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.

As soon as we knew we could move, we started downsizing our stuff. Seriously, we have so much crap. Unused, unloved, just lying around. Crap. 

As we were moping around our house trying to decide what we would bring and what we could toss, we conquered a lot of difficulties. Today I will share with you my tips on making the minimalist most of a move.

How to downsize while moving

1. Start somewhere. It doesn't matter where. A room, a closet or even a corner. Just start somewhere and downsize everything until you are satisfied.
2. When you are done, give yourself a high five.
3. "Perfection is achieved not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away" This has been my mantra all the way. When I thought I was done throwing useless things away, I took a second look and repeated this sentence. And continued to take away more. 
4. Rethink all your possessions. Hold, touch and take a look at everything. Don't mindlessly decide to keep or toss something. Is it valuable to your life? Do you love it? Use it? Need it? Could you make some-one around you happy with the things you toss?
5. Look at alternative ways to keep things. Get e-book versions of you books and rip cd's to your computer. Consider paying for a service to watch movies and/or listen to music instead of keeping dvd's and cd's. 
6. Don't buy new stuff for the new house, unless it is absolutely necessary. You don't need new crap. 
7. Give yourself some room. Decide how much room your unused but much loved crap can take up in your life. I have given myself one box to store some memories in.
8. Take special care to downsize on stuff you only use or need only once in a while. For me Christmas stuff was an issue. As I moved in with my love, Christmas crap has doubled. We don’t particularly love Christmas. -please don’t chase me with pitchforks- So all the lights and ornaments seemed crazy. I took one small box and kept the stuff I actually liked. The box is small enough to take up little room in a closet, but big enough to hold some thingies to pretty up my house in December and pretend Christmas is fun.
9. Gifts that were given to you but never used and/or loved need to go. Don’t be afraid to hurt some-ones feelings over this. Make sure the gift gets a new home with some-one who loves it. When the giver asks you about the thing, explain how sorry you were for not using it and how happy the new owner is.
10. Ignore the guilt. When you are tossing stuff you will feel guilty. For buying it in the first place, for getting rid of it. Fear of needing it later and guilt for getting rid things has become a familiar feeling for me. Relax, breathe and think rational. If this doesn’t help, keep it. It gets easier. I promise. And yes I have snuck some things back because it made me sad to see them on my discard pile.

Last of all, it does not have to be perfect. There is always more to toss. Make your new house a home and enjoy your new found space and calm with less.