Over the past few years, I’ve been disentangling myself from capitalism’s insidious grip. It’s not an easy process, and it’s not something I’ll complete within my lifetime, but I still find it’s worth doing. I will preface by saying that I’m approaching this from a place of immense privilege. I’m self-employed and I have no…
Read More
As a teen of the 80s, I grew up under the mistaken impression that status was defined by material possessions – an odd assumption considering my parents weren’t overly materialistic (although, now that I think about it, every closet, cupboard, and cabinet seemed to be stuffed with rarely-used items). There were no school uniforms where…
Read More
Every year I assure my family that I won’t go crazy with gifts at Christmas, and every year they end up staring at me from behind a mountain of things they need to find space for. At the risk of sounding weird, I can see now that I was being a bit unmannerly. Saddling people…
Read More
This post will go up a few of weeks after the event, so it might not be news to my friends on Twitter, but today was a good day. My husband and I paid off the mortgage on our house eight years early. I am relieved and happy to know that if the worst happens…
Read More
Off grid. It’s a scary concept for some, but for people like me, it’s an aspiration. Imagine living a self-sufficient life and no longer being beholden to ‘the man’. It sounds quite hippy-trippy-60s anti-establishment, but there is great appeal in disentangling oneself from the clutches of societal expectations. To truly live off grid means digging…
Read More
Since downsizing my wardrobe at the beginning of the year, I’ve noticed a couple of gaps needing filled. Specifically, I had nothing to wear in the event of a somber occasion. And let’s be honest, in the midst of a crisis, the last thing we want to do is shop for clothing we’re going to…
Read More
I’m sure it was someone effortlessly stylish who said ‘fashions change, but style never does’. I imagine they were tall, thin, rich, and beautiful – and any advice they had didn’t apply to someone like me. I’m a skosh over 5’2″ and I’ve struggled with my weight since my mid-twenties. I have tried so many…
Read More
Stage one of decluttering is complete! I was so tired of trying to organise and store things I was holding onto for daft reasons – the silliest being ‘I might use that one day’. If it’s been stored out of sight for more than six months, there is a good chance I’ve forgotten it, and…
Read More
The Brexit vote kicked me hard. I’ve been deeply depressed about it since it happened, not only because of the suffering it will cause me and my family, but the awfulness it has unleashed on so many people. It’s horrible in every way, and it threw me into a dark pit. At the beginning of…
Read More
It was unpleasant realising my clothing consumption was out of control. My wardrobe was full of things I didn’t wear, and I stood many mornings in my dressing gown thinking that today would be the day I finally went to work naked. How did it come to this? Why did I have have garments with…
Read More
Today I’m decluttering my office in a ruthless fashion. I’ve been on a bit of a journey since February. I wouldn’t say I’m becoming a minimalist, but I am minimising. Does that make me a minimiser? I’m not sure, but I’ll go with that for now. It’s a frustrating process, probably because I’ve begun with…
Read More
Fig and Pen 