Saturday, May 3, 2014

Spring Cleaning - Minimize - Shoes

New thing today, did some spring cleaning and decided to get rid of some shoes. I've been researching and reading up on minimalism and living that way. I'm not ready to live off of 33 pieces of clothing yet or only own 150 things total, but I'm fighting that primal packrat instinct genetically gifted to me by my ancestors.

So, decided to start with shoes. I'm not a shoe-holic and I'm fairly practical with this, so it was relatively easy to start with. On one YouTube video by Love Raw Vegan, she explains very well how and what she does in choosing and living minimally with shoes in her video - Fashion - Shoe Minimalism + Fashion Tips. Anyway supposedly women on average own 27 pairs of shoes. That's what I decided to keep, but I did get rid of quite a bit - which is good for me.

One tip I followed is to "get rid of everything" and only bring back in what you wanted to use. It had to be functional and fashionable - meaning it makes you feel fabulous.

So I started with 39 pairs. It was a ton after looking at them all.




Supposedly we only really wear 5 pairs on average. I rotate more with the shoes that are accessible and visible, so I will work on that, and see what else I can cut out.

In total I got rid of 12 pairs (30%)! That's a good start. I got rid of 2 extra pairs of tennis shoes, extra hiking boots, some shoes that were really worn out or that I hardly ever wore, or that were really uncomfortable but cute, or really comfortable but ugly. There were some really good pairs in there, but following some minimalist principles and all.

The - out the door - pile.




This is the pared down overall keep pile - with possibly a few extras in the photo that I didn't get rid of just yet. I ended up keeping 27. I wrote down the categories to see if I could eliminate duplicates or extras later on. I'm not ready to do it yet, but it's in progress.

8 black shoes
3 flip flops (these are in the maybe/get rid of pile - for the next cut)
4 brown boots (assorted styles)
12 other - mainly nudes, sandals or assorted styles.

I also arranged them so I could visually see them better. This is the first round. I want to learn to be as minimal as possible for me and my lifestyle. It can be quite exhausting emotionally and mentally if you're not prepared. It's similar to weight loss. You won't lose all 50 lbs in a few weeks. You have to do it slowly, and find out what fits, what works, and what is worth keeping. That way, everything that remains, is truly essential. Plus learning to let go, and get rid of things that do not enhance, but just weigh you down.

Here's the final photos of the keepers, for now. I know I can cut down more. I want to get better at it as time goes on. I may actually have to learn to end up buying shoes that replace multiple pairs and are more versatile and using and keeping those. Some of the shoes I kept are place holders for that. Work in progress :) I was pretty proud.









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