MINIMALIST LIVING

[MrsNocom]

This is WOW for me, I never thought about this. I'm not minimalist but my husband do, and now nahawa lang ako sa kanya. Lagi kong sentiments sa kanya na ako lang ang walang ipad, gusto ko mag-collection, sana mag-car din kami etc etc, sagot nya sa akin lahat ay lilipas kailangan natin un panghabang-buhay. Hirap din ako mag-let go ng mga things na hindi naman mapapakinabangan, I can't imagine na un mga magazines ko ay umabot ng 2box na malalaki. Pero tinulungan nya ako mag-let go ng mga bagay bagay. Which makes me proud. Nun una nahirapan ako kasi di naman yan ang lifestyle na nakasanayan ko, eventually I pass through it. Sa tingin ko if you're really determined you can do it. 

[nicola_juliano]

ang hirap maging minimalist kapag medyo makalat talaga ang mga kasama mo sa bahay. pero ayun, unti-unti ko na silang naiimpluwensyahan. nagiging matipid at masinop na ang mga tao.

latest minimalist act: to donate books at my alma mater's  library.. hopefully  next year na dahil ubos na leave ko

Agree, ganito din sitwasyon ko. Hahaha! Dami ko kalat ngayon (di ko maasikaso linisin due to my busy schedule from work, business, and love life. lol!). Marami din kalat si little nephew (kotse, bola. lahat na ng laruan nya). Marami din kalat si mamadir (medicine kit dahil nagkasugat recently, pangspray dahil namalantsa kagabi). Si Papadir walang kalat kasi tamad. lol! Puro games sa laptop. Huhuhu. Hindi ko na alam saan uunahin. Kasi it's Christmas season and everyone is busy now.

[melmedrano]

sis rae, kaya naman feeling ko it's a sickness... because parang kami lang ang ganun, parang di normal... hahaha!

But anyway, we're ok with it. The simplier we are the better we feel. At saka sanay na ako ngayon, di ko na lang pinapansin yung mga nagtatanong/nagtataka kung bakit wala kaming TV with cable, wala akong tablet, di pa rin ako nagpapalit ng phone, wallet at kung ano-ano pang bagay at kung bakit hindi ako bumibili ng bagong damit pag Pasko para sa anak ko. I just smile. Hirap kasi magpaliwanag. ;-) Sinusubukan na lang namin na maging magandang halimbawa kami at ang pamumuhay namin sa iba, then hopefully maintindihan nila kami.

[Lady Blue]

^ Tama ka, sis melmedrano. Hirap mag-explain kung bakit ganito ang lifestyle natin pero ako, kibit balikat.. Eh sa ganun eh..

Dito sa bahay namin, walang bagay na hindi talaga namin ginagamit. Lahat may purpose. Wala kaming mga deco-decorations ek ek.. Dagdag lang din kasi yun sa linisin eh.Ni wala nga kaming washing machine eh hehe.
Wala rin kami "living room" kasi we don't entertain much. We just converted the space into a photography studio. Simple lang din ang furnitures namin. Kaya hindi ako stress sa paglilinis ng bahay kahit medyo may kalakihan sya para sa dalawang tao.
Yung iba kong mga kakilala, they like having collections( Starbucks mugs, shoes etc). Ganun din ako dati pero books naman ako.. Sa sobrang dami kong books, may sarili na akong mini library. Nung nagkaron ng ebooks, I just donated my books to a public library. Nagtira lang ako ng konti, yung mga pinakapaborito ko. Electronic na ngayon ang library ko. As much as possible din, I go paperless.

So kahit konti ang gamit sa bahay, hindi namin feel na naleleft out kami kasi this is what works for us. Kuntento kami sa kung ano lang meron kami. This is what makes living stress free for us. More space so malayang makakagalaw..

There are two areas in the house though, that some would think excessive. My partner's camera room and my craft room. But to us, we don't consider this excessiveness. The camera room, because he is a photographer, he needs everything that is in there. My craft room, although very neat and clean, has everything a crochet lover like me would want. This is also a source of extra income for me so....

Tingin ko din, isa sa dahilan kung bakit hirap yung iba sa atin to let go of things is because our society is very much attached to consumerism. So beginning a journey towards minimalism really requires some introspection.

I found a blog that is such a good resource and a great inspiration.. http://www.becomingminimalist.com/

[jeune]

Between my husband and I, I'm the minimalist. Less is more for me. I don't like seeing my house full of crap. I regularly throw or donate things in the house. I clean out my closet and get rid of clothes and shoes I hardly wear. This is more convenient for me because we move every 3-4 years. The less I have the easier it is to pack.

[angelic_daphne]

^ I want to be a minimalist. I hate clutter but I really like a lot of products and I don't know what to get rid of first from my haul.

