20 THINGS I'M NOT BUYING for our New Home | minimalism + saving money

Summary

In this video, the minimalist lifestyle advocate shares a personal list of 20 items she's avoiding for her new home to save money and simplify life. From unnecessary furniture and decor to faux plants and cheap hangers, she emphasizes intentional purchases and DIY repairs. She also discusses her preference for quality over quantity, natural materials, and sustainable choices, like secondhand shopping, to reduce waste and create a more functional living space.

Takeaways

• 😀 The video discusses skepticism towards 'Home Essentials' lists, which often include unnecessary items.
• 🏠 The speaker emphasizes the importance of intentional purchasing and avoiding unnecessary clutter in a new home.
• 💸 A survey is mentioned, indicating that Americans spend $188,000 annually on non-essential items, leading to a lifetime waste of $1 million.
• 🛋️ The speaker plans to avoid buying excessive furniture and home decor to maintain a minimalist lifestyle and appreciate open spaces.
• 🛠️ DIY repairs are encouraged to save money and reduce reliance on hiring professionals for every task.
• 🌿 Faux plants are not preferred; the speaker aims to care for real plants instead, despite having a history of killing plants.
• 👗 The speaker will not buy bedroom dressers due to existing storage solutions in their walk-in closet.
• 👔 The preference for quality hangers over cheap ones is highlighted to prevent clothes from slipping and getting damaged.
• 🛏️ Nightstands are deemed unnecessary by the speaker, who has managed without them for years.
• 🧻 The speaker chooses not to have tissue boxes in the home, instead directing guests to use toilet paper.
• 🍽️ There's a rejection of disposable kitchen items and plastic cookware in favor of reusable options and natural materials.
• 🥂 The philosophy of using special occasion items daily is shared, as every day is considered a special occasion.
• 🥤 The speaker will not be buying an excessive number of glasses, focusing on practical and possibly aesthetically pleasing ones.
• 🛌 The decision to avoid woven blankets due to their maintenance challenges, especially in a family setting.
• 💡 The speaker dislikes floor lamps and plans to use recessed ceiling lights for better lighting without the glare.
• 🕰️ There's no need for clocks or timers in the home when phones and existing appliances provide the necessary timekeeping.
• 🧹 The minimalist approach extends to cleaning supplies, with the speaker likely to reuse or repurpose what they already have.
• 🎄 The speaker is not passionate about holiday decor and prefers to celebrate holidays in other ways.
• 🛍️ The final takeaway is about not buying everything new, with a preference for secondhand and thrift stores for sustainability and cost-effectiveness.

Q & A

What is the main theme of the video script?

The main theme of the video script is about simplifying life by not buying non-essential items for a new home and embracing minimalism.

What was the author's reaction to the '40 essential products for your first place' list?

The author was skeptical and almost fell into a deep depression, as they felt the items on the list, like a toothpaste squeezer and a sun-catcher shaped like a castle, were not essential.

What is the estimated amount Americans spend on non-essential items annually according to the 2019 survey mentioned in the script?

According to the 2019 survey, Americans spend $188,000 a year on non-essential items.

Why does the author advocate for not buying a lot of furniture and home decor for a new home?

The author values space and the feeling of openness, and believes that not filling the home with a lot of furniture or home decor can help maintain lightness, airiness, and a sense of openness.

What is the author's opinion on DIY repairs instead of hiring professionals?

The author believes that doing small repairs by oneself can save a significant amount of money in the long run and encourages the purchase of a toolkit for this purpose.

Why does the author choose not to buy faux plants for their new home?

The author is tired of faux plants and wants to try taking care of real plants to bring life and color into the house, despite having a history of killing plants.

What is the author's stance on buying bedroom dressers?

The author does not plan to buy bedroom dressers because they have a walk-in closet with built-in storage and do not have a large amount of clothing due to their minimalist lifestyle.

Why does the author prefer not to buy cheap hangers?

The author prefers not to buy cheap hangers because they are prone to breaking, causing clothes to slip off, and damaging the clothes with holes in the shoulders.

