List of Our ‘Stuff’
Everyone has stuff. Some stuff is essential. Some stuff isn’t. Knowing the difference can be an ongoing battle, especially in our current culture.
In order to stay on the offensive in this fight, we’ve decided to inventory every item we own.
Update: We are in the final stages of moving from our furnished apartment and hitting the road for 3 months. More updates coming this week!
Everything we own
- Important Stuff
- Household Stuff
- Baker's Stuff
- Courtney's Stuff
- Milligan's Stuff
- Bathroom Stuff
- Technology Stuff
- Items w/ family
Important Stuff
- Wedding Ring
- Wedding Ring
- Wallet
- Purse
- Wallet (Courtney)
- Wallet (Courtney)
- Essential Documents Folder
- Kelty KID 2.5 Child Carrier Backpack
- High Sierra 29" Compass Backpack
- Car Seat
- Car Seat Cover
- Pack 'N Play
- 1 Bed Sheet
- Travel Information Folder
- Passport Holder
Household Stuff
- Pink Reusable Canvas Bag
- Bowl
- Bowl
- Bowl
- Bowl
- Tupperware
- Tupperware
- Tupperware
- Tupperware
- Tupperware
- Tupperware
- Vegetable Peeler
- Cheese Slicer
- Trash Can
- Dish Scrubber
- Potty-Training Seat
- Dustpan
- Dishrag
- Green Reusable Canvas Bag
- Black Reusable Canvas Bag
- Pen
- Pocketbook
- Journal
- Scrapbook
- New Zealand Artwork
- Phase 10
- Pen
- Change of Heart
- New Zealand Lonely Planet
- Queensland Lonely Planet
- Thailand Lonely Planet
- Towel
- Pillow Case
- Pillow Case
- Strawberry Canvas Bag
- Scrapbooking pen
Baker's Stuff
- Underwear
- Underwear
- Underwear
- Underwear
- Underwear
- Undershirt
- Undershirt
- Undershirt
- Undershirt
- Undershirt
- Socks
- Socks
- Socks
- Socks
- Socks
- T-Shirt
- T-Shirt
- Hoodie (green)
- Hoodie (brown)
- Collared Shirt (black)
- Dress Shirt (blue)
- Khaki Shorts
- Khaki Pants
- Jeans
- Reversible Black/Brown Belt
- Swim Trunks
- Pajama Pants
- Running Shoes
- Keen Newport H2 Sandals
- Athletic Pants
- BJJ Gi (On to-sell list)
- Underwear
- Underwear
- Underwear
- Underwear
Courtney's Stuff
- Underwear
- Underwear
- Underwear
- Underwear
- Underwear
- Bra
- Bra
- Sports Bra
- Socks
- Socks
- Socks
- Socks
- Undershirt
- Undershirt
- Undershirt
- T-Shirt
- Tank-Top
- Tank-Top
- Tank-Top
- Tank-Top
- Tank-Top
- Tank-Top
- Tank-Top
- Cardigan
- Sweater
- Sweater
- Swimsuit
- Shorts (Blue)
- Pants (Black)
- Pants (Jean)
- Dress Shirt
- Dress Shirt
- Dress
- Dress
- Northface Jacket
- Dress Jacket
- Running Tights
- Running Pants
- Running Shoes
- Pink Jandals
- Keen Venice H2 Sandals
- Belt
Milligan's Stuff
- Onesie
- Onesie
- Shirt
- Shirt
- Dress
- Skirt
- Skirt
- Pants
- Capri
- Jeans
- Jeans
- Tights
- Tights
- Tights
- Jacket
- Jacket
- Sandals
- Monkey Backpack/Leash
- Diapers (disposable)
- Small Changing Pad (Holds wipes, powder, cream)
- Blankie
- Blanket
- Sippie Cup
- Bottle
- Wooly Lamb book
- Nursery Rhyme book
- Rubber Ducky
- Flashcards
- Ball Set
- Giraffe
- Blue Puppy
- Pink Shoes
- Swimsuit
- Panties
- Pretty Pink Hat
- Pooh Bear
- Beach Ball
- Small Orange Ball
- Cathy the Calf book
Bathroom Stuff
- Toothpaste
- Toothbrush
- Toothbrush
- Nail clippers
- Shampoo
- Conditioner
- Deodorant
- Deodorant
- Hair clippers
- Q-Tips
- Floss
- Aloe
- Wax
- Sunblock
- Baby sunblock
- Misc (small baggie)
- Small medicine container
- Off
- Mousse
- Facewash
- Shaving Cream
- Hair Bands
- Razor
- Razor
Technology Stuff
- Toshiba Satellite Laptop
- Laptop Charger
- Mouse
- Plantronics 750 DSP Headset
- Power Converter
- Power Converter
- Jump Drive
- Jump Drive
- Webcam
- Sony DCR-SR40 30GB Handycam
- Charger/USB
- Canon Digital Rebel XTi SLR Camera
- Charger
- Samsung SL202 Digital Camera
- Charger
- SanDisk 12 in 1 Reader
- Burnable CD Pack
- Cheap MP3 Player
- Headphones
- Courtney Watch
- Flip UltraHD
- Flexible Tripod
- Cell Phone (U.S.)