[rae]

@melmedrano

nakakarelate ako, lalo na before. just last week, tinanong kami ng ilang friends, bakit di pa kami bumibili ng kotse, bumili na daw kami, walking distance lang si E sa office nya, ako 30 minute commute, wala talagang need.

Parang 'the filipino dream' kasi. Napalaki tayo na dapat mag-aral, makakuha ng magandang trabaho, tapos pag umuunlad na, dapat bumili ng bahay, tapos kotse, tapos pag may disposable money ulit, bahay ulit tapos isa pang kotse, and it goes on and on....

[ikaela]

I also do plenty of what you ladies do, but I don't think "minimalist" is the term for my kind of living. I like to live efficiently, maximizing the use and function out of everything. Each peso I spend, I make sure it's on something that's worth the time I used working for that peso. And once I acquire that item, I must get the most use out it, which also entails caring for it. I don't like having anything in the house that's just sitting around, unused. So if something has no use to me anymore, either I throw it out or give it away.

Imagine my stress when my mom decided to dump her unused appliances on me. Oh my gosh, what am I going to do with a ginormous juicer, a coffeemaker I still have to buy filters for, and an electric griller that's sure to use up a lot of electricity? I found space for them in my house, but I don't like how they're just there, taking up space. I want them gone, but they're too expensive to give away, and to sell them means I have to hawk them to friends (which I don't like doing). I'm going to see if I can sell them online, but I'm sure the shipping charges for these big, bulky items are going to be exorbitant.

My husband is my complete opposite. He likes to buy things on the fly, use them for a bit, and then leave them lying around the house. These things include: huge speakers, a punching bag, airsoft/diving equipment, and various computer stuff. I learned to live with this habit of his by providing him with storage boxes. But now they're getting filled, so I'm going to have to do a merciless purge come next year. If it's not being used, it's getting chucked out, I don't care how much it cost!

[melmedrano]

this month will be more challenging for all of us to live in a minamalist lifestyle...

[Annie M.]

Has anyone heard of "The 100 Thing Challenge"?
It's a movement in the states, where people who want to simplify their lives, reduce stress, and save more money wilt down their personal possessions to just 100 things.

http://www.mnn.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/blogs/dave-brunos-the-100-thing-challenge

I have been trying to do this since last year, and so far I have wilted down my things to 220 (kasama mga kutsara at tinidor - hahaha). It's still easy now because I live alone, but when my boyfriend and I get married ewan ko lang.

Minimalism has helped me live more deliberately. I recommend it to people who feel overwhelmed by life.

[ikaela]

^I wanted to try that challenge before, but parang ang stressful na bilang ka ng bilang kung 100 nga ba talaga ang gamit mo. Parang it's totally against the principle of simple, worry-free, and hassle-free minimalist living. Hehe.

[tomatostellar]

hindi ko ata to kaya, or hindi ko gusto gawin. Siguro sa personality ko na din.
Share ko yung isa kong officemate na lalake though, sa callcenter kami nun. kilala na sya kasi palaging plain white tshirt and jeans ang suot nya. Minsan naman nag iiba, pero mga 3 or 4 times a month lang.
Super matipid daw talaga siya and ganon kasi pagpapalaki sa kanya. Nakwento nya pa isa sa style ng dad nya, mag freezer sila ng pitchel ng tubig sa gabi, sa umaga, ilalabas, dun na lag sila kukuha, hindi na bubuksan ulit yung door ng ref para hindi maaksaya sa kuryente.

[rae]

^I wanted to try that challenge before, but parang ang stressful na bilang ka ng bilang kung 100 nga ba talaga ang gamit mo. Parang it's totally against the principle of simple, worry-free, and hassle-free minimalist living. Hehe.

Haha true. Kasi nga naman ang main objective is to live a more stress-free life. Not really to reduce the stuff. It's just a means to an end.

Kaya feeling ko, this is a very relative thing. If at the end of the day, you think you're able to still focus on living and having meaningful experiences and your stuff is not getting in the way of that, all is well.

[Cheesecak3]

I try to keep our home clutter free. The old toys and clothes should be donated at least twice a year. We don't buy things that we don't use. We transfer to our new home at nagpagawa talaga ako ng storage room and pantry area para mas organize lahat at yong mga hindi na kailangan hindi ko na pinapatagal pa sa bahay. Simula nong naging ganito ang lifestyle namin mas gumaan ang buhay namin.

