Minimalist Basics List - Living Essentials

January 3, 2016

TL;DR:
1. things to sleep
2. things to eat
3. things to clean (yourself/your spaces)
4. clothes for local temperature and laws
Please share your own detailed list in the comments!

The 100 Items or Less challenge and others like it are great fun to my essentialist-loving mind, but the lists others make usually frustrate me as well. What I always want to see is a list of everything they own and use in-home. When shared items aren't included, it feels incomplete to me. I also feel unsettled by some of the item grouping choices people make.

I had a discussion with friends about how a formula could be created to give ratings to each item. Items have different weights and heavy items can be more of a burden (you will need help moving that couch). A phone takes up less space than a desk. Some items are used everyday and others once a year. Some items you have emotional connections to and others not. Each of these factors shapes the joy or burden level of an item. The discussion was in jest, but it did highlight different item considerations.

A lot of my minimalist consideration comes from the knowledge that I will have to move all of my stuff. At one point I thought I was in my forever-home, and I accumulated many things. Then I was given sudden cause to move and I lost a great many items in that move (partially because I didn't have anything prioritized). You can forget what a huge pain in the butt moving your stuff is until you have to do it, and with the life I envision for myself, I may have to move a dozen times.

What I want for my list, and what I love seeing on others, is everything you would take in a move- everything you would need to successfully and joyfully inhabit a new space. A Stuff list that has living basics as well as personal items. The living basics should cover what you would need to move out on your own.

Because I'm thinking of things in terms of moving, if I have four bath towels, they count as four to me and are added as four to my total number of items. If I had a box of towels, the box of towels could potentially count as one, as I'd only be lifting and fussing with one item. Every item I have to carry or pack into a box or fold or otherwise deal with for moving, counts to me. My intention is to have only what can fit in the trunk of an average car, to minimize moving hassle.

It's impossible to make a list that would seem essential to everyone. Some people's kitchen essentials might simply be a pot and a spoon, while other people have sets of dishes, frying pans in different sizes, and so forth. The only true universal essentials are 1) place to sleep 2) food 3) toilet/toiletries and 4) whatever is necessary to keep your body temperature in the alive range. For that reason this list will be from my perspective with notes where I'm aware that other people might want more of different things.

Bedroom

Bed (mattress, sleep roll, futon, full bed with frame, etc)
Bedding (sheets, blankets, comforter)
Pillow (and pillowcase) - nonessential to some, but I'd guess essential to most

Additional pillows or a set of spare bedding may be wanted.
Pajamas
Sleep mask (essential to me, though I've used clothing in a pinch)
Laundry basket (here and/or bathroom)
End tables

Clothing

At least one full outfit is needed (unless it's legal to go nude and you live somewhere temperate), that addresses the weather year round where you live. I know people who choose not to have any underwear, and I've seen lists where people count 12 pair of underwear as one.

Top
Bottom
Undergarments (panty/short, bra, pair of socks)
Shoes

Most people want more than this. I create successful wardrobes for women out of 10 items, not including undergarments. You may also want somewhere to put them, meaning hangers for a closet, or a small chest of drawers, shelving, etc.

Bathroom

Towel, hand towel, wash cloth (one or some combination. I like a set for me and another for guests)
Toilet paper
Hand soap (liquid in a bottle or soap in a dish)
Shower curtain (depending on the type of shower and if you take showers)
First aid kit
Razor
Shaving oil
Crystal deodorant stick
Toothbrush, toothpaste (can be liquid bronner's used also as hand soap and laundry soap)
Hair scissors (if you diy)
Tweezers
Toilet plunger
Toilet brush

Kitchen

kitchen soap
dish sponge or cloth
dish towel
quality knife

Particulars of cookware and eating dishes/silverware are really about the individual. Some of the super minimalist lists don't have any kitchen items because they eat out for every meal. I prepare my own food, but there isn't much preparation for most of what I eat (dried and fresh fruit, nuts, olives, steamed or baked veg, etc). For others, the kitchen is a hobby zone, and they enjoy many gadgets and different pan shapes and vast spice racks so on.

