Token & Bliss

by Cathie Bennett

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Minimalism

30 days. 465 items. Join me as I play the Minimalism Game!

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I’m doing something a little crazy… I’m playing the Minimalism Game for the THIRD TIME.

I documented the first time I did it here, and although I did not document it on my blog the second time, here is the result of playing the game with all the items in one place at the end:

In case you have no idea what the Mins Game is, it’s a challenge started by the Minimalists where you get rid of 1 thing on day 1, 2 things on day 2, 3 things on day 3, and so on! By day 30, you will have removed a total of 465 things from your home! It’s a fun way to declutter your space. It starts out easy, but it gets more and more difficult as time goes on!

According to the Minimalists, you’re supposed to remove the items out of your home immediately and not keep them around until the end like I did the second time I played, but A) ain’t nobody got time for that and B) just look at all those things! Seeing them all in one place is SO DARN SATISFYING.

In total, I have gotten rid of almost 1000 items playing this game. And that doesn’t include the hundreds of things I got rid of when I first began my minimalism journey and the hundreds in between playing the games!

However, I truly think this is going to be my last time playing for at least a few years because I am literally running out of things to get rid of. In fact, I don’t know if I’m going to make it all the way to the end of this challenge… I get the feeling that I’m going to have to dig real deep in my storage area, memory boxes and filing cabinets. I might even have to count single papers as things… don’t judge me.

There’s a good chance that you also have stuff lying around your house that you don’t need/use so I’m challenging YOU to join me for my third and final (for awhile) Mins Game challenge! I’ve even created a handy little printable chart for you to track your progress!

DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE MINS GAME CHART HERE

Just remember that if you do play, it’s important to be a responsible declutterer! That means that you should NOT just toss things that are recyclable in the trash or take things that truly are trash to your thrift store so that you don’t have to deal with them.

Ask yourself 3 questions (in this order) about each item you get rid of: 1) can I sell it?  2) can I donate it or find someone else who could use it?  3) can it be recycled? If the answer to all three of those questions is “no”, then by all means, please throw it in the garbage.

And if you’re like, “nah bro, this challenge really isn’t for me’”, then that’s okay too! I will be posting the items I’m getting rid of each day on my Instagram page here. Feel free to follow along!

Let the March minimizing begin.

“I want to minimize, but what do I do with all my stuff?”

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“I WANT TO MINIMIZE, BUT WHAT DO I DO WITH ALL MY STUFF?”

Not gonna lie…I am pretty ashamed of myself. I haven’t written a blog post in over TWO MONTHS. Despite the last couple of months being insanely busy with the holidays, entertaining, working full-time, and spending a week in Mexico, this is not acceptable and I apologize for being so neglectful of my beloved blog.

Today I would like to address a question that comes up over and over again on social media and when I talk about minimalism with others. People often tell me that they want to live more minimally but have a simple concern: “I have so many items that I want to get rid of, but I don’t want to just throw them out… what should I do with all of my stuff?”

This question literally comes up ALL. THE. TIME.  And I get it. People want to minimize…they just don’t want to clog up the landfill. Well folks, I am here to tell you that the majority of the 2000 things I’ve discarded in the last year and a bit were not sent to a landfill. In fact, throwing them in the garbage was my very last option. So what did I do with everything? And what can you do with everything? Read on!

Option 1:  SELL YOUR STUFF

You know the expression “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure”? Well, guess what?… it’s kinda true. When I played the Mins Game back in November, I made over $400 selling my “trash” to other people who will actually use it. How? Three words: Facebook Bidding Groups.

I am part of a local group that allows me to auction off my items to other people who want my stuff, sometimes so badly that the auctions turn into mini “bidding wars” between people. All I have to do is take pics of the item, give it a brief description, and put a starting bid (I usually start very low with most of my bids at “free” or $1) and an end date and time. That’s it!

The best part? The Facebook group I’m a part of uses the “bin system”: I put the items that people have won in a large Rubbermaid bin that hangs out on my front porch, and they can come and pick up the items whenever it’s convenient for them. This means that I don’t have to meet with people, do awkward exchanges and experience no-shows. They just take their item and leave the money.

In the past two years, I’ve sold thousands of dollars of stuff on this one Facebook group (without a word of a lie, selling my old junk paid for a two-week trip for my husband and me, including flights and accommodations!), and I’m always a little shocked at what people will actually buy. Some surprising things that I made money off of during the Mins Game include: used brand name makeup, a toque/beanie, mugs, hair accessories, tea, and cheap earrings that people bid on for more than I originally bought them for! I highly recommend searching for a bidding group in your area and putting your stuff up for sale!

