I have, for pretty much my whole life, been obsessed with tiny living spaces. The Tiny House movement really just assures me that there are other people who love tiny things. I spent my childhood trying to convince my parents that they should buy me a sheepherder's wagon and I could live in the yard. Whether this was solely an obsession with tiny things or any equal obsession with solitude is not clear.
Problematically, I am also a packrat. There are all these possibilities for things. Everything has potential uses, and by god, I might want it in the future for a project. And where am I if I've thrown it away?! Right. So, we see the trouble. Plus, there's the fact that I LOVE things. I love cute dishes and weird kitschy stuff and knick-knacks and souvenirs from vacations. I love pretty clutters. I love books. I read something earlier about donating or giving away books after you read them so that they don't clutter your house. Books are NEVER clutter. I appreciate the sentiment, but I was also a little heart-broken.
Which means that I find myself with way too much stuff. Way, way, way too much stuff. And a desire for more pretty things. And now, a stronger desire to cut back. I have too many clothes, too many project supplies, too many things.
There are a dozen concerns complicating the situation. I love crafts and projects and making things--literally, without these creative pursuits, I don't believe my life would be my own. So I need to figure out ways to keep that in my life without letting the materialism of it overwhelm me. And my life. I need something enthusiastic--something that captures my spirit and magic and which gives me the space to expand and explore on that. I don't really have that space where I am. I want to have essentials, and to not desire more than that. I want to think about what matters to me and how to live that life. I want to make this life a home. I'm interested in the collaborative efforts of our worlds, our selves.
So I'm starting an experiment. Surely one that people have done before me and one that others will do better than me. But, this is my story. I started sometime this year (some months ago--this is how well I track things) with a goal to not buy any new clothes (shoes, underwear, and maybe socks notwithstanding) for a year. I gave myself permission to buy second-hand clothes that could be modified, or not, and to buy fabric and notions for sewing my own clothes. After as many months as it has been (I really don't know--five, maybe? three?), I feel like it is a start, but not enough. I haven't gotten rid of any clothes (maybe a box. A small box) and I have acquired a lot more craft stuff and the clutter seems to be taking over. Not least in my considerations for this experiment is the fact that I manage my money terribly. I want to be more responsible. More fiscally responsible, socially responsible.
Back to the experiment, I will not be purchasing stuff. Exemptions include: necessities (food, pet food, toiletries, transportation), gifts (within reason--as yet to be determined what the hell that means), experiences (eating out, movies, museums, and dates), and conscious decisions. The main purpose will be to limit my intake of stuff to thoroughly thought out purchases. Ideally, no purchases would be made spur of the moment or without prior consideration and list-making (lists are the best, obviously). Second, I'll be focusing on getting rid of things. I'm not entirely certain how to quantify this, but perhaps in removal of boxes by week. Or something like that. Finally, I'm gonna have to work on some concentrated goal-making and list-making and life-tracking. I'm going to have to work on making sure I track this journey. I want to make the most of this time I have.
