Home & Garden Anyone else feel this way?

madamestuff

madamestuff

Junkie
O.G.
Nov 1, 2006
1,025
8
#1
I love love LOVE the idea of a 'curated closet' and a pared back home that includes only things you really adore and use and not cluttered with stuff. (To be honest, hidden clutter (things stashed in draws and cupboards with no order) actually makes me very uncomfortable). I'm not painfully tidy, much to my husband's disappointment - I actually prefer things to be out and look untidy than pushed into piles or hidden in drawers.

Anyway... over the weekend I went on a bit of a rampage and sent boxes and bags of things to goodwill / garbage. Our car was actually full - the boot and the back seat was swimming in stuff.

Looking at all these things made me feel really unhappy. I daresay there was a few thousand dollars worth of assorted loot in there! I was struck by this disgusting consumerism and phenomenal waste (there was really only a few things in there I'd bought, used extensively and then was moving on as they were nearing their end of life).

Does anyone else feel like this about having lots of "things"? How do you ensure you don't waste money on stuff that ultimately just becomes clutter?
 
#4
When we first looked at this farm house it was jam-packed with STUFF. I mean an enormous amount of junk! So my husband and I vowed to do the opposite and keep furnishing to a minimum. We tossed/gave away a lot of things when we moved and my biggest regret was that we--well, ME, really!--had spent so much money through the years on things we didn't need. The only furnishings I have purchased for the new house have been a few area rugs, two new bedside table lamps and a small padded bench for our room. My husband finally bought himself a leather recliner, lol. But that's it!

The first two pics are the upstairs hallway before, the last two are now. Please excuse the Christmas tree, we are procrastinating dreadfully. Once the tree goes we will be leaving that space empty.
 

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#5
I couldn't agree with you more OP. We are moving into our new place at the end of the month and I am getting rid of absolutely everything we don't need. I already have a pretty minimalist attitude as it is (we don't have knick knacks around or much clutter) but I am taking it further in the new home. We've gotten rid of every dvd and moved them to an e-library, I'm reading all of my hard copy books and donating them to libraries, photos are scanned and given to family, etc. As for everything else, if we haven't used it in the last year (since we moved into our rental) and there isn't a specific purpose for it (i.e. holidays etc) then it goes, no questions asked.
 
#6
madamefifi said:
When we first looked at this farm house it was jam-packed with STUFF. I mean an enormous amount of junk! So my husband and I vowed to do the opposite and keep furnishing to a minimum. We tossed/gave away a lot of things when we moved and my biggest regret was that we--well, ME, really!--had spent so much money through the years on things we didn't need. The only furnishings I have purchased for the new house have been a few area rugs, two new bedside table lamps and a small padded bench for our room. My husband finally bought himself a leather recliner, lol. But that's it!

The first two pics are the upstairs hallway before, the last two are now. Please excuse the Christmas tree, we are procrastinating dreadfully. Once the tree goes we will be leaving that space empty.
Click to expand...

Oh wow, great photos! Soooo minimal. Love it!
 
#7
Jesssh said:
I make sure there is a perfect place for it before I buy it.

I LOVE empty floor space and empty counter space. That keeps me from buying furniture and kitchen appliances and table decor.
Click to expand...

Yeah, ever since we were kids my mum always used to say we couldn't get something unless we had a place to put it. I find the trouble starts if you have lots of 'places'!

My husband and I live in an old coverted factory. It's four stories high and has a seemingly endless amount of space. He keeps a 3 tier crystal chandelier in a crate in our garage for goodness sake! Because I have a separate dressing room, I use up that space. My husband then uses the whole wardrobe in our master bedroom (it takes up one full wall, floor to ceiling) plus 1.5 tallboys (half another wall).

We love our house, but my husband is a hoarder and I guess I'm a shopper.
 
#8
Sorry, further to my previous posts I feel like I should add... our house isn't particularly messy or anything. We don't have a junk room or anything like that. We just have way too much STUFF.
 
#9
Madamefifi, your home is gorgeous! I love both the before and after pics, but I have to say, in the after pics you can see the lovely bones of the layout and structure.

I am in a Victorian apartment and I'm trying to keep it from getting cluttered up with furniture. I am getting a few new pieces this week, and once they're here I plan to get rid of the excess. You've inspired me.
 
#10
madamestuff said:
Looking at all these things made me feel really unhappy. I daresay there was a few thousand dollars worth of assorted loot in there! I was struck by this disgusting consumerism and phenomenal waste (there was really only a few things in there I'd bought, used extensively and then was moving on as they were nearing their end of life).

Does anyone else feel like this about having lots of "things"? How do you ensure you don't waste money on stuff that ultimately just becomes clutter?
Click to expand...

I have the same problem about buying things I love, then later getting rid of it and feeling wasteful.

Have you seen the Curbing Consumerism thread in Money Talks?
 
#12
madamestuff said:
Yeah... love that thread, but it seems to be mostly about saving money which I guess I don't feel is my problem! ha!
Click to expand...

You should join us! There are more than a few of us that work on the reducing consumerism, where the main point is: less stuff, more thoughtful process of buying , etc. Sure saving the money is always nice, but necessarily the main focus.

I think we're a friendly bunch :flowers:
 
#13
twinkle.tink said:
You should join us! There are more than a few of us that work on the reducing consumerism, where the main point is: less stuff, more thoughtful process of buying , etc. Sure saving the money is always nice, but necessarily the main focus.

I think we're a friendly bunch :flowers:
Click to expand...

This is how I see it for me as well. I want to be more thoughtful about my money and not so impulse driven. We're in an accumulating phase since we have a toddler and I'm really trying to clean as we go so that it doesn't get overwhelming.
 
#14
madamefifi said:
When we first looked at this farm house it was jam-packed with STUFF. I mean an enormous amount of junk! So my husband and I vowed to do the opposite and keep furnishing to a minimum. We tossed/gave away a lot of things when we moved and my biggest regret was that we--well, ME, really!--had spent so much money through the years on things we didn't need. The only furnishings I have purchased for the new house have been a few area rugs, two new bedside table lamps and a small padded bench for our room. My husband finally bought himself a leather recliner, lol. But that's it!
Click to expand...

But...but...where are the cat trees? And where are all the little benches and the upholstered stools for the cats to sit on as they look out the windows? And where pray tell are the big overstuffed chairs for kitty naps? LUV your makeover but I do think a couple ceiling-high shag carpet cat trees would go nicely in front of those windows. The kind with all sorts of felt mice hanging from the steps. And a bunch of padded baskets on the floor, that would be nice too. :cat: :biggrin:
 
#15
We live in a fairly large house, which is subsequently packed with "stuff." We actually tried to downsize (by choice - not because of financial concerns) to a smaller/older home, but we found it incredibly difficult (lots of hoops to jump through, tons of money out of pocket that would have put a significant dent in our savings, etc.). In a sense, we felt "locked in" to our current living situation. Alas, we would love to downsize & de-clutter, but it's not likely to happen any time soon.
 
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