The minimalist quiche

[educatingarti]

This is a new thread to replace the minimalist journey one which is nearly full!

[IWipeArses]

notcitrus It all goes of eventually, though eyeshadow prob ok, unless you've had conjunctivitis etc, but foundation goes off in 12-18 months according to this.

thunk Go for it, dining table would be a priority for me, and floor space most of all.

[IWipeArses]

25? Including...?

[notcitrus]

Really, Iwipe? I only wear makeup beyond lipstick about twice a year and the foundation I've had for over 5 years seems fine...
I can't put stuff round my eyes so risks of catching anything are minimal.

Time to sneak some toys into a charity shop bag while the kids are at nursery!

[IWipeArses]

If it seems fine, it likely is, but even with preservatives in, things don't last forever.
I haven't got much and only the eyeshadows and pencils are more than 18 months old, but my foundation needs replacing. Not sure what to get, but that's a S&B thread I think.

[educatingarti]

Harrietspy ( I enjoyed that book too when I was young!)
On the other thread someone said "we will be getting a minimalist quiche" (I assume it was an auto-correct of clique).

I thought it sounded funny so I used it for the new thread title!

"I'm trying to go for a capsule quiche with 5 ingredients or less. Has anyone got any suggestions?"

[educatingarti]

I do not have a garage of doom!
I have cupboards 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 of doom! I'm in a first floor flat. It has the most storage that you could imagine ( a lot of it arranged by me when I moved in 3 years ago - it seemed like a good idea at the time!)

I do actually need a fair amount of storage space as I run a tutoring business from home and as I teach a fair range of ages and subjects, I store quite a lot of books and teaching resources- really hard to get rid because I never know what student I will be teaching next and what will be useful for him/her.

Then my hobbies include DIY and "making things". Recent projects included using my inspiration from going to a Roman museum in Ribchester to paint hare designs on some pieces of slate (I'm pleased with them, they look like bits of Romanish wall painting) and using the curved piece that used to hold hymn books on an old chair from church to make a "pocket" hung on my front door (inside). I put stuff in it that I need to take out to post or whatever! All of this involves storing stuff from fabric to a "workmate" style bench, but I do need to go through it all as there is a fair amount of junk in amongst the useful stuff. If nothing else it needs to be sorted and stored more efficiently so I know what I've got! and to stop my spare room looking like a rubbish tip in which I also happen to dry washing

[SilentMammoth]

Oh harriet, sounds like your going through a lot. It's not just clutter your dealing with is it?

[harrietspy]

Nope. But it's all good, it really is. I suspect clearing the Garage of Despond (it changes name on a regular basis) will free up a lot of energy.

[hobnob57]

Is it possible to imagine the person you'll be when it's all done and attack it from their perspective, rather than the perspective of the you who had to deal with all of that? I don't know if that even makes sense, never mind whether it is actually possible.

[mazzi2fly]

I haven't done any massive decluttering projects, what with real life etc, but I did sort out the receipts yesterday. We stuff all our receipts into a wee drawer but it had got to the stage that it wouldn't shut any more, so I went through them all and found that we only needed to keep a handful ie iron, kettle, tumble drier etc. I put them in a poly wallet and labelled them and I can put them in the loft. I also found a cheque that we hadn't cashed.

I still need to do a bit more in the loft, I've got a wooden brick trolley and 2 bags of maternity clothes, a bookcase, a child's bike seat, an old TV up there, that all needs to go to charity. I'm sure I'll find more to go, once I get up there.

[Banderchang]

Hi everyone! I was posting a bit on the old thread, but mostly lurking. I have taken a lot of inspiration from all your decluttering though, and have got rid of lots of stuff since Xmas. At the moment we are decluttering the attic, because we have to empty it to have work done. Quite scary how much stuff is up there, considering we only moved in 3 years ago. Needless to say, the biggest barrier to minimalism is DH who ALWAYS wants to keep things. We are compromising and keeping e-versions rather than paper versions of things.

[harrietspy]

mazzifly I love it when the drawer shuts.

hobnob that does make sense, but I sort of do it in reverse: I often persuade myself to do things I don't feel like doing (like making my bed in the morning or clearing up the kitchen last thing at night) by bearing in mind how grateful the Future Me will be. So it feels like you're doing it for someone else, which is always easier than being kind to yourself! (This reminds me of the Calvin & Hobbes cartoon when Calvin time-travels in a cardboard box and confronts his future self about his undone homework).

Self-compassion is the answer!

I shall apply the Future Me theory to the garage clearing. And this afternoon, I'll practice on this piece of writing that I've been avoiding. This is mental decluttering of the 1st order. I have been hoarding undone writing projects. They either need to be dumped or finished. Here goes!

[SilentMammoth]

Ooh hobnob I like that! Not sure if this is what you mean but definitely remember starting secondary and deciding to be very neat and very organised. It worked. New, improved mammoth was born (with just a touch of ocd)

[SilentMammoth]

Ooh, any capsule wardrobe ers our 25 piece people, if you have chance please could you post inventory? :)

[BabCNesbitt]

I'd be interested in a capsule wardrobe inventory, too - I mentioned that I keep buying pretty bits on eBay in an effort to replenish my wardrobe (don't minimise your clothes to the extent that you really have almost nothing to wear!), but I've never managed to create a workable wardrobe of basics. It's been all icing and no cake, iyswim, so I wind up wearing the same pair of jeans and two or three tops all the time.

