Things I Own That are NOT Very Minimalist

Today, I’m going to be chatting about things that I am not very minimalist about. I’ve shared things that I only own one of, things I don’t buy anymore, and how to generally minimize this and that. But there ARE some things that I’m not super minimalist about (and I’m totally fine with that).

I’m sharing this with you today mostly in response to the many emails and comments I get from people who are feeling so much turmoil about letting go of things they’re passionate about. Hopefully, in hearing about the things that I’m not so minimalist with, you’ll be able to see that it’s okay! When you make space in other areas it’s totally fine to have your more valued ‘things’.

FTC Disclosure: This was not a sponsored post. Everything shared is from my own thoughts. The links below are affiliate links and help my channel to grow!

1. Board Games

The first thing that I am not super minimalist about is board games (and card games as the case may be). This is a particular interest of my family and our friends. In fact, Matt’s and my social group consists of weekly game nights, where we get together and play strategy board games.

Now, most of the games that we play at our board game nights are hosted by other people.

So the games I’m holding onto here are mostly for the fam. We play these when we go to the beach, or at the house for a board game night. My loot right now is:

• Cribbage – pretty much our camping game because it’s super compact.
• Pictionary – A big beach cabin hit.
• Space Cadets, Kingdomino Duel, Bottlecap Vikings – these are the here-and-there fillers that require a small number of players.
• Clue – I’ll be honest, this is probably my least favorite game, but Matt and the girls like to play it. Not the biggest fan but people won’t let me get rid of it. So here we are.
• Rummikub – Last summer, we played this just about every night for a full week!
• Exploding Kittens – This is one of the first games I played when I went to one of our strategy board game nights. It’s a great ice breaker. I bought it for my daughter for Christmas, and it’s one of her favorites
• Innovation – This has become a family and friend-favorite. We bring this one every time we go camping as well. We’ll have competitions between myself and Matt or myself and Matt and our youngest daughter. This game is a big thinker in a compact tiny box.
• Tiny Epic – I’m a massive fan of everything ‘Tiny Epic’. They come in little boxes and, just like the name suggests, they’re epic. So we’ve got Tiny Epic Galaxies and Tiny Epic Dinosaurs.
• Love Letter – Another family favorite in a small package. It’s a sneaky game of hidden identity and, so, lot’s of laughs and fun.
•  Dragonwood, King Domino – both great games to play with kids.
• Codenamed Pictures – Great clue-giving team game in a super innovative style.
• Gloom Haven – Maybe you’ve heard of it. It’s an enormous, in depth role-playing-style game. Matt had been researching it for us to play for a long time cause it is a more expensive game, so I bought it for him for Christmas. Everybody recommended we start with the intro game (Gloom Haven: Jaws of The Lion). So now we have both!

So as you can see, we’re big gaming nerds here, and this is an area that I’m not very minimalist with. It just wouldn’t work for me and my family. Here’s the thing- because we’re able to keep down so much of the other clutter, we can hold onto the games that we enjoy playing.

2. Coffee Supplies

Coffee Mugs– We’ve got six of them on a coffee tower in the kitchen and I am the only person who drinks coffee in this house. My oldest daughter, 15, will occasionally get a frozen drink from Starbucks, but she doesn’t like hot coffee. So the six mugs here are truly just for me. I do also have 2 to-go coffee mugs as well for when I’m taking a road trip.

Not the most minimalist solution. I could very easily have one or two mugs that I rinse out and reuse. However, I enjoy coffee. I enjoy the whole process and the experience and I use the coffee tower as decor in my kitchen and it’s not hindering anything for me.

I’m not taking extra steps; it’s not wearing me out; it doesn’t look cluttered. So, it works for us.

Speaking of coffee- my Keurig and Mr. Coffee Espresso Machine live on my coffee station side-by-side. It was pointed out to me that K-cups are a major pollutant (which is true). However, I bought this Keurig almost a decade ago and, it’s worth mentioning that I don’t use disposable K-cups. I refill the manual cup and use my own coffee grounds. There’s no regular waste going out with my current use of the Keurig. Again, I’ve had this thing for eight years.

So is it more wasteful for me to get rid of it and start pressing my coffee, adding that plastic to the landfill, when I’m currently using it waste-free? You know, I have a hard time rectifying that. 

3. Waffle Maker

I could say, technically, this is not my waffle maker, it’s Matt’s, but I did buy it for him for Christmas. So I don’t think I can get away with saying that. Generally, a good minimalist “rule of thumb” is to try to keep versatile appliances. Well, this thing is only suitable for making waffles.

If we were doing pancakes, obviously we could use a pan or a griddle- something more versatile. But Matt doesn’t like pancakes; he likes waffles. So we’ve justified having this thing and made it worth it by adding waffle nights into our meal rotation. 😋

4. Throw Blankets

Now, we have a minimalist “rule” that we only keep what will fit inside of our throw blanket holder which is a very large basket. But we have more than a couple of throw blankets going on here in our living room and throughout the house. Last Christmas, my husband’s aunt Kathy taught me how to crochet and I got very into it.

The girls both wanted me to make them a blanket. So I crocheted one for my oldest daughter, one for my youngest daughter, and, of course, one for myself. Three blankets were immediately added to our collection of throw blankets- so, here they are.

We all have our thing right? These are mine! The things that I’m truly not very minimalist about (and am totally ok with). I’m okay with it because I still maintain a clutter-free lifestyle. I still enjoy having space, breathability, and mental clarity that I gain from my minimalist home. And you don’t need to minimize 100% of your belongings to get there.