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Anyone read/reading The Joy of Less (and want to discuss it?)


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I'm currently reading through it and love it! It's definitely inspiring and it's keeping me motivated :D

 

I like how she doesn't tell you what you should/shouldn't have in order to be a minimalist but offers more of an approach to finding your own minimalist niche ;)

 

By the same token, I want someone to tell me exactly what to get rid of :lol:

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I'm currently reading through it and love it! It's definitely inspiring and it's keeping me motivated :D

 

I like how she doesn't tell you what you should/shouldn't have in order to be a minimalist but offers more of an approach to finding your own minimalist niche ;)

 

By the same token, I want someone to tell me exactly what to get rid of :lol:

I'm going to have to get it to keep up with you. :) And :lol: on the bolded part! :lol:
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I'm not but I would like to to! This sounds up my alley.

 

It's really great! She lays it all out there and gives you simple steps to simplifying your house :)

 

Funny, I just bought this book a few weeks ago, but havent started reading it yet. What chapters have been your fav so far?

I like Part Three: Room by Room The first two parts of the book go over the steps to declutter anything but part three breaks down each room. I'm reading through the kitchen section again since that's what I'm currently working on :)

 

I'm going to have to get it to keep up with you. :) And :lol: on the bolded part! :lol:

 

Seriously! I think you would really like it. It's helping me to keep certain tips in mind while I go through each of our things. I'm just hoping to get to a point where I don't feel like I need to look back into the book to see if she gives advice on a particular item :001_huh:

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I just got through the first 12 chapters and here are my thoughts so far.

 

Fav part: Chapter 3

"Think of the life energy expended in the ownership of a single possession: planning for it, reading reviews about it, looking for the best deal on it, earning (or borrowing) the money to buy it, going to the store to purchase it, transporting it home, finding a place to put it, learning how to use it, cleaning it (or cleaning around it), maintaining it, buying extra parts for it, insuring it, protecting it, trying not to break it, fixing it when you do, and sometimes making payments on it even after you've disposed of it. Now multiply this by the number of items in your home. Whoa! That's positively exhausting!" ( :scared: and frightening and :eek: eye opening!!)

 

Some good one liners (I am paraphrasing from my notes)

 

- My house is my sacred space not storage.

- The problem is we put more value on our stuff than on our space.

- Finding ways to enjoy things w/o owning is one of the keys to having a minimalist home.

- Cultivating an attitude of gratitude for what you have is far more conducive to a minimalist lifestyle.

 

 

I do think she spent a little too much time trying to explain the minimalist mindset and trying to "convert" others. She got a little long winded with it.

Overall, I am thoroughly enjoying this book and really look forward to Part 3. I actually LOL(ed) in a few sections.

 

@mykdsmomy How has the cleaning out and paring down going?

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@mykdsmomy How has the cleaning out and paring down going?

 

 

It's funny how life happens while you're trying to declutter ;) I worked super hard today in my kitchen! I also was doing a bazillion other things including school, errands, carpooling, emails, unexpected visitor, sick ds, and just the run of the mill average day stuff that always seems to hold me back when I have the drive to get things DONE!

 

I went around yesterday and put post it notes on each of my kitchen cupboards listing what would go where so I could get a visual. I love her idea of taking everything out of your kitchen and making a pile and then ONLY putting back what you need.....BUT....I need to do this one cabinet at a time or I will go insane. I worked under our sink today and :ack2::blink::scared:

There was a reason I had been putting that off. Apparently there has been a small leak because in the back under the pipes was a ton of mold :ack2:. I got it all cleaned out and threw away a ton of cleaning supplies that I never use. I also cleared out a few drawers (one of which held our garbage bags and Swiffer pads. I now have my garbage bags under the sink and I can use the free drawer for our plastic storage containers :)

I'm putting together a huge give away pile to donate to my friend who is opening up a transitional living facility for women and children. It's perfect timing! As I go through everything in my house, I can keep that in mind and keep paring down....I love it! (it's addicting :001_huh: )

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It's funny how life happens while you're trying to declutter ;) I worked super hard today in my kitchen! I also was doing a bazillion other things including school, errands, carpooling, emails, unexpected visitor, sick ds, and just the run of the mill average day stuff that always seems to hold me back when I have the drive to get things DONE!

 

I went around yesterday and put post it notes on each of my kitchen cupboards listing what would go where so I could get a visual. I love her idea of taking everything out of your kitchen and making a pile and then ONLY putting back what you need.....BUT....I need to do this one cabinet at a time or I will go insane. I worked under our sink today and :ack2::blink::scared:

There was a reason I had been putting that off. Apparently there has been a small leak because in the back under the pipes was a ton of mold :ack2:. I got it all cleaned out and threw away a ton of cleaning supplies that I never use. I also cleared out a few drawers (one of which held our garbage bags and Swiffer pads. I now have my garbage bags under the sink and I can use the free drawer for our plastic storage containers :)

I'm putting together a huge give away pile to donate to my friend who is opening up a transitional living facility for women and children. It's perfect timing! As I go through everything in my house, I can keep that in mind and keep paring down....I love it! (it's addicting :001_huh: )

 

:hurray: I am so inspired! Time to get started on my own kitchen drawers!!!

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(it's addicting :001_huh: )

 

But in a good way, right? :001_smile:

 

I've just bought the book. The section on decluttering one room at a time (or one cupboard at a time?) was very appealing; I need a lot of hand-holding on this one! I'd love to be completely minimalist, but my pack rat family and my own tendency to panic hold me back. I mean the kind of panic that sets in when I look at something, want to get rid of it, and then suddenly the old pack rat mentality starts saying "hang on! Are you sure you don't want this? You loved this once! You might need it soon and then what will you do?!" :svengo:

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Regarding being told what to keep . . . Real Simple magazine had a section this month on decluttering and then listed the only things you really need in certain places. I remember that the kitchen tool drawer lacked a couple of things I thought important but over all, they were good lists. It wasn't room by room but just a few lists to get you started.

 

Honestly, an off-set whisk was not on their list!

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