- Cell Phone (Aus/NZ)
Items w/ family
- Important documents (mostly tax-related)
- Wedding Albums
- Dish Set (wedding present we kept)
- Scuba Gear Set (was going to have shipped)
Note: Special thanks to Si from Line In Web Design for designing the custom widget above. Follow him on Twitter @LineInWebDesign!
The ball is in your court, now. I hope this encourages you to take stock of your own possessions and find areas you can simplify. It’s not the number that matters, but rather making sure that we stay on the offensive against clutter and overwhelm!
If this kind of thing turns you on, check out my ‘Sell Your Stuff‘ category of posts!
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{ 75 comments… read them below or add one }
I look forward to seeing how you compress this down. I honestly cringe at the thought of listing all the junk and clutter I have collected over the years. As far as technology goes I have:
1 Home PC
Surround Sound Speakers
1 Sony Viao Laptop
1 Apple Macbook Pro Laptop
Macbook Pro Remote
Spare Laptop Mouse
Ipod Nano 8gb
Samsung P1000 Digital Camera
Technics 1210 Turntables
Mixer
Speakers for Turntables / Dj’ing
I could keep on going. I do hope to simplify that massively once I leave the country though. Thanks for the inspiration!
Yeah, obviously taking on a big project such as moving or traveling overseas is the perfect opportunity to take stock and simplify. Have fun in Amsterdam!
Personally, I love that you have done this! I also think you should have Courtney guest post too!
I’ll try to prod her into guest posting. She’s tossed around the idea, but hasn’t gotten the drive to really dive into it.
You’re such a pack rat! 5 pairs of underwear… c’mon man – who needs all that?
If you turn them inside-out, that’s 10 days!
If you turn them front to back as well, it’s 20 days!
Hi Adam, awesome list.
I’ve been gradually decluttering over the years, so even though we aren’t over run with items, I still feel like we have to many. Inspired by you, I’m now on a massive reducing drive; we’re relocating to Portugal in 1006 days (not that I’m counting!) and we’re not paying any more shipping than we really have to.
Laura, you won’t regret it! Even though 1006 days is still a while (Kudos to you for such advance planning), if you gradually stick to it you’ll knock those shipping costs down to almost nothing.
I’m interest in hearing more about your move and will be checking out your site!
Maybe a dumb question but… no silverware or drinking containers? Or are those included in the furnished apartment?
Included, for now!
I have more than 200 items in my cars trunk! (I am a hospice nurse so I need a large amount of supplies on hand, they fit in 2 boxes.) I thinks its so great that you can list everything you own and the lifestyle you guys have choosen. I am learning to be simple…I have bad allergies to to make dusting easier I elemiated lots of surface clutter. What a difference! I have narrowed down my “holiday” contains from 20 to 6. I have always replace an item, never add an item. Good luck to all.
HAHAHA!! There is no way I’m listing everything in the boy’s toy chest… That would take me a year!
And the girls! ugh…. Maybe I’ll start small with our bedroom and build up my courage as I head down the hall…. haha!
