Tag: minimalism

September Clothing Donation

September Clothing Donation

by No Makeup Mama ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

This month I’m giving away several sweaters and what’s left of my business casual pieces: some cardigans, skirts, blouses, and dress pants. I had been hanging on to these things “just in case” [which is by far my most frequent excuse for hoarding things I never use, by the way].

For most of these clothes the excuses were: “just in case I go back to work in an office” [BUT I have been so spoiled by working in the fitness world for the last five years that I never want to work for a company that requires this dress code again] and “just in case I visit a church that expects people to dress up” [BUT I know that I’ll never conform to a church dress code again either].

I still have a few nice dresses that I really like for hot dates with my husband or weddings or special occasions [or maybe that aforementioned visit to a church] that I would actually enjoy dressing up for.

But here is one “just in case” I’m not ready to let go of yet: I’m keeping one black mini-skirt just in case my husband takes me out dancing like back in the day.

Hint, hint, Babe. 😉

Karis

Decluttering: The Master Bedroom

Decluttering: The Master Bedroom

by No Makeup Mama ♥ 4 Comments

[Please forgive my poor photography.]

When we moved into this house almost two years ago, I hated everything about it – but I hated the master bedroom the most. [I wish I had a photo to show.] It had stained green carpet and brown walls and a popcorn ceiling full of cobwebs and a ceiling fan that had literally not been dusted once since the house was built. But we had more pressing projects so we didn’t even update the paint [we did clean and change the carpet] until a year ago when I decided to give birth to my third baby at home and nearly had a panic attack when I thought of bringing my baby into the world in that bedroom.

So, one night when we thought I was going into labor, my husband painted the whole room and we got all new bedding and we hung new blinds and new curtains and we made a wooden sign to hang above the bed with words from the song that was played at our wedding [“Come What May” from Moulin Rouge].

And it looked beautiful.

It still had [and still has] the popcorn ceiling, but it is much, much better.

[I didn’t even end up giving birth to Josephine in the bedroom – we were in a birth tub in the living room – but we did take pictures there after, so it was worth it.]

[The photo above was taken by a professional – not me, obviously!]

Fast forward one year, to three weeks ago, and the room was cluttered and filled with boxes we never unpacked and basically a disaster.

Seriously, I can’t even believe that I’m sharing these pictures. The saddest part is that this is how the room always looked.

Well, anyway, to wrap up it up and get to the point of this post, I wanted my bedroom to be an oasis again. I wanted it to feel like a spa – calm and quiet and clean and most of all…free of clutter.

So, I spent the better part of a day decluttering every surface, every drawer, every nightstand, every corner until everything had a home and everything that didn’t was no longer wasting space in our room.

The result was magical.

I actually love this room now.

And the best part, since I didn’t just clean the room, I actually cleared it, the room has stayed this clutter-free for three weeks. No really. I took the “before” pictures on August 28th before I started and I actually took the “after” pictures last night before bed because I was amazed that we’ve managed to keep a clean room for three weeks! Our room literally always looks like this now!

One thing I’ve noticed is that I’m much more motivated to keep the room clean now that it is free of clutter. When the room looks pristine, I’m a lot less likely to throw clothes on the floor or leave the bed unmade. It’s so clean, I don’t want to mess it up. And I think that is what has allowed us to keep it tidy for so long – and hopefully from now on!

Karis

Zero Waste: Beeswax Wraps

Zero Waste: Beeswax Wraps

by No Makeup Mama ♥ 1 Comment

In January of 2017, I made a New Years resolution to stop using all disposable products [i.e. paper towels, plastic bags, disposable cups, paper plates, paper napkins, etc] and switch everything in the house to reusable. At the time, I didn’t even know that zero waste was an actual thing and I certainly didn’t suspect that I would fall this far down the rabbit hole…but here we are.

It has been a long process [obviously] as we have slowly eliminated different disposable items from our lives as we’ve run out of them.

And today, I started using beeswax wraps.

Truthfully, I don’t use plastic wrap very much any more because I store pretty much everything in mason jars or plastic storage containers or reusable baggies. BUT on a few occasions [such as when making jam or prepping a salad ahead], I need something to cover a bowl. Today, I did both – so I used my beeswax wraps for the first time.

When I make jam [which I do every time strawberries go on sale for less than $1/lb], I follow Martha Stewart’s no-pectin recipe and soak the strawberries in sugar and lemon juice overnight. I usually cover the bowl with plastic wrap – but last night I covered the bowl with my beeswax wrap and it worked great.

Afterward, I just washed gently in the sink and hung to dry.

