Re-discovering meaningful items

I have been de-cluttering for more than 6 months now. I have gotten rid of a lot of things, my home is easier to clean and I feel quite liberated. There has also been an interesting additional advantage to the de-clutter:

Finding loved but overlooked items

I will explain with an example: This is a sea-gull necklace. I received it from my mother on my 8^th birthday while on holiday in Brittanie, France.

I have kept it all through the years out for sentimental reasons although the last time I actually wore it was probably when I was 18.

This weekend I did a clear-out of my jewellery, getting rid of damaged pieces and items I never wore and I had no attachment to. I found this necklace at the bottom of one of my jewellery boxes completely forgotten. I remembered the holiday that lead to its purchase, the long days on the beach and the carefree happiness of back then. I couldn’t get rid of this piece since it meant so much to me so why was I neglecting it?

I wore my necklace today and people have already asked me about it, so not only is it a good memento but it looks pretty enough on me to elicit comment.

This is not the only item that I have re-discovered. It is amazing all the pieces that have been lost amid all the clutter. Pieces completely forgotten and worthy of attention can now shine in the forefront. It has been a bit of a trip down memory lane at times as well. I am happy I can wear this piece again and I look forward to the next discovery!

My attempt at Capsules

Some smart advice for aspiring minimalists: Wear fewer colours. Decide which work for you and keep your wardrobe within that pallet. This makes it much easier to mix and match your clothing.

I’ve previously noticed which colours I tend to wear a lot, these are: Navy, Pink, Purple, all shades of blues and some coral in my summer pieces. Then I did a seasonal colour analysis and found out I’m a deep winter (dark hair, bright blue eyes, pale complexion).

These are the colours I can wear according to that analysis:

Actually I was already wearing most of these colours. I was ecstatic that I had over the years automatically already gravitated towards the colours that work best for me.

Next I decided to have a look at what a capsule would look like for me specifically, using items I already owned or liked. I decided to do a work capsule first. These colours would be more muted and formal and I choose navy, black and grey as my base. I used 13 clothing items and 9 accessorizes (including shoes). I used 4 bottom pieces (only 1 skirt since I’m not a skirt kinda girl), 6 tops, 2 cardigans and a blazer. Everything works with everything else in this capsule.

 

Next I thought about a casual capsule. For me, I love pops of colour and would need some colour to alleviate the darker, formal tones of work. I tried however to re-use pieces from my work wardrobe so as to minimise the number of items I would need in total (all except the black, I don’t like wearing black in my free-time). For colours I choose hot pink, coral and navy. I kept the same basic number and grouping as the work capsule. I swooped out only 5 clothing items and 6 accessories. I also included some bold prints.

 

There is some overlap but the general feeling of the capsules is quite different. Unlike the work capsule I feel like not everything goes here (I would not for ie wear the pink pants with the pink top!) but most of it is interchangeable still. I counted the total number and came out at 33 items. This is do-able for a minimalist wardrobe. 

 

My first sunflower

Yesterday morning before work I had to go outside and get this picture of my first sunflower. It came out just this week and is officially the first flower I have grown from a seed to completion. It makes me happy. I even have a second one coming through. Unfortunately the other seeds I planted originally didn’t germinate but after the success of these two I planted a whole bunch of extra seeds over the weekend so I am hopeful that those will also still come out. Sunflowers are a special flower; there are few that are such ‘happy’ flowers.

 

Now if only I can find a way to get our neighbours cat from eating my celery all will be perfect!

Side effect of shoes

Last post mentioned too many shoes! Determined to try and actually justify most of them I wore my black wedges to work yesterday. I wore them the whole day and they were actually more comfortable than I remembered, even with the heat that had my feet slightly swollen.

Because of the heat I also, for the first time at work, decided not to wear full length pants. Instead I wore a ¾ pair that ends about 10cm under my knee (ideal for me since I feel like my knees let me down and don’t like them on show). I received quite a few comments from work colleagues that I looked amazing and how pretty the shoes were. Maybe the shorter pants accentuated the heels.

Then in the evening I was having a drink with a girlfriend and thought I’d wear my purple stud heels. Since the heels were already so flash it motivated me to add a pretty top, a waist coat and some edgier jewellery. Not a combo I would normally wear but I felt great!