pots, pans
blender, food processor, juicer
dishes (bowls, plates, cups)
silverware (forks, spoons, knives)
microwave
baking sheet
oven mitts
coffee maker, frenchpress, aeropress, etc; kettle
rice maker
serving/stirring spoon/ladle, whisk, spatula (scraping kind), spatula (flipping kind)
grater
steamer
mixing bowls
measuring cups and spoons
tupperware, ziplocks
bottle openers
can opener
toaster, toaster oven
rolls of aluminum foil, wax paper, plastic wrap, and parchment paper
ice trays
hand mixer
cupcake tin, bread pans, cake pans
colander

After reading all that, don't you want to just have some dried fruit and nuts with me, swig wine out of a bottle, and call it done? I ain't packing all that ish. My VitaMix has traveled with me for the last ten years. I need to send it in at some point, but it's a very handy tool. If I move somewhere warm, it will warrant bringing my Dole banana nicecream machine- otherwise it will stay behind.

Cleaning

broom
mop
vinegar
rubber gloves
bronner's liquid soap (laundry, teeth, hands, floors, etc)
rubbing alcohol
baking soda
bleach
trash bags
trash bin
paper towels

Other
Living Room is a non-essential category. Imagine a studio apartment where the bedroom and living room are one and the same, and the difference is whether the futon is in couch shape or folded down as a bed. It is a category for entertaining (yourself and/or others), and where many personal items may be if the home is yours (shared housing will find your personal items mostly in your bedroom). Dining room is another non-essential category primarily for entertainment purposes. Office and hobby rooms are two other likely possibilities for non-essential rooms you may have and enjoy.

smoke detectors
carbon monoxide detector
low folding table or other dining table or coffee table or desk
floor pillows (4) or chairs or other seating
lighting (lamps, reading light, flashlight)
Curtains or privacy screen if there is a window

Personal Items

electronics
decorations, artwork, plants, candles
sentimentals
notebooks, pens, paper
hobby items
fitness items (yoga mat, etc)

Interesting though the personal item lists are, what is on your Living Essentials list?

Women and Minimalism

December 30, 2015

There are many items women might have on their lists that men are unlikely to (keep on keepin' on, guys who do). In the game some minimalists play of trying to have fewer things than the next minimalist, this puts women at a distinct disadvantage, unless women do the other annoying minimalist game thing of grouping all of the items "female ish" to count as one for the list game.

The impetus for this article is feeling societal pressure on one hand that women should use all of these products, and minimalist culture on the other hand saying to use few if any. I'm on the side of the individual's right to choose for themselves what they do and do not enjoy using.

For those who aren't playing games, but are interesting in having only what will be in regular use, and in as few items as possible, there are some tricks to cutting it down without cutting it out.

If you love makeup or hair or nails or whatever it is and are enjoying your stuff, please, please do not try to simplify just to get your stuff number lower or stuff space less. If however, you don't particularly enjoy it, and you find you have a ton anyway, let's keep going and simplify those drawers.

My approach is to empty the drawer, and then only put back in what survives 1) What have I actually been using? and 2) Where can I eliminate redundancy?

Things women are more likely to have than men:

skincare
face cleanser, makeup remover, exfoliator, toner
face moisturizer day, night
eye cream day, night
body lotion/oils, body brush
hand cream, foot cream
bath pouf, bath bombs/oils

I've talked to old people with fairly smooth skin who wash with water and use vaseline to moisturize, and arguably the best skincare is to drink only water and eat a plant-heavy whole foods diet. I appreciate the simplicity potentiality, but personally enjoy more products in this area.

