For those who appreciate simplicity in any form.

I’ve decided that if I need any new clothing in 2025 I am going to buy it secondhand or get what I already have altered to fit better (the only exceptions I’ll make are for undergarments and swimsuits). I think this will help me learn to love what I already have and make me more conscious about how much I consume. I’ve had a lot of success with Patagonia’s Worn Wear and a little bit of success with Thread Up (I really just need to be more patient on searching through that site I think). Any other online shops you’ve had success in buying second hand? Thank you.

As I work to declutter my mental life as well as my physical, I'm taking count of how I spend my time, and I'm realizing just how much of my life has been lived vicariously through the creativity of others, puttering around in worlds that don't actually exist and having imaginary adventures. I'm suddenly feeling overwhelmed and saturated, and I'm not sure where to go from here.

I'm thinking of taking a break from fiction in all forms for the month of December. This is mostly books since I read a lot, but also comics, TV, movies, and games - basically anything with a curated story that one needs to be followed. Instead, I want to spend my time living my own life and having my own adventures, or maybe expressing my own creativity in new ways.

Has anyone else been through this? I'd love to hear what you learned!

I try to keep clutter down but I am unsuccessful. After having a family it became overwhelming. What are some tips specifically about minimizing mail piles and dishes?

I generally throw away most junk mail as soon as it comes leaving the stuff that's not addressed to me but looks important household members but it seems to mostly just sit there and get pushed aside for months. Dishes we now use paper plates but that also isn't enough to keep the mess down. I'm thinking of getting rid cookeare besides a pot and a frying pan but I know I'll regret it.

It’s Cyber Monday, and let’s be honest: today is designed to make us impulsive. Everywhere we turn—whether it’s ads, family members talking about deals, or even posts here on Reddit—there’s a constant push to buy something. The messaging makes us feel like we’re missing out if we don’t jump on these “one-day-only” discounts. But what if we embraced a different mentality today?

Instead of letting the frenzy take over, try blocking it out entirely. Screw Cyber Monday, call today an offline Monday. Turn off notifications, avoid the deal emails, and step away from the sites that tempt you. If you’ve been feeling a pull toward minimalism, today is a great chance to practice resisting the urge to accumulate more. Remember: those deals are only “good” if you were already planning to buy that item. Otherwise, it’s just a clever way to get you to spend money on things you probably don’t need.

Focus on your physical and mental space. Is it set up for success? One thing I recommend is to set up something that slows you down before you open shopping websites or apps. On my phone, I made it so that I’m forced to talk with an AI before opening Amazon or any shopping app. The goal is to force intention and mindfulness on yourself. When it comes to your physical space, ask yourself: is my space set up for productivity and flow? Or is it optimized for consumption and impulsivity?

To be clear: minimalism isn’t about deprivation—it’s about intention. Today should be about purchasing what you only truly need, and appreciating what you already have. Not chasing deals. Spend your time doing something that brings you real value: doing your best work, going for a walk, or even organizing a space in your home. The less we buy into the cycle of “more,” the more peace we leave room for.

So if you’re feeling the pressure of Cyber Monday, take a step back. Today doesn’t have to own you. Let’s make today an “offline Monday”. Your mind, physical space, and wallet (lol) won’t regret it :)

Once I removed consumption and unessential possessions from my life, I have struggled to figure out what to do with my time, especially after work and on my off days. On the weekend after completing chores and errands, I find myself lacking ideas of what to do next. I spend a lot of time doing "nothing" (mostly just sitting with my thoughts/reflecting) but would like to experience other things as well. I don't have any hobbies that require physical possessions, but I would still like to know how others spend their time as a minimalist.

So it was Thanksgiving and I had a conversation with my cousin and I actually thought he brought up a good point. For context he has 5 children. I don't have any kids.

I helped him cook the other day but somewhere along the line I was joking that his kitchen was cluttered. There were cutting boards here and there, cups here and there. Everything was cluttered.

