4 Renovation Ideas for a Luxurious, Minimalist Paradise

Over the past few decades, we have moved from a world of scarcity to an era of abundance. Plastics and other new-age materials have made production costs so low that our stores are full of cheap goods that are easily attainable for almost everyone.

As a result, we now make worse choices about what we buy. Add these in-hindsight-stupid purchases to the countless gifts and giveaways we receive from friends, family, and co-workers, and it’s no wonder that our once-lovely houses are now full of stuff we don’t need and never use.

Enough is enough. It’s time to embrace minimalist thinking and get rid of the things you don’t need. On top of improving the aesthetics and overall ambiance of your living conditions, this mind-set will also help you better appreciate the things that you do still have and love.

And it’s not as hard as it may seem. The key for those addicted to horde-ing is to start slow and make tangible progress in ways that actually work for you. After that, it will get easier and easier to say goodbye. The following four tips are a great way to get started on the path to a more minimalist surroundings in your home.

Buy Better Things

One of the reasons many people accumulate so much stuff is that the possessions they currently have are not high-quality. This doesn’t mean that you need to go out and by the top-of-the-line television set or washer and dryer. But think about why you have so many kitchen knives or burnt pots and pans stuck away in drawers and shelves, for example. If you just invest in one well-made chef’s knife and one or two complementary knives, that’s all you will ever need. Good ones can last for decades and — on top of being better, and safer, to use for cooking — owning a quality product will free you up to ditch the dull, bent tools currently laying all over the kitchen.

Open Shelving

At some point, the standard for storing kitchen items became a closed cupboard. But this makes little sense. Instead of keeping your pots and pans stored away, leave them on open shelves or hanging from the wall on small hooks. Besides showing off your nice cookware to the world, well-arranged open shelving will also make cooking more efficient and encourage you to whip up a homemade dish rather than going out for dinner. Best of all, having limited space that needs to look good from a design sense will discourage you from keeping items you do not need that have been stuffed behind everything else for years.

Natural Beauty

Plants are a great way to both add some natural elements to your indoor space and avoid clutter. It’s the ultimate win/win. By incorporating some simple, minimalist plant life — like a hanging air plant, lucky bamboo plant or money tree — you will be filling up space with beauty. And you will no longer be tempted to tarnish valuable shelf space or an end table by leaving junk or unread magazines all over the place. Just let the plant by itself in a corner where nothing else is necessary to make the room look nice.

Clothing Purge

One of the biggest — in volume and sentimentality — hurdles to cutting down on possessions is clothing. We all have too much, and it’s easy to justify keeping something that you really might wear someday if you just lose enough weight or you have to paint the bedroom or you come up with any number of other excuses that will never come to pass. Instead, take all your clothes and put them into a few bags. If you need an item, take it out. Then, after four months, anything that’s left in the bag gets donated to charity or tossed away. Your closets will no longer be overflowing and you’ll rid yourself of so much unneeded material.