At the beginning of this year, I decided 2016 would be the year of becoming a minimalist. Minimalism is simply intentionally choosing to live with less. It is about FREEDOM from stuff. Less clothing, less jewelry, less food, less junk. Just less. Not that there is anything inherently wrong with owning a lot of stuff; there really isn’t. But why deal with clutter and keeping things you don’t use? Why not simply your life and get back to the basics?

I know minimalism is the “trendy” thing to do right now. Every time I get on Pinterest there is a new article about how to build a capsule wardrobe or 5 steps to take to become a minimalist. Instagram is filled with cute minimally decorated office spaces, neutral colored wardrobes, and people traveling around the world with everything they own in a backpack. It’s appealing and makes for good photography, yes. But that is not why I am interested.

There is just something so freeing about owning only what you need and getting rid of everything else. 

Choosing to live with what you have. Repairing clothes that need mending instead of buying something new from the clearance section at Target. Restraining from shopping until the start of a new season (ie: summer, fall, etc.). Donating all your old knick-knacks and boxes of “well, maybe-I’ll-use-this-one-day” items. Buying beauty products with minimal ingredients.

There are people who take this way too literally, saying you have to own under 100 items to be a true minimalist, or you must use a capsule wardrobe, or you can only own clothing in neutral colors – soft pinks, grays, and browns. Let’s not get extreme about it because then we are missing the point.

The point is to simply get rid of the excess in life and be more conscious about where we put our money.

It’s hard. Really, really hard. I have been working diligently at this since January 2016, and I have donated bags and bags and bags and bags of items to Goodwill. And I still have a ridiculous amount of stuff.

I mean, heck. Look at what happened when I started packing for my trip to Italy. Clearly I have a shoe problem. I wouldn’t consider myself a minimalist just yet. But I’m slowly working towards it.

This is the year of minimalism for me, and I will be sharing updates with you as I walk through this, posting tips and tricks for anyone who might want to go on this journey with me. I’m looking forward to sharing my journey with you.