r/minimalism

hi everyone!

i’ve reached a point where i can no longer function in my room due to the amount of things i have accumulated. i regularly donate/sell/throw out anything that 1. doesn’t bring me joy, 2. doesn’t serve a purpose, and/or 3. i have multiples of. after spending a while doing this, i still find myself with sooo much stuff.

it doesnt help that i have attachment issues to inanimate objects. things that have sentimental value are especially hard to get rid of (but i do it eventually.) i also have the “what if i need this one day” mindset. im starting to break out of this but its awfully difficult.

i used to have a pretty minimalist lifestyle ages 14-16 (im 22 now). everything was much simpler. now, im in LOVE with things.

i love collecting cd’s and listening to them while crafting. i love collecting coach bags. i also love to thrift. i LOVE crafting. all of these things bring me so much joy. trust me, i tried so hard to hate these things but i love them and cant help it.

after years of having no hobbies and not knowing who I was, i feel like i’m finally starting to gain a clear(er) sense of self.

the issue with all of this is that it’s becoming harder to organize and clean my room. i have ADHD and live with my bf who also has ADHD. we both get overwhelmed with how many things we have in our room. it also doesn’t help that he adores maximalism. (look up debby ryan and josh dunn’s house tour. that’s my bf’s inspo.) my bf also loves to collect pokemon cards and little trinkets.

how can i work towards a minimalist lifestyle while still keeping/doing the things i love? anyone with ADHD that has tried minimalism and got it to stick?? any advice/tips would be greatly appreciated, thanks!

I have a lot of old stuffed animals that are not in condition to donate, sell, or give away, even to an animal shelter (trust me, I’ve tried everything). I want to open up the space in my home so I need to get rid of them and I was wondering what the best strategy is when you need to throw something with sentimental value in the trash. I could put them in a separate garbage bag so that they don’t touch the other garbage? But then, wouldn’t it all get squished together in the garbage truck so it would touch the other garbage anyways? Would it be better to put them right in with the other garbage so they get dirty and I accept that they are garbage? Has any one else done something like this? Help!

i've been trying to simplify my life over the past year and cutting down on unnecessary shopping has honestly been harder than i expected. for me the biggest problem area was clothes. not luxury stuff or expensive brands, just constantly buying random shirts, hoodies, sneakers, jackets, or things on sale because i convinced myself i'd use them eventually.

the problem is i ended up with a closet full of stuff i barely wore while still rotating through the same few outfits every week. once i noticed that pattern it started feeling ridiculous. now i'm trying to keep a smaller wardrobe where everything actually gets used regularly instead of sitting there "just in case." i've gotten a lot better about it but i still notice the urge sometimes when i'm stressed or bored. stores and apps make impulse buying way too easy now.

what category was hardest for you to cut back on when you started getting into minimalism? and did it get easier over time or do you still fight the habit?

I tried organizing my space by zones like sleeping, working, relaxing but it kinda failed. i just ended up moving stuff between zones instead of actually simplifying anything. now i’m wondering if less structure might actually work better for small spaces. or maybe i just did it wrong lol. does anyone here actually stick to a zone setup or is it overrated in practice?

Hi all,

I have been sleeping on the ground on a NEMO pad that I used for thru hiking. I put the pad on the ground then I put a comforter folded over it and sometimes add my down sleeping bag under me as well if I want more warmth. I was thinking it might make more sense to "upgrade" to a Japanese futon that I can just fold up and is one thing but I am worried it might be "too soft" and not flat enough compared to how I normally sleep now.

For the record I am not uncomfortable at all in my current set up and have no pains or issues, the whole thing is probably thinner and less fluffy than a Japanese futon I would guess?

Any thoughts on this? I do think having the whole thing in one fold up is nice to have, but I don't want to add too much fluff.

Thanks

Long time lurker, first time poster. Dunno if this has been asked before, but recently I was downsizing my wardrobe and donating unwanted/unused pieces of clothing. I realised I had so many unworn tshirts (new with tags) that I had purchased in the last few years during times of massive sales. I had purchased them thinking they were a good deal (and they were/still are). I am a tshirt and sweatpants/shorts sort of guy so that is why I purchased them in the first place. The problem is, I normally wear the same set of tshirts every day to bed and then when going out for errands and working out. My clothes are all good-quality and normally last many years so there really isn't a need for me to buy too often. However, despite donating them, I still can't seem to shrug off that feeling of wanting to stock up on more clothing (because they're on sale and bitfl quality) whenever I see a sale for the brands that I wear. If anyone else has gone through something similar, how did you manage it? I don't consider myself particularly susceptible to marketing since I barely use social media, I'm not into fashion and am normally very sensible with spending. Thanks.