Then I explained how my kitchen is. Or my basic philosophy. ie I don't have many pans. I don't have many kitchen knives. I only keep one of each but they're the best. I don't lose them because there's only a few of them. ie one chef knife, one nonstick pan, 2 cutting boards, etc.

I also was explaining that I'm very anti-bulk in my philosophy. I don't go for bulk paper towels because they take up so much space. So I just buy a few at a time.

But my cousin basically explained he can't do that --> When you have kids you can't do that. You can do that form of minimalism because with that minimalism you are taking care of yourself. But when you need to take care of a whole family you can't do that.

He buys bulk because he has to for the family. Which makes sense.

But he says that sometimes things are bound to be messy when you have kids because it's harder to do all that when you have 5 kids running around.

Then sometime during the conversation we began talking about our grandmother. She reused everything. She would buy something from the store. She would use everything in that bottle. Then she would clean the bottle and reuse the bottle. I was telling my cousin that basically all those bottles were kinda clutter. They were to me at least.

But he brought up an interesting point.

He said, "That clutter was made because it wasn't about her only taking care of herself. She was taking care of the family. You can easily throw away things and declutter things when you only care about yourself."

But it got me thinking of times when I see 'extreme' or 'super' minimalism posts here and I can see how those posts are actually selfish. ie self-centered. It's selfish, ie when someone has a house with no furniture for other people to sit on. And maybe things change when you have kids. What do you think?

I was just reading a research paper and came across this statement: "because the measurement of time is more ambiguous than of money, people feel less accountable for how they spend their time".

I don't consider myself a minimalist – yet – but I am trying to simplify my lifestyle and cut back on unnecessary purchases/clutter in my home. Over time, I'm intending on replacing anything that breaks beyond saving with a better quality version of the item, but with all the sales recently it's been quite hard to resist just buying these things now.

When I do make a purchase, though, I'm going to ask myself the question: How many hours' work would this take for me to earn its value? Would I be happy to work that time and receive this item as payment?

For example, I'm thinking about getting myself a Wool& dress, but the cost equates to about a full day's work. Is it worth that? (I think so, but it's an interesting reframing!)

I’m 30F and I can’t believe how our life now is just surrounded by social media. I hate it. I almost feel like I need not just a physical presence, but a online persona sometimes too.

I’m trying a minimalism lifestyle where I focus on what’s important in life and social media for me just isn’t very social anymore.

What are your guys thoughts on social media?

I deleted instagram a few months back and I honestly don’t miss it at all. All I have now is Facebook and TikTok. I love TikTok and post about my niche which is very unproblematic and fun. However, I HATE Facebook. But I’m worried if I completely remove myself from social media (instagram/facebook) I will not exist in the “social” anymore - that sounds crazy just writing that.

I can’t get out of my head that it’s a massive deal deleting Facebook. I only really keep it for my mum and husband - but they hardly post!!

Shall I delete? If you did, do you miss it?

I (M) am currently traveling and living out of a backpack.

I am looking for a type of shoe that will be my ONLY pair, to save space.

In my imagination this is some kind of hybrid between sports (flexible) and hiking (good profile) shoe that also looks decent (or inconspicuous) enough to wear out to dinner or a concert etc.

Does such a shoe exist?

I am looking for the best quality that will last, so price is not an issue.

EDIT: Thanks for all the suggestions! Now becomes a question of which of these I can find.

I had a huge need to upgrade my laptop this year, because the battery is terrible and I get shocked every time i unplug it from the charger, as well as working fully remotely at the moment. Due to my fortunate situation of being able to work fully remotely I wanted to take most of the next year to travel as I'd never really had the chance to when I was growing up (Im in my late 20s now, and feel behind on the travel aspect) and therefore wanted to fit my whole life in one bag, so I wanted to get a travel backpack and other travel gear this black friday/cyber monday.