What is the author's view on having nightstands in the bedroom?

The author does not plan to have nightstands in the bedroom, as they have not missed them in the past and have found alternative places to put items like phones and glasses.

What is the author's approach to buying kitchenware for special occasions?

The author believes that every day is a special occasion and prefers to use fine china, good wine, and other special items regularly rather than saving them for specific events.

Why does the author avoid buying disposable kitchen items?

The author aims to reduce environmental waste, especially plastic and paper waste, and prefers reusable items even if it means more washing up after hosting.

What is the author's opinion on plastic cookware and its potential health effects?

The author is concerned about the presence of microplastics in food and bodies due to plastic cookware and the potential negative health effects, thus preferring natural material alternatives.

Why does the author choose not to buy a variety of glasses for different drinks?

The author finds it unnecessary to own many different kinds of glasses and prefers to focus on a few practical and possibly pretty ones.

What is the author's reasoning for not buying woven blankets?

The author finds woven blankets impractical due to the potential for damage from children or pets and the difficulty in maintaining their appearance.

Why does the author limit the number of pillows in their home?

The author finds that excessive pillows create visual clutter and can be a hassle to manage, especially with children who may throw them around.

What is the author's view on specialty appliances in the kitchen?

The author avoids adding more specialty or single-use appliances to the kitchen, having already decluttered items like a slow cooker and an instant pot that were not frequently used.

Why does the author not plan to buy a clock or timers for their home?

The author finds it unnecessary to have a wall clock or timers at home, preferring to use the clock on the microwave and setting timers on their phone when needed.

What is the author's stance on buying floor lamps for their home?

The author does not plan on getting floor lamps or table lamps, as they prefer the natural lighting in their home and plan to install recessed ceiling lights instead.

Why does the author consider not buying rugs for every room in their home?

The author finds that rugs can create echoes and are difficult to keep clean, especially in dining areas, and prefers to use rugs only in certain rooms for a cozy feel.

What is the author's opinion on candles and their use in the home?

The author has never been a candle person, does not enjoy the scent, and is concerned about the potential release of toxins and parabens into the air.

Why does the author choose to limit holiday decor in their home?

The author prefers to celebrate holidays in other ways, such as cooking meals or reading themed books, rather than focusing on accumulating holiday decor items.

What is the author's approach to buying items for their new home?

The author plans to buy items for their new home from thrift and secondhand stores to save money and be more sustainable, rather than purchasing everything brand new.

Outlines

00:00

🛋️ Minimalist Home Essentials Critique

The speaker expresses skepticism towards lists of 'essential products' for new homeowners, citing an example of an impractical list that includes items like a toothpaste squeezer and a decorative sun-catcher. They introduce themselves and their channel, 'Tozen Life,' which focuses on simplifying life. The main point of the video is to share a personal list of 20 items they won't be buying for their new home, both to save money and to maintain simplicity. The first item discussed is the excessive purchase of furniture and home decor, advocating for intentional buying and valuing open space in a minimalist lifestyle.

05:01

🛠️ DIY Repairs Over Hiring

The speaker emphasizes the financial benefits of doing home repairs oneself instead of hiring professionals, highlighting the cost savings from a single toolkit and the various repairs they have managed to do themselves, such as sealing windows and fixing loose roof shingles. This approach is presented as a way to save money and foster a sense of self-sufficiency.

10:02

🌵 Embracing Real Plants Over Faux

The speaker discusses their disdain for faux plants, having grown tired of their artificial appearance despite having a history of struggling to maintain live plants. With the move to a new home that includes a garden, they express excitement about learning to care for real plants to add life and color to their home, showing a preference for authenticity and a willingness to step out of their comfort zone.

15:03

🧺 Decluttering Unnecessary Furniture and Accessories

The speaker continues their decluttering philosophy by discussing the decision to forgo items such as bedroom dressers due to existing built-in storage in their walk-in closet, advocating for the use of existing resources to eliminate excess furniture. They also mention their choice to avoid cheap hangers in favor of velvet ones for a more organized and space-efficient closet, and the decision to omit nightstands, tissue boxes, and their accessories, and kitchenware for special occasions, promoting a minimalist and practical approach to home essentials.

