Comments on: two minimalist battles i’ve quit fighting

By: Minimalist Art | Adventure-Some

Minimalist Art | Adventure-Some — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 15:17:34 +0000

[...] canvas? Perhaps a color field painting? Maybe a stylized landscape? Would my choice fit another minimalist’s [...]

By: Evelyn

Evelyn — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 17:07:20 +0000

I pull out my toaster every morning too. (and it looks really nice with all the kitchen decor). But I try to keep my counter as clean of stuffs as possible. So it is more confortable to me to pull it out each day, than to see it the whole day.

By: Jasi

Jasi — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 22:10:36 +0000

Any freebie small toys I can get my hands on get tossed into the glove. Perfect for those not-so-pleasant moments in the car. After the novelty wears off (what? an hour tops?), I toss into a bag in the coat closet to go off for other moms or donation. That way it doesn’t even “live” in my home. Once it’s had it amusement, it’s on it’s way out for some other children to love for a whole 15 minutes more.

By: Eric

Eric — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 01:31:15 +0000

putting the toaster away every day? And I thought I was bad. That’s not minimalist, that’s OCD. If you use it daily, its ok to keep it out, along with your coffee maker. Maybe you need to buy a nicer looking one?

By: Justin

Justin — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 15:45:02 +0000

On the Mc’toy issue… don’t be disheartened. Allowing the kids to enjoy the moment is a great choice! Tomorrow, you can enjoy the moment of trashing/recycling it. Likely by then it is duly forgotten and will not be missed (that’s usually the case for my son anyhow).

By: The Everyday Minimalist

The Everyday Minimalist — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 19:03:58 +0000

I cannot deal with decorations either.

A large, bold photo here and there, okay.. but I’d rather keep my decorations on my body.. as in my wardrobe and jewelery.

But I guess I’m just the odd sort of girl to not like that. :\

I have given up that battle of trying to put away that rice cooker. I use it so often, and it has a potential to hurt my back trying to grab it back out from underneath the sink to use on a daily basis

By: Katie Alender

Katie Alender — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 15:08:49 +0000

I’m sure your treatment of the family nest isn’t as harsh as that last point sounds. My husband has an equal say in decorating decisions… neither spouse should have the final say, though.

Just make sure you aren’t removing things she cherishes in your efforts to minimalize. There are things around my house that I would balk at getting rid of right now but will be happy to part with in a year. If someone insisted they had to go, I’d be resentful.

By: Dwayne Phillips

Dwayne Phillips — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 12:04:03 +0000

Enjoy the Happy Meal toys. Believe me, the joy that comes is worth it. My sons are in their 20s now and we still have those Happy Meal toys around here. Clutter? yes? Good Memories? YES YES YES.

By: queenstuss

queenstuss — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 10:34:07 +0000

I have always bought clothes from the sales racks. Now that I have a son, I hunt through them looking for cheap clothes for next season to put away for him. But after recently pulling out his size three clothes and putting away his size two clothes, I found too many size two clothes that hadn’t been worn enough, and too many size three clothes. I also found too many things that didn’t match, and so needed to buy more things. So, I don’t think I’ve really saved money by buying clearance clothes.
I’m not buying things to put away anymore. He wears the same three or four shirts over and over, and the same three or four shorts over and over. When he’s ready for the next size, I’ll go shopping for those clothes.

I always insist on the toaster being put away. I don’t have that much bench space. I’d like the coffee paraphenalia put away, but don’t have that much cupboard space… maybe I can declutter my cupboards even more… hmmmm….

By: Holly

Holly — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 04:57:13 +0000

With whom are you fighting? In the case of kids’ clothes, you gave in to your wife; in McD’s toys, you gave in to your kids. So that made me wonder who your opponent is in the fight against kitchen countertop appliances and decorative objects. My husband and I are great at decluttering projects when we tackle them together, but if one of us goes on a decluttering rampage when the other one is not on board…well, that doesn’t make for a very happy time. :-)