Over the course of my career, I've learned that we often accumulate things simply because somewhere along the line we were told we should. Turns out you don't actually need to own anything you don't truly want or need - and if you pause to question the items that surround you, you might just find you can dramatically lighten your load.
We just use craft paper for gift wrapping! Bought a large white roll from ikea and my 5 and 7 year old love to draw pictures on the wrapped gift!! We have received so many compliments at birthday parties from other moms. It is an adorable way to give a gift and the cheapest gift wrapping option too!
Great topic. We have tried to eliminate paper towels and Kleenex. Easy to use dish towels and handkerchiefs, storage is simple and you never run out.
I am most proud of not having owned a TV for 11 years. We watch movies/shows on iPad or computer, which significantly cuts down on mindless/binge watching. While not a physical item, I am also very careful with digital subscriptions.
Curious how you deal with this when sick. I go through at least one box of Kleenex in one day every time I get a cold (which with two toddlers is more often than usual). That’s using each one more than once 🙈
As a European, the fascination of Americans for sodas and fizzy drinks is something of notice. These full stocked big fridges filled with drink cans, people just don’t have that here. Health-wise as a parent you are advised to stay away from any sweet drinks, from doctors and this is enforced through kindergarten and school. Also: fridges are mostly smaller.
The read-and-let-go idea for books is great and has been life-changing for me as a reader, makes life so much easier. I only keep a few books that I take up again and again and the rest can go.
FWIW as an American I don't really know anyone that has a fridge full of single serve drinks, beyond maybe leftover beer from the weekend or some cans of sparkling water. I think that's more of an influencer thing or what our lives look like on TV.
I’ve ditched most paper products over the years (yes, I still use TP!) so dog messes are cleaned with old towels and I use and wash handkerchiefs and cloth napkins. I also have quit plastic bags and plastic wrap and replaced them with wax wraps and reusable glass or silicone containers and bags. I’m working on pairing down my skin care and hair care routine - after almost 20 years as skin care consultant/biz owner with a major direct sales company, this has been a little harder! I’m also working on using up extra products my daughter couldn’t fit into her suitcases as she moved to New Zealand for university and she was a cosmetology student (and just a normal Gen Z girl!) so lots and lots of products! But I’m not replacing most of them except a few simple staples.
I’ve given up or have just not purchased extra kitchen gadgets and cookers as well so I don’t have an air fryer, instapot, etc since I live a small space and tend to do stovetop cooking the majority of the time.
And one thing that apparently drove my mother crazy was that I didn’t buy the small salad forks or very many teaspoons when I replaced my cutlery a few years ago. I mean how many of us set the table with a dinner and a salad fork these days?
I've been staying at my moms house and she has a bidet, and I am in love and ready to buy one for my house and forgo toilet paper!
I love the idea of having a simple approach to gift wrap. I personally never buy any, but I have a huge supply from saving all the wrappings on gifts we are given (we have young kids so there are a lot of birthday parties). Still trying to figure out how to pare that down without sending it all to the landfill.
Me too. I reuse all gift wrap, bags, boxes, and ribbons that enter our home. Have not bought gift wrap in many years simply by reusing what is available.
We do not have a satellite dish, internet, or streaming service. There is one tv and one bathroom in our home. We have no gaming systems. Not only do we not have them now, we have never had them. We don own an artificial Christmas tree, or plastic decor for various holidays except Christmas.
I love this piece but as a big read and lover of minimalism--why not borrow books from your public library! They're free--so you're saving money--and you're lending the books rather than owning them, thus not needing to find a home for the books in your home!
It's a fair point - I do love my local library but I also love supporting my small local book shops. Pre-ordering new books makes a huge difference for authors (and the publishing industry), and I love passing along great books to people in my life I know will enjoy them! x
Ahhhh… the sweet freedom to be able to afford new books and the joy of passing on to a friend while also keeping the book industry alive and well.. A new fresh book. Makes my heart sing.
Excellent ideas! I'm ready to get rid of the gift wrap items that taking up so much space. I'm participating in the neighborhood garage sale that's coming up, and I'm going to put all the wrapping items in, feels better already.
On gift wrap we also use brown paper for everything- but I do have a selection of ribbons to make things feel more personal to the recipient/ occasion / match with the card !
We are both in the creative industry- so we prioritise design books for inspiration in our space- but have a similar rule to you for fiction books.
A big one for me is toiletries and make up. I have a use and replace policy for make up- and everything must fit in a travel approved bag - I love this because it means everyday I wear my tried and tested favourites but it’s not a million steps. For shower projects we share the same shampoo, conditioner and bar of body soap! I think we could get to a place where we share facial skincare too - just using up generous Christmas gifts currently.