I made a shopping list, budgeted, researched all of my options and spent the better part of the last 2 weeks planning just to in the end convince myself that I don't NEED anything this year and that money is scarce.

I grew up in a household where none of my aspirations were ever taken seriously and anything I ever wanted to do was shut down by my parents. We were not poor by any means, but that household is peak indoctrination of "go to school, work a comfortable job, get married, die". Not sure if this is the right sub to ask and whether my question will make any sense, but how do you actually convince yourself to buy things without feeling this insane guilt for "wasting money"?

i’m in the process of decluttering my home and transitioning to a more minimalist lifestyle but furniture is proving to be a challenge i want pieces that are functional and fit the minimalist aesthetic but also don’t add unnecessary clutter i’ve heard modular sofas might be a good option since they’re flexible and low-profile but i don’t want anything that will make my space feel cramped or busy if anyone has tips on how to choose furniture for a minimalist home or specific brands that align with minimalist values please share your experiences.

Hello!

Over the past weekend I have finally done a full stocktake of my wardrobe and considered what would be my ideal wardrobe.

I haven’t really purchased any clothing over the past 3 years apart from a few very hiking specific technical clothes. My plan is, rather than throw the redundancies out of the window, to keep using what I have to reach my end goal.

Ultimate end goal:

3x sports t-shirts (I don’t normally wear t-shirts unless I’m playing sports or lounging)

3x sun hoodies (this is my go to whenever I’m going anywhere)

2x Long sleeve t-shirts (no hood) (lounging base layer during winter)

2x mid-weight hoodies (my go to winter layer)

2x light-weight hoodies (all year round go to)

1x light down jacket (rare need this given I’m based in Sydney)

1x Rain jacket

1x wind jacket

2x hiking pants

2x jogger

2x shorts (I don’t like shorts unless I’m playing sports)

2x trail runners (1 backup purchased at discount)

2x road running shoes (1 backup)

1x easy on/off shoes (e.g., ultraboost/merrell moc) when I need to visit someone’s house or buy groceries

The above excludes my office work clothing (t-shirts, suits etc), underwears/socks and a bunch of random clothing that I retired for abusive occasions (for clothing, not that I’m abusing someone) (e.g., camping fire, woodwork)

Current status:

15x sports t-shirts (too many I know, but most of them were purchased 5-10 years ago and still functional)

6x sun hoodies (recent purchase, the road to the perfect sun hoodie comes with a cost, but I think I’m done for now.)

5x long sleeve t-shirts

2x mid-weight hoodies (goal reached)

4x light-weight hoodies

1x light down jacket (goal reached, although I’d prefer a hooded version)

1x rain jacket (goal reached)

2x wind breaker

5x hiking pants (too many, hard to find the perfect one)

7x joggers (3 of them are too old that I use for winter lounging)

4x shorts (all of them are too big now, but still functional if I cinch tight enough)

2x trail runners (goal reached)

2x road running shoe (with one being retired trail runner)

2x easy on/off shoe

With the current status, I think I’m fine setting a goal of not buying any clothing/shoes for a year, heck, maybe I should even aim for 3 years???

I was today years old when I realized I don't need a waste basket in every room. You can move it from room to room!

For the sake of saving space etc, has anyone replaced their TV with a projector.

At the moment I‘m trying to minimise possessions, especially large ones, and I am considering a mini projector instead of TV to use for my very occasional TV watching.

I am the wife, I own a very capsule wardrobe, like 2 bags, 2 pair of footwear, using iphone 11. I am content and happy with my life. On the other hand, my husband just bought himself a new Mac book, newest version of iphone, an Apple watch in this week alone. He purchased unnessary tools to cut garlic, onions, squeeze oranges juice, crack peanuts, peel pineapples, etc. Plus his wardrobe is 4 times bigger than mine. Of course I told him that we didn’t need these but I have been trying not to sound like I was stopping all of his purchases. He wants to buy me a new Iphone for Christmas. I honestly don’t need one as I am a stay at home wife and my iphone 11 is doing fine. But I am a little mad that I am not spending money on myself but my husband keeps sending so much. We financially can afford these stuff but I really want to save up money and hate the waste and the clutter in our house. Any suggestions?!