🍽️ Reducing Waste and Unnecessary Kitchen Items

The speaker's focus shifts to the kitchen, where they plan to avoid disposable kitchen items and plastic cookware to reduce environmental waste and potential health risks from microplastics. They also discuss the decision to not accumulate various types of glasses for different beverages, woven blankets for practicality reasons, and excessive pillows to minimize visual clutter and maintain a clean, functional living space.

🏡 Prioritizing Practicality Over Specialty

The speaker outlines their intention to avoid specialty appliances and excessive home items such as multiple clocks and timers, floor lamps, and rugs in every room. They discuss the preference for practical and multi-use items, natural materials, and the importance of natural lighting in their home. The decision to not have a rug in the dining room to maintain cleanliness and the choice of installing recessed ceiling lights for nighttime illumination are highlighted.

🕯️ Opting for Clean Simplicity Over Decorative Items

The speaker explains their lack of interest in candles due to personal sensitivities and health concerns, choosing a clean and naturally pleasant-smelling home instead. They also discuss their minimalist approach to holiday decorations, preferring experiences and traditions over accumulating decor items. The video concludes with a commitment to sustainable and cost-effective practices by shopping at thrift and secondhand stores for home items.

Keywords

💡Minimalism

Minimalism is a lifestyle characterized by simplicity and the intentional elimination of non-essential items. In the video, the concept of minimalism is central to the creator's approach to furnishing and maintaining their new home. The creator emphasizes the importance of not buying unnecessary items to maintain a clutter-free and simple lifestyle, as illustrated by their decision to not purchase items like excessive pillows or specialty appliances.

💡Non-essential items

Non-essential items refer to products or possessions that are not strictly necessary for basic living needs. The video discusses the high costs associated with purchasing non-essential items, citing a survey that Americans spend $188,000 a year on such items, leading to a lifetime of wasted money. The creator's list of things they're not buying for their new home exemplifies the avoidance of non-essential items to save money and simplify life.

💡DIY (Do It Yourself)

DIY stands for 'Do It Yourself,' which involves performing tasks or repairs without hiring outside help. The video mentions DIY as a way to save money on home repairs, with the creator's husband purchasing a toolkit to fix things like sealing windows and repairing loose shingles. This approach aligns with the video's theme of simplicity and financial prudence.

💡Faux plants

Faux plants are artificial, non-living decorative plants often used to add a touch of greenery to a space without the need for maintenance. The video script mentions the creator's decision to avoid faux plants in their home, preferring to learn to care for real plants instead. This decision reflects a move towards authenticity and away from artificial home decor.

💡Decluttering

Decluttering is the process of removing unnecessary items from one's living space to create a more organized and less chaotic environment. The video's creator discusses decluttering by not purchasing items like tissue box accessories or cheap hangers, which can contribute to visual and physical clutter in the home.

💡Sustainability

Sustainability refers to practices that promote environmental responsibility and the efficient use of resources. The video touches on sustainability by discussing the avoidance of disposable kitchen items and plastic cookware, aiming to reduce waste and the potential for microplastics in food. The creator's approach to purchasing secondhand items also reflects a sustainable lifestyle choice.

💡Intentional buying

Intentional buying is the act of making deliberate, thoughtful purchases rather than impulsive or unnecessary ones. The video script encourages viewers to buy furniture and home decor items slowly and intentionally, ensuring that each item adds value and is essential to their lifestyle, which is a key aspect of the creator's minimalist philosophy.

💡Visual clutter

Visual clutter refers to an excess of items or decorations in a space that can make it appear messy or overwhelming to the eye. The video's creator discusses the desire to reduce visual clutter by not purchasing items such as tissue boxes with covers, excessive pillows, and certain types of lamps, which can contribute to a busy or chaotic appearance in the home.

