A Minimalist Guide to Declutter, Organize, and Simplify
by Francine Jay, Miss Minimalist, 2010
Easy, fast read about getting rid of S***, and living a more meaningful life. This was 4 years before Marie Kondo’s, ‘Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up.’ Francine advises a room-by-room de-cluttering effort rather than Marie Kondo’s de-clutter by type effort, but both advocate removing everything from a room (Francine) or gathering everything of one type in one place (Marie) and then sorting into Trash, Treasure, or Transfer (Francine Jay); or keeping if it sparks joy, getting rid of it if it doesn’t (Marie Kondo).
I like what Francine says about gifts:
Therefore, keep only what you truly love, and set free what you don’t-think of it as spreading the giver’s generosity into the world! In the future, put unwanted gifts right into your donation box; it’s easier to part ways if they don’t settle in.
page 221: Gifts, heirlooms, and sentimental items
Regarding wedding stuff and keeping the wedding dress for your daughter:
Are you saving it for your daughter? That’s a lovely idea, but she probably won’t wear it. (Did you wear your mother’s dress?) Selecting a dress is a bridal rite of passage; the chance of her choosing a thirty-year-old one from the attic is pretty slim.
page 230: Gifts, heirlooms, and sentimental items
Regarding souvenirs:
Tossing that Hawaiian lei or Eiffel Tower paperweight won’t erase your honeymoon or that romantic weekend in Paris. Your memories are far more valuable than mass-produced tchotchkes, so purge the tourist clutter without regret. In the future, resist the urge to commemorate your trips with material items…If you must bring something home, make it something small: postcards or foreign coins afford ample “evidence” of your travels. Digital photos are even better: they take up no space at all, and provide wonderful documentation of your trip. That said, don’t let keepsake-hunting or picture-taking distract you from fully experiencing the places you visit. Your memories make the best souvenirs!
page 233: Gifts, heirlooms, and sentimental items
Regarding children’s stuff:
It’s a parental instinct to save every last item your kids have created…how can you possibly part with the evidence of their genius?…At the end of each school year, help your child pick his favorite projects and drawings for his keepsake box…If you’re downsizing your empty nest, offer these items to your adult children. If they take them, wonderful!…If they refuse, then realize this: if such things are of little significance to them, you don’t have to keep them either…
page 230-231, Gifts, heirlooms, and sentimental items
She advocates the STREAMLINE method of de-cluttering:
S-Start Over (take everything out of a room or a closet and only put back what you use or would need for an emergency)
T-Trash, Treasure, or Transfer
R-Reason for each item
E-Everything in its place
A-All surfaces clear
M-Modules (all of one type in a portable carrying device like a box or carton)
L-Limits (don’t keep old towels, sheets, dishes, TVs, etc., when you replace them with new)
I-If one comes in, one goes out (I love this)
N-Narrow down
E-Everyday maintenance (after dinner or before bed, sweep through and put everything in its place)
Her last chapter is called, “The Greater Good,” and she talks about how our consumerism is so bad for humanity and for the environment and she advocates buying local and only what you need and to “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.” Love her philosophy. Great book!