We love to cook but our kitchen is small so we have minimal appliances. And air fryer we use every week - it’s great for sharing the load when meal prepping. A stand mixer because I’m a dedicated baker- and a simple blender as my other half has shakes daily. No food processor - ever need breadcrumbs just use the blender! We have 3 pots and 1 frying pan- and cook all our meals at home.
We decided we don’t need a Refrigerator water and ice dispenser in the door. It takes up too much space and looks ugly. So excited for extra fridge room and a cleaner look!
Love this post. I’ve realized I don’t like single-use kitchen items or most “modern”’kitchen items, so I’ve offloaded my instant pot and gone back to the good old fashioned crock pot, for example.
I let out a tiny little gasp reading about no office supplies. Very inspiring. If you had them previously (for example the massive bin of pens and highlighters in my closet right now), did you just gift them to a school or something along those lines?
Also as a side note, a friend and I read Lifestyled together, and we now have some mini accountability each week around emptying our outbox. 😉
Oh, I love that you read LifeStyled with a friend!! I had an entire office filled with supplies previously and when I realized I didn't need any of them I donated them to my kids' school. Creative reuse centers and non-profits will often take office supplies or you can list on a Buy Nothing group. x
Sarah- I work in the front office of a public school and we find a home for almost any art/office supply. We get lots of community donations of odd stuff like that and we appreciate it most of the time. I'm sure your local school would be happy to take some office supplies off your hands!
We used cloth diapers when my kids were in diapers! That was a big one.
Paper towels, we use sparingly. Only for messes that would be nasty to clean out of a kitchen towel (ants in the kitchen, vomit, a big food spill). We dry our hands on kitchen towels and use cloth napkins for meals. And we don’t buy paper napkins. So the 6 pack of paper towel rolls usually lasts us about a year.
We don’t buy plastic/paper plates, bowls, cups, etc. — we do get a small package of cute paper goods 2x for year for our kids’ birthday parties. Because we don’t have enough plates/cups for a crowd. But that’s it.
Cleaning rags, we don’t buy anything like that. We cut up old shirts and use only those.
Please share how you handle cloth napkins with multiple family members. Do you each get new ones for every night of the week or do you reuse multiple times and if so how do you know who’s is who? I only have 4 living under our roof but the cloth napkin issue always causes havoc. Oh and we get ants every summer and also use that as an excuse to not use them. Help! I’d love to stop buying paper napkins.
There are 4 of us, too! One cloth napkin per family member per meal. I’m not really messy, so usually I go without one unless I actually need to wipe my face or hands. So we have maybe 16 or so napkins. We don’t eat every meal at home all together obviously, so that stash (built from yard sales, honestly) doesn’t really match one another. They’re just utilitarian. We store them right beside (used to be ON) our kitchen table in a little ceramic bowl so they’re easy to get to. We throw them in with the laundry and wash them with the other kitchen whites to disinfect and then put them away again in the bowl as they get washed, just part of the regular laundry routine! Are those details helpful? Hope so! :)
Growing up in a household of 5 Mum sewed initials on our napkins so we knew whose was whose. If you’re not a sewer maybe pick a different colour napkin for each family member.
EVENT DATES!! Thank you to all of the lovely readers who gently told me that my event days/ dates were wrong! Here are the correct dates below:
[Corrected] San Francisco Bay Area Upcoming Events 📍
📖 Berkeley: Thu 5/15, 6pm - Sip + Shop at Design Within Reach
Sustainable organizing/design discussion with Elizabeth Husserl. RSVP: berkeleystudio@dwr.com
🏷️ Marin: Sun 5/18, 9am-12pm - Tag Sale. Stylists, designers selling new/pre-loved goods. Coffee & floral pop-ups! I'll be signing books and selling items from my closet. Pop by! 306 Sir Francis Drake Blvd, San Anselmo, CA 94960
🎤 San Francisco: Thu 5/22, 4-6pm - Author Spotlight at Shack 15. A celebration of creativity, storytelling, and community. I’ll be in discussion with communications coach Bronwyn Saglimbeni.
📖 Berkeley: Thu 5/29, 6pm - Mrs. Dalloway's Bookstore Event. Author talk double feature with NYT bestseller Chris Guillebeau. Book signing included.
Thanks for keeping your newsletter free!
It's my pleasure! Thanks for being here. x
Ditto this!
We just use craft paper for gift wrapping! Bought a large white roll from ikea and my 5 and 7 year old love to draw pictures on the wrapped gift!! We have received so many compliments at birthday parties from other moms. It is an adorable way to give a gift and the cheapest gift wrapping option too!