💡Quality over quantity

The principle of quality over quantity emphasizes the preference for fewer, better-quality items over a larger number of inferior ones. The video script illustrates this by discussing the decision to invest in velvet hangers instead of cheap plastic ones, and choosing natural material kitchen utensils over disposable or plastic ones, reflecting a commitment to long-lasting and practical items.

💡Thrift shopping

Thrift shopping involves purchasing secondhand items, often from charity shops, thrift stores, or garage sales. The video mentions the creator's approach to thrift shopping as a way to furnish their home sustainably and economically, seeking quality used items rather than buying everything new.

💡Eco-friendly

Eco-friendly practices are those that minimize harm to the environment. In the context of the video, the creator's decision to avoid plastic cookware and disposable kitchen items reflects an eco-friendly approach to home living, aiming to reduce environmental waste and the potential health risks associated with certain materials.

Highlights

New Home Essentials lists are a scam, with items like a toothpaste squeezer and Suncatcher shaped like a castle being unnecessary.

Channel focuses on helping simplify life by avoiding unnecessary purchases that clutter the home and cost money.

Americans spend $188,000 a year on non-essential items, totaling $1 million of waste over a lifetime.

First item not buying: excessive furniture and home decor to maintain space and openness.

DIY repairs to save money, with a toolkit as a first purchase for the new home.

Avoiding faux plants and instead learning to take care of real plants.

Not buying bedroom dressers due to sufficient built-in closet storage.

Preferring quality hangers over cheap plastic ones to avoid clutter and damage to clothes.

Skipping nightstands as they haven't been needed for years, using alternative bed frame ledges instead.

Not buying tissue boxes and accessories, using toilet paper instead.

Avoiding kitchenware for special occasions, using items every day to appreciate them more.

Eliminating disposable kitchen items to reduce environmental waste.

Avoiding plastic cookware due to concerns about microplastics.

Not purchasing various types of glasses, focusing on a few practical and versatile ones.

Avoiding woven blankets due to practicality issues with kids and pets.

Minimizing excessive pillows to avoid clutter and maintenance.

Steering clear of specialty appliances, already owning essential kitchen devices.

Not buying clocks or timers, using phone or microwave clock instead.

Avoiding floor lamps, planning to install recessed ceiling lights instead.

Not buying rugs for every room, addressing echo issues through video editing.

Avoiding candles due to potential health concerns and preferring natural home scents.

Minimizing holiday decor, focusing on other ways to enjoy holidays like cooking and reading themed books.

Opting for secondhand items instead of buying everything new to save money and be more sustainable.

