My minimalist lifestyle

I'm not a big fan of the word 'minimalist', because I often feel like people try and prove they can live a minimalist lifestyle simply to follow a trend. I personally have never been someone who has cared about material things. I'm not into fancy decoration, clothing, cars, accessories, technology etc, all I really care about is simplicity. I wouldn't say I have chosen to like simple things, it's always been who I am.

I love the verses in Matthew that talk about not storing up earthy possessions as it's a reminder of what really matters in life. 

Matthew 6: 19-21

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

I want to share some of the ways I live a more simple lifestyle, or as people say nowadays, a minimalist lifestyle. I hope this will give you some tips on how you can start to simplify your life and change your mindset of material things.

1. Declutter your home

If you visit our home you will notice we don't own many possessions. Our decor is very simple and we try not to have belongings around the house that we don't use. This firstly means the house is very easy to clean, and secondly it helps our minds stay decluttered as we don't have loads of belongings to distract us. Andy and I don't live like this because we're trying to be minimalist, we simply aren't that bothered about fancy decor or belongings, so we don't purchase them. I would encourage you to try removing some of the belongings from your home that you don't truly need or desire, I'm sure you'll find some freedom in the process.

2. Experiences over gifts

If you ask Andy and I what we want as a gift most of the time we don't know what to say. Usually the items we want are quite expensive one off investments, which we will usually save up for and purchase ourselves. In recent years our gifts to one another have been theatre tickets, meals out together and weekends away. This allows us to avoid clutter in our home, but also means we create lovely memories together. If you are someone who enjoys gifts this isn't a bad thing, but recently when I buy people gifts I try and ask myself 'will they actually use this?', otherwise it's another item in their home that they probably won't use.

3. Purchasing quality, not quantity

This can be challenging as quality clothing/items that are well sourced can be very expensive. I can't say we only buy quality because we don't, but it is something I feel challenged to do more often. We both try to find our clothing at charity shops first and we're not ones to throw away items we no longer like. I want to challenge women especially as we usually tend to have excessive amounts of clothes and shoes. Can you source some of your items at charity shops? Can you make do with what you have or find new ways to make old clothes interesting again? Just something to think about next time you have an impulse to buy something that is cheap and low quality.  

4. Reusing technology/items until they stop working

You will never see me with the latest anything, my last phone was probably working on 50% for about a year before I replaced it. I'm writing this blog on my husbands second hand laptop and I own an iPad that I bought around 8 years ago. The need to get the latest technology I think is more a fear of missing out, rather than you genuinely needing the latest gadget. We sadly live in a world consumed by technology and a world where no one wants to miss out on anything. When we let ourselves become consumed by those things I personally think we miss out on the simplicity of life and how wonderful simple things can be.

The reason I write this blog is not to make myself appear to be doing everything right, or to say you should be living like me. I write this blog because we live in a world that clutters our minds, our homes and our hearts. We live in a world where it's more important to have fancy belongings than to care for the people who are getting paid nothing to make those belongings. This is an area of my life I want to keep working on, because if we don't make changes then the world is going to keep spiraling into an over-consumed, selfish, greedy and over stimulated place. So, what can we do about it?...just something to think about.

Next Blog: Real Talk: Navigating disappointment