When it comes to minimalism in homes, there’s the design movement that emphasizes sleek styling and raw materials and the practical movement that focuses on decluttering a home until it contains only the bare necessities.
The latter can help you take control of your household, save money, and create a space your family loves to be in.
If you’ve been trying to nail down a minimal home but can’t get it right, pay attention to these ten things that people with minimal homes never do.
Decorate Flat Surfaces with Impractical Items
Flat surfaces, like tabletops, counters, and dressers, collect the most clutter. To keep your home minimal and functioning well, you must keep personal items and random decor off flat surfaces.
Consider adding style to your everyday items. For example, if you use your air fryer daily and like to keep it out, consider upgrading to a nicer-looking version when it’s time for a replacement.
Your flat surfaces should be mostly clear, except for the practical items you need, which can still be beautiful, like displaying wooden spoons in a crock or fruit in a nice basket.
Buy Things Without Knowing Where They’ll Put Them
To keep a home clutter-free, be intentional with your purchases. (Don’t come back with new decor or dishes if you make a trip to Target for a few groceries.)
When you purchase an item, plan where it will go or what it will replace. This will not only keep your home minimal but also save you a significant amount of money.
Litter Their Homes with Knick-Knacks
Little knickknacks might be fun, but they make rooms look busy. Instead of buying items at the Target dollar spot or thrift stores, save for bigger purchases like large frames for family photos, commissioned art pieces, or a new plant.
Keep Clothes They Don’t Wear
If your closet is bursting at the seams, it will be difficult to maintain a minimal home. Excess clothes also create more laundry, less organization, and a harder time getting ready in the morning.
Create a minimal closet by assessing your clothes and picking out the ones you wear every week. Then, go through the other items and get rid of things that aren’t necessities.
Collect Kitchen Gadgets
There’s always a new kitchen gadget to buy—air fryers, instant pots, cucumber slicers, toaster ovens, blenders, and more. But unless you’re an avid cook who uses these items, resist the temptation to buy.
Keep your kitchen gadgets pared down to what you use. If you want to live in a minimal home, your cabinets and counters can’t be overflowing with random small appliances.
Go All Out on Seasonal Decor
Instead of going all out and purchasing the newest seasonal decor each year, those with minimal homes are intentional about what they purchase and keep. For example, a high-quality seasonal throw blanket or pillow cover can last years, is easy to store, and doesn’t make a home look cluttered.
If you want to decorate for the seasons, try choosing quality over quantity and picking timeless items that last more than a year or two.
Hold Onto Items “Just in Case”
People with minimal homes don’t hold onto things “just in case.” They know they can find those items inexpensively secondhand if they do end up needing them. Rather than stockpiling items, they value a decluttered, minimal home.
Cover Every Inch of Their Walls with Decor
If you enjoy covering every inch of your home with decor, minimalism isn’t for you, and that’s fine. (Try maximalism instead.)
Minimal homes feel airy and uncluttered. While they can showcase some decor, they keep most walls and flat surfaces clear.
Don’t Consider Quality
Quality over quantity is a central ideal of minimal homes. Classic items that last a long time provide cost savings and environmental friendliness. That doesn’t mean you have to splurge, though.
High-quality items are a dime a dozen at thrift stores and on the Facebook marketplace.
Fail to Set Intentions for Each Space
Minimal homes are intentional, with each space serving a specific function.
Consider applying this principle as you create zones for relaxing, working in the office, doing homework, and getting ready in the morning. You can even apply it to the way you organize and arrange your kitchen and bathroom cabinets.