Transcripts

I'm convinced that new Home Essentials

lists are a scam just the other day I

happened upon an article titled 40

essential products for your first place

of your own and when I saw things on the

list like toothpaste squeezer and

Suncatcher shaped like a castle I almost

choked on my tea and it was all I could

do not to fall into a deep deep

depression because I don't own those

things hi there friends and welcome back

to my channel my name is and this is a

tozen life where I share tips and ideas

to help you simplify your way to a life

you love and a huge part of most

people's simplification Journey involves

not buying crap you don't need because

not only does it clutter up your home

but it also ends up costing money like a

lot of money in fact one survey from

2019 found that Americans spend $188,000

a year on non-essential items which adds

up to $1 million of waste over the

course of their entire lifetime which is

why today I'm sharing a list of 20

things I'm not buying for our new home

to save money and keep things simple and

while this is my own personal list my

hope is that you'll also walk away from

this video with a few tips or ideas to

simplify your home your life and

hopefully save a little bit of money as

well number one on this list is tons of

furniture and Home Decor buying a home

is one of the biggest financial

decisions that most of us ever make in

our lives and it can be easy to get

swept up in the excitement of having

your own home but the way that a lot of

people shop for their home is they look

around the homes of their friends and

their family members or they go online

and they Google something like things to

buy for a new home and then they get all

of these check lists and just take those

and go shopping with them without

questioning are these things really

essential to me and will they add enough

value to my life for me to want to bring

them into my home one of the things that

we value as a minimalist family is space

and that's one of the biggest reasons we

don't want to fill up our home with a

lot of furniture or home decor because

we love the lightness and the airiness

and the feeling of openness that we have

by leaving empty space in our home if we

filled our living room up then maybe my

boys wouldn't have the space to do

cartwheels or somersaults or Leap Frog

across the living room like they are now

so when you're shopping for furniture

and home decor items for your new home I

would encourage you to go slow and be

really intentional buying a few things

here and there and being okay with

having empty space the next thing we're

not buying is repairs that we can DIY

ourselves one thing that we quickly

realize is that if we hired out for all

of the things that we need to do around

our own home that would quickly add up

and cost us a lot of money in the long

run but then on on the other hand if we

DIY those small repairs ourselves that's

going to end up keeping a lot more money

in our pockets one of the first things

that my husband purchased for our new

home was a toolkit and we've already

saved a ton of money doing some small

repairs around our house ourselves

everything from sealing some windows to

repairing some shingles that were loose

on the roof we are quickly learning how

to diy things ourselves so that we don't

always have to pay other people to do

these things and say money number three

on this list is faux plants we've been

living in a furnished rental for almost

a year now and we have had these faux

plants in a few of the rooms and I am so

sick of looking at faux plants and

despite the fact that I am a notorious

black thumb who has quite a bad history

of killing plants now that I have a

garden as you can see in the background

I think it's time that I pull up my big

girl pants and learn to take care of

some real plants here let me show you

the first plant that we've already

gotten we got this I don't even know

what kind of plant this is I guess I

have to learn the names of the plants

too if you know what kind of plant this

is please comment in the comment section

below and let me know and I really

really love it I think it's a succulent

so it actually doesn't need that much

water it's been hanging out on our sun

porch up until now just chilling I've

also had some bad experiences with

buying fake plants in the past asked

like there was one bamboo plant that I

purchased when we were living in Germany

and it looked great on the website but

then when I got it and saw it in person

it didn't look close to as good so I

ended up decluttering that so now that

we have this space and a beautiful sunro

and a garden I'm looking forward to

trying my hand at taking care of some

real plants to breathe some life and

color into this house number four on

this list is bedroom dressers this is my

bedroom behind us and we are going to

put a king-size bed in here we already

have the frame downstairs in our current

rental and then we have the mattresses

in the lower level of this house but we

are not going to buy dressers because we

don't really need dressers since we have

a walk-in closet that already has a ton

of builtin storage because we're a

minimalist family we don't really have

that much clothing anymore so we don't

really need to own bedroom dressers

since we already have so much storage

built into our closet so that's one way

that we can eliminate excess furniture

by using the things we already own the

fifth thing that I'm not buying is cheap

hangers because I am so done with those

cheap plastic hangers where your clothes

are always slipping off onto the floor

or they're cracking or they're not quite

smooth and they're putting holes in the

shoulders of your shirts a long time ago

I switched to Velvet hangers for the

clothes in my wardrobe and I have never

looked back I love that they're low

profile and they take up very little

space so you give your clothes a lot of

