REDUCING THE CLUTTER
At the heart of a minimal lifestyle is the goal to live with less. “The aspects of minimalism that my clients tend to speak about are creating clear spaces, with clean lines and a neutral color scheme—all of which helps to reduce the ‘noise’ in their homes helping them to create calm spaces,” says Sue Spencer, who is currently working with Ziffit by World of Books, a trade-in app dedicated to giving preloved goods a second life.
1. FOCUSING ON WHAT MATTERS
Studies have even found why minimalism is a better way of life. A team at the University of North Texas analyzed research on the emotional impact of minimalism (or “voluntary simplicity”, in their words). They discovered that 80–85 percent of studies found a connection between voluntary simplicity and wellbeing.
2. REDUCING THE AMOUNT OF STUFF YOU OWN
Sue continues: “Whether you are into minimalist decor or not, having less stuff = more time and space to enjoy the stuff that really matters to you. It allows you to focus on the important things and not get distracted—valuing experiences, connections and nature rather than materialistic things.”
3. FINDING THE RIGHT BALANCE
The best minimalist houses show that this is about letting go of our insatiable desire for more stuff. So the lifestyle becomes contradictory if we treat it as a material aspiration itself.
“A balance between functionality and falsely curating one’s life is key,” says Grant Straghan. “[A minimal lifestyle] definitely has an appeal, but is much easier said than done, as most clients would agree! It does not necessitate living life as a monk, but rather filtering out detail or clutter that bring no experiential benefit. I am not one for trinkets, and therefore I find this process easier than some. However, concealing items of use within one’s daily life can be counterproductive and rather frustrating.”
Look at this minimalist bathroom, in the previous slide. It's definitely not empty, but it does have only exactly what you might need for it to function and be beautiful, and nothing more.
4. LIVING WITH LESS
So a minimal lifestyle is about living with less, but not to the point that it becomes detrimental to your everyday life—or leaves you striving for yet another ‘thing’ to possess or to achieve.