Good for you guys!!
Well, 1 is much easier than 6
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This is a very timely article for me as my partner and I are moving this week from a large condo to a much smaller apartment for the cost savings. Part of the process of moving is taking an inventory of what we need and don’t need. The rule of thumb for us as we got rid of things (mostly given to Goodwill and the Salvation Army) was if we hadn’t used it/ worn it in the last year, it could go. Just getting rid of three bags of clothing and shoes made it feel like it we had simplified things already. It’s amazing how much stuff two people can collect.
Well, I’ve been putting this off until I move….and I still might save “The Grand Purge” until moving day…whenever that is. I’ve been in my current location for a little over 7 years and I’ve accumulated a lot of stuff.
I probably more than 200 items in my living room! How long do I really need to hold onto old trophies? Books I haven’t read in years? DVDs and worse….VHS that probably won’t ever see the light of day.
You’ve definitely given me something to think about…
I appreciate the sentiment behind this sort of thing. I too have gone out of my way to try and limit the amount of stuff I own, but I’m not going to catalog it all like this, because I don’t think it’s useful. If your interest is in mobility, then you should do this by weight and volume, not count. I mean, do four pens really count more than say, a piano (which isn’t on your list, but could be)?
I’m just very careful when adding new things to the body of stuff that I own. I went back and looked through my purchases for September. I made lots of purchases. Only one of them was for permanent stuff that will stick around my house. I bought a new backpack and some hiking clothes at REI. Everything else I bought was consumable (food, gas, travel) or non-phyiscal (software).
I do have a few things I don’t use. I have three bicycles for instance, and I really only ride two of them. One’s just been sitting most of the time since I bought the newest one, which has become it’s replacement, and I haven’t gotten around to getting rid of the old one. I also have a Nintendo DS I don’t play. I tried to sell it on Craigslist, but the number of flaky people to respond turned out to be more trouble than it was worth.
I specifically *don’t* have boxes of trophies won in sports I played when I was nine years old, or every receipt for every purchase I’ve made going back for ten years, or the legos I played with as a child, or the boxes that every electronic item I’ve ever purchased came in, or a bunch of knick-knacks and souvenirs acquired on trips or as gifts just sitting a shelf doing nothing. This stuff alone fills half of a lot of people’s homes.
I also make a point of getting rid of things as they go out of use or get replaced (there are a few exceptions, like the bicycle). I don’t have my last three cell phones sitting in a drawer with the delusion that maybe I’ll need them one day, or old wood-panelled televisions sitting in the garage because “they’re still perfectly good”, or a drawer full of clothes that are too worn to wear because “I can wear them for painting or working on the car.” These things pretty much just all go in the trash.
But still, keeping count of everything doesn’t seem useful except maybe to chart your own progress. I try to avoid getting into competitions based on who can have a bigger or smaller number on a computer screen. I feel the same way about net worth calculations.
Tyler, it’s partly for mobility and partly just to open our eyes. As far as mobility goes, you are exactly right. For example, my new BJJ Gi takes up a crap-ton of room. It might add another 50% onto the amount of space my clothing takes up. This is much harder to easily measure (compared to just counting), although I would consider this if we continue to maintain a high level of mobility.
I think you already have the right mindset. That is trying to consciously stay away from hoarding trophies or old cell phones, etc… The commitment to constantly reviewing what you surround yourself with is what we ultimately want to foster. It seems like you already do this well.
Lastly, this isn’t a competition. The only person we are competing with is ourselves. Each person’s life is different and will have different limits. The list IS about charting our progress, keeping us accountable, and providing a cool spark of inspiration for those who do need it
.
As always, appreciate your insight, man.
OMG Way to go! I am proud of you all for doing this. I have over 25 years worth (mostly junk) of things. Both myself and my husband were packrats. I say were because I have been decluttering for a year now. He has moved away and I am getting rid of stuff. Keep up the good work and thanks for the inspiration.
While I see the point for Baker to do this, it’s not something I’m going to try.
I kind of like Tyler’s view – what “stuff” did I buy last month and why? Our family is selective on new things that we buy. Period. I like this method since it prevents unneeded purchases in the first place and saves us the time and energy of having to get rid of “stuff” later on.
