A Minimalist With Large Possessions

November 11, 2019November 11, 2019 / Yen-Van Tran / Leave a comment

11.11.2019

0600

I realized that with living a minimalist lifestyle, there are a lot of assumptions about people who live this lifestyle. Minimalists are seen as people who own very few possessions and despise consumerism. There are a number of images that float around on the internet in which bare, white walls, and minimal items are featured in homes. I rarely see images of minimalist homes that hold large possessions. They usually feature the essentials in the kitchen, bedrooms, living room, bathrooms and the rest of the house. I never seem to come across images of minimalist homes that also own sports gear.

However, not all minimalists own the bare minimum in their homes, and not all minimalists stick with the typical standard. I personally do not own a lot of possessions anymore. However, there are activities in my life that do involve large possessions, that I have not given up. In my past blog posts, I have shared the contents of my capsule wardrobe, but I actually do have sports gear that does not get counted into my wardrobe. It’s not counted because it is not daily wear and I only use those sporting clothes on a seasonal basis. I still have my surfing gear and my snowboarding gear that I didn’t count into my capsule wardrobe. My running gear stays active year round, but it’s still not day to day wear.

In my surfing gear bag, I own a wet suit, rash guard, swim suits and board shorts. Since surfing season usually occurs in the summer, I’ll wear clothing pieces from my capsule wardrobe once I change out of my wet suit. Surfing doesn’t require as many specialty clothing pieces compared to snowboarding, so my surfing bag is significantly smaller.

With my love for snowboarding, comes my snowboard, snow boots, and all my riding gear. My riding gear includes my helmet, goggles and neck gaiter. I actually snowboard with a backpack that has emergency items in it, in case my friends or I get into a sticky situation on the mountains. It helps to be prepared to help another person who might be stuck in the snow, when snowboarding. I carry extra snow gear for strangers in case I do need to wait for help to come.

I don’t limit how much clothing I have for each sport, but I also don’t own an excessive amount of clothing per sport either. I’ve gone snowboarding for many years, and I own enough clothing pieces that can last me the entire trip. The longest snowboarding trip I’ve taken, was a one week trip and I always had enough clothing to last me the whole trip. My riding gear never changes, but once we get off the mountain, I’ll change into regular clothes. Usually the temperatures are so cold, I’ll sometimes wear my snow pants and jacket just to stay warm, even after I get off the mountain. I am conscious about how many pieces I have per sport. I have a set bag that I use for each sports, and everything fits in each bag.

Since I run on a daily basis, I have running shorts, sports bras, pants, shirts, sweaters and thermals that can last me year round. I only have two of each clothing piece, but so far, this amount is working for me.

I’ve always loved to play sports and sports have always been a part of my life. When I started my minimalist lifestyle, I didn’t know how other people dealt with their sport clothing, or accessories that come with each sport. I never mentioned it, because it seemed “unminimalistic” of me to hang onto my sport items. The minimalist lifestyle images that I came across on the internet, never included sport items so I felt that my lifestyle needs was somewhat out of place. Everyone seemed to live with the bare minimum. But I love the sports I participate in. I love my running gear, my snowboarding gear and my surfing gear. They make me happy, and when I’m gliding down the mountain or sitting on the ocean, I’m so very thankful that I have the opportunity to experience those places. So my minimalist lifestyle includes my capsule wardrobe, my sporting gear, my ceremonial Vietnamese dresses and a few other items. And although, I don’t live with an excessive amount of clothing, I don’t seem to fit the minimalist standard either. With the implementation of minimalism into my life and knowing that I don’t exactly fit the images I find on the internet, I still wouldn’t have it any other way.

Creating Working Surfaces

April 6, 2016August 12, 2018 / Yen-Van Tran / 2 Comments

04.06.2016

0600

Although furniture is designed for specific uses, there are a few opportunities when you can design multiple functions from one piece of furniture with a few design hacks. Using or having a flat surface is essential in pieces such as tables and desks. If the furniture piece is going to have items set on it in a balanced manner, you’ve got a table style of furniture. I approach the need for flat surfaces in a few different ways.