I also made a cabbage salad [that is a lot like an oil based coleslaw] that gets better as it sits in the fridge, so I covered the bowl with a beeswax wrap.

These wraps are also good for storing sandwiches or anything that can be fully wrapped – but like I said, I typically use containers for those things. The tackiness goes away over time, but these are supposed to last for at least a year.

Another disposable product GONE! Yay!

Karis

August Clothing Donation

August Clothing Donation

by No Makeup Mama ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

This month I donated mostly workout tops that I don’t prefer any more, but also some sweatpants and pajamas I never wear, bras that don’t fit, and a Guess hoodie that I would like if I could fit my arms into it…but I can’t, so BUH-BYE.

All of these things have been well-loved at one time or another. Some of them even brought back wonderful memories of my early running days or special nights out with Brett… some were even [almost] hard to put in the “donate” pile. BUT my body and my style have changed a lot since those early days of marriage when Brett was constantly buying me trendy, form-fitting clothes in wild colors and prints. Now, if I’m leaving the house to go anywhere other than the gym, I much prefer my plain gray t-shirt (yes, it has a hole in it) with my one pair of jeans or, if I’m staying in, a loose fitting tank top over a bandeau with my jean cut-offs [or maybe sweat pants].

Maybe for date night I’d trade the ratty t-shirt for something a bit nicer…like a black t-shirt…but probably not. I like to be comfortable.

What can I say? I’m a casual gal. Plus, I don’t like being trendy. I’ve never been good at it – mostly because I’ve never been good at conforming. I prefer simple, monochromatic, functional clothing.

Here’s a secret I love to share: Brett has been buying all of my clothes [yes, ALL OF IT] and dressing me [not literally…] since we got married seven years ago. How many women can say that their husband is the fashionable one who picks out all of their clothes???

Anyway, another month down, a third of the way done. So far I’ve donated 104 items of clothing. 👍🏻 208 to go!

Also, in the past four months, we [Brett and I] have not purchased any clothes or accessories for myself or the kids. The kids did get some clothing as gifts for birthdays. But we have far more going out than we have coming in the house, so that’s good.

Karis

Decluttering: Junk Mail

Decluttering: Junk Mail

by No Makeup Mama ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Did you know that in Canada [and apparently other places around the world], you can put a “No Junk Mail” sticker on your mail box and effectively avoid about 80% of unwanted flyers, mailers, and the like?

Of course, it’s not that easy in America.

Today I had a bit of time since I’ve been stuck home with sick kiddos, so I decided to go through the pile of junk mail to start unsubscribing.

Turns out, it’s quite challenging to stop unwanted mail.

I was able to unsubscribe from some mailers that had a web address or phone number listed and also some catalogs that I accidentally subscribed to at some point when I bought a product.

I also switched all my bills to paperless. 👍🏻

In Zero Waste by Shia Su [pick up your copy HERE, or borrow it from the library like I did], she lists a few online resources to help reduce junk mail.

DMA Choice ($2 fee)

Catalog Choice (free service, but in my experience, often just directs you to the catalog’s website to unsubscribe)

Opt-Out Prescreen (free service that provides 5yr or permanent option to opt-out of insurance and credit card mailings)

And the app PaperKarma (4 free unsubscribes for new members, then a subscription [ironic] fee of $1.99/month or $19.99/year)

For the most part, I think a simple call or email to customer service asking to be removed from the mailing list is an effective way to stop a lot of unwanted mail. Besides that, DMA Choice and Opt-Out Prescreen should take care of a lot of the junk mail that’s left – although I won’t know for a while because it apparently takes up to 90 days for the mail to stop coming.

So, while I’m waiting, I’ll be unsubscribing from the mailers as they arrive.

Oh, joy…

I also found this article from Eco-cycle helpful: How to stop junk mail in 6 easy steps.

Happy decluttering!

Karis

Decluttering: The Junk Drawer

Decluttering: The Junk Drawer

by No Makeup Mama ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

This journey to minimalism is definitely a process – a LONG process. For years, since before I even knew there was an actual term for it, I have been incorporating minimalist principles into my life. And yet, everywhere I turn, there is unnecessary junk.

For instance, The Junk Drawer.

No, really. That’s the actual official name of this drawer in our home. It is a catch-all for whatever scraps of paper and knick-knacks are lying on the island that we don’t feel like dealing with when we are “tidying up.”

[As if hiding the mess in the drawer is actually making things tidy…]

The drawer gets so stuffed full of junk that by the time I clean it out, the drawer will barely close.

Well, I decided to take the advice I found in New Minimalism [by Fortin and Quilici] and give everything in this drawer a permanent home AND redefine my concept of “full.”