We moved in July – that was a good time to gauge our progress on how much unnecessary stuff we actually had. We did pretty well – I think we had a couple bags of trash and a couple boxes of stuff to donate – most of which was old gifts we never got around to returning. I’m sure there is stuff we missed, but it’s not causing any stress or costing us any money so we’ll hang on to it for now.
Well Adam, quite a list you have there.
I enjoyed this post, it made me think. I have a gigantic amount of stuff in my house, most of it which I don’t need, but a lot of it I like and has sentimental value or is just pretty to look at!
I’m going to be travelling in december for a few months, and then everthing I own will fit into a suitcase and one backpack. I think when travelling it is very easy not to have a lot of stuff, but as soon as you settle in a location, it becomes hard not to go into ‘collect’ mode
Thanks for sharing!
Cheers
Diggy
Diggy, that’s exactly what we are going through and why I wanted to step back up and create this list again. It was super easy when we left, but ‘things’ gradually started creeping back in.
Do what you can to prevent that once you leave for your trip. I know you and Glen are going to have a blast!
200 items, I would be ecstatic if I could get to that number. Seriously, as much as I am trying to downsize my life, the thought of getting rid of some of my “stuff” terrifies me. I guess thats what years of being a packrat will do to you. However, I am slowly making progress!
It’s impressive that you’re able to actually list everything you own. Having recently moved overseas no doubt must have reduced the amount of things you own considerably. The average suburban dwellers probably have at least 20x the number of things you listed there. We’ve cut down considerable on what we own over the years, mostly from downsizing from a big suburban house to a small city apartment. I couldn’t even attempt to list everything we own, though. Just our books alone would be a much longer list than your complete list. I appreciate the sentiment and exercise though.
Books were by far the hardest things for us to part with. Now that they are gone, I really only miss 1 or 2.
Very impressive Mr. Baker. I believe I have 200+ things in my side of the closet itself, not to mention the other 3 fully furnished floors of our place
I’m working on my own list as well, but first I have to get rid of all the extra stuff before I start counting…I’ll be back in a year.
I am very jealous of the brevity of your list. I keep purging at my house, but it’s a bit of a losing battle. My husband and I are both professional artists, and just the paper and current projects alone probably weigh more than all of your belongings, never mind the reference books and art supplies. I am slowly making headway though!
Amazing! I couldn’t even come close to listing all my possessions. It is a great idea though to keep an inventory. It makes you consciously think about what stuff you’re acquiring. Thanks for making me think!
Wow, nice inventory you got there Baker! There’s no way we could list all our stuff… it’s just too much! Aiieee
My 1940-1960’s baseball card collection alone has over 1,000 cards for example. Mickey Mantle, Sandy Koufax, and Roberto Clemente rookie anyone?!
We have a goldfish syndrome, where we grow into our environment unfortuntately. We promise to stop though and don’t need more than 800 sqft / person in our next abode!
I like that term ‘goldfish syndrome’, it’s one of the reason we really don’t mind having a smaller apartment, right now.
For insurance purposes, I instruct my readers to put together a “home inventory checklist” of their personal items. That way if their home is lost during a fire or other disaster, they can give the insurance company a list of all their items to be replaced. It’s very helpful.
Ooooh, a nice tangible reason for doing the list. Didn’t think of this!
This is a great concept even though I find the thought of tackling it intimidating. Do you have a specific goal in mind or just overall management of the monster?
I like Tyler’s point about weight and cube as it brings some more descriptive dimensions into the challenge. Although I’m not sure if I’d shoot for specific numbers (i.e. cubic in/cm or lb/kg).
I’d see myself orienting the goal more around an actionable event such as being able to pack everything we own in less than an hour and carry it on our persons. Or perhaps be able to take everything I own with me on a domestic US flight without having to give them my first-born child (from checking multiple bags).
The definition will most likely be unique for everybody, but the underlying concept of the benefits of simplifying is universal. I wish you persistence.
Yeah, Ben, this sort of thing is appealing, too. Depending on how hardcore we keep our mobile lifestyle, I’d be much more interested in a volume concept. Right now, though, this provides an awesome start for us.