Why do people think they know how you want to decorate your home? I live in a small 2 bedroom apartment and I try to keep things minimalist for my ADHD and over stimulation. People are constantly gifting us art-- some of it very expensive. Not only do we not have space for it, but honestly I don't want to look at paintings of food from my hometown every day. What do I do? These gift givers visit often and I don't want to put away the art and hang it when they come over. I honestly want much less on the walls. I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings but also how dare you fill my home with your whims.

If you consider yourself a minimalist how many shirts do you own? How many dresses? I want to seriously pare down my wardrobe. I love fashion and clothing, but a lot of it needs to go. I’m trying to come up with a target number to aim for. Thanks in advance.

I’m trying to declutter a few months ago and I was going through my closet when I found 5 large-ish stuffed animals. There’s nothing really wrong with them, but I wanted to get rid of them because my house is small and I’m trying to make more space. I thought it would be best to donate them, but I never got around to doing it as I’m very busy and the closest goodwill/thrift store is pretty far away. I think I need to just throw them out, but I’m having trouble doing this as they’re still in good condition. But if I don’t I think I’ll just be holding onto them forever. I need encouragement to just chuck them in the trash.

I’ve never tried minimalism. But in general I’m tired of stuff. I live a life with family where I have a ton of stuff because it makes them happy to know that I have the stuff, whether I use it or not. And I love having things that make other people happy to know I have, because I love making the people I care about happy above all else. My grandmother (who is my main contact family member that’s older than me) goes on trips and we buy things for trips we go on, and she brings stuff back for me that I love.

But I’m tired of stuff. I have so much stuff that my place never looks clean (very small studio apartment). I have the things that make me happy, and what makes me happy are books and things on electronics (not necessarily electronics themselves). My life revolves around having things and I hate it. The items I don’t hate are good quality things and/or things that I use often and make me happy.

I hate groceries and meal planning. My grandmother gives me 20 things for groceries to make a specific meal. I don’t understand needing to have 15 things in your fridge you rarely use just in case you need them for a meal once every 3 weeks I need to keep in the fridge or cabinet for an unknowable amount of time. I’m just not a major cook.

Also, I hate having a car. I have been living without driving for months due to a medical concern and I have loved it. I have always had unexplainable anxiety around driving and owning a car to where me driving is a hazard, and I live in a place where I’m happy living in and don’t have to have a car to get around (I live in a small downtown city). I can 100% find a way to not need a car to live and have the motivation to. And I’ve been calculating my uber/lyft costs and delivery costs of necessities, it’s cheaper than I thought by a lot if I use sales and find the cheapest uber/lyft times.

My family would never allow me to live a minimalist lifestyle the way I want to. And I don’t know how to 1) start my wanted lifestyle after living in a family my whole life that has a major shopping/owning-certain-things-is-good problem so there’s some brain re-wiring that needs to be done or 2) stand my ground on the matter.

I want to get to the point to where I don’t need a storage place, those are expensive and I would honestly forget about it or never touch it for the next 5 years at least. And I would prefer to donate what I can instead of selling it because selling items can get iffy or complicated sometimes, and honestly I don’t need the money. But the constant jabs and disappointment I would get from my family would guilt me to my core if I lived a lifestyle that would make me happy.

I have (recently) been feeling very overwhelmed, I'm doing my a-levels next year and I feel like school has slowly been putting more work onto my back. I think a problem I have is motivation and feelings of being disorganised. My room is easy to become messy and I think my maximalist taste in decor is a poor decision for a place of rest and study. Do i need to sell everything I own and live frugally to become less overstimulated and pass my a-levels or is there a balance. I love my walls of posters but i also want a calm space. Is there a balance and does anyone have any tips for embracing minimalism while keeping your personality on show?