[This book is FABULOUS for the aspiring minimalist, by the way.]

Rather than viewing this drawer as full only when I can no longer cram anything else into it, the drawer should reach capacity when everything can still be easily seen and grabbed AND when it contains only the things that actually belong there.

So I took everything out and sorted it by like type and determined what we actually use frequently and want to reside in the drawer permanently. Then I put everything else where it truly belongs.

Now The Junk Drawer looks like this:

Ah. That feels much better.

I guess now I need to change the name…

Karis

July Clothing Donation

July Clothing Donation

by No Makeup Mama ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Reducing my wardrobe feels like it’s going SO SLOWLY with only 26 items per month, so this month I was going to “re-home” 78 pieces of clothing to cover the next three months.

OMG, WHO WAS I KIDDING?

I could barely find 26. I guess slow and steady is the best approach after all.

I’ve also learned that I have some emotional attachments to my clothing – which is so strange to me because I don’t have emotional attachments to ANY of my other belongings. And since I’m not particularly fond of shopping for clothing or buying new clothing, I can’t believe that I’m having a hard time letting go of some of these things.

When I did my original clothing inventory in May, my biggest category was [of all things] tank tops. I had a whopping 57 tank tops! That’s about the same number of warm weather days in Chicagoland each summer! Each month, I look through my entire drawer dedicated to tank tops and try to pick the ones I don’t need…and I can never seem to let any of them go! It’s like my love of summer has me hanging on to these items I will never even get the chance to wear.

Anyway, this month I’m [FINALLY] letting go of 10 tank tops. [Yay! I did it!]

The other clothing items in the donation bin this month are five t-shirts, two workout pants, three scarves, two pajama sets, a blazer, one pair of sweatpants, and two pairs of shorts.

Good thing I have thirty days to find the next 26 clothing pieces to purge!

Karis

Lessons in Motherhood and Gift-Giving

Lessons in Motherhood and Gift-Giving

by No Makeup Mama ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

A few days ago, my oldest, Evangeline, turned 4-years-old. I had been planning to start a new tradition of making a photo book of the year for each of my kids birthdays – but after going through all my photos and photo books and scrapbooks, I’ve realized I need to choose a more “green” option that jives with my new minimalist lifestyle. So, I put together a quick video of highlights from her first year using the Google Photos app.

Voila! Memories stored for a lifetime! [Assuming there is no apocalyptic event that destroys all power on the planet – and in that case, I probably won’t be strolling down memory lane very often anyway.]

You can watch the video at this link:

Today was the party – a unicorn party.

Even though it was a small “family only” gathering and the majority of our local family couldn’t come, it was still a lot of fun – maybe even more fun because the absence of kids forced the adults to participate in the “Pin the Horn on the Unicorn” game. [Yes, there is video evidence below.]

Because of the changes we’ve been making to our perspective on waste and excess and consumerism and …life in general, we made two changes to how we celebrate birthdays in our family.

First, we emphasize experiences over gifts. On her actual birthday, Brett took the day off so we could all enjoy a day at the community pool [which is more like a water park]. We gave her a gift, but rather than making that a focal point of the day, we set it out in the living room the night before so she could discover it in the morning and then we didn’t talk about gifts again. We focused the day around the activities we were doing together.

To be honest, I’m having a hard time figuring out where I stand on the gift-giving thing. On the one hand, I love to give gifts. Brett and I enjoy giving gifts to our family members on holidays and birthdays and we make it a priority to give a gift to all the nieces and nephews each year. But on the other hand, I don’t want my kids thinking that birthdays and holidays are all about getting stuff, so I prefer that people not give gifts to my kids on these occasions. But I realize that is hypocritical of me, so I am trying to find a solution. I think we are going to try to find a way to give more experience gifts and fewer objects – and whenever possible, give the gift of quality time, which is the best gift we can give to our loved ones.

Second, we gave Evangeline a used gift. It was something she really, really wanted – a baby stroller – and of course, she has no idea that it wasn’t new nor does she care in the least. The motive here is not at all financial. It is sustainability. I don’t care what an item costs. I’m more concerned about the environmental impact of constantly making new things while sending old things to a landfill. I’m committed to buying used toys [just like my commitment to buying used or sustainably sourced clothing] because this just makes sense.

I realize that this won’t always work because my kids will undoubtedly grow up some day [😭] and start caring about price tags and all that [though not if I can help it] and they will want the latest and greatest stuff. But at 4-years-old, my daughter just wanted something with wheels to push her stuffed animals around in. If only life would stay this simple forever.