[harrietspy]

Just looked at some capsule wardrobes and now feel all dissatisfied with my clothes which was not the intention! However, will watch for capsule wardrobe inventories with interest.

[blossombath]

This is the first time I've been on a thread which spawned a second! And my first MN quiche!

Have been keeping up to date with all your wonderful work and feeling increasingly despondent about my own. I have reached the point where I need to tackle some big clutter hot spots and my cluttery nemesis (clothes), but putting it all off. At least I have my nice clear living room (now with fresh flowers every week, to reward self for good work) to relax in.

On previous thread the issue of organisation vs minimalism was raised: one which I'm really having to work on. The old cluttery me was a storage obsessive; new, minimalish me is trying to let that go...slowly. In our living room I did manage to entirely get rid of one chest of drawers (well, they will go once I get them on Freecycle) and this inspired me to aim to remove once piece of furnitire/storage from each room I clear. That will keep me focused on actually getting rid of things rather than shuffling them round shelves to fit more in.

harriet when are you going to Garage of Despond? Keep focusing on how much free-er you'll feel when it is done, or at least begun, and let us know how it goes/is going.

[harrietspy]

Mine too, blossom!

Prob going to Garage of Despond on Sunday. Will certainly report back! Feeling much more chipper now about getting the job done even though it will take several trips.

[BabCNesbitt]

blossom, what you said made me think of this post (from a blog I love): "When you don't have a lot of stuff, it practically organizes itself." (I'm not sure how true that is as I don't feel like I've ever made it to the stage of not having a lot of stuff!)

I've been thinking about what harriet said about minimizing being a distraction from other things. It's definitely true that it feels much better to be in a less cluttered environment and to be able to lay my hands on anything I might need without fighting through dead batteries or a knot of elastic bands (always bloody elastic bands!). But what happens once you've really reduced as far as you can go? Sometimes I feel like I think about getting rid of stuff in the same low-grade background rumbling way I used to (sometimes still do!) think about acquiring stuff. The focus is still on stuff. What happens once there's no stuff left to get rid of? This is all hypothetical at the moment, of course!

[BabCNesbitt]

(Also: I totally fail as a Scot. It took me a trip to 'Site Stuff' to realize why there were special Scottish smileys at the moment. [bblush] Happy Burns Day!)

[harrietspy]

Thanks for that link, bab. I think the open storage thing is interesting - I'm drawn to the Shaker practice too, and also ease of use. I don't think we would every hang our coats up if we had to open a cupboard to do it. I think her point stands for habits too - doing the same thing at the same time every day. (Not that I manage to do this!). Frees you up to focus on living expansively.

On utter simplicity (deeper than aesthetics or function...) have you seen Into Great Silence?

[QueenofWhatever]

OK, so for those of you that asked, this is what I currently have in my wardrobe:

Indigo jeggings from M&S (just replaced a black pair that I have worn to death)
Short black dress with feathers design
Red flowery tunic top
Red/blue patterned tunic top
Long grey jumper
Purple cardigan (cheap eBay to be replaced with expensive cashmere)
Red fleece hoody

Long sleeved white t shirt
Long sleeved black and white t shirt
3/4 length sleeve black thermal top
3/4 length sleeve purple thermal top
Capped sleeve deep pink thermal top
Grey patterned top
Nordic style zip cardigan
Capped sleeve green wrap top

Black fitted dress with embroidered flowers
New dress I bought from Monsoon
Black and white dress (work)
Grey dress with tulips (work or smart going out)
Black wrap dress (work)
Grey pencil skirt (work)
Purple jumper (work)
Black ribbed jumper (work)

Denim skirt
Denim jacket (not worn together!)
Skinny rib purple top with lace
Sleeveless black velvet jacket
Black sixties style cardi

Brown fur lined boots
Black knee high boots
Blue suede Adidas trainers

And that's pretty much it but it feels like loads. I have 'loungewear' as they call it on Project 333 and leggings and t shirt for yoga as well as underwear, two nighties (art nouveau designs from V&A shop) and some vests/camisoles.

Haven't worked out how I'm going to bridge the tricky footwear gap between winter boots and summer sandals yet.

[QueenofWhatever]

Forgot to add I also have a winter coat - orangey velvet.

These aren't the only clothes I own but the rest are currently packed away, e.g. Summer things. The idea of Project 333 is that you have 33 items for 3 months and then rotate 3 new things in - they can be new items or things you have that are for other seasons.

[QueenofWhatever]

bab I've found that you do (eventually) stop thinking about stuff or not having stuff. For me, I'm finally having the space to think about the big things - what do I really want to do, how do I want to live, what do I want to put my energy into.

There's no great angst involved and I don't feel in any great rush to work it all out. But slowly my mind is unfolding and looking at other possibilities. It's not solely a result of decluttering of course. As quite a few others have said, there's some big life changes going on for me and the minimalism feels like an enabling step to making good things happen.

OK, I will stop posting now!

[CremeEggThief]

In need of a little reassurance. I bought some new cutlery and a cutlery divider, which is much smaller than my last one. Six of everything (knives, forks, spoons and teaspoons) will be enough for me and DS, won't it?

I also need new crockery and I'm wondering if four of everything (plate, side plate, bowl and mug) will be enough, given that we rarely have guests? Or should I get eight of everything, keep six in the cupboard and pop two of everything away, in case of breakages?