To continue the trend I combined my turquoise flats (also being broken in) with a pretty patterned Desingual top today (I find this top so pretty but a bit hard to match with other stuff) and my black pants (which I am also trying to wear more often). Again I received quite a few comments. I am realising having less clothing is meaning I usually wear better fitting and higher quality stuff. It also means I have to experiment more so I can still get the variation a larger closet allows. Another unexpected advantage; getting dressed is quick since I have fewer options but this frees up some time for me to properly asses what I am wearing, check it really is a good combination and maybe even add some jewellery before I head out the door. I am better dressed now and more confident about what I am wearing. All this from an existing closet, I have bought no new clothing! However there is still room for improvement.

I have realised that my wardrobe is split in two, work and home cloths and that means that I need far more clothing (since I typically wear two outfits every day). I am now trying to mesh the two and when I buy new clothing focus on items that would work in both situations. This means that for ie instead of buying shirts (my classic work top) I should try a blouse, something pretty enough to wear anytime.

 

This means my work clothing will become a little less ‘uniformy’ and my home cloths a bit more stylish. Of course I can’t buy any new stuff until July (my year without) but this gives me ample time to still experiment with what I have, hone my style a bit and really settle on the look I want so hopefully no more buying errors. I have been considering trying some second-hand shops though and have thought about taking an objective friend along. That way I can try on lots of different cloths and see more clearly what suits me well.

My shoes

I read the following article online last week:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/19/too-many-shoes_n_3779196.html

It basically said that most women own too many shoes, they own on average 20 pairs but only put 5 in rotation.

I thought wow, 20 pairs, that’s loads! Or um that’s what I thought. When I actually got home and counted them it turned out to be exactly 20. I lined them up and took this photo.

 

Then I remembered that the pair of flats I’d worn that day were still in the lounge, so that made it 21! This was after I’ve already thrown out quite a few pairs in the last few purges.  So how many shoes is enough? I had a think about what the minimum would be for me; 1 sport pair (for the gym and squash), 1 hiking pair (seldom used but necessary), 1 pair of work flats, 1 pair of fun/cute flats, 1 casual trainer, 1 low-heeled that’s formal enough to wear to work, 1 pair of winter boots and 1 pair of flip flops or comfy sandals for the beach. So that’s 8 pairs. That’s less than half of what I have now. Currently I, for ie, have 4 pairs of casual sneakers (2 summer, 1 all-seasons and 1 winter version). I also have 4 pairs of flip flop/sandals.

Straight away I removed 3 pairs, my beige flats which are actually a size too small, my blue leather sandals (bought and then found out how uncomfortable they were first time I wore them) and a pair of black flip flops with a kitten heel. I actually used to love these flip flops, I thought they were super elegant, a flop with a mini heel, great for in town in summer, not so practical for the beach which is just about the only time I still wear flip flops.

I once again debated my tan wedge sneakers. I am finding it so difficult to part with these as they are so new and expensive. I keep wishing I’d bought them in white, navy or black instead, thinking I might have worn them a bit then. I’ve decided to put them on probation. They are winter shoes so I will keep them till then and if I haven’t worn them by next spring they too will be going. There are 3 other pairs also on probation, black low wedges and turquoise flats that are a bit uncomfortable after a while, both of these I’ve decided to try and break-in. If I can’t get them to fit well I’ll part with them. Lastly are my purple stud heels. I love these but sadly don’t get much opportunity to wear them anymore. The heel is too high for me to walk properly, DH doesn’t like them as they make me taller than him and I can’t wear them to work. I’ll put them at the front of my wardrobe and see if I can get them in rotation.

Shoes and hand bags have always been my kryptonite.

Struggling to resist the mall

I struggled this weekend. I came this close to heading out to the mall. At first for what I thought were acceptable reasons. I wanted to buy a second pair of pyjamas (and figured I would then chuck all my old T-shirts and boxers I normally sleep in). I figured I could use a few new, good bras. It snowballed as I then thought more about my work blouse on its last legs and how I could replace that as well. Then I started thinking maybe I could buy some nice navy pants as well to start building on a navy capsule. New socks got added to the list and then I thought about a new set of glasses (I’ve been wearing the same pair the last 10 years). DH suggested I go to Canal Walk, the biggest mall in Cape Town. Then I worried, Canal Walk is so huge! I knew once I was there I would risk being sucked into every shop I walked past. Oh no! I had to avoid that.

