The point of this blog is not to make you get more stuff but to hold on and have things that fill your life with purpose. But occasionally, we need to talk about things we need to help minimize the stuff in life and prioritize. Some methods help create a process to keep you from collecting too much or reverting to your old ways.
In my moments of big life transitions, I found three things that help me contain the stuff I need and hold me accountable for not collecting. Here are my favorite three.*
Put a bow in it
For some odd reason, I had a lot of gift packaging and wrapping materials. When we moved and downsized in 2021, I collected packaging in three locations in our home. This sort of behavior was a problem. For example, during a child’s birthday party once, I folded and saved all of the tissue so that I could reuse it for myself. I needed to be checked.
Tissue would not fulfill my needs, so I minimized and only kept the necessities. This is the container I use because I could also hide it somewhere accessible. The goal was to make everything fit – gift boxes, tags, wrapping paper, ribbons, bags, and of course, tissue. This one had compartments and fit under my bed.
Now, if I need to wrap a gift, it’s in this container, saving me time from tracking down the ribbon, wrapping paper, and (sigh) tissue. And if it doesn’t fit, it doesn’t stay in this house!
Picture perfect storage
Two people, many pictures. We had pictures in big boxes, little boxes, envelopes, and folders. I also have 10 scrapbooks in storage in the garage. But what I needed to contain were the loose pictures.
And we live in California so I worry about wildfires, earthquakes, and overcast weather; we need to be ready to leave at any moment. I wanted something I could organize and could be easily transported. I found this handy container that fits all of my loose pictures. It’s adjustable, and I don’t need the compartments, but it makes it look neat.
When I find the one-off picture in a dark corner, I add it to the traveling picture case. One side has my pictures (in chronological order, obviously), and the other side has my husband’s pictures, making it easy to find what I need.
Note: go through your pictures and get rid of silly stuff like landscape pictures (it’s 2024: google it) and doubles. We’ll talk about doubles another time.
Assign it a box
I can’t tell you exactly what box, but if you have a category of something that may be getting out of control, assign a container that will manage the overflow and, ultimately, the collection of too many things. This is the one I use.
For me, it’s the top closet shelf for items I don’t often wear: sports team gear, swimsuits, painting clothes (when you DIY as much as I do, you gotta have the clothes), and costumes. When I need a swimsuit, I climb up on a step stool and grab what I need. If I get a new bathing suit, it won’t overflow the box, but I can still keep tabs on my supply.
For you, these items may be important, and a box is just not going to cut it, but if you’re trying to minimize what you collect, this is a great way to see what you have and take action if you have an overflowing box. And if you don’t know yet, it’s okay to really pack it in, but at some point, it will stare back at you.
What do you keep around the house, office, or other location to minimize collecting too many things? Let me know on Instagram @theclearpursuit and share with others.
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Header image: Photo by Sarah Brown on Unsplash