Option 2:  GIVE YOUR STUFF AWAY

My second option is to donate stuff that doesn’t sell or just isn’t great for resale in the first place. For example, clothing isn’t usually good for personal resale unless it’s brand name. The majority of my clothing is definitely not brand name and I usually just donate it to my local Goodwill after I’m done with it. Thrift stores are awesome for used clothing because people often go to thrift stores with the specific intent of buying cheap, used clothing.

Other things I opt to donate instead of trying to sell are books, bags, older electronics, and bathing suits. My donate list also includes niche items like buttons, pins, and knick-knacks. While you may not have a use for it, there are people who scour thrift stores looking for little oddities to add to their collections. If it would still be useful for someone out there, then it can probably be donated!

Option 3: RECYCLE YOUR STUFF

Unfortunately, not everything can be sold or donated. This includes things like near-empty plastic, metal or glass containers, food containers with no lid, notes from your university days, aerosol cans, and broken electronics.

Most glass, plastic, and paper items can be thrown in your recycling bin, but check with your town or city first! Many fire stations have an area where you can take any used aerosol items or toxic stuff like old paint. Old electronics can be recycled as well! Most Staples stores have a recycling area where you can take all your old and deceased electronic devices.

Old clothing that is in too poor of condition to donate can also be recycled too! For example, my city of Calgary has a textile recycling program.  The fast-fashion giant H&M also takes old clothes and household items (sheets, curtains, towels, etc.) off your hands with their textile recycling program – just drop your stuff off at any H&M!  If recycling isn’t an option, you can always cut up your old clothing and household items to use as rags! Just don’t do this all the time or you’ll have way too many old rags taking up space!

Your VERY Last Option: TOSS IT

After exhausting all other options, your very last option is to toss your old stuff. It’s simply a fact of life that you can’t sell, donate or recycle EVERYTHING. In an ideal world, that would be awesome. Unfortunately, it’s currently not possible to recycle things like broken hairbrushes, dried-up bottles of nail polish, or damaged treated wood.  So yes, you may have to trash some things.

I only threw out 75 of the 465 things I got rid of when I played the Mins Game in October; this amounts to approximately 16% of the total number of items. Not too shabby a statistic for stuff that was just taking up valuable space in my home!

Let me know if you have any other tips or tricks for keeping old stuff out of the landfill. I love to hear from my readers!

Until next time,

Why I’m Not Going Black Friday Shopping 

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Happy Belated Thanksgiving to all my American readers! I hope that you all had a wonderful day celebrating with family and friends! Although Canada tends to be America 2.0 in many respects, we have our own Thanksgiving Day in October, so Thursday was just a boring old work day for all of us up here (although many of us definitely snuck in some football action).

While our day didn’t involve fancy things like turkey, stuffing and pumpkin pie, today is a different story. Up until a few years ago, Black Friday did not exist in Canada. I remember taking a break from studying and paper writing to go to the mall and try to find some deals on “Black Friday” in 2011. The only problem was that there were no deals. There were no promotions. There were no doorcrashers. Black Friday did not yet exist in Canada. My past shopaholic self was certainly disappointed and I remember resenting the fact that I had not planned a trip down to the States for a Black Friday shopping spree. My more minimalist present self now resents the fact that I ever thought driving 5 hours to go to a mall on the busiest day of the year was a good idea.

Corporations have assimilated and we now “celebrate” Black Friday here in Canada. Americans, you’re probably thinking how strange it is that we don’t celebrate Thanksgiving, yet we partake in Black Friday. Well, us Canadians find it odd that you fight over TVs mere hours after you’ve expressed thankfulness for what you already have. Who are we to judge though? On December 26, the day after Christmas, we have HUGE Boxing Day sales; after spending ridiculous amounts of money on Christmas gifts and receiving innumerable gifts ourselves, we head back to the stores the following day to spend even more money. Sound stupid? That’s because it is. Yet millions of us still partake in this “holiday” that corporations have invented to keep us spending our hard-earned money on the various plastic, metal and fabric objects that they sell.

So without further ado, I give you three reasons why I will be avoiding Black Friday (and Boxing Day too) like the Black Death this year.

