3 Questions That Lead to a Bigger, Calmer, Richer and Skinnier Home

Published: Tue, 04/07/20

Is it just me, or is your house getting smaller every week too?

As much as I'm truly enjoying all of us here at home, everyone (me, Chad and our boys) are all grown up size humans with more stuff and now none of us ever leave.

This is making our house feel more cluttered, fuller and visually slightly overwelming and chaotic. As a Cozy Minimalist, now is the time for me to lean more on the minimal side and let up a little on the cozifiers.

I decided to take a practice from one of my favorite business books The One Thing and apply it to my home.

In the book, the authors help you set a priority by introducing a focusing question for you to ask yourself. The question's a little clunky but it works. It is:

I adapted it so it's easier to remember:

What's the ONE THING I can do now that will make everything easier or unnecessary later?

So, I applied that to my house.

Last Friday, my house was feeling loud and like my worst enemy and I didn't have a bunch of energy, couldn't buy anything new and didn't want to invest too much time into a big project. But I needed my house to feel more calm. Yesternow.

So I asked myself this focusing question:

What is the one thing I can do in my house now that will take the least amount of work yet have the most visual impact?

This is how I realized that I needed to quiet the niche in the kitchen which is the very first thing you see when you walk inside our house. I had just posted the photo on Instagram for the #mycozyspring home challenge and even though it was pretty, it was driving me bonkers.

I applied another business concept to my house and took advice from Tim Ferriss:

"What if I could only subtract to solve this problem?".

So I removed stuff. Cute stuff. Stuff I like even.

Ahh, it's feeling better already.

Then I applied one of my Cozy Minimalist Rules:

What's the least amount of stuff I can have and still get the style I love?

Turns out, I could have a lot less stuff and still love the way it looked.

I removed the small items, added in one large platter and then added life with a backyard bouquet.

It's so bare! And it's so crazy luxurious and the most visual calming place in our house right now and I was instantly addicted to it.

I was so happy with the hush that fell over the entire kitchen that I moved on to the hutch. Sadly no before photo. But here's the after:

I cleared everything off, grabbed a steamy hot rag sprayed with Fresh Cut Grass Mrs. Meyers Spray (yep, it's a new scent you can get from Grove) and only added in items that l liked to look at that were visually quiet.

It did the trick!

My house feels more expansive and calmer and this white on white is perfect for such a time as this.

I'm sure one day I'll go back to layers of plants and blue and white dishes and hats and books and art but this simple white display is exactly what I need right now.

Can I get an Amen?

In a perfect world I'd be using this time to do a deep decluttering. But the reality is, in a perfect world, we wouldn't all be staying home right now anyway.

If for you, decluttering nonstop is what you need, go for it!

But if you are like me and have low motivation for decluttering right now, but a high need for a visual reward and simplicity, quieting one area might make a huge difference.

A few tips to visual quiet a space:

remove excess stuff
remove excess pattern
group like colors together
remove even more stuff

If your house is closing in on you, consider asking yourself these three questions:

What is the one thing I can do that's the least amount of work that will have the most visual impact?

What if I could only subtract to solve this problem?

What's the least amount of stuff I can have and still get the style I love?

And then answer them.

xo,

Myq