Wow that is great! When we moved 5 years ago we pared down to half our house. Somehow we have accumulated a bunch of junk. This is really a reminder that less is more.
Reminds me of if you had 5 mins. to leave your house what would you take with you.
Thanks for getting my fire started with purging!
Love the list, can’t wait to do my own. It’s hard when you have to keep a personal library, though:) Also, Milli’s possessions are really cute. Wonder which ones she’s most attached to:)
Blue Puppy… not even close
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How often do you do laundry? I’m in the process of cleaning out (bedroom, kitchen, office done), but I don’t want to *need* to do laundry every five days, or even once a week.
There is an attraction to having a short list, though…
We do a load every 3-4 days probably. Because we have much LESS clothes, it’s usually only a load or two max. We aren’t super picky, so we usually just throw everything in together. Might not be the best strategy, but it seems to work right now.
I scaled down to 440 sf for a year and a half and was amazed how few possessions I could pare down to effortlessly. Then I bought a house and I forgot the “one thing in means one thing out” rule and a few categories of stuff have started creeping up again. My weakness has always been books, which I’ve purged numerous times (they keep coming back!!!). Your post has given me new resolve to go through my stuff again and do a repurge (not regurge
Like MoneyEnergy’s post, I just loved the list of Milli’s possessions. I too have a rubber duck in my personal stuff inventory. She’s obviously a classy gal. I love this concept and look forward to your updates.
I’m curious about the specific of the stuff in the wallets, purse, and essential document folder. I’m thinking that at the very least, if any of those items is lost or stolen, it implies you need to take some immediate corrective action to prevent identify theft or worse.
Then there is the stuff that was useful and then expires/become irrelevant/needs to be tossed.
Gwen, this is one area where I talked to Courtney about expanding. I’m about *this* close to ditching my wallet all together. She definitely doesn’t need all of her crap in her purse (although she’s very minimalist compared to many women I’ve seen).
Also our ‘essential’ documents have kind of grown since we started the trip. Not all of them are really essential anymore. I think we’ll try to expand these categories over the next week or two!
Another question:
What do you do for a travel-sized/minimalist office? Stamps, envelopes, tape, stapler/paperclips, scissors, temporary holding for receipts/paperwork?
Um, nothing. If we have to post something we just buy at the post office. We are 80-90% digital and don’t tend to use many paper clips or staples these days. If we feel receipt is essential we throw it in the one folder we have for our documents (another reason we need to sort this a little better).
That’s not that much stuff, congrats. I’ve been attempting to consolidate and I found out that I have waaaay more kitchen utensil’s than is necessary. I’ve trimmed my kitchen down to 3 pots & pans, 5 knives, 2 cutting boards. I have yet to get to a bucket full of spatula’s and other utensils’ that I thought necessary when purchased, but now are just hogging up minimal counter space.
My goal is to eventually get a house that’s 750 or less sqft. Doing this will free me from debt (It wont be as expensive as a traditional house) and force me to keep only what is needed.
Thanks for (another) great post.
I agree with the smaller house idea 100%. My husband and I live in a 730 sqft “starter” house. Last year we almost bought a 3600 sqft house with 3 car garage, large pool, and 800 sqft “work shop” with AC. We thought if we where going to have a family we needed the bigger house, which was very affordable on our income. We thought about how long it would take just to clean the bigger house, about 5 times longer than our house! Thankful we have choosen to stay in our little house, and pay of our morgate in the next 4 years!
Could I list all of my possessions? You bet I can! I’m working on reducing my personal items to 100, which I recently discussed in an article aptly titled 100 Things Challenge which was inspired by David Bruno.
For those who are interested, here is my list of 100 Things:
http://hundredgoals.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/my-100-things2.docx
I fully intend to further reduce that list as time goes on. I have been doing very well at restricting incoming possessions. The only thing that I’ve since added is a t-shirt which I purchased after my skydive this weekend. It seemed like a suitable bit of memorabilia from the experience, and since I could actually use another shirt, things worked out.