It perpetuates our consumeristic culture

What comes to mind when you think of Black Friday? Most people think of a day with sales as far as the eye can see, where crowds trample (and sometimes even kill) one another to get the best deal on any and all consumer products that will be out of style and/or obsolete in just a few months’ time. It’s a stampede of blind consumerism, and is the epitome of a capitalist orgy. While the stores may encourage us to participate in Black Friday with their various sales, they’re not putting a gun to our heads and forcing us to go shopping. Consumers are willingly making the choice to spend their money on objects that are futile and produced for much less than they are on sale for. We are the ones who keep this negative aspect of our culture alive by being willing slaves to commercialism.

Black Friday for stores, but a Red Friday for consumers

In case you didn’t know, Black Friday was a “positive” name coined by retailers in the 1980s because it’s a day when they are successful and make an insane profit. Accountants use black to signify profit, while red is used to indicate loss.  Corporations are always profitable and “in the black” on the day after Thanksgiving. Consumers though? Not so much. On Black Friday in 2015, Americans spent 67.6 BILLION dollars. In one day. That is INSANE.

Want to know the best way to save money on Black Friday? Not spending any to begin with. Because if you’re “saving” money while spending it, then you’re not really saving it at all, are you?  Half of all Canadians and Americans are living paycheck to paycheck (48% and 49%, respectively). We can’t afford to pay for our rent, gas or groceries, yet somehow we can still get the newest Apple product or 4K TV. We don’t live within our means to begin with, and the existence of Black Friday certainly doesn’t help when it pressures us to buy even more things that we can’t afford in order to impress people we don’t like.

When you truly think about it, it’s just sad

The best things in life aren’t objects. Objects are just a distraction to make us forget the real meaning of life that exists in the simple things. If you want to know what the real meaning of life is, ask someone who only has a short time left on this earth. I’ve never heard of anyone on their deathbed saying things like, “I wish I’d bought those Armani shoes” or “I should have gotten the iPhone 5 on the day that it was released in 2012.” The real meaning of life is found in people, experiences, and adventures. That’s why the most common end-of-life regrets include working too much, investing too little time in relationships, and living a life dictated by societal expectations. We feel inadequate, so we buy things we don’t need, fall into debt, and then must work more to pay for all the objects we’ve bought but can’t actually afford. In the midst of all this chaos, we miss out on the things that really matter: experiencing amazing new things and making memories with the people around us.

This Black Friday, don’t feel like you are a slave to consumerism. Black Friday is the last thing we need in our society of excessive  consumption. You don’t have to partake in a day where people trample one another in order to prepare themselves for Christmas, a day where objects take the place of human feelings.

I’m not saying that you can’t participate in Black Friday. If you need something and you’ve saved for it, then go right ahead and buy it. Just please say no to consumption for consumption’s sake. Instead, say yes to thankfulness and gratitude for the things that you already own, and the people that surround you each and every day.

Until my next rambling essay,

30 Days & 465 Items Later: My Review of the Mins Game

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I did it. I successfully completed the Mins Game. In case you don’t have a clue what I’m talking about, the Mins Game was developed by Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus, AKA the dynamic duo known as the Minimalists. (Check out their blog for more info about them or you can check out my first post about starting the Mins Game here.) The premise of the game is this: on day one, you get rid of one thing. Day two, two things. Day three, three things… you get the idea. This continues for 30 days, which ultimately amounts to 465 things that were no longer bringing you joy or adding value to your life.

Now I’m not new to minimizing or anything, so I know what it’s like to get rid of stuff. In fact, in May I played my own little version of the game by getting rid of 500 things that month. So how does playing the Mins Game compare to regular decluttering? Here are some pros and cons:

PROS

1. It’s a great introduction to minimalism: If you’re new to minimalism or you have a tough time getting rid of stuff, then this game is for you. It starts out really slowly, and each day, you feel a sense of accomplishment and pride after getting rid of the allotted number of items. Each day completed is like a little confidence boost and you’ll feel more encouraged to continue the following day.

2. It forces you to purge: When you have to find 17 items one day and 18 items the next, plus you have a social media audience watching you and keeping you accountable, you are probably not going to slack off by missing a couple days. After the Minimalists reposted the Instagram pic from my first day, I gained over 350 followers overnight. There was no way I was letting 350 minimalist strangers down, so I made sure to stick to the game each day and not give up!