My first step to clearing out skincare was to get rid of the products I didn't actually enjoy using. If you have three different moisturizers but only ever reach for one, send the other two on their way. After reducing redundancy you might look for multi-purpose products to simplify this list, such as:

Embryolisse Concentrated Lait Cream. This is one of my favorite products. It's silky smooth, has barely any scent, is a great daily moisturizer, and can be used as a makeup remover as well.
Fun by Lush is a soap, shampoo, and bubble bath in one.
CC creams that do triple duty as SPF, anti-aging moisturizer, and color tint
Vaseline, The Organic Pharmacy: Rose Balm, and various oils (argan, coconut, olive, etc) can be used on face, lips, hands, cuticles, and hair to moisturize. Some are useful as a shaving oil, and some can also be used to remove makeup..
Dr. Bronners magic soap can be used to clean body, hair, teeth, laundry, and floors among others after you dilute with a water ratio for the intended task.

makeup
primer, foundation, foundation brush/sponge, concealer, illuminator, contour, bronzer
lip primer, lip liner, lipstick, gloss
setting powder, powder brush
blush, blush brush
eye primer, eyeshadow, eye shadow brush, eye liner, liner brush, mascara, curler, lash comb
eyebrow pencil/powder, brush, setting gel

The most minimal thing to do, is to do away with makeup entirely, maybe keeping a tinted moisturizer with SPF. Maybe one day, but there are a lot of possibilities in between Makeup Supply Avalanche and No Makeup.

The tricky thing about makeup is that when it says "lipstick", it more likely means "15 tubes of lipstick". Makeup multiplies like gremlins. Personally, I had an entire gallon ziplock full, and I don't even wear lipstick. Oh sure, I always intended to wear lipstick, and when that future day was to arrive, I wanted an array of shades to choose from- reds, corals, pinks, plums, oranges- the variety found in makeup is exciting and overwhelming.

The first step of reducing makeup is to determine what you'll actually use. Not what you want to use. Do or do not, friends. I'm all about simple skin and brows, so out went that bag of lipstick as well as the lip brush (I did keep two lipgloss- a clear and a coral tint.) I dislike the way eye makeup feels, but like it for special occasions, and so kept just a couple items.

The second step is to reduce redundancy and variety. Knowing your best colors can really help pare down in this step. If green is your best color for eye makeup, you can choose to let go of the brown palettes. If green is your best and you have six different green eyeliners, work to get down to your best one of them (or however many would feel uncluttered and expressed to you).

There are many multi-purpose makeup items worth exploring. Lipstick that also works as blush is a popular one, and can really be great if you find a flattering color in a consistency you like. Eyeshadow and an angled brush can make a good brow powder- a bit of vaseline darkens the color. You can use a liner brush, wet it with water, and turn an eyeshadow into an effective eyeliner. Reverse it and eyeliner sticks can be softly applied and blended as an eyeshadow. Ilia makes a multi stick that is safe for use on eye, cheek, and lip.

If you want to keep color variety, you could find a lip palette with small pots of color instead of many different tubes. Palettes are a great way to calm a messy makeup drawer, if you can find one that you actually want to use all of (or at least can avoid getting sucked into having a palette from which you only use one color). Blending lip colors together, or eye colors together, is another way to increase diversity from minimal items.

nails
nail polish, remover, nails, nail file/buffer, cuticle tools, curing lamps, gems, stencils.

People who are into nail polish have dozens and dozens of colors, glitters, mattes. They have wraps and gems and curing lights, and I don't even know what all because personally I can't stand to have anything on my nails. I do enjoy admiring the work of others. Nail art really is, and I wouldn't recommend paring down if it's your creative passion. If you're someone with a drawer full of polish and a few tools who isn't getting full use and enjoyment, let's apply the previous steps.

Evaluate what you're actually using. If you use nail polish very infrequently, consider sharing with a friend or having your nails done professionally. If you only use one or two colors, send the others packing. It's hard to let go of the intentions. That you intended to wear the blue nail polish or that you like the idea of the gold sparkles but don't actually use them, either start using it right now, or let it go so that you have more room (mental and physical) for the things you actually enjoy using and not just thinking about using. Reduce redundancy. I'm not aware of multi-purpose nail supplies, but you can certainly reduce variations on the same, and get your variety fix in other ways (blend colors, dots/stripes/etc, nail parties with friends, professionally done).

