What is min·i·mal·ism?
If you ask Merriam Webster what the definition of minimalism is, you’ll get one answer. A style or technique (as in music, literature, or design) that is characterized by extreme sparseness and simplicity.
Why is everyone suddenly “choosing” minimalism?
Have you ever heard of a fad… because that’s what minimalism is these days. Being a “minimalist” was the trend of 2018, that hasn’t backed down for 2019. You’ve probably heard the phrase, “If it doesn’t spark joy, toss it”, this is based on the minimalist fad everyone’s feeling.
Marie Kondo
Marie Kondo is a Japanese organizing consultant and author. She just launched a Netflix series called, Tidying Up with Marie Kondo. Everyone literally lost their shit over this series. The method of tidying she uses is KonMari. KonMari encourages tidying by category, not by location. You’d start with clothes, then books, komono (misc. items), and lastly sentimental items. You’re supposed to only keep the things that spark joy and thank the clothes you’re letting go. Marie has six basic rules for tidying:
- Commit yourself to tidying up.
- Imagine your ideal lifestyle.
- Finish discarding first.
- Tidy by category, not by location.
- Follow the right order.
- Ask yourself if it sparks joy.
Anyway…
For some reason, the world is obsessed with being minimal. Sadly, I think the only reason for this, is because of the aesthetic minimalism brings to one’s life. The minimalist aesthetic is extremely popular among instagrammers. The only problem is, people think you have to get rid of every, single object that you don’t use in your daily life. There is a misunderstanding of what minimalism is. If you ask the right people, they’ll tell you that being a minimalism/what your definition is, depends on you. For example, I’ve donated a lot of clothes I no longer wear, but at the same time I have 10 bags of coffee stored in my kitchen. I can justify having that much coffee, because I drink it on the daily. Another example is with my coffee mugs. I don’t need to have just one cup, I can have 6. It makes sense to me, because I use a cup and then throw it in the dishwasher.
What should I take from this?
Minimalism is whatever you take from it. Whether it’s to the extreme, with owning essential, or having a little extra, it’s okay! This is how I interpret minimalism for myself: If I’m not using it, donate, if I don’t think I’ll use it donate; if I wonder why I ever bought the thing in the first place, donate. It’s as simple as that.