I love travelling. I love to visit other countries and see how other people live. I love the different weather, the different architecture, the different food, the different flora and fauna and… well just all the differences. I also love the sameness, how ultimately we are all just people with our strengths and our flaws.

And one of the other things I love about travel is experiencing how little you really need in order to get by from day to day. Every time I travel I learn more about this.

This time we are staying in a studio apartment. A small well equiped kitchen, a bathroom and a living room/bedroom combined. Although I like a little more space at home, mostly because I am a creative kind of person, living like this on a temporary basis proves to me how little one really needs to live comfortably. And spending so much time out on the streets exploring brings home to me, if only in a superficial way, how some less fortunate people are forced to live. Which reminds me just how fortunate I am. And Berlin is a great place to witness diversity when it comes to how people chose to live.

Being here in the winter only adds to the realisation that having a warm, dry and comfortable place to return to at the end of the day is a blessing. And that place doesn’t have to be spacious to be a greatly appreciated. The only thing I would change about this apartment would be to get rid of half a dozen candle holders and add a decent sharp knife to the kitchen. I find that amusing because even in such a little place I am still more inclined to declutter some things rather than add any.

In fact my husband and I are both inspired to look again at what we do have at home, once we return, and do some more decluttering. We also have learned, as we do every time we travel, more about what we do and do not need to pack when we set out on these little adventures. We packed pretty light as usual but there have still been items of clothing that we could have left behind.

And if you think you need to travel heavier in the winter because you need more layers then you are wrong. The beauty of winter is that you hardly ever work up a sweat and your inner clothing is nearly always covered by your outer layers. So they don’t get smelly or dirty and nobody knows whether you are wearing the same thing day in day out for a week or not. And even if they did know, why should you care. People spend far too much time worrying about what other people think about superficial things such as fashion.

I guess the moral of this story is. Equip your home and your wardrobe to what suits you. Be aware of what you really do use and eliminate what you don’t if you want to live a less cluttered lifestyle. Don’t waste your hard earned money on stuff you don’t need and you will be about to afford more of what brings you comfort or joy. Things like the building up your savings which will give you the serenity of knowing you can pay your bills and have a nest egg should an unexpected expense come along.

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow

Mini Mission Monday is about finding ten minutes a day to declutter. To make it easy for you, each Monday I set seven declutter missions, one for each day of the week for you to follow. It takes the guess work out of decluttering and makes it easy and “fun” for you to achieve some quick decluttering.

It is about time we had another set of mini missions relating to what you clutter is made of. Some materials are used in a lot of different things so it usually isn’t hard to find something in the category. So good luck and happy decluttering.

Monday – Declutter something made of paper. This should be easy.

Tuesday – Declutter something made of glass.

Wednesday – Declutter something made of metal.

Thursday – Declutter something made of fabric.

Friday – Declutter something made of wood.

Saturday – Decluttering something made plastic.

Sunday - Sunday is reserved for contemplating one particular item, of your choice that is proving difficult for you to declutter. Whether that be for sentimental reasons, practical reasons, because the task is laborious or simply unpleasant, or because the items removal requires the cooperation of another person. That last category may mean that the item belongs to someone else who has to give their approval, it could also mean there is a joint decision to be made or it could mean that the task of removing it requires assistance from someone else. There is no need to act on this contemplation immediately, it is more about formulating a plan to act upon or simply making a decision one way or another.

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow

Mini Mission Monday is about finding ten minutes a day to declutter. To make it easy for you, each Monday I set seven declutter missions, one for each day of the week for you to follow. It takes the guess work out of decluttering and makes it easy and “fun” for you to achieve some quick decluttering.

By Nicole V

The “Little House” series of books by Laura Ingalls Wilder is much-loved by many across the world, with over 60 million copies sold in more than 100 countries. The heart-warming stories of the Ingalls family – Pa, Ma, Mary, Laura, Carrie and their dog Jack – offer a fascinating look at America’s frontier past, and have been translated into more than 30 languages.

The “Little House in the Big Woods” novel was first published in 1932, making this classic 84 years of age, and I thought that that in itself was as good a reason as any to incorporate a small slice of “Little House” into the mini missions for this week.

For those of you who are familiar with the series, you would probably remember that in the novel, Ma Ingalls had a specific chore for each day of the week:

“Wash on Monday. Iron on Tuesday. Mend on Wednesday. Churn on Thursday. Clean on Friday. Bake on Saturday. Rest on Sunday.”

This week’s missions will draw inspiration from her list, with a few adjustments to reflect our current lifestyles. So let’s get down to it, shall we?

Monday – Declutter something relating to your laundry routine or from your laundry room or area. It could be an item of clothing or linens, etc.

Tuesday – Declutter something relating to the chore of ironing or, by extension, any electrical equipment. If ironing is not on your to-do list, then declutter something relating to a hobby or any pastime that you enjoy.