hair
hair protectant, curler, blow dryer, hair spray, gel, paste
hair bands, headbands, hair pins, claws, floral crowns
leave in conditioner, oils, weekly treatments
box dye, tint brush, mixing bowl, highlight cap, etc

For someone who has been cutting her own hair into a long pixie for the last twelve years, I had a surprising number of hair products, so I can only imagine what someone who is into hair has. I don't use shampoo or conditioner, and I air dry. I had to let go of the idea that I'd ever curl my hair enough to warrant a curler (I could use fabric strips for rag curls if I ever care enough to). I didn't need fifty hair bands when I only use the five purple ones, and those irregularly as well. I didn't need hundreds of bobby pins when I don't like the way they look when I use them- so out they went to force me to stop. I'm trying to stop dying my hair, loudly though the rainbow calls. Natural hair is usually the most flattering color, and so wonderfully soft in comparison to dyed. I love the way grey hair looks and am welcoming of the six I have. I don't wear hair pins and headbands enough to warrant the dozen I had. I kept one headband for fitness or to push hair out of the way for skincare time, and I could see having one perfect floral crown that I don't have. I use a bit of oil (coconut, avocado, olive- whatever is handy) as a leave-in conditioner and to tame fly-aways. But that's me.

What do you regularly use? What redundancy could you eliminate? Are there things you could be happy going without, or do you regularly enjoy all that you have?

hormones
tampons/cups, midol, variety of birth control

You can choose re-usable items for periods, and there are many options for non/hormonal birth control. This section is just here as another area of items that women are likely to have.

jewelry and accessories
necklace, ring, earrings, bracelets, body chains
hats, scarves, purses

Evaluate use and reduce redundancy. Accessories are a great way to make a minimalist wardrobe look brand new, but there is no reason to have hundreds when a few will do. Are you regularly wearing all that you have?

t&a
bras, heels, sports bras, spanx, tights/hose

Only keep what you actively use and like. Other ideas?

tons of clothes
The variety available to women is much larger than to men. Men have one length of pant (I don't mean sizes, but style cuts) and maybe a few leg styles and a few fabrics. Women have capris, culottes, leggings, silk pants, flares, low rise waist, floral prints, embroidery, lace, taffeta, high rise waist, decorative buttons, bejeweled butts, etc. And that's just pants. Women also have a world of skirts and dresses that men are discouraged from wearing (I encourage you though, men! Let's share all). The extent of variety in pants there is also in tops. I can think of a dozen necklines off the top of my head that women have and men do not. The available variety ends up as variety in your wardrobe. Different styles of pant call for certain tops and certain shoes- it isn't an effortless mix and match due to the variety.

I think the single most useful tool to culling a wardrobe is to know what is flattering. I do this for clients with two style systems and personalized color palettes. When you know your best colors and your best cuts, you can probably halve your current closet. You could also use a capsule approach, and pick a neutral or two, and a color or three that all work together. You could do this as a 10 item wardrobe. Taking it further, you could choose a style uniform or two to stick to, in your best cut and color.

If your wardrobe is your passion, enjoy it as it is, or work to improve the quality within. If you're trying to simplify, you can apply the Evaluate Use and Eliminate Redundancy that we've been employing. Here, it's less about eliminating redundancy and more about eliminating the peripheral items. If you have two identical navy tops that you can wear with anything, that might be good redundancy. What you don't want, is that sparkly orange top that you've never worn, or that once a year christmas sweater (unless it brings you great pleasure).

If you find yourself trying to keep things you don't wear, just because you find them beautiful, try displaying them, because they are approached by you as more art than wardrobe, and frankly, some heels are better on a display shelf than feet anyway. Things you find beautiful have no place buried in the back of a closet.

**If you have items you want me to add to the list, please mention them in the comments. This article will evolve.

Difficulty With Minimalism?

December 16, 2015

I find myself back in a period of intense minimizing, cleaning, organizing- essentializing. I've been struck in this way before, perhaps 3-4 times. It comes on suddenly. I wake up and feel like I'm drowning in stuff, weighted down and burdened by the sheer presence of stuff associated with me.