Perfect!! x
Great topic. We have tried to eliminate paper towels and Kleenex. Easy to use dish towels and handkerchiefs, storage is simple and you never run out.
I am most proud of not having owned a TV for 11 years. We watch movies/shows on iPad or computer, which significantly cuts down on mindless/binge watching. While not a physical item, I am also very careful with digital subscriptions.
No TV is epic! x
Curious how you deal with this when sick. I go through at least one box of Kleenex in one day every time I get a cold (which with two toddlers is more often than usual). That’s using each one more than once 🙈
We just use toilet paper
Ditto!
We cut up old tshirts as tissues. Gets a family of four through colds but doesn’t take up much space at all when we’re healthy.
As a European, the fascination of Americans for sodas and fizzy drinks is something of notice. These full stocked big fridges filled with drink cans, people just don’t have that here. Health-wise as a parent you are advised to stay away from any sweet drinks, from doctors and this is enforced through kindergarten and school. Also: fridges are mostly smaller.
The read-and-let-go idea for books is great and has been life-changing for me as a reader, makes life so much easier. I only keep a few books that I take up again and again and the rest can go.
FWIW as an American I don't really know anyone that has a fridge full of single serve drinks, beyond maybe leftover beer from the weekend or some cans of sparkling water. I think that's more of an influencer thing or what our lives look like on TV.
I’ve ditched most paper products over the years (yes, I still use TP!) so dog messes are cleaned with old towels and I use and wash handkerchiefs and cloth napkins. I also have quit plastic bags and plastic wrap and replaced them with wax wraps and reusable glass or silicone containers and bags. I’m working on pairing down my skin care and hair care routine - after almost 20 years as skin care consultant/biz owner with a major direct sales company, this has been a little harder! I’m also working on using up extra products my daughter couldn’t fit into her suitcases as she moved to New Zealand for university and she was a cosmetology student (and just a normal Gen Z girl!) so lots and lots of products! But I’m not replacing most of them except a few simple staples.
I’ve given up or have just not purchased extra kitchen gadgets and cookers as well so I don’t have an air fryer, instapot, etc since I live a small space and tend to do stovetop cooking the majority of the time.
And one thing that apparently drove my mother crazy was that I didn’t buy the small salad forks or very many teaspoons when I replaced my cutlery a few years ago. I mean how many of us set the table with a dinner and a salad fork these days?
I've been staying at my moms house and she has a bidet, and I am in love and ready to buy one for my house and forgo toilet paper!
I love the idea of having a simple approach to gift wrap. I personally never buy any, but I have a huge supply from saving all the wrappings on gifts we are given (we have young kids so there are a lot of birthday parties). Still trying to figure out how to pare that down without sending it all to the landfill.
Good for you for reusing - makes a big difference! x
Me too. I reuse all gift wrap, bags, boxes, and ribbons that enter our home. Have not bought gift wrap in many years simply by reusing what is available.
Love that! x
We do not have a satellite dish, internet, or streaming service. There is one tv and one bathroom in our home. We have no gaming systems. Not only do we not have them now, we have never had them. We don own an artificial Christmas tree, or plastic decor for various holidays except Christmas.
I love this piece but as a big read and lover of minimalism--why not borrow books from your public library! They're free--so you're saving money--and you're lending the books rather than owning them, thus not needing to find a home for the books in your home!
It's a fair point - I do love my local library but I also love supporting my small local book shops. Pre-ordering new books makes a huge difference for authors (and the publishing industry), and I love passing along great books to people in my life I know will enjoy them! x
Ahhhh… the sweet freedom to be able to afford new books and the joy of passing on to a friend while also keeping the book industry alive and well.. A new fresh book. Makes my heart sing.
The one that seems to shock people? We don't do Netflix.
My kids also don't have iPads. Oldest teen has a phone, but younger teen and 9-year-old don't have personal devices.
So tricky to pull off in this day and age - kudos to you! x
Excellent ideas! I'm ready to get rid of the gift wrap items that taking up so much space. I'm participating in the neighborhood garage sale that's coming up, and I'm going to put all the wrapping items in, feels better already.
Love it! x
Love this post!
On gift wrap we also use brown paper for everything- but I do have a selection of ribbons to make things feel more personal to the recipient/ occasion / match with the card !
We are both in the creative industry- so we prioritise design books for inspiration in our space- but have a similar rule to you for fiction books.
A big one for me is toiletries and make up. I have a use and replace policy for make up- and everything must fit in a travel approved bag - I love this because it means everyday I wear my tried and tested favourites but it’s not a million steps. For shower projects we share the same shampoo, conditioner and bar of body soap! I think we could get to a place where we share facial skincare too - just using up generous Christmas gifts currently.