Happy Birthday, my sweet Evangeline. 💕

Karis

Lessons in Motherhood and Materialism

Lessons in Motherhood and Materialism

by No Makeup Mama ♥ 1 Comment

Yesterday, my oldest, Evangeline [3-years-old], went to the movies with a girlfriend, so my inner mamma bear was immediately preparing to soften the blow for my son [2-years-old], who I assumed would be devastated because he couldn’t go too.

My first thought was to take Theo to Target to pick out a new toy [from the bargain bin, of course – my kids’ FAVORITE]. I was still considering this as a viable option until it dawned on me how ridiculous and hypocritical it is of me to try to comfort my son with shopping.

Here I am, trying to teach my children that happiness does NOT come from stuff that you can buy – or even from the experience of shopping – and yet my first tendency was to have him buy something so he wouldn’t feel sad.

[Side note: This whole plan was based on my assumption that he would be sad. There wasn’t even proof he would be – and of course, he wasn’t the least bit bothered.]

Here was the perfect opportunity to teach my son a lesson about a). how to deal with disappointment and b). what gives real joy in this life and I nearly blew it!

So, when the moment arrived, I held Theo’s hand and said “Sissy is going to go see a movie with Charlotte and you and I are going to go to the park to play. How does that sound?” And he was perfectly happy with that. In those three hours together, he received more focused attention [though not completely because Josephine was also with us] than usual because of the absence of Evangeline. We played and laughed and I don’t think he ever thought about what his sister was doing.

In the end, I think I’m the one who learned a few things, not Theo. I was reminded of two important lessons about motherhood:

1. I don’t need to shield my kids from every disappointment. Even though it’s my natural desire to protect them from every possible moment of sadness, it is my job to show them proper ways to handle disappointments – and retail therapy is definitely not one of them. On the other hand, physical activity is FANTASTIC therapy [and good for you too]!

2. Possessions don’t make you happy. I believe that the greatest sources of joy in life don’t come from getting, but from giving. In this case, giving time and attention to each other, doing something that we love [being outside and active] was way more enjoyable for Theo and I than walking around Target would have been.

It makes me wonder if my children are so stuff-obsessed because that’s what I’ve been modeling for them. Are kids born with the desire to accumulate more and new stuff? Or is that something I [with the help of our consumerist society] am instilling in them?

I clearly have to be more cautious about encouraging materialism in my kids.

Anyway, we had a great day and we didn’t come home with any cheap plastic doo-dads that would be broken or forgotten in a matter of days. Just a few photos of our day together.

Karis

Creating Mini-Minimalists

Creating Mini-Minimalists

by No Makeup Mama ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

What you see in the picture above is one of three identical shelving units we have in our home – all stuffed to the max with toys. There is nothing “minimal” about the toy situation around here, but I realize that these toys belong to my kids and I can’t just go throwing them out all willy-nilly. It has to be the children’s choice.

So, last night, I opened a Rubbermaid container and asked my kids to choose the things that they no longer want and would like to give away and to put them in the bin.

I fully expected my kids to rebel against this idea or maybe put two toys in the container and adamantly insist that they simply must keep everything else.

Boy, was I wrong.

They filled the entire thing.

[If anyone sees something they gave to my kids, please don’t be offended, it has all been well-loved. And trust me, most of what is in this bin is from Brett and I.]

Still, I was doubtful that they really understood what was happening to the toys in the bin, so I left it in the living room overnight and this morning we went through everything again.

They changed their minds about a few things [Eva decided to keep her Moana dolls and Theo wanted to keep the plastic blocks] but everything else was still a firm “give it away.”

It’s not like they don’t have plenty of toys left to go around.

This entire basket is filled with little people and cars and animals – which I didn’t count, but is so obviously excessive – and yet my kids love imaginative play with these characters, so we will keep them all…for now.

And my living room shelving unit looks much better.

It obviously won’t stay this tidy, but they reduced the amount of toys in this unit by 253! That definitely makes a difference! Everything fits in the baskets and cubbies without being crammed and squeezed. And now they can look through a bin for what they want without dumping its contents all over the floor [which they will probably still do anyway, I realize].

After the group of toys were finalized, I sorted them into recycle, donate, and trash piles. I threw out trash and put the recycle pile in the recycling bin, but I am keeping the donate items for a little while just in case someone gets “givers remorse” in a few days. But I bet that none of these things will be missed now that they are out of sight.

Throughout last month, our kids watched us give away tons of things – often wanting to participate. I explained at that time why we were getting rid of the items [we don’t need them or use them] and what we were doing with them [giving them to other people who may need them or use them]. I think this prepared them for giving away their own belongings.

As always, the best way to teach your children a behavior is to model it, and by modeling minimalism, we are creating some mini-minimalists!

Karis