[FOURever]

Done backreading! Super helpful nito. I am planning to save money this year kaya naisipan ko magbasa basa ng tips dito. Pansin ko when it comes to clothes, minimalist ako. Basta may nagagamit ako, yun lang. Mas gusto ko all around na nga na shoes. For now, i am still living with my parents, lifestyle ko muna ang babaguhin ko at yung space/room ko except sa books. I buy 1 book per month to add to my collections but i only buy from booksales. Then sa gadgets, gusto ko maging minimalist lang. Laptop for school projects, although i can't give up my tablet kasi it's very useful sa school. I'm planning to just check facebook once every night before going to sleep kasi nandun mga announcements namin sa school. Then another checking sa umaga before i go to school. Twitter and IG, once a week na lang at dapat sa weekend.

I'm not into malls, so no problem sakin yun.. Pansin ko, food sa labas ang nakakalakas ng gastos ko. So this year, plano namin ng sister ko na every week grocery kami para makatipid. Kami na magluluto.

Sa alahas, wala naman akong alahas. Relo lang accessory ko.

I hope successful ako dito sa plans ko

[nicola_juliano]

sis annie thank you for sharing ng link matry nga yang 100 things challenge

@nicola
sakto sis tapos na ang xmas at new year, push na natin ang pagdedeclutter!

Ay tama sis! Nagsisimula na ako magde-clutter at the very first day of January! Dami ko na natanggal. Mamayang hapon pagkauwi ko sa house, de-clutter naman sa mga damit na di ko na sinusuot. :-) It's either gagawing basahan or if matino pa, ipamigay na lang. :-)

Minimalist Living is my aim this 2014. :-)

[geekchiq]

I like to believe na my family live this kind of living. My hubby and I own few pairs of shoes and clothes. I have uniform kasi sa work and I rarely go out. So there's no need to buy too much clothes. I only buy when there are occasions to attend to. Unless pilitin or hindi na kasya ang mga damit niya,, dun lang bibili si hubby ng clothes. We don't buy our baby ng maraming clothes or toys na mabilis lang din pagsasawaan. We dont feel deprived naman since mababaw lang kaligayahan namin like eat out on good resto or watch a movie once a month, ok na kami dun.

When we have our own place, we promise ourselves na we will only buy what we need especially we are buying a townhouse lang. We'll make sure there are enough storage spaces for our things. And I think we can live up to our promise.

[ri-anne]

i practice this minimalist living, with my things and as much as possible, in our house.
pero medyo mahirap lang talaga if you hav a partner na different from you.
example na lang yung hubby ko. ang hilig mangolekta ng mga kung [textspeak!] ano. yung mga anak ko din. ako si taga-tapon/ bigay at taga-control kung anong pwede lang idisplay. haaayyy
hindi lang once or twice ako magbawas ng old clothes and toys in a year! i do it whenever i feel it's necessary.

[DianeShishio]

I used to be Hoarder! And yes, hoarder, not even a collector. I enjoy shopping especially for trinkets lang. Stuff that I won't need but very pleasing the eyes. It was as if I HAD TO HAVE everything that's cute! CRAZY!

One day, I asked a close friend - who is also a psychologist - to help me clean my room. He practically threw out a good 60% of my stuff. I cringed and squirmed, but it had to be done. :/ He even threw out my raw arts and crafts materials (sabi niya Arts and Craps... haha)

I've been decluttering my life for 2 years now and although slow ang improvement, I'm getting there. The hoarding is now gone, I don't buy cute impractical stuff anymore. I've become a smarter online shopper. I RARELY GET BUYER'S REMORSE! Hindi na ako nadadala ng salestalk!! WOOT WOOT!

I am still however expanding my dress and shoe collection. Makeup is now down to basics, though I do hoard on essentials. I still buy books no matter how impractical it may seem in the age of E-books, non-nego, I need tangible reading material.

My ultimate goal now is to cut down on luxuries such as food and pampering services. :3

[rae]

^^ My partner is not adopting the lifestyle as aggressively as I do pero relatively, medyo minimalist na din sya, he doesn't have stuff just to show off an image like kotse or signature clothes, etc.. Pero sa gadgets and personal entertainment stuff, grabe sya magshopping, ang daming gadgets na madami nang alikabok. I think pwede nya pa bawasan but I let him be.

Basta yung gamit ko, sobrang onti na except for makeup (I started exploring colors just recently kasi, but I've been working on streamlining everything na, including skin care). I just gave away 19 lipsticks and I'm now down to 10. I'll maintain 6 tubes at a time na lang.

Anyway, sometimes he eggs me to buy clothes and shoes kasi parang paulit ulit na lang daw yung suot ko. Sinasabi ko na lang na I don't need it.

Sometimes, nasasabi nya na parang gusto nya na ako gayahin. I think hindi talaga mapipilit, kasi kelangan nilang mapagdaanan yung same thought process na pinagdaanan mo when you came to that decision to minimize your belongings. Otherwise, hindi sustainable.