breathing room in your closet and also

the Velvet means that your clothes

aren't slipping off of the hangers onto

the floor and then for things like our

winter coats that hang in the entryway I

use wood hangers for that really natural

organic look and also because they're

sturdy enough to hold them without

breaking like I said we have been living

in a furnished rental that came with its

own hangers and so that does mean that

I'll need to be buying hangers for our

home but I'm definitely going to invest

in quality hangers and not those cheap

plastic ones we're also not going to buy

any nightstands to put in our bedroom so

here on the floor you can kind of see

where the owners had their bed previous

to us but we decided that we're not

going to put nightstands on either side

we actually haven't had nightstands for

many many years and have never missed

them in our previous bedroom there was

kind of this ledge around our bed that

we could set our phones or our glasses

on when we were sleeping and we

purchased another bed that kind of has

that same kind of ledge which has

completely eliminated the need for us to

have nightstands next to our bed number

seven on this list is kind of a weird

one and that is tissue boxes and tissue

box accessories and I don't know how

many of you watching this video grew up

like this but but in my family my

grandparents and my aunts and my parents

they always had boxes of tissues around

their house and then not only boxes of

tissues they also had these like covers

to put on top of the tissue boxes since

I grew up and became an adult myself I

have never owned or used tissue boxes in

my own home if I need to blow my nose I

always use toilet paper does that make

me nasty I mean even if we have guest

over and they asked if I had tissues I

would direct them to the bathroom so

that's just something that I found that

I don't need to have in my home and

that's cut down on visual clutter in all

of the rooms really next up we have

kitchen wear for special occasions I

know that growing up a lot of my family

members had China cabinets that were

specifically for holding all of this

fine china that was never ever used and

those things just ended up collecting

dust and making up space for years now

my philosophy around special occasions

is that being alive is enough of a

special occasion to wear the things you

want to wear drink the good wine eat the

good chocolates you know put on the

expensive perfume that you were gifted

and that you've been saving for a

special occasion because every single

day is a special occasion I didn't want

to put my mom's wedding ring into a lock

boox I wear it every single day because

it's a reminder of her and I appreciate

those special things in my life more

when I actually use them along with

special occasion items I'm also not

going to buy any disposable kitchen

items such as disposable plates or

utensils or cups or anything like that

even when we host I would rather have

enough play settings so that everyone

can use their own reusable plate and cup

and utensil and if that means a little

bit more wash up for me at the end of

the day I'm totally fine with that

because while I'm not perfect or zero

waste or anything like that along my

minimalism journey I have made it a

priority to try to reduce environmental

waste especially things like plastic and

paper waste so that's another thing that

I'm not going to be stocking our kitchen

with that actually leads me nicely to

number 10 on this list which is plastic

cookware I've been seeing more and more

articles coming out about just how many

microplastics are in our food and in our

bodies even because we've consumed so

many of them over the course of many

many years and because of the potential

negative side effects of that I've tried

to reduce or eliminate the amount of

plastics that I use in my kitchen as

much as possible I cut out plastic

cutting boards I will say that rice

cookers always seem to come with like

plastic spatulas for you to stir and

scoop out the rice I don't know if

there's any non-plastic alternatives but

that's what my rice cookers have always

come with so leave me a suggestion if

you know a better way but when it comes

to things like spatulas or spoons or

even meal containers I try to go for

natural materials number 11 on this list

is all the glasses and by this I mean

all the different kinds of glasses that

people think that they need to drink the

different kinds of drinks I mean you

have champagne glasses wine glasses shot

glasses you have Tall Glasses short

glasses glasses with curves I have been

seeing so many of these glasses trending

on social media and they always look so

incredible especially when people are

making things like Macha Lattes or iced

coffees and they're pouring it into

their cute little glasses but what I

realized is that I don't need to own all

of the different kind of glasses and

it's better to just focus on having a

few different kinds that are really

really practical and some that maybe are

pretty but also practical next up on

this list we have woven blankets and I

always see these woven blankets like

draped over the end of the bed or off

the back of the couch and I think that

they look so good in pictures but what

my experience has been in real life is

that these woven knits and other things

tend to get caught and pulled especially

if you have kids or you'll have these

little fuzzy bits coming off and the

lint collecting and then it just ends up

you know kind of giving this feeling a

visual mess and you always feel guilty

that you weren't able to take care of

that blanket and treat it like it should

have been treated so if you live in a

home where you don't have small children

or pets with little scratchy nails that

are going to pull out the weaves maybe

you can get away with with woven

blankets but for us we have to choose

blankets that are a little bit more

