Читать книгу The Joy of Tiny House Living - Chris Schapdick - Страница 16

How do you start down the path of living without clutter? Based on my experience, I advise you to do it slowly and take it one step at a time. One good way to start is to take just ten minutes each day to look around the space you’re currently occupying and find things that you don’t need. Sometimes these things are tucked away in a closet; sometimes they are shoved under a bed. Think about things that you haven’t used in a while (for weeks, months, or even years). We all have those items. If you haven’t used (or seen) something in months, do you need it? Seek out these unnecessary items and dispose of them, either by recycling them, selling them, donating them, or throwing them away.

Here are a few focus areas you can tackle in your quest to downsize.

Kitchen: Are there utensils and appliances that you don’t use anymore? Kitchenware is infamous for one-use tools; if it only serves one specific purpose, can you do without it? How do you, personally, cook? Think about how you prepare meals—and I’m not talking about meals that you make once a year on a special occasion. I’m talking about your everyday life. How many cups and mugs and plates and spoons and bowls and pots and spatulas do you have? Count them; the number may shock you. Do you need them all?

Wardrobe: Clothing is another excellent place to purge. We all have those items that don’t fit us anymore, or that have gone out of style, but we still like holding onto them; they continue to hang in our closet year after year, untouched. Some of us have too many shoes, and we likely don’t need or wear all of them. We also have highly seasonal clothing only suitable for certain times of the year, instead of pieces that are versatile. Considering all of this, what can you get rid of?

Media: Media takes up a ton of room in many people’s homes. If you have an extensive CD or DVD collection, could you switch to virtual copies or subscription services instead? This potential for space savings also holds true for books. I know many people like to have a book collection, and I’m no different in that regard; I certainly have more books than I need. More and more, though, I find myself either reading a book and then passing it on to someone else, or reading an electronic version of a book. Give it a try.

We all have something like this clutter at home—and for some of us, it’s our entire home. Are you prepared to cut down on your worldly possessions to live tiny? Are you prepared to prioritize only what matters most to you?

You may be proud of your music collection, and rightfully so. But consider going digital—media is one of the easiest categories in which you can reduce your possessions in order to fit into a tiny house.

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