I don’t think it is that difficult to reduce the amount of personal belongs an individual has. The largest hurdle is seperating yourself from the emotional attachment involved with your possessions. Once you are able to do that, it is simple to simplify your belongings.
What I struggled with the most was an old box of letters from my highschool sweetheart & travel trinkets & postcards from all over. I had photos upon photos of my life in that box. The problem with it was that it was so disorganized and packed full of all of this sentimental stuff that I just could possibly part with. It sat in my closet for years, having things added to it regularly.
Finally I had enough with this box and decided to do something about it. I tossed out all of the old love letters (and in a way this was a way of seperating myself from the last of the emotional strings still attached to this old relationship). All of my travel memorabilia ended up being tossed as well…except a few things which I actually keep displayed around the apartment.
The photos of my life, my family, my friends, my travels were next. Everyone always says that photos are the most important thing in their lives, and mine included. How could I possibly get rid of these? If I had to guess I probably had thousands of photos.
I took the project head-on and started sorting the photos, sifting through duplicates, photos of “nothing” and the ones which actually held some sort of memorable value were then scanned and saved to my computer. Then they were tossed along with the rest of the photos. I will be uploading all of the scanned photos to an online host in order to protect them from loss due to a faulty computer.
I managed to reduce the amount of Stuff in my Sentimental Box to practically nothing. I kept my Diploma & my Degree and a few random things which I was unable to part with but I managed to entirely eliminate all of the clutter and reduced the emotional baggage that box held. It was a lot of work & I seperated myself from a lot of memories, some good & some bad but in the end I feel free from my past, more able to live in the present rather than constantly clinging to the past.
Our apartment is much less cluttered, as a matter of fact, with exception to the closet which houses our holiday decorations & camping equipment, I would say that our apartment looks very nice. It is clean & decorated in a style which borders on minimalism yet maintains a feeling of home. I like it alot.
Wow, dude, you rock. One of the best comments in a while!
Oh man. Your list is completely admirable! I’ve been inspired by you and Leo of ZenHabits fame to take my current move as an opportunity to seriously pare down my stuff, but I still have a lot of genres of things that you don’t.
Did you decide not to count really small things? I feel like even you must own, you know, a pen
I believe I saw that post on mnmlist.com. 100 things he owns.
I’ll probably follow suit on this on my blog… and I will probably stick to 100 items like Leo.
Hmm… Do we really need to count personal finance, career and personal development books as stuff?
Congrats on downsizing to, what seems to me, a very short list of necessities. I have been touring for the past 8 years or so. Each time, I pack 2 suitcases, buy a ton of clothing on the road, usually buy another suitcase, get off the road, get an apartment, buy stuff, book a tour, put it all in storage, and start again. The last time, I came back to a 10′ x 15′ space filled with furniture, a motorcycle, junk, and clothes I haven’t used or worn in years!!!
No more. I have donated about 5 suitcases of clothing, sold the bike, sold what other stuff I could, and just gave the rest away. I still have some things I am hanging onto, you know, just in case, but it feels so good to not be overwhelmed by “STUFF.”
I would love to downsize even further and eliminate the debt I’ve accumulated just from furnishing apartments. Your blog is giving me the inspiration to do just that. Thanks.
Wow…just wow! My first reaction was “Wow”. My second reaction was wondering about how much stuff that the apartment came with (towels, bedding, pots and pans, etc.). My third reaction? Ugh…we still have too much stuff and so much of it isn’t WORKING FOR ME. Thanks for the inspiration to continue purging. The less we have the less we have to take care of and the more freedom we have for experiences.
This definitely encourages me to pare down even more. I realize now we have way too much stuff. I’ve become obsessed with minimizing our things. This post was a great motivator. Thanks!
Wow! That is awesome. I’ve spent the last three years dramatically purging my crap. It’s been very hard.
My husband and I went overseas for two years, five years ago. We were allowed 40kg worth of stuff on the plane, and then waited for the three or four cubic metres of stuff that was being shipped over. Then I came home, and lived with Mum for six months when our son was born, and brought back about 25kg worth of stuff. It was all I needed.
Until everything else came out of storage. We had paid $2500 to store our crap while we were overseas, then $4000 to shift it all from where we were storing it to where we were moving to.