Hi all,

Do you have any good tips for de-cluttering and maintaining a minimalist, organized apartment with very limited space in a studio apartment?

Of course, I have gotten rid of a lot of items, done best to organized but it is a very small space and still doesn't have that minimal, clean vibe yet.

Thanks!

I am expecting my first child and trying to plan out what I need once it’s born in a few months. This includes making a registry and trying to make sure them and all their belongings can fit into my house once they’re bigger and more mobile than a newborn.

I currently live in a 2 bedroom, 1 bath 900 sq ft house with a yard with my husband and 40-lb dog in a HCOL city. Buying a bigger place in this market is out of the question. The biggest problem is that we both have WFH desk setups - we are not both actively working from home but we have and there is a decent chance we will be in the future.

**Question 1** concerns my housing layout - I’d like to hear what worked for other minimalist and small-home parents. We currently have a combo dining/living room, a bedroom and a home office, with a secondary desk in our bedroom.

The easiest thing for us would be to move the (smaller) bedroom desk into the living room behind our couch, reducing the floor space in front of the couch and then moving a crib and any baby storage into a corner in our room. But this requires the child to live in our room past babyhood.

The second option would be to convert our second bedroom into a child’s room, but this would require moving my (bigger) desk with multiple monitors, a bookshelf/file cabinet, and a dog crate out of the room, plus we use the closet space for our coats since we don’t have additional closet space. It’s a fairly large room. I’m not sure that sharing my office with a baby/toddler would be pleasant for anyone, although maybe we could use it for storage for a while.

**Question 2** concerns our registry. We do not want to accumulate more than whatever is super helpful, and we are happy to acquire items used when convenient. We have already acquired a convertible crib, lightweight stroller, infant car seat with extra base and a hand-me-down high chair. We are asking for a Baby Bjorn rocker, one baby carrier, a cheap changing pad, a modular pen, and an assortment of fabric and hygiene products. We are not asking for a pack and play as that feels excessive with our space. We did not ask for many clothes, but hope we can obtain some secondhand.

I’d love to hear from other minimalist parents on what you loved and needed and didn’t. I am already overwhelmed by the amount of stuff I’m supposed to acquire and I am a bit tired of seeing whole nursery setups for unborn babies as if I have the money or space to decorate an entire room.

I work with a guy who lives on a small piece of land, and has a homestead. He has a smartphone for work, but no other gadgets that I’ve seen. He doesn’t have a single digital subscription. He’s happy as fuck, too.

I’m a pretty chaotic person. I have no daily routine. I work on call, so my schedule is totally random week-to-week, working all hours of the day, sometimes two jobs in a day. I love my job, best job I’ve had as a labor worker, but I’m not making ends meet. I can work 25 days in a month, and there’s almost nothing left at the end of the month.

If there are any first steps I should take to becoming a practicing minimalist, to be able to focus on the specific things that I love and strip the rest away, I would appreciate any advice. I don’t know what to start cutting out first.

My Instagram and Reddit both are used for my hobbies, Instagram specifically for getting recommendations from various critics and or publishers. I have a timer on the phone set for 10 min per day. But the issue is, I always get FOMO that I'm missing out on some recommendations, so should I delete the app altogether, if so I have to actively look for recommendations. Any help appreciated. Same for Reddit also.

P. S. The majority of the recommendations channels don't have an RSS feed, already tried doing that.

Edit: the recommendations are for books and movies

So our dad surprised us a few years ago by announcing he'd be living overseas after retiring. He moved to Southeast Asia and now lives by the beach, where he owns a small rental lodge for tourists. He doesn't do anything most days from what he tells us, just hangs out, swims. He only has his phone and a fridge for his beer.

Whenever we call him he looks much more cheerful and lighthearted. He'd been drudging his final years at work and it does look like a weight fell off his shoulders now he's retired. Pretty happy for him though I can't imagine a life like that for myself. Not yet anyway. We're (siblings) thinking of visiting maybe next year when our work schedules align.

I'm trying to decorate my bedroom at the moment and make it more mature, but I'm worried that it looks too minimalistic and sterile. Does anybody have any advice on cozy decorating (mainly bedrooms) without adding a ton of clutter?

I was a Hoarder. I used to collect things and keep it due to endowment effect and sentiments It felt never enough and very cluttered. I became a minimalist removed alot of useless things from every aspect of life. Now life feels easier and small things are enjoyable. I really like this lifestyle. Now i got a deeper question. Whats the right philosophy of life, the right way of living and what ideas and principles to follow? I kinda feel a bit of FOMO of consumerism and very left out so i need the basics clear.