We love to cook but our kitchen is small so we have minimal appliances. And air fryer we use every week - it’s great for sharing the load when meal prepping. A stand mixer because I’m a dedicated baker- and a simple blender as my other half has shakes daily. No food processor - ever need breadcrumbs just use the blender! We have 3 pots and 1 frying pan- and cook all our meals at home.
Ooh love the blender hack for breadcrumbs! x
We decided we don’t need a Refrigerator water and ice dispenser in the door. It takes up too much space and looks ugly. So excited for extra fridge room and a cleaner look!
Love this post. I’ve realized I don’t like single-use kitchen items or most “modern”’kitchen items, so I’ve offloaded my instant pot and gone back to the good old fashioned crock pot, for example.
I let out a tiny little gasp reading about no office supplies. Very inspiring. If you had them previously (for example the massive bin of pens and highlighters in my closet right now), did you just gift them to a school or something along those lines?
Also as a side note, a friend and I read Lifestyled together, and we now have some mini accountability each week around emptying our outbox. 😉
Oh, I love that you read LifeStyled with a friend!! I had an entire office filled with supplies previously and when I realized I didn't need any of them I donated them to my kids' school. Creative reuse centers and non-profits will often take office supplies or you can list on a Buy Nothing group. x
Sarah- I work in the front office of a public school and we find a home for almost any art/office supply. We get lots of community donations of odd stuff like that and we appreciate it most of the time. I'm sure your local school would be happy to take some office supplies off your hands!
We used cloth diapers when my kids were in diapers! That was a big one.
Paper towels, we use sparingly. Only for messes that would be nasty to clean out of a kitchen towel (ants in the kitchen, vomit, a big food spill). We dry our hands on kitchen towels and use cloth napkins for meals. And we don’t buy paper napkins. So the 6 pack of paper towel rolls usually lasts us about a year.
We don’t buy plastic/paper plates, bowls, cups, etc. — we do get a small package of cute paper goods 2x for year for our kids’ birthday parties. Because we don’t have enough plates/cups for a crowd. But that’s it.
Cleaning rags, we don’t buy anything like that. We cut up old shirts and use only those.
Please share how you handle cloth napkins with multiple family members. Do you each get new ones for every night of the week or do you reuse multiple times and if so how do you know who’s is who? I only have 4 living under our roof but the cloth napkin issue always causes havoc. Oh and we get ants every summer and also use that as an excuse to not use them. Help! I’d love to stop buying paper napkins.
There are 4 of us, too! One cloth napkin per family member per meal. I’m not really messy, so usually I go without one unless I actually need to wipe my face or hands. So we have maybe 16 or so napkins. We don’t eat every meal at home all together obviously, so that stash (built from yard sales, honestly) doesn’t really match one another. They’re just utilitarian. We store them right beside (used to be ON) our kitchen table in a little ceramic bowl so they’re easy to get to. We throw them in with the laundry and wash them with the other kitchen whites to disinfect and then put them away again in the bowl as they get washed, just part of the regular laundry routine! Are those details helpful? Hope so! :)
So helpful! Thank you 😊
Yes! I have a friend who gives each family member a different color. We just have a few sets and rotate as they get dirty.
Growing up in a household of 5 Mum sewed initials on our napkins so we knew whose was whose. If you’re not a sewer maybe pick a different colour napkin for each family member.
Wonderful ideas, thank you ☺️
Great ideas - thanks for sharing!
Love it Shira. I’m still trying to ditch plastic bags … almost there!
You've got this! If we can do it, you can! x
EVENT DATES!! Thank you to all of the lovely readers who gently told me that my event days/ dates were wrong! Here are the correct dates below:
[Corrected] San Francisco Bay Area Upcoming Events 📍
📖 Berkeley: Thu 5/15, 6pm - Sip + Shop at Design Within Reach
Sustainable organizing/design discussion with Elizabeth Husserl. RSVP: berkeleystudio@dwr.com
🏷️ Marin: Sun 5/18, 9am-12pm - Tag Sale. Stylists, designers selling new/pre-loved goods. Coffee & floral pop-ups! I'll be signing books and selling items from my closet. Pop by! 306 Sir Francis Drake Blvd, San Anselmo, CA 94960
🎤 San Francisco: Thu 5/22, 4-6pm - Author Spotlight at Shack 15. A celebration of creativity, storytelling, and community. I’ll be in discussion with communications coach Bronwyn Saglimbeni.
📖 Berkeley: Thu 5/29, 6pm - Mrs. Dalloway's Bookstore Event. Author talk double feature with NYT bestseller Chris Guillebeau. Book signing included.