I live in a rather large home. It has 4 bedrooms, study (which is my sewing room), formal lounge and dining, family room AND rumpus room. There are only 4 of us living in it. I've gotta tell you the house work is killing me! Now that I have 2 jobs I have less time to clean the monster. It takes the best part of a whole day.
Added to this, I feel like I am drowning in stuff. It appears that the more space you have the more stuff you accumulate. It takes half a day to return things to where they go, before I can even tackle the cleaning jobs.
Now, while there are many features of my home that make me very happy, I am ready to compromise. I thought that when we bought this house 6 years ago that I would be living the dream. You know, entertaining all the time, creating a stunning garden and having a space where the kids would bring their friends. The reality has turned out to be something quite different.
I have been researching the tiny house movement since I read about it via here. I am not quite ready to go down many of those roads, but it is food for thought!
We have been searching for a smaller home that still ticks all the boxes. I want to down size our financial committment as well, and start living more of the life we dream of. It is however proving to be more difficult than anticipated. I will keep searching and waiting.
I love this quote from here:
Less is the new more. Downsizing has become a regularly used word in our vocabularies and we're ok with that. Moving into a smaller home can be a cleansing process if you view it in a positive way. It'll certainly evoke that creative side you might have been ignoring.
what are your thoughts?
Definately food for thought ! All my junk won't fit into anything smaller mmmm maybe that's my problem !
ReplyDeleteHmm yes interesting. As the kids grow bigger we will need a slightly bigger house (hopefully one that also contains a sewing room for me!), but my parents are always telling me about the more space you have the more stuff you accumulate. Maybe if we weren't crafters we would have more time to clean and not as much stuff to store, but then that would be boring wouldn't it!
ReplyDeleteLaurel, I think you are coming to a very wise realisation. I think we're all sold this idea that space and stuff is what makes a home, whereas a small, cosy place which is filled only with useful or meaningful items can be far more fulfilling.
ReplyDeleteCurrently, my household of four lives in a two-bed flat which we own. We have done for three years. It has been the making of me - it started me on my journey towards a simpler and more sustainable life. Downsizing can do that. We are now looking to move out and rent as we would dearly love some outdoor space, room to be more hospitable (we don't have a real table, and no beds for interstate grandparents), and hopefully another child.
In thinking about moving, I'm really trying to think hard about keeping a lid on our consumption, of avoiding the need to 'fill space' with more stuff. I know it'll be a big temptation even after our experience in a small place.
We're also holding onto the flat because who knows? Maybe we will decide to move back in down the track and live small!
My husband and I bought an older house over 10 years ago with 3 bedrooms and a sunroom I use as my sewing room.When we were looking we had in mind that we wanted something that we could still afford to pay off if heaven forbid one of us lost their job we could still afford the mortgage payments.It's worked well for us but that is because the rooms are reasonable sizes and easily managed.....well most of the time lol :) Barb.
ReplyDeleteits a really interesting idea. we have somehow been sold the idea that bigger is better when it comes to houses and that the more space we have, the more we should fill it with stuff.
ReplyDeletei too am facing some of these thoughts, as i look around my house and realise how much of the stuff in it belongs to me. i am trying to think about how to downsize the amount of stuff i own. to get rid of things i don't use, don't need and try to clear some space in my life (and in my house).
best of luck in your downsizing adventure...
Its an interesting one this space ad stuff discussion isn't it. Today I had lunch with 3 guys who were talking about their wives and families and how much stuff there was. They all agreed that if they lived alone they wouldn't need much more than a bed, a hook and a shelf. Not me, I told them. If I lived alone then I'd have a room for each of my collections. A fabric room, a wool room, a sewing room, maybe a walk in wardrobe... I am a bit worried that I'll end up a little old lady in a house with so much crap that you'll have to walk down the entrance hall way of my house sideways.
ReplyDeleteI personally think smaller is better. I feel sick when I drive through the outskirts of Melbourne and see small families in huge homes. I grew up in a 3 br with one living area and it was fine (there were 4 of us). These days I think a spare bedroom and a second living area are more than enough. Good luck with your downsizing!
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