I'm realizing just how addicted I am (and most people are) to the phone and it's so disturbing. I definitely think it's changed the way my brain processes information and shortened my attention span. I'm in college and a lot of social interaction comes from our phones as well as two step verification for logging into student portals. I worry that downgrading to a flip phone would be super inconvenient...but then that's the smart phone trap that we've all fallen prey to. I'm curious if anyone has suggestions of dumb phones that still have maps and Google search and maybe Spotify but aren't so addictive. Or suggestions for how to keep life well balanced with these addictive devices

I’ve been giving it some thought and I’m tired of buying paper towels. Not to mention how much waste they make, but they are so expensive. Anyone use reusable dish cloths or cleaning cloths? If so where did you find yours and is it worth it?

Thanks!

Trying to pair down my kitchen small appliances. I have the air fryer, instapot, & crockpot. Is any one better than the others? I use the crockpot the most, but none of them more than 10x a year. Does anyone have one they use more than the others? Is it better to keep them?

Hello! I’m interested in hearing other people’s ways of unique, untraditional ways of celebrating the holidays, and how to fit this into minimalism.

For some context: I am not religious, I also don’t have family to celebrate Christmas/New Year’s with. I don’t particularly like the idea of those holidays, as it seems to be less about coming together and gratitude, and more about spending money, eating and buying plastic trees.

I practice sustainable living and veganism – I don’t like buying anything that I know won’t be used year round either, and something that’s just for appearances or normalized societal activities. That being said, I would love to celebrate in December, for example the winter solstice… and I was wondering what kind of decorations and such would be cool to make: DIY and sustainable. Generally, how do I foster the Christmas spirit while staying true to my values, without it being the capitalist version of normal Christmas.

TIA!

Hey :) Some years ago, I started my "Rednelakstnevda", Adventskalender backwards, the German word for advent calendar. The rules are simple: I get rid of at least one item in advent. I either donate or sell it. No, that's not revolutionary or new, it's just fun and for some reason it reminds me of the advent calendars I used to have been as a child because I'm just as excited to declutter something everyday. I'm gonna document what I sort out in this thread 🧵

Am I dreaming?

I’m looking to minimise the amount of shoes I own and I need a reliable good pair of shoes/boots that will withstand most things thrown at it in a day to day life, must be repairable in case it doesn’t withstand something thrown at it, if that’s by me or a Cobbler. I’m not fussed on material although I hear leather is good, I had a pair of leather Timberlands that fell apart on me after a month of daily wear at the heel and I’ve been looking for a pair ever since, any suggestions are welcome thanks in advance!

(27F) Idk if this is the right place to post, but the core of what i’m trying to do is based off minimalism. I’ve been shopping for clothes that will work in a corporate setting but attempting for it to be things that I can wear casually outside of work and not look too… “stuffy” or like older than my age. Any tips for how to transition clothes from corporate to outside? I try to buy neutrals that can serve as basics on a casual day. I’m thinking just wearing more jewelry….

I need recommendations

I am a very sentimental person and following a breakup, I want to store pictures that mean a lot to me somewhere safe and untraceable. This person and I broke up on good and amicable terms and there is a possibility we may get back together in the far future hence why I don’t want to completely erase the pictures but I also don’t want them on my phone where I can easily access and see them my hidden files when I feel tempted, I want to go into 2024 having fully mourned and moved on from this person. I’ve considered iCloud and google photos and Dropbox, which would be best?

And just to say these are not intimate photos or anything that would be disrespectful to keep, they are just pictures of us together and things we’ve done etc..

Edit: pictures from my phone*

Black Friday is my yearly reminder to minimize my email by unsubscribing to anything trying to market to me this week. Take a few minutes for yourself can clear out that junk by removing your email from their mailing lists