My husband and I watched a very interesting movie the other night – Soul, by Disney-Pixar. (Animated movies are one of the only kinds of movies we can ever agree on, so when a new one comes out, we’re always excited.)

Soul tells the story of a wannabe professional jazz pianist who’s stuck teaching middle school band. One day he finally gets the gig of his dreams, and tout de suite he falls in a pothole and dies. The end. (Just kidding… this is Disney!) After he dies, and falls onto a sort of moving treadmill to the great beyond, he escapes and goes on a wild and insightful adventure, involving the after- and before-life, souls who are yet to be born, and an exposé on finding one’s “purpose.”

I won’t tell you the whole story, obvs, because I recommend you watch it if you haven’t already, but I willshare my major takeaways. They are as follows: First off, happiness is a holistic pursuit. And secondly, the film reminded me that if we’re not aware and grateful for the day-to-day “small stuff,” the things we see as the “big stuff” fall flat.

What does this have to do with minimalism?

Nothing …. j/k – it does!

Minimalism is inextricably linked with your day-to-day, and by stripping away the clutter, cutting down on consumerism, and getting to know who you really are and what you really like, you can change your life. After all, it’s difficult to know what your purpose is if you’re swimming in the extraneous dross of an unintentional life.

And frankly, one way I’ve found to “find myself” has been through decluttering (read/watch more about decluttering here,) as well as through mitigating the inflow, i.e. not buying stuff. Hence, today’s topic.

(So, will you grant me a link between Soul and minimalism? Maybe?)

Anyway…

Today I’m sharing 18 things that I don’t buy or have stopped buying, plus the “whys” and the results of refraining from purchasing willy nilly. In short, since tipping my toe into the minimalism pool a few years ago, I’ve saved so much money and reduced my stress, and curbing my spending/shopping has been a key part of this.

Now remember, as I state in the video, this is in no way saying you need to stop buying the same things! These are just the items that I have deemed no longer necessary or vital. You might have an entirely different list, since every human is different. That being said, I do encourage you to take a hard look at what you buy and ask yourself, “Do I really need this? Do I really use this?” and see where it takes you.

At the risk of sounding prosaic, less is more. (At least that’s been my experience.) So, let’s jump into the video…

So, what do you guys think? Anything you feel like you could cut out or cut down on?

Did you enjoy this video? Are you a fan of the Matcha + Minimalism series? It always means the world to me to hear back from you.

Wishing you a marvelous weekend,