The whole experience has taught me that I don’t need it. It’s a waste of money and a waste of space to keep stuff that I don’t like. I’m inspired by your list. I’m off to make one of my own.
(btw: glad you liked Townsville – it’s my hometown and I love it)
I love this article. This sounds way nerdy, but I’ve had this concept for a while of “living your life like it’s an RPG videogame.” Focus on leveling up/achieving goals, mainly. But those games all have inventory systems where you can only have so much stuff at one time!
Your list really makes me want to go home and downsize. What do you do about books and other media (CDs, DVDs, etc)?
One of my book project gigs a few years ago involved a couple who had whittled down their belongings to fit in the back of their (compact) car. Going even beyond that, they decreed they’d own no more than two of any item jointly used (ie. two spoons, two plates…). It’s such an extreme to our (the U.S. specifically) industries that have sprung up as a result of too much stuff (storage units, organizers, decluttering frenzies, etc.). Sadly, my written inventory would be super long, but I *am* working to shorten the list. (No storage units for me, but I am guilty of needing too many organizational helps.)
Thanks for sharing your list — for de-owning more items to maintain and claiming more time for living. It’s a great incentive for all of us to pare down what we have (or, more aptly, what has us!).
What do you clean with? There’s no soap or washing agent on there at all except for shampoo. Bodies, sink, floors, toilets, etc. get cleaned? (I also wonder about a broom or vacuum or dustcloth.)
Why are “diapers” and “medicine” “changing pad with wipes, powder, cream” and “bag of small stuff” all lumped together but pens are itemized separately?
Great questions, H Lee.
First, remember that this is just a rough guide. It’s a process we’ll be refining and updating.
As of now, we’ve chosen not to list disposable household cleaners. We have a few. Some rubbing alcohol, windex, and spray. Disposable/resuse stuff is a hard topic. Obviously, it’s of little benefit to put Paper Towel or toilet paper (for us at least). While you could make a strong case for cleaning product should be added.
We usually have between 20-50 diapers and, again, it doesn’t seem practice to list them separately. I do feel like the should be listed, because it’s such a major part of our stuff (even when we are mobile). Medicine is one category for the simple face that we have very little, it’s in one container, and I’m not sure it’s of any benefit for people to know the specific types of medicine.
The changing pad issue is also hard. It all fits in the one nice little pad w/ attached zipping bag. I think this is one area that I *will* expand for sure in the next update.
Thanks for bringing this issue up! It’s a tough call, but I’ll look more closely at it during the next update. (btw, broom, dustpan, etc… are furnished)
Thanks!
Hi
I only stumbled across your blog a few weeks ago, but already its fast becoming one of my favs. When I saw this post about listing all your ’stuff’ I was inspired to do the same.
For the last 12 years I’ve owned enough furniture and ’stuff’ that I needed a 20ft container to move me from one country to another, I cringe now when I think how much I have spent on moving costs over the last decade. But 5 months ago I downsized my life, gave away or sold 90% of my worldly ’stuff’ sent one piece of furniture with a friend’s shipment to my sibling in the UK and left the country I was living in. I posting myself 13 small cardboard boxes and carrying 2 suitcases and one carry on bag to my new destination.
Sitting down with my spreadsheet to make a list of the contents was great, it also showed me that I still have lots of room to whittle down even more. 4 of the boxes are unpacked and counted, 1 has gone missing on route and the last 8 should be arriving with me in the next month.
Thanks for the great posts.
Mia
There seem to be a lot of sites around now listing the amount of possesions and trying to fit into a certain magical number of “100″ or even seen a blogger listing 10 items. No matter what number you are trying to achieve, I think its great that more people are starting to realise that we dont really need as much to live life more. Baker, I think your list is very realistic considering you are in N Zed travelling with a small child.
Man, this is a great idea, it is amazing how out stupid “stuff” can often overwhelm us and stress us out! Bravo brother!
tell courtney i’m glad to see breaking dawn on the still own/still in her hands list!!! that would have been the first thing my husband would have wanted GONE!
jenny
I feel much better when I get rid of things that I don’t need, so this is great to see.