Wednesday – Declutter something from your sewing kit or any clothing, curtains, linens, rags, yarn, etc. You could also declutter something that’s beyond repair.

Thursday – Since most of us would no longer need to churn our own butter, we’ll focus on the business aspect of “churn” – declutter something related to the Internet or other media, or something related to your office (including a home office), or any work that you do.

Friday – Declutter any cleaning equipment or item or something that you no longer want to dust or clean or to clean around. Or declutter something that will make any room or area in your home look clean and streamlined once it’s gone.

Saturday – Declutter anything related to cooking or baking. This could be anything from your kitchen, pantry, fridge, or any food preparation or storage area.

Sunday - Sunday is reserved for contemplating one particular item, of your choice that is proving difficult for you to declutter. Whether that be for sentimental reasons, practical reasons, because the task is laborious or simply unpleasant, or because the items removal requires the cooperation of another person. That last category may mean that the item belongs to someone else who has to give their approval, it could also mean there is a joint decision to be made or it could mean that the task of removing it requires assistance from someone else. There is no need to act on this contemplation immediately, it is more about formulating a plan to act upon or simply making a decision one way or another.

Good luck and happy decluttering

I received an email from an elementary school teacher, Rose Ann, a while back who needs help with keeping stuff under control in the classroom. Or maybe she even collects the stuff and keeps it around the house for when she needs it in class. She really didn’t elaborate on that. But I digress. As I have little experience in classrooms these days I would like any elementary/primary school teachers, who might be reading, to share their experience on how they keep their school supplies under control. Here is her email.

“Teachers save way too many things all the time. Do you have any suggestions to apply the Monday Missions for teachers? Especially elementary school teachers!”

As mini missions are meant to be useful to most readers, doing one especially for teaches may not be a helpful to the biggest majority of us. Which is why I have put this request to you in this post. Also, maybe some of you, who aren’t teachers, teacher’s aids or classroom volunteers, might know a teacher… who you could ask some advice from and post it here in the comments.

I know a nanny whose best friend is a teacher who I believe is very organised so I will send her an email to see if she could get some advice.

The funny thing about this request is that more often than not most teachers, at least that I have ever had contact with, are always on the scrounge form supplies because they never have enough. So I guess Ross Ann is fortunate that she has this problem. However, when supply problems are sporadic it can result in the act of saving every little thing all the time just in case of those times of scarcity. And I am sure this is indeed the problem that Rose Ann is referring to.

I guess one of the ways to avoid this is to set in place an efficient system whereby a teacher can call for help with acquiring supplies when needed, therefore eliminating the need to hoard for lean times. Just like depression era people continued to do long after the problem had passed. My best advice on is to establish a list of email address, each year, of all the students parent. Add to that list all the friends and family you can rely on for help and when needed send out the call and I am sure lots of people will step up.

So please if you have any advice for Rose Ann come forward.

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow

Mini Mission Monday is about finding ten minutes a day to declutter. To make it easy for you, each Monday I set seven declutter missions, one for each day of the week for you to follow. It takes the guess work out of decluttering and makes it easy and “fun” for you to achieve some quick decluttering.

Ok, so we are all over Christmas and are raring and ready to go with this years decluttering. So where to begin. Anywhere will do so long as you are doing it. But in case you are lacking in imagination here are a few places to start looking.

Monday – Declutter something from any drawer in your house.

Tuesday – Declutter something from the basement, garage, attic or shed.

Wednesday – Declutter something from a kitchen cabinet.

Thursday – Declutter something from your closet. And that doesn’t have to be clothes.

Friday – Declutter something in the living room.

Saturday – Declutter something in your linen or storage closet.

Sunday - Sunday is reserved for contemplating one particular item, of your choice that is proving difficult for you to declutter. Whether that be for sentimental reasons, practical reasons, because the task is laborious or simply unpleasant, or because the items removal requires the cooperation of another person. That last category may mean that the item belongs to someone else who has to give their approval, it could also mean there is a joint decision to be made or it could mean that the task of removing it requires assistance from someone else. There is no need to act on this contemplation immediately, it is more about formulating a plan to act upon or simply making a decision one way or another.

Good luck and happy decluttering

Eco Tip for the Day

Take your own bag when you go shopping. It is amazing how much plastic that saves over a period of time.

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow

I loved this comment by NF. It touches on many aspects of what and why to declutter items. It also makes me feel very good about creating and running this blog. It also makes me feel so grateful to all my wonderful readers who contribute so much to the conversation. My presence here at the blog isn’t what it had been in the past, however, with the wonderful conversations that go on, without any help from me, I don’t have to work so hard. The conversation is the biggest part of what the blog is now, so once again thank to everyone who adds there special presence here.