3. It makes minimizing a habit: While I was playing the game, I was constantly looking for stuff that I could get rid of. The game was always in the back of my mind and it made me look at my stuff in a new light. I would ask myself if I actually even needed an item, and usually the answer was a big fat NOPE. I searched thoroughly through bins, baskets, closets and drawers. So many times before I had thought, “nah, there’s probably nothing in there that I could get rid of.”  Instead I thought, “there’s gotta be something in there!” Usually, I ended up finding more than just one item, and I even ended up getting rid of a lot of the storage units that were holding my junk!

4. It keeps your shopping in check: When you’re getting rid of stuff each and every day, it really makes you re-evaluate the things that you’re bringing into your home. We are constantly bombarded by advertisements (about 5000 each day actually) and certainly have ample opportunity to buy more stuff. But when you’re playing the Mins Game, you’re less tempted to buy more when you are being challenged each day to own less. I don’t really like shopping to begin with, but I began to see products in a new light and upon seeing a gadget or gizmo, I would think things like: “what a silly thing to buy. How infrequently would that get used? Looks like a dust collector. Only a few short months before that will just be junk…”

5. It’s surprisingly fun: Seriously, it is. Not only is it pretty enjoyable to sift through your stuff and see what kind of buried “treasures” you can get rid of, but it was incredibly fun to engage on social media with other people who were also playing the Mins Game and experiencing the exact same emotions as me. I received so many comments and inspiring messages from people all over the world to keep going and not give up. I was an “accountability buddy” to some, and to others I was an encourager and motivator. Even though I’ve never met most of the people who commented on my Instagram and Facebook posts and sent me pictures of their own minimization, I feel like I’ve made many friends in the process of playing the Mins Game.

CONS

1. It’s not instant: If you like the Marie Kondo method of decluttering an entire category quickly and all in one go, then this game may not be for you. The Mins Game is a month-long journey, not a quick sprint done all at once. Like I said earlier, it’s awesome for beginners who are just discovering minimalism and want to challenge themselves each and every day. If you’re an experienced minimalist and purger, then you might find this game to be slow and slightly boring.

2. It takes time and commitment: I probably spent an average of an hour per day finding items, displaying the items in an appealing way, taking pictures of the items, editing the picture, writing a description of the items in the picture, and then actually getting rid of the items by selling, donating, recycling, or throwing them out. Moreover, I had to make sure that I took pictures during the daytime so that I had good lighting. If I was going to be out all day and miss the sunlight, then I had to display things nicely before leaving for the day and then have my husband take pictures for me later on (thanks babe!). Although it’s not necessary to take pictures, I highly recommend it because it keeps you accountable and is a great way to actually see all the stuff you’re getting rid of!

3. 465 items seems like a lot, but… If you have a house full of 300,000 items (the number of things in the average American household), then 465 things is truly just a drop in the bucket (like, 0.00155%). If you have 300,000 items in your home and you played the Mins Game every single month for 5 years, you will have still only gotten rid of 9% of your things–and that’s assuming you’re not buying anything else or bringing anything else in to your house. Yes, that statistic sounds ridiculous, but it’s true and it’s a reality for many, many, many people. As stated previously, the Mins Game is a great introduction to purging, but if you have a large quantity of possessions, then you might consider hiring a professional or using the method that Marie Kondo describes in her #1 New York Times bestselling book,The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing.

VERDICT

I loved playing the Mins Game and I would highly recommend it, especially if you’re feeling overwhelmed by your stuff and you just need a place to start. It’s fun and is an awesome introduction to living a more minimal life.

Even if you’re not a beginner purger, the Mins Game would be great when you feel like stuff is starting to pile up again or if you feel like certain items just aren’t adding the same value to your life as they did in the past.

MY MINS GAME RECOMMENDATIONS

1. Take pictures:  Not only will taking pictures keep you accountable each and every day, but it’s also fun to be able to look back on the stuff that you’ll be glad you didn’t keep around! In addition, it’s a great way to show other people what the Mins Game is all about!

2. Find someone to keep you accountable:  It was great to have my husband or a friend text me reminding me to post my Mins Game picture for the day, especially on those days where it was getting late and I had other things on my mind than posting a picture to Instagram. It is essential to have someone around that can encourage you and make sure that you’re actually finding the items and then doing the followthrough work.

