Project333 Winter 2014

Project 333 is going so well for me, I have decided to take a new step in simplifying my wardrobe.
I am going to work with a basic wardrobe of 24 items which I will work with all year round. Still holding on to a limit of 33 items means I can supplement it with 9 seasonal items.
Today I will show you which items will make up my basic collection and which items will be my winter add-on's.

Spring flower fiesta with bulbs

The weather is getting colder. The heater is on in the house. Fall is creeping up on me. 

I have been cleaning out containers, harvesting the last bit of greens and preparing for frost.

Which may come with a vengeance, of may not come at all. It is still Dutchy land out here and sometimes Christmas is warmer than spring.

Either way, my garden is prepared and I am already longing for spring to start over.

To keep me from sinking into a full winter depression, I am planting a little gift for myself to look forward to.

When March will hit and it will seem like the world will never be green again, there will be flowers to lift my spirits.

Project 333 Autumn edition

I can't believe it has been over 3 months ago I started project 333.

I also can’t describe the joy it has brought me. I no longer feel the need to buy new clothes all the time and I spend way less time getting ready in the morning.

Today I am sharing with you my project333 2.0 fall edition.

How project 333 inspired me to minimise my house

(sadpanda.us)

Life has been a mess, which has caused me to stop writing for a while. Now the light is shining at the end of the chaotic dark hall, I find the need to write about my progress again.

As I told you in my previous post about my project 333 experiment, a move was on the horizon. 

Little did I know, the move was not only close, it was just around the corner. The last few months this move has occupied my days. More so because project 333 inspired me to make this move more than moving my stuff to a new location. It was time for a fresh start.

Project 333: how I reduced my wardrobe to 33 items

Recent changes in my life have caused me to re-evaluate all my stuff. I spend a good amount of my free time reading minimalist blogs and I fell in love with the idea of a lighter life. Not having so much stuff should create more (emotional) freedom. Not owning stuff means not worrying about that stuff, not having to maintain it, not having to clean it, not having to store it, not having to move it. The list goes on and on.

How to get rid of goutweed without losing you sanity

Wow, I have been super busy! Two weeks ago, I was wondering if I would EVER get to eat something from my garden, now it is almost like I can’t keep up. My leaf-lettuce was ready for harvest so I tossed it in a salad, I got to pick my first mini garden pea (I ate it on the spot) and my radishes are getting nice and plump.

The first strawberries are visible and the blueberries are turning blue. I put my brusselsprout babies outside, but they don’t seem to like me very much. I bought some andive plants and a couple of herbs which I put in a strawberry container. My garden is actually starting to look like a garden. Lovely.

In addition to my tiny container garden, I’ve been helping out a friend with bigger garden challenges. The first time I got to help was nice and easy. Some spring cleaning and happy chatting away in early spring sunshine. 

Delouse your garden with ladybugs

On a warm spring day, I was pleasantly surprised by my first lady bug sighting of this year. Ladybugs are considered lucky in many cultures, and no wonder! These little lucky miracles protect our plants form aphids. 

Don’t let their cute as a button looks deceive you, ladybugs are ferocious predators. A single ladybug can eat over a hundred aphids a day!

How to grow awesome strawberries

 In my little garden I have a square meter raised bed which I filled with some of my favorite summer fruit; strawberries! Oh the joy of a fresh picked strawberry on a warm summer day. And strawberry jam. And strawberry tart. And strawberries for desert. Yes I love strawberries.

I bought some strawberries at the start of spring last year, and didn’t get any strawberries of them. I was so sad and blamed my poor gardening skills, until I learned that strawberries usually need a year to settle.

In my ‘oh why art thou not growing’ quest I found some more very useful tips. I am sharing my top 5 with you today.

Finally getting started

After a visit to my local gardening store I was very impatient to start up some seeds and get the growing action started. 

 

My list of mandatory vegetables

My master plan is finally unfolding (insert evil laughter). My garden plan is ready! I took all the mandatory vegetables listed in Practical Self sufficiency and made a scheme to remind me when to sow, when to plant and when to harvest. The list is as follows:

Books for planning my garden

So the last couple of days I have been planning my garden. I've had a lot of help from my gardening books:

Growing more happiness

In my quest to a more wholesome happy life I have set some goals for myself. One of those is growing my own food. I have been growing some food for the last two years and I would love to eventually grow all my own vegetables and fruits.

I have a lot of reasons for this wish. The most important reasons are:

The road to happiness

Lately I have become aware of a growing discontentment. My life feels like a series of chores, tasks and jobs to get done. Honestly, sometimes it feels like my only goal in life is to make money. Now before you start thinking I am a greedy person, let me explain why I feel this way.