I took a deep breath and decided to focus on something else to resist the temptation to go. Instead I went to the nursery; I picked up a few seedlings, celery, rocket and even some flowers. I spent the rest of the afternoon working in the garden. I spent about R200 (+- $20) on plants, soil and compost. So while I did buy something I feel that I spent a lot less then I would have if I went to the mall. Also the plants got me outside in the garden and since I mostly buy herbs I like the idea that they are consumables and we can eat anything I grow.

So I narrowly missed failing my year challenge. I must also admit though that I am still struggling. The gardening helped for a day but the urge to shop is still with me. It’s like an itch now that I can’t ignore. I am starting to feel like I have set myself a task that is too difficult and not even necessary. I have to constantly remind myself why I am doing this and also that those are good reasons. Why is this so hard?

No New Years Resolutions

I don’t know about New Year’s resolutions. It seems everyone is setting themselves up for failure right from the start. I see it every year at the gym, January always annoys me because of all the new people at the gym. Suddenly every machine is taken, the sauna is crowded and you’re relegated to 4+ people per lane in the swimming pool. I find it especially annoying in the pool since the new people are unfit and very slow and clog up the lanes. By mid-February the gym is almost back to normal though so all these people with their “get fit” resolutions have already stopped coming.

So I resolved to make no resolutions this year. Instead I want to continue focussing on intentional living as I have been doing the last half year. I am finding this is automatically making me more critical of the things I put in my home or body.

Since deciding to live with intent I have;

·         Started eating more veggies and reduced the amount of processed meat I eat. Every week I now look forward to our packet of organic vegetables and fruit. What will we get and what new recipes can I try out? I often have to google stuff since I don’t always recognise everything. A bonus here is that I’ve also started cooking more meals from scratch and am finding it more enjoyable than I anticipated.

·         Seriously cut-back on the cosmetic chemicals I use. I make my own shower gel and deodorant and am experimenting with a moisturiser as well. I still buy shampoo but it is an eco-friendly one and I recognise all the ingredients on the label. The only make-up I still use is an eye-liner pencil and some blush. Making my own products is also a lot of fun. I like the smells of the essential oils I have and trying out new formulas

·         Reduced the amount of stuff we own. I have about a third of the cloths I used to and have decluttered in the rest of the house as well. It has left me feeling energetic. I have accomplished something, cleaning is easier and I like coming home in the evenings to a house that is reasonably clean. The knock-on effect is that I feel I have more time and so I have already increased my study workload for this year so I can hopefully graduate a bit sooner.

·         My sister helped me set-up a small garden. I am trying to maintain it and add to it. I am not a great gardener and I often find it a hassle to have to water the garden but I also appreciate the fact that it gets us out the house more often and we now enjoy our backyard more than we used to. We can now relax outside in the evening instead of inside where we would be tempted to watch TV or something.

So all in all I think I am already on a good path and want to continue that journey.

Mid-way in my No-Buy year

I am now half way through my year of not buying material goods. How am I going so far?

I have actually made a few exceptions over the past few months. I have bought the following:

·         A pair of navy silk pyjamas
·         Two pairs of New Feel sneakers from Decathlon (1 light pair for summer and a heavier pair for all year round)
·         A 2014 Agenda

The silk pyjamas were on insistence from my husband. He has been complaining the last few months that my Hallo Kitty pair really only suits girls under sixteen. I must admit that this new pair feels very grown up and the feel of silk on my skin is very luxurious. They are also more comfy then I had thought they would be. Now I will just have to ditch my Kitty pair which I am finding hard.

The shoes were the biggest departure from my goals this year. Two pairs! They are adorable though and I console myself with the idea that since Decathlon is a brand we don’t have in SA I took advantage of our trip to France. I plan to get rid of a few of my other pairs though to make up for this splurge.

Lastly the Agenda, I include it here even though it might technically be a consumable (don’t you fill up the pages?). Also since it’s an annual one it really is something you have to buy every year. Maybe one day I will get myself an up to date phone with a working calendar but until then I will buy a new mini agenda every year.

How do I foresee the next six months? I might have to get some new under garments and I have a work shirt that is getting worn very thin that might need replacing soonish. As mentioned when I was doing the 15 pieces in a month working capsule, things seem to wear out very fast when you wear them often.

So, not too bad I reckon. It’s more than I wanted to buy but a lot less then I usually purchase.  That was the point, to consume less and consider every purchase in depth.