3. Challenge yourself:  While playing the Mins Game, I challenged myself in two ways. First, I tried to group like items as one item. For example, on day 8 I got rid of 12 Magic Bullet accessories. Instead of counting each accessory as an item, I counted them all as one because they were bought together. Second, I tried my best to keep “theme days” going for as long as possible. Each day I would have a theme of clothing, books, school supplies, hair products, jewelry, etc. and I would have to make sure that all the items I was getting rid of that day fit in that category. For example, on day 16 I was trying to make sure all the items were from my kitchen. I was stuck at 10 items until I thought, “Hey, I have lots of magnets on my fridge and I definitely don’t need them all.” I was able to keep the theme days going consistently until day 21. I struggled some days, but it really challenged me to get rid of more stuff in each category than I would have if I weren’t doing the theme days.

4. Love the process & don’t be too hard on yourself:  I get it. Getting rid of stuff can be hard. Maybe the items are sentimental or you keep thinking that they could come in handy “one day”. Maybe you’re feeling overwhelmed and stressed out by the sheer number of things you own. Or maybe you’ve even entertained the thought of just burning down your house so you don’t have to deal with your stuff any longer. I’m here to tell you that minimizing doesn’t have to suck. In fact, it can even be fun and enjoyable. Take before and after pictures of your house. Make purging a game. Love your newfound floor space. If you’re playing the Mins Game, don’t beat yourself up if you only make it to day 14…14 days is still 105 items! Just like anything, practice in purging makes perfect. Don’t give up!

Have you played the Mins Game before? I would love to hear your thoughts on it!

Until next time,

MINS GAME: October Minimalism Challenge 

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Over the month of October, I will be playing the “Minimalism Game” or “Mins Game,” coined by Joshua Fields Millburn & Ryan Nicodemus (but you might know them better as “The Minimalists”). They discovered the benefits of minimalism around 2010, and since then have built a minimalist empire (ooohh what an oxymoron) with a successful blog, podcast, documentary, and several books. These guys are awesome, and their documentary “Minimalism: A Documentary About The Important Things” is so inspiring that I may or may not have seen it multiple times and shown it to many of my friends (check it out on Netflix!).

Scott and I had the opportunity to meet Josh and Ryan when they stopped in Calgary a couple weeks ago for their “Less is Now” tour. Here’s a pic of us with them at their meet and greet after their show/speech/presentation/whatever you wanna call it. Please note Scott’s awkward arm holding a copy of their book and feel free to laugh along with me… he gave me permission, and even encouraged me, to post this pic by the way – despite the awkward arm!

Mins game
My husband and me (middle) with “The Minimalists”, Joshua Fields Millburn (left) and Ryan Nicodemus (right)

While Josh and Ryan are awesome and all, what I really want to talk about is their “Mins Game”. What is this “Mins Game” you ask? Well, let me tell you! It is a 30 day challenge; on the first day, you get rid of one thing. On day two, you get rid of two things. Day three, three things… you get the picture. By the end of the 30 days, you will have removed a total of 465 items from your home and life! Isn’t that insane amount of stuff?! Well yes, but compared to the average amount of things people in our society actually own, not really.

Since I started this challenge yesterday, I’ve had quite a few people ask me how I’m even going to do it. Do I even own 465 things? Haven’t I already gotten rid of the majority of the things I own? While I have gotten rid of over 50% of the things I once owned, I don’t yet consider myself a minimalist. I’m on the path to minimalism. It’s a journey, and I haven’t quite reached my destination. In my opinion, I still have wayyy too much stuff. My house frequently feels (and looks) cluttered and messy. There are so many things that I own that I had good intentions to start using after I did my initial minimalistic purge, but that I still don’t use. I have sentimental items that I’m holding onto but never even look at because they are tucked away in a box in my basement. Moral of the story: Yes. I DO own 465 things that I shouldn’t.

Want to hear some disturbing statistics about how much crap we actually own? Prepare to be shocked. You ready?

The AVERAGE American household has 300,000 items in it. THREE-HUNDRED THOUSAND. Here’s another one: the average house size has nearly tripled in the past 50 years, just to hold all our stuff. Except that’s not enough room for over 10% of people who rent offsite storage units to hold the stuff that they can’t fit in their homes. In fact, storage facilities have been (and continue to be) the fastest growing segment of the commercial real estate industry over the past four decades. We consume more than twice as many material goods today as we did 50 years ago.

We are addicted to stuff. Objects. Possessions. Items. Gadgets. Belongings. Whatever you want to call them, they are all just things.

As I do this challenge, I must remember why I am doing it in the first place. On some days, it may be tough for me to part with certain things, but I believe that this challenge will help me to evaluate what I truly value and love. Above all, I must remember what I am discarding: THINGS. Not my family or friends. Not the amazing experiences that I’ve gotten to check off my bucket list. Not my memories.