After moving several times in the last few years, I am more determined than ever to keep things simple and compact. Now, whenever I get anything new (purchased by me or given to me as a gift), I look around and find something to get rid of to ‘make room’ for the new item. There’s always something, even if it’s just paper that should be recycled.
Often people have a lot of books that they’ll never read again, and books are heavy and take up a lot of space. A great nice thing to do is to donate them to the local library. That way other people can enjoy them (not just one person who buys from, say, a garage sale), and if you regret getting rid of any of them you can borrow them for a few weeks to see if you really need to replace them.
We have eight people in our family. No way am I going to count all our stuff!
But we are improving. We just moved from our 12,000 square foot house and are building a 6,000 square foot house! Don’t laugh. It’s all relative! When you take a family and cut the “collectibles” in half, that’s serious progress!
OMG I probably have 185 things on or around my desk. How amazing. It must be so freeing to not have all this stuff. I’ve thought many many times about living more simply ~ but find it hard to part with all my “stuff”. Kudos to you!
Hi Adam, nice post! Before I list my own personal belongings I think I should get rid half of them first since it will take less amount of time than to list them all in here!
Congrats Courtney for getting your clothes down to 24 items. I’m doing my own 100 thing challenge right now and I’ve realized I’ll have to reduce my clothes to about 30 pieces. I think this is going to be really difficult as I have many different social situations to attend, but I’m going to give it a go. Some part of me feels that with limited items and more mix and match stuff I might even eliminate the horrible ‘i have nothing to wear’ moment.
Does this moment still happen to you? What killer pieces do you have?
How is it possible to function with just one pair of socks? And your wife only has one real bra. That seems like a bit of a stretch. Maybe you can get away with wearing a lot less clothing where you are – but when it gets cold during the year, you can’t wear tank tops everyday!
I don’t wear socks right now! (Since maybe September-ish).
I wear Keen Sandals, which suffice for everything but working out. I intended to buy more socks once we got here to Thailand, but we don’t need them and I’ve only been swimming + body weight exercises (and not that much).
If I started running again, I’d need 3 more pairs at least, but for now they’d just be collecting dust!
I’m curious about the sock thing myself. I invested in 2 pairs of the quick dry boxer-briefs and they’re great, but socks just don’t dry that quickly!!!
Update from my prior comment: I needed to send a box of tools ahead that will travel on the truck while I’m touring, BUT I will only be carrying my backpack, a small carry-on sized duffel bag, and one rolling duffel. Sounds like a lot, but it’s a major improvement from tours past!
Wicking socks (socks not made from cotton) dry very quickly. I have bamboo socks that I exercise in. Check your local sporting goods or running store.
I just don’t get it, I guess. I’ve come across many blogs and articles that relate to this thing of people paring down their possessions to a certain number. But the more I read about it the more it all sounds like so much holier-than-thou stuff. It also seems quite silly to give any thought at all about how to categorize diapers, or to feel that toilet paper and cleaning products are an “issue” and a “tough call”, or something for which you could “make a strong case”. Huh? Maybe your life would indeed be simpler if you didn’t obsess over such things.
I am also dumbfounded by some of the reactions here, especially those who are envious of your short list. What’s the reason for the envy? Is this the new trend now, to be jealous of people who have fewer things than you do, rather than the other way around? Comparing yourself to others, regardless if it’s because of what they have or what they have gotten rid of isn’t indicative of a simplfied life. One person who commented is actually sad that their particular list is long compared to friends who go so far as to own only 2 spoons and 2 plates, etc. Again, huh? Why the sadness? The friends sound like extremists, and extremity in either direction is neither healthy nor simple. And, finally, why the congrats to your wife for only having 24 articles of clothing? I ask this, because the person who congratulated your wife said it would be difficult for her to pare down to 30 pieces, since she has several different social situations that necessitate owning more clothes. By comparing herself to your wife–or rather, the amount of clothes owned–she’s making her life more complicated.
Really, could someone ’splain this to me?
This page inspired me to make a list of everything that I own. Part way through the process of cataloging everything. I keep yelling to my roommate in the other room “TOO MUCH CRAP!!”