practical and that's why we will not be

buying woven blankets number 13 is

excessive pillows and that includes

pillows on the bed and things like throw

pillows in your living room in my

experience as a mom again a lot of those

pillows just end up taking up a ton of

space and then when your kids are rough

housing they get pushed onto the floor

or thrown around the room and they just

end up creating this visual mess you can

make your kids clean up over and over

again or eliminate it all together when

it comes to our beds we just keep one

pillow for each of our heads on the bed

and when it comes to our couch we have

had one pillow on each end number 14 is

specialty appliances and that's because

we already own almost all of the

appliances that I consider essential

like we have a microwave we have an

induction cook top we have ovens we have

a rice cooker already and I have already

already decluttered things like a slow

cooker and an instant pot because I

found that I wasn't using those

specialty items maybe I would consider

an air fryer in the future still haven't

decided but as of right now I'm not

going to be adding any more special te

or single use appliances in our

kitchen another thing I'm not buying for

my home is a clock or any timers and

that's because when I need to know the

time I can either look at my phone or I

can look at the clock that's on the

microwave and I don't need a wall clock

that's tick tick ticking and driving me

insane with the noise in my home when I

have that and then as far as timers I

found that in practice if I ever need to

use a timer when I'm cooking or making

something all I do is I set a timer on

my phone and then that timer goes off

and it's easy peasy liem and squeezy

number 16 on this list is floor lamps

and this is something that I've said

before I'm not a huge fan of having

lamps on the floors I don't like having

the lights in my eyes and one of the

things that we really appreciate about

this home is just how good the natural

lighting is in it but then of course at

night when things get dark we're going

to need to have some light and that's

why we plan on installing recessed

ceiling lights into the ceilings of all

of the rooms and so that's one repair

that we're going to be making in this

house but I currently don't plan on

getting anything like floor lamps or

table lamps or anything like that the

next item on this list is maybe one of

the most controversial things on my

channel ever and that is a rug for every

single room of my home and I used to get

a lot of complaints in my past videos

that my minimalist home has too much

Echoes and I totally get it when you

have high ceilings and hard floors and

there's a lot of sound bouncing around

it can Echo I don't notice it as much in

person but then my microphone tends to

pick up more extra noise but I figured

out how to edit my videos so that it's

not such a problem for my viewers I

think there are certain rooms where it

does make sense to have a rug like we

will probably put a rug in this living

room in front of the fireplace when we

have our couches and chairs or whatever

we have in here and that will kind of

give it a cozy feel but when it comes to

spaces like the dining room for example

I don't want to have a rug underneath

the dining room table because I found

that it's just really really hard to

keep that rug clean and looking good

number 18 is candles and I have just

never been a candle person I never was

someone that enjoyed lighting candles or

having the scent of candles filling up

the home in fact sometimes it used to

give me headaches when I tried to get

into candles back in the day when a lot

of my friends or family members were

using candles and they would gift me

candles and then I would feel guilty for

not using them especially because lately

I've read a lot of Articles and heard do

doctors talking about how candles can

put things like parabens and toxins into

the air that are then unhealthy when you

breath them in so instead of having

candles I just try to keep my home clean

so that its natural smell is already

Pleasant and then creating Ambiance in

other ways number 19 on this list is

holiday decor and this is something that

my family used to go all out for in the

past and we had so much holiday Decor it

pretty much took up an entire portion of

our garage like literally Santa's whole

sleigh and reindeer covered in lights

and that was just the Christmas stuff

while we do still enjoy holidays and

celebrate them as a minimalist family

having a lot of holiday decor items and

decorating for the holidays is not

something that I'm personally really

passionate about and so what we do in

our family is we find other ways to

enjoy the holidays like cooking certain

meals together or reading holiday themed

books for example I'm not saying that

I'm not going to buy any holiday Decor

but definitely Decor is not high on the

priority list for holidays and using

Halloween as an example because that's

my absolute favorite holiday I would

rather be the house that gives out

full-size candy bars versus having an

18t skeleton in my front yard and

finally number 20 on this list of things

I'm not buying for my home is everything

all brand new like I said we've been

living in a furnished rental for the

past year and that means that we own

almost nothing of our own whether that's

furniture or kitchen items or things

like cleaning supplies so that means

that we have to get all of this stuff

now that we're moving into this home but

that doesn't mean that I have to buy

everything new and I've already started

checking out thrift stores and

secondhand stores which is not only good

for saving more money but also being

more sustainable and if you are

interested in this topic you can go and

check out this video where I share all

of my best tips for thrift shopping like

a minimalist or I'll see you next week

until then take care bye-bye