I unfollowed a lot of celebrities and brands that no longer resonate with me. It was really difficult for me to let go due to the nostalgia. I once felt a connection with these profiles, but at the end of the day, they have a purpose of their own. They're not thinking about me.

I did this because I want to declutter my digital spaces and be less of a consumer. It also frees up my space, time, and energy to appreciate and admire what resonates with me more these days.

I still struggle unfollowing people I once connected with through online social communities even if they and I never bonded that much. They aren't the people I see myself truly befriending, yet I still follow them because they still follow me. Of course, out of courtesy, I'd also remove them as a follower if I were to ever unfollow them.

Not sure if this is the right place to post, but today I cleared out three 12 by 6 plastic tubs of skincare products & makeup. The lotions were easiest to get rid of as they were clearly visibly expired. I had never thrown anything out so some of the stuff was almost 20 years old! Some of my favs I had kept for “special occasions” and it made me sad I never got to enjoy. I now have downsized to five jam jars on my bathroom counter of makeup & skincare that is fresh / new and that I use daily and my plan is to use an item for a year then toss and replace the item.

This has inspired me to declutter everything else, too— but I’ve hit a road block.

I have a very strong memory, especially visually. And I have OCD. Even before I tossed the things I did today, I could recall every single one, where it was located in the tub, when I last used it, how often I used it, where it was acquired from, and so forth…

So I’m now lying awake thinking about the lancome eyeliner I got in 2015 in vivid detail and I can see it in the trash bag lying next to the bath & body pretty as a peach lotion.

But this isn’t deterring me — I want to declutter more! But how do I get past remembering everything, especially once I get to nostalgic items like gifts, books, and sentimentals? I’m worried I’m not up for this task, and the items don’t take up too much space (a closet & 2 dressers, one of which now has an empty drawer bc makeup tubs are all gone) so I’m like what’s the point, but also what’s the point of keeping? But tossing seems to give the items more weight in my head to even begin, but also they hold weight even now as I can recall every single thing I own… so I wonder if anyone else who’s struggled with strong memories with items has found a way to let go?

(Bc tricks like put it in a box and don’t open it for 3 months doesn't work for me at all— that’s basically what I’ve done with my books — I put them in a box in the garage and I can recall every single one and when I read them and who gave them to me, etc etc, without even opening the box.)

edit: tldr: might not have been clear from og post since I tend to ramble— I live a minimalist lifestyle but I’ve hit a huge roadblock & I’m struggling to give away sentimental nostalgic items with strong memories attached to them, and need advice on a sorting system for nostalgic items and people like me with very strong visual memories. Makeup was easy bc it has a use and an expiry, despite sentimentality due to work, but how about wedding dress, birthday cards, one of a kind items, gifts & books from deceased, etc? How does one decide what stuff like that to keep or not? :)

UPDATE: I cleared everything out this evening and it will be donated :) Told myself I will always remember anyway so the stuff can go! Just kept my parent‘s stuff, it’s already organized and in the top shelf corner of the closet. I will revisit that in the future since I can’t bear to part now.

Recently I started decluttering my bedroom after realizing how much visual “noise” had built up over time without me really noticing it.

It wasn’t a big planned project—more like a gradual decision to start going through things bit by bit.

As I started sorting through my belongings, I noticed a pattern:
a lot of what I kept wasn’t actually useful in a practical sense, but more like “just in case” items, or things I hadn’t used in a long time but still felt hesitant to throw away.

What surprised me was how slow the process actually was. It wasn’t just about organizing—it felt more like making small decisions over and over again about what still fits into my life and what doesn’t.

At some point, I realized I wasn’t just cleaning the room. I was also mentally processing a lot of attachment to objects I didn’t expect to care about as much as I did.

After a while, the room started to feel different—less cluttered visually, but also strangely calmer to be in. It wasn’t just about having more space, but about feeling less overwhelmed when I walked in.

I’m curious if others have experienced something similar:

Do you feel like decluttering your bedroom actually changes how you feel mentally, or is it purely a physical organization thing for you?

😎

Not even joking but moving into a smaller apartment accidentally pushed me into minimalism. i used to think i needed more storage space all the time until i realized i was mostly storing stuff i didn’t care about. when i moved i had to decide what was actually worth carrying up three flights of stairs and suddenly a lot of things became real easy to let go of lol. i donated bags of clothes, extra dishes, random decorations i forgot i owned. now my place is tiny but way easier to clean and maintain. i spend less time organizing junk and more time actually relaxing after work. i also stopped buying furniture just because i felt like a room needed to look complete. one plant, one decent chair, and good lighting honestly did more for me than all the clutter ever did. still new to this whole minimalism thing but i finally understand why people talk about wanting less instead of more all the time 🤝