me, the minimalist

Hello~!

In my last post, I was sharing about how I decided to adopt a minimalist lifestyle simply by reducing material needs and keeping my living space clean because mess stresses me out. Besides that, minimalism also means reducing the number of goals I have (trust me, I have tons!) so that I could actually tick them off my list one by one. Boy did it worked because my to-do list has never been shorter!

Alert! This particular post is super wordy.

de-cluttering and organizing

I first started by getting rid of things I didn't want. This begin sometime end of last year, even before I discovered minimalism or the KonMari method! I keep finding myself cleaning things up and it was simply tiring..

So I got rid of things.

I remember getting rid of other things but I don't remember what I did though most of them are my clothes. Because I was still experimenting on my style, I was guilty of buying tons of clothes which I ended up not wearing or only worn once only to discover they didn't feel like "me"... Of course, there are the occasional impulse splurges. There were a total of 6 bags, 4 of which I've recycled and 2 more bags which I'm hoping to get rid though I notice the second hand culture in Malaysia isn't very strong.. I don't know, never seem to be able to sell them *shrug*

After that, I get organize.

For my wardrobe, my clothes are organized by articles type (dresses, skirts, etc) and by color though the latter is mainly OCD factor. In my dresser, I folded my clothes to let them "stand" vertically instead of stacking up so I could see everything and actually wear them. I also organize my beauty products on my dresser, table top, books/stationeries and kitchenwares.

Finally, it is making sure that I actually return my things at the spots that I've assigned as suggested in the KonMari method. With that, I wouldn't need to bother cleaning the spaces so often save from my weekly dusting, sweeping and mopping.

My OCD alarm doesn't go off as frequently as it used to. Such a bliss.

less material needs

When I told a friend, YY that I am all into minimalism, she asked if that means I'll be toning down on my clothes shopping LOL. I said no.

Minimalism doesn't mean cutting down on everything and living with only 100 things. Of course, there are people who has succeeded in doing so but nah, it isn't my thing.

Instilling minimalism as a blogger means cutting down on unnecessary purchases just for the sake of reviewing. When I first started writing reviews, I felt like there was a need to jump into the bandwagon as other beauty bloggers to be the first few to review every single newly launched products in the market. So-o not gonna even deny that. Today I only buy things I need and if I feel adventurous to try something new, I tend to wait until I finish one product. Or at least I made it a point to have reviewed my current beauty stuff before treating myself to trying something new.

On the other material wants? When I see something I like, whether its clothes, cute decors/toys/etc., I'll make sure I think twice, thrice or more before I get them.

Prioritizing my goals

There's more to being a minimalist than just cutting down.

Minimalists don’t focus on having less, less, less; rather, we focus on making room for more: more time, more passion, more experiences, more growth, more contribution, more contentment. More freedom. Clearing the clutter from life’s path helps us make that room. - www.theminimalist.com

So yes, I do know I have 1001 things I want to do and achieve. But I have my plates full, hands on so-o many things on my to do list that never seemed to get ticked off, I simply grew tired.

Following the advice from the article I've read from another minimalist blogger, I let go of some goals. Not like let go and let them be forgotten. Just putting them aside, at least for the moment until I've accomplished :)

Today, I feel more relaxed and as though I have more time on my hand. On the downside, I have been taking my free time for granted and for that, I feel like kicking myself wth (≥Д≤) Though I did finished 2 books in a month which I'll consider an accomplishment ( ⌒▽⌒)v

Thanks for reading my lengthy post!

Embracing Minimalism

Of late I've been trying to clean up and get organized. I mean, of course I do that from time to time considering I'm someone with an OCD for cleanliness.

Nothing to extreme though! I've known people who are just way-y over the top about this issue but I rather practice moderation.

Anyway, I always find peace having a clean space but despite all the cleaning, the clutter remains. I find there are just too many things, material items that I don't find myself needing most of the time. At times it gets really frustrating and one time I find myself cleaning at 12am.

And so, I start asking myself what I can do though its mostly recycling clothes that are beyond wearing, trying to sell my unworn clothing (though unsuccessfully because I just don't know where to trade locally and apparently 2nd hand culture isn't something here...) and reduce my other 'harta benda' (material assets) a.k.a. 'sampah' (rubbish).

On my journey to a more organized life, I came across the term called "minimalism" which, apparently has been trending in recent years though still limited sources online.

Perhaps you have heard of Marie Kondo's best selling book "The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up" instead, there are more videos/bloggers/articles about it. Basically, it's a de-cluttering bible. I haven't read the book but would love to get my hands on it and see I could find new ideas to well, keep my things organized. IMO KonMari method sorta relates to minimalism for reason I'll be sharing shortly.

Here are what I learn:

From the term "Minimalism", I learn

1) Minimalism can be instilled in just every aspect of your life_from lifestyle, personal finance, attitude, life goals. The main purpose is to de-clutter to give you more time and energy to focus on things that really matters.

2) Transitioning to a minimalist lifestyle does not mean getting rid of everything but simply reducing to things that you find useful.

From articles I read on KonMari's book, I learn

1) To keep only items that "spark joy" to your life.

2) Assigning a particular space for all items and always return them to their rightful place.

Based on these ideas, I managed to reduce my things further and while it still feels like there are many things around, at least they have their own uses. It feels good too I don't feel too stress up with the need of reorganizing my things and cleaning up too often *phew*

I wanted to share what are the efforts I put to exercise minimalism in my life (besides the cleaning up bits) but this blog post is getting a bit too wordy so I'll leave it for the next blog post~! Thanks for reading!