When it comes to the need for a coffee table when I’m sitting at the couch, my ottomans become my table. I either flip the ottoman lids over and use the back as the flat and hard surface to set items on, or I use a tray on top of the ottoman to give it more stability. I’ll usually use the tray if I need to serve guests and if I need to move many items all at once (and when the clean up process is also all at once). If I’m alone I’ll usually bring the items over individually.

When it comes to more functional use of surfaces, I utilize my drawers into pull out surfaces as well. As you can see, I place my cutting board across my drawer to create a place to use it. And because I don’t need to use that particular drawer often, the cutting board stays where it is. If you use this method, as long as your cutting board is sturdy and there’s enough support on at least three sides of the board, you can utilize the drawer a a location for your cutting board. Keep in mind that you may not want to apply a great deal of pressure when using your cutting board, while it’s balanced on the drawer edges. The further you pull out your drawer, the weaker the drawer attachment is to it’s rightful sliding hinges. Basically, if you’re going to carve a heavy food product or dish, please move it to a sturdier surface. When it comes to the other drawer next to it, I use a clear cutting board, which I’ve had for awhile, and slide it out of the way when I need to access the silverware.

Materials:

Two pillowcases
Safety pins

My bedroom came with a closet system from IKEA, which was also designed with a roll out pant rack. I hang up my coats and a few other clothing items, but I prefer to fold the rest of my clothes. Folding clothes is easier for me due to the fact that I simply don’t own a lot of clothes so I can see everything at a glance and folding is a quick task. This closet system does come with an extra shelf to be placed in the closet system, but I wanted to try out a few different design options. Currently, the closet system does not have a shelf in the location of the pull out pant rack, so I simply used my large cutting mat as a substitute. I’ve had this cutting mat for years because of my degree and I still use it. Granted, I can’t place heavy items on this generic shelf, but I also don’t need to.

When I was playing around with this design, I had used two pillowcases, attached with safety pins and I stretched the pillow cases over the pant rack. I didn’t stretch it to the point where I would start bending the pant rack arms, but enough where the pillowcases fit just right. That method actually worked pretty well. If you want to test out the pillowcase method, it will take some trial and error. It really depends on how tight you want the pillowcases to fit over those bars. These two methods worked for me because I don’t own a lot of clothes and for the ones I needed a flat surface to place them on, it wasn’t a heavy amount, so the pant rack wasn’t damaged.

Taking Notes On Reflective Surfaces

March 2, 2016August 12, 2018 / Yen-Van Tran / Leave a comment

03.02.2016

0830

For notes I need to look at on a daily basis, I tend to write them on my mirrors, that way I can see the notes during my morning routine. Dry erase markers are easy to use on any reflective surface and they’re effective. I do utilize my calendar in my phone as well when it comes to notes but there’s something calming about not turning your phone on right when you wake up each morning.

I do take notes in my car using dry erase markers as well. I don’t write and drive by any means, but when a design solution is strong enough to provoke me- I’ll jot it on my window or mirror. It’s just another way of me not turning to my phone for support. There are dry erase markers that are designed to be refilled like these AusPen 6 Assorted Refillable Whiteboard Markers – Chisel NIB but mine are just dry erase markers from EXPO, which are not refillable.

When I first encountered the issue that these markers would end up in the landfill, I then invested in a Quirky Scratch-n-Scroll Mousepad with Erasable Writing Surface. I used to own the larger and classic version of this Cra Z Art Travel Magna Doodle, but over time, the writing utensil seemed to not pick up the small magnets under the writing surface. For those who have tablets and can download sketching apps (I do have an iPad), taking notes on tablets can also be another alternative. Inevitably, I think that when my EXPO dry erase markers dry out, I might have to invest in these Schylling Magic Slate Drawing Pads Party Pack Bundle – 3 Pack pads. Time will tell and depending on how you relate to your writing, there are many alternatives out there to use and create less waste to go to the landfill.