NF’s comment

I have enjoyed reading and applying all the decluttering advice given since I subscribed to this newsletter. I’m sitting here, 1PM, on 1/2/16 with 5 garbage bags and 2 boxes of “stuff” I haven’t used in many moons. I do this about once a month. In 2015, I lost weight so I went through all my clothes and kept the ones that fit and looked good. I have not replaced my larger clothes, so everything fits in one closet. I got rid of what I call “floaters”. These are decorative knick knacks that I dust and move around and never really pay much attention to until I have to clean them( no real sentimental value). I went to mostly paperless billing, payroll and bill paying, so my paper clutter is almost nil. I went to smaller kitchen appliances that suit the needs of two people and only kept others that I use consistently. If they don’t fit in a cupboard, out they go. I stopped buying so much food. I can see my refrigerator shelves, throw almost nothing out and can actually see what I have in my pantry(this was rough as I was raised to have as much in the larder as could possibly fit…depression era parent mentality, I guess). I’ve accomplished so much in 2015, so I’m going to keep going. I’ve got to get my husband on board, though. He used to throw out everything, now he keeps everything and if he can’t find something that we already have, he’ll buy it again,(Christmas wrapping paper, spices and condiments are the main culprits). Maybe I’ll wrap up the aforementioned overstocked food and gift it next year! Enough rambling, thanks all so much and keep posting the great ideas.

Mini Mission Monday is about finding ten minutes a day to declutter. To make it easy for you, each Monday I set seven declutter missions, one for each day of the week for you to follow. It takes the guess work out of decluttering and makes it easy and “fun” for you to achieve some quick decluttering.

Well the new year has begun and lets start it out with our first set of missions. So what shall be our theme this week. I’d like to give it a German theme since that is very much the focus of my life at the moment. Well at least I will use German words for this week. I think decluttering is much the same for most people in modern countries these days. Too much of everything is a common theme. So lets get started. Zeug is the word for stuff in German so lets focus on that.

Monday – Das Spielzeug (The toy) ~ Now there is a fun word both in sound and in the meaning. I am sure anyone with Kinder (children) or Enkelkinder (grandchildren) will likely have some old toys the kids don’t use much anymore. Especially as Christmas has just come and gone. Time to declutter those.

Tuesday – Das Werkzeug (The tool) ~ Declutter any tools that aren’t used often enough to warrant keeping.

Wednesday – Das Fahrzeug (The vehicle) ~ Time to declutter all that stuff that has built up in your car. Whether it needs tossing or just putting back where it belongs.

Thursday – Das Flugzeug (The aeroplane) ~ If you have items related to travel that haven’t been used in a long time, even though you have indeed been travelling, then maybe they are excess to your needs and it is time to declutter them.

Friday РDie M̦bel (The Furniture) ~ Declutter any bits of furniture that you no longer need. Pieces that once held stuff you no longer own or that stuff, you used to dust, once rested on. I still have one at my house that my son wants. It is about time he came and got it.

Saturday – Der Stoff (The Fabric) ~ declutter something made from fabric that you no longer need. This one should be easy because so many things are made from fabric of one kind or another.

Sunday - Sunday is reserved for contemplating one particular item, of your choice that is proving difficult for you to declutter. Whether that be for sentimental reasons, practical reasons, because the task is laborious or simply unpleasant, or because the items removal requires the cooperation of another person. That last category may mean that the item belongs to someone else who has to give their approval, it could also mean there is a joint decision to be made or it could mean that the task of removing it requires assistance from someone else. There is no need to act on this contemplation immediately, it is more about formulating a plan to act upon or simply making a decision one way or another.

Good luck and happy decluttering

Happy New Year to all my wonderful blog readers, old and new, may it be a wonderful year for you with less clutter, less stuff to take care of, and more time to do with what you like.

After all that is what you had in mind right, when you googled ‘Less Things’ in the first place and found your way here. And the new year is a good a time to get starting on the less things journey. Oddly enough that is kind of how I got started with my decluttering in the first place. I resolved to be beat the odds of failing at sticking to a new years resolution. Reportedly most people have given up on their promises to themselves by the third of January and fallen back into their old ways. When I learned that, I wanted to beat the odds and chose to declutter a thing each day for a year as my resolution. Needless to say I stuck with it and not only beat the odds but also made my home a more organised, comfortable, easier to maintain space than it had ever been.

So lets make this years resolution to not be a loser. Lets beat the odds and show the world, and more importantly yourself, that you are a winner who has the ability to succeed in what you aim to achieve. And the subject of that challenge will be to declutter your home. That could be, like I did, to set aside something to declutter everyday or to set a goal for the year to remove X amount of things.

So good luck all you practiced and budding declutterers out there and my they change on December 31 this year to the 1st of January next year find your homes looking and feeling good.

It matters not how fast I go, I hurry faster when I’m slow