Clothes go flying. Drawers are turned upside down. Little piles are made, grow, shrink, and shuffle. Years of notes and pieces of work are ripped from notebooks and sketchbooks, and burned. Pinterest boards are reorganized and deleted. Computer files are dumped and restructured. Perhaps the first time I was gripped I was 17, and I didn't feel free until I was down to two outfits, a laptop, and a handful of sentimentals. It wasn't sustainable, meaning that it wasn't true essentialism for me- it was less than what was needed for me to feel right.

I once read a book called "Unclutter Your LIfe: Transforming your Physical, Mental, and Emotional Space," that provided clues as to where the anti-stuff drive comes from. What I took from the book, is that the things around us are both reflective of, and reinforcing or guiding, values and goals. If you have a lot of clutter, it can be overwhelming, as if you're being pulled in too many directions to progress toward the things you actually care about. If you want to be making art, having the designated space, supplies, and inspiration around you to do so would be wise. We have to make space for our priorities by clearing out the non-priorities.

The things that we own take up space. If you have drapes, you have both the physicality of the drapes to take care of, and also the mental time/space of drapery observations and considerations. The drapes serve a purpose (perhaps decorative, perhaps preventing passerbys to see your nude living room frolic or whatever it is you're dong in there), and you might deem that purpose worth the physical and mental space the drapes take (I certainly do). There are many items that are not worth the physical and mental space they require of us. I think of Steve Jobs always wearing a black turtleneck, jeans, and sneakers. It took up very little physical and mental space. From a Vanity Fair article:

You also need to remove from your life the day-to-day problems that absorb most people for meaningful parts of their day. “You’ll see I wear only gray or blue suits,” [Obama] said. “I’m trying to pare down decisions. I don’t want to make decisions about what I’m eating or wearing. Because I have too many other decisions to make.” He mentioned research that shows the simple act of making decisions degrades one’s ability to make further decisions.

Decision fatigue is part of the mental space I value freeing up. When in the grip, I notice I end up wearing all grey. I think of black/white/grey as being quieter than colors- as taking up less visual space. I envy having a set style uniform. I haven't found a way to do it yet that would work for me, but maybe one day. I have done it for others.

In order to successfully sort "worth its space" from "not worth its space", we need knowledge of our priorities and current concept of self. The need to essentialize; the hours feeling possessed, sorting through boxes and closets, is about needing to define who we are and what we want from life through our stuff. It is wanting to have only the stuff that will further our desires in this world and of ourselves. The flurry is a need for a redefinition of self. We're digging through boxes to find ourselves. We're asking, "Who am I? Who do I want to be? What do I want to do? What's essential to me?" By answering these questions, we stop pushing the blue sweater back and forth from the "worth its space" to the "not worth it" pile, and we stop waffling about whether we may one day need the unopened pack of 500 notecards we've had for years. The "maybe" pile disappears.

Being honest with ourselves prevents saving too much stuff as well as keeping too little. At 17 I wasn't asking what I needed to comfortably further my goals, but rather demanding of myself that I need only the bare minimum to function. Minimalism is discovering what is essential for our goals, and removing the things that take up space or otherwise hinder our goals. If a priority is to have visitors, it makes sense to have a very cozy and inviting space, with the items needed for quality hosting.

For me, the more impersonal a space looks, the more industrial and modern and clean, the freer I feel. The possessions have no pull on me; take no thought. They just are. It frees me to just be. I'm hypersensitive to sensory information, and my mind easily feels swamped with mental clutter. My priority of pulling the clutter out of my mind and shaping it into something beautiful or interesting or useful, requires a lot of space.

I don't think everyone should minimize (actually I try not to think in "should"s at all). If you don't feel the call, you don't feel the call. My interest is in helping people feel right and expressed. That can mean piles of stuff or emptiness, and I help find what's right for each client.

If you've been struggling with a large "maybe" pile, and resorting without actually paring down; I hope exploring who you are, what you currently value, and what your current goals are helps. If you need additional help, you can find my services in the shop.