In a society and culture that always tells us that we must consume more in order to be happy,  it is important to remind ourselves that happiness does not reside in our things. Happiness lives within us.

As I “play” the Mins Game, feel free to follow along on my Instagram page, where I will be posting what I am saying bye to each day.

What minimalists REALLY want for their birthdays

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I’m often compared to Rachel in Friends. Not because I look like Jennifer Aniston (oh, how I wish), but because Rachel is known for returning every gift she gets.

In one episode, Rachel gets a board game from Chandler and immediately hands it back to him. She returns a gold necklace given to her by Ross and when he asks what she got instead, she simply replies, “credit”. When Tag gives her a scooter for her 30th birthday and says, “it wasn’t on your list, but hopefully you’ll think it’s really fun,” Ross whispers to him, “stick to the list. Always stick to the list.”

Like Rachel, I return most things I am given. Last year, Scott gave me a colouring book for my birthday (I already had two that I barely touched) and as soon as I opened it, I said, “Aw, thank you babe! That’s really nice of you. Did you happen to keep the receipt?”

It has become a running joke in the Bennett family that it doesn’t matter what anyone buys me – I will just return it anyway.  The simple fact is that I just don’t need more random things that eventually turn to clutter and junk. Gift giving and minimalism can certainly co-exist, it’s just important to think about what the person on the receiving end wants or needs – because let’s face it, no one wants to give a gift that’s not going to get used.

So, since it was my birthday yesterday, I have compiled a list of things that minimalists really want to receive.

1. Gifts of Time

Minimalists would much rather spend time with you, the giver, than receive something they don’t actually need. There’s a reason I listed this first. I would much rather a friend or family member share a gift of their time with me than spend money on something that I have to find a place for in my house.

Treat the minimalist in your life to  brunch and engage in great conversation with them. Take them on your favourite hike. Bake a cake or cook a delicious meal together. All that matters is that you are putting aside time specifically for them.

2. Experiences

Experiences are awesome. Who doesn’t love getting a voucher to do an activity you love or that you’ve always wanted to do? Here are just a few ideas of “experience” gifts:

Tickets to concerts, plays or sporting events

Cooking, music or fitness classes

Spa or massage vouchers

Painting events

Craft beer or wine tasting

Gondola rides

Laser tag or paintball

Kayaking, canoeing or whitewater rafting

Helicopter or balloon rides

Hotel stays

Horseback riding

Escape rooms

Kayaking or canoeing

Carriage rides

I found all of the above experiences on the local Calgary Groupon website. Groupon always has awesome deals on unique experiences and is the first place I check for my gifts of experience.

3. Edible gifts

Minimalists gotta eat too! Edible gifts like wine, chocolate, and homemade desserts and canned goods (jams, jellies, pickles) are always appreciated and enjoyed!

4. Charitable gifts

While you may think that this type of gift isn’t for the receiver, it means so much to those who are passionate about charitable causes. When you donate your hard-earned money to their favourite organization, it means you took the time to think about what the gift receiver likes and you helped in the process! Bonus: you often get a tax receipt for your donation!

5. Gift cards or money

Yes, money and gift cards have a bad rap of being impersonal and “lazy” gifts, but hear me out! Minimalists like practicality and gift cards can be practical. Gas and grocery gift cards will most certainly be put to good use and won’t go to waste. Visa gift cards are awesome if you feel weird about getting your friend money for gas on their birthdays. Gift cards to favourite restaurants also work!

You can also get more specific, depending on the person. For example, my husband and I are in the process of renovating our unfinished basement and for Christmas we got a couple of gift cards to Home Depot and Lowes. This was something we truly appreciated and it showed that the gift givers had taken the time to think about what we really needed and would want.

6. Specific items (you just have to ask!)

Minimalists aren’t against owning things – they just dislike owning excess things. You need only ask if there is anything that they require – just don’t expect it to be something fun or impractical! It might be something that you would not consider to be “gift material”, but would mean a lot to the receiver (without a word of a lie, I asked for a new kitchen sink and faucet for Christmas). Just because it isn’t what you would consider to be gift worthy, doesn’t mean that it won’t be genuinely appreciated (certainly more so than a little knick-knack that might not get used).

I hope that this gave you some ideas or maybe even inspired you to give differently! Do you have a minimalist in your life that’s hard to buy for or maybe you just know someone who has everything? I would love to hear about them (and the gifts you’ve given to them) in the comments below!

Until next time,

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