Less is More

     I have heard the phrase "less is more" time and again throughout my life but never put much stock in it, until recently.
      When I married my first husband I never had much.  We lived in tiny two bedroom apartments until we finally got the courage to buy a house.  The house we bought was a very large four bedroom house.  It had a huge master suit with a walk in closet, a full basement that was really clean(no bugs), a small kitchen, and a large dining room and living room.  I had more space than I knew what to do with.  I never actually filled any of the space and I liked that fact because it was easy to clean that way. 
      When the marriage went south and I met my husband I am married to now, I moved all my stuff and my two kids' stuff into a small 2 bedroom country house that was already fully furnished.  As kids grow and so did our family with the addition of our son, our house became even smaller and more cluttered.
      Now when I hear "less is more" I look at the contents of my house and it gets me thinking.  But where to start how to make more into less!  It's really not a hard concept to make more into less, it was just finding a good place to start.
       Our financial situation has never enabled be to live a highly pampered lifestyle but it has created envy at times.  So I finally figured out that I have the ability to make a lot of things that I thought I had to have.  After figuring this out I had to weed out what was needed and what was just a want.  For instance, I have never really been into designer purses, but I do like to have a functional purse that fits my style.  I found several hobo or monk style bags on etsy.com that I loved but didn't have the money for.  So I studied the bags, and researched different patterns.  I found a very simple pattern, bought fabrics I absolutely loved, and made my very own monk bag.  After it was finished I took fabric paints and added even more of my own style to it.  Want and need for a new purse solved ;)
       Most simple things that are exactly a need that most of us like to have around the house can almost every time be easily and cheaply made.  I have made pot holders, coasters, a cozy for my coffee mug, slippers, and many other accessory type items for a fraction of what it would cost to buy them in the store. 
       Then you have the needs, with a little research and some helpful tips from youtube.com and the scores of sites on google, needs can also me made.  Not to mention adding your own creative spin and you'll have a one of a kind item.  Scarves for my kids was a need.  I found fleece material in the remnant bins while shopping and sewed a couple of quick seams in them, tasseled the ends, and now my children are warm and cozy while playing in the snow.  Plus they love the fabric I chose that had their favorite characters on it.
      Making up cycled clothing has become a sort of passion for me recently.  I stumbled upon these beautiful coats made by an extremely creative and wonderful woman called Katwise.  She takes thrift store sweaters and makes them into beautiful coats of all colors and styles.  While cruising through her etsy store, her prices were sadly out of my current range(some day I will save my pennies and have one of her fabulous creations), but she did have a tutorial on how to make them.  I jumped all over that!! I have now created 3 of my own Katwise coats and am working on a fourth.  After finding her coats I stumbled on others that were making things from old t-shirts.  I gathered my old t-shirts and started thinking and sketching and soon I was creating!  I have made everything from rag rugs and pants to a Katwise style jacket from t-shirts.  The point being when it comes to t-shirt up cycling the possibilities are endless!!  The best part is I am taking something old and unused and making it into something new and functional.  by doing this I haven't had to make expensive clothing purchases for about 6 months now.  With kids that I swear grow an inch every day, not having to buy them clothes has helped a lot with our finances. 
     I have even found recipes on how to make many things I am constantly buy at the store.  Ketchup, mayonnaise and other condiments can be made very cheaply at home especially if you grow your own vegetables or have laying hens.  Most of the homemade varieties taste just as good if not better too!
      We have also found that if we haven't used something for 6 months and can't think of a way we will use it in the next 6 months, we get rid of it.  This is making a huge impact on the amount of clutter we have in our house.  The kids are even starting to get rid of toys they don't play with!! I was a little shocked when this started happening and also very relieved!  It is really nice not to have to feel guilty about getting rid of toys I know they haven't touched forever, or get caught in the act and have to try to sneak it out without them seeing.  The last time I was caught the end result was the kids followed me for weeks and peeked in all of my hiding places to see if I had their stuff stashed in them. This led to them finding all of their yule gifts *ugh*.
       I have also found a new plan and I will do a blog next about it.  I will also follow up with progress reports ;)