll admit, it felt a little awkward at first to get up and move while waiting; but once I started, I really enjoyed it. There are so many spare moments to exercise when taking advantage of waiting: walking while kids are in music lessons or sports practice, pacing in the doctor's office or dentist, and walking around the school while waiting for it to let out. These are hidden moments in the day that I used to sit through, but are now vibrantly active.

6. Cook meals at home. 

I know it may sound minuscule, but every bit matters ~ cutting, chopping, stirring, lifting ~ all of these small movements add up. A side benefit is that cooking at home keeps you from eating fast food and gives you opportunity to make delicious, healthy meals.

It's easy to change a daily task from sedentary to active when you know what to look for. There are many tasks you can accomplish while standing or pacing and you'll be amazed at how it helps with muscle tone, weight loss (not fast, but steady) and increased energy. 

If you're struggling to know where to start, write down everything you do during the day that is sedentary and see if there is a way to make it active. For example, you might walk on the treadmill while watching the news or rock your baby standing up.  

Try activating just one sedentary task in your daily routine this week, I think you'll love the way you feel! 

What sitting task would you like to add movement to?

Living Simply: Thoughts on Stuff

We've been cleaning out my mother-in-law's house. She passed away in October and we're getting the house ready to sell. I can officially say that I am weary of stuff. In the past few years I've watched my parents clean out my grandparent's house and all the work that went into that. After that, my parents began getting rid of lots of things to reduce their load. They didn't want us going through what they'd had to do for my grandparents.

I'm struck wondering why we buy so much stuff, hang onto it, clean on and around it, only to give it all away in the end or have someone go through it (an emotionally taxing experience, I might add).

I read somewhere that when Mother Theresa died she had one box of things. ONE. BOX.

I think I'm beginning to understand that a bit. I'm no where near living with only a box full of stuff, but I'd like to be closer than I am now. We've been taking clutter out of our house by the bag fulls to make way for things coming over from my MIL's house. But even the things we're bringing over, I'm being super picky about. I am finally getting the idea that memories are not things, things are not memories. I have photos, I have moments in my mind I will never forget. I'm not against having a few treasures, but I'm feeling less and less of a pull to hang on to things.

It's just stuff.

I've been reading a lot on minimalism. It's comforting to see people living so simply, unafraid of having little. It seems easier to maintain. I feel myself slowly leaning into it. Simply reducing my wardrobe has helped so much. It's less mind stressing to get ready in the morning with so few options in my closet.

I read Kelly Oribine's minimalist manifesto, and felt she put so beautifully the joy of living minimalist. I want to be there. It's going to take awhile to reduce our stuff to where I want it to be, but I'm ready to take the plunge.

I'm ready to trade my stuff for living simply.