View Full Version : What is something you'd give up to simplify your home?
I live in a rural residential area on a cliff above one lake and just around the corner from another lake. My house is already pretty small by today's standards - just under 1500 sq ft on a little over 1/2 acre (mostly wooded). I've got raised bed gardens and a few chickens in the back yard.
I did simplify one thing by turning a 4th bedroom into a laundry/sewing room. Previously the laundry was squished under the stairs and I bumped my head about twice per load of laundry. Now I've got a hand sink, washer, dryer,hanging rod, and cabinet space and doing the laundry is simple and easy to keep up with. And when I don't have a headache (from bumping my head) everything runs better in this house.
earthshepherd
1-7-11, 9:33am
I live in a split-level, four bedroom house. It's all in pretty good shape, but I know I could dispense with the lower and upper levels easily, and live contentedly with just a bedroom, bath, kitchen/dining, living area and laundry/storage which is what we have on the main floor. I could jettison the extra den/office (downstairs) and the three bedrooms/bath upstairs very easily. However, as we still have a high school kid and a grad student residing in the upstairs rooms, it might be a few more years until we move into a smaller house.
I'd give up the dust bunnies if someone would adopt them!
Otherwise? I can't think much about my place I'd like to change. I like it pretty much as it is right now.
I think I'm going to be forced to simplify our kitchen - we've gone thru 3 dishwashers in 18 years. Our hands have a better track record than that. I think it's time to just remove the latest one that broke during christmas and use that space for additional storage - which my kitchen lacks as a small galley style.
It would be my kitchen that I also would simplify. It was built almost 50 years ago, is a small kitchen, and does not have enough counterspace. I'm thinking of giving up some storage space. Which would mean giving up some kitchen toys...
Years ago I also gave up one of the bedrooms to turn it into a laundry room and that has been a great success. The washer is still where it always has been - in an area across the hall, and I never hooked up a drier. In the bedroom, I strung some lines above head-high where I now hang things to dry. Works very well and I never have to worry about when during the day I wash things, or weather or wind or dust when hanging wash outside. Of course our humidity tends to be dry so nothing ever gets musty in there even in rainy weather.
I can hang 2 large loads at the same time, but that requires more careful spacing so I prefer to do only one load and wait till that dries. That's more than enough capacity for this household.
Along the walls in the laundry/bed room, I have lots of shelving along the walls where I keep folded, clean laundry such as towels, sheets, yard clothes, etc. This frees up lots of space in the linen closets, etc. I also keep the sewing machine in there.
I would gladly give up my huge farm yard. We have tons of grass that needs to be cut all summer and I absolutely hate it. I do not have the back strength to turn it into a garden and it seems so wasteful to be spending the money and time on grass.
earthshepherd
1-7-11, 1:28pm
I think I'm going to be forced to simplify our kitchen - we've gone thru 3 dishwashers in 18 years. Our hands have a better track record than that. I think it's time to just remove the latest one that broke during christmas and use that space for additional storage - which my kitchen lacks as a small galley style.
We did exactly that some years ago, and I don't miss having a dishwasher at all, and I love the additional storage space.
What would I give up to simplify my house? My house !! Joking but that is what I did. Sold the first home and downsized to a smaller, easier to care for place. Then sold that and have been renting - MUCH easier to care for :-)! Will eventually buy another place and what I will look for is a small super easy care yard (have dogs), a single story with no stairs (plan to stay & grow old there), and would like a very tiny place that needs very minimal maintenance that I can hire out for. Since I'm a pretty hardcore minimalist I don't need alot of storage or space but a one car garage would be nice to have.
Wildflower
1-7-11, 11:10pm
My house is 1250 square feet along with a half basement, double garage and huge yard. Our adult DD is currently living with us, but after she moves out I would LOVE to downsize to a small cottage style house on the lake. Going from a 3 bedroom, 2 bath to 2 bedroom, 1 bath would be great along with having a functional small kitchen, no dishwasher, no basement, but having one garage would be great. At this point in my life I only want less, and I can picture me and DH relaxing with our little dogs by our side, sitting on our little screened in porch, sipping wine and enjoying the scenery. I would gladly part with a large majority of my possesions to live in a much smaller place. As long as DH had a garage to do his woodworking in, I had a small space to garden and the dogs a small fenced area to play outside, we would all be quite happy. :)
Like others, I would give up my house. ("What's taking you so long?" I hear you asking.)
It's about a third bigger than I need, the property taxes are ridiculous, and it has an impossible multi-level jungle, er yard. I like my neighborhood and my suburb and the house has some features I'd keep (like late-mid-century style and a second story with angles and light), but next time I'll go for a better layout, a bigger kitchen, and more storage, all of which would make my life more efficient. It would also simplify things if I moved closer to my partner, friends, and family. Years of hoping they would all move up here--to this place I love so dearly--have proved fruitless. :( Oh well.
The house for me too! Once the market picks back up, I want to sell... it's fun having all this space for just 2 people (1600 sf, 3 bedrooms AND an art studio, hot tub & garden house out back - sheesh!), and I have definitely loved converting the extra rooms into a textile studio and a media/guest/hang out room. But it feels rather ostentatious. Not to mention cleaning 3 bathrooms (5 sinks in all!) is absurd. Good thing the bathroom that was the kids' and is now the guest bathroom gets very little use.
I'd give up my yard. We live on a corner lot, and it's not a huge lot but still bigger than most in this neighborhood just because it's on the corner. We don't hang out outside, we don't like yardwork or gardening, and we don't keep up with the yardwork as much as we should.
I'd love to give up our basement for a ranch style home. (All one level). I've never cherished having to go downstairs to do laundry, and the older I get, the more I dislike having to do it. It was even worse when I had kids in diapers and had to lug the big awkward diaper pail down and up the stairs twice- three times each week. Everything all on one floor, one level, simple, easy, convenient.
I live in a rented flat that has a BAR occupying about a third of the kitchen. I'd gladly rip out that useless eyesore and put in a dining table or extra storage or something.
Also, in an ideal world, I'd be able to lower the ceilings, since they're about 15ft high.
My mother's figurines! I'm currently in the process of eBaying her collection of figurines, so my 2nd bedroom/office is chock full of boxes - boxes of figurines, mailing boxes, packing peanuts, tape... you get the idea. As time allows, I'm also starting to digitize my photos, so eventually the photo albums will go. Since I already scan most of my documents, I no longer have a filing cabinet. Once the photo albums and figurines go, my office will be fairly simple - if I can keep up w/ the paper!
Since I already live in an 860 SF house, 2 bed 1 bath w/ easy-care yard w/ 2 small dogs, I have what some of you have been wanting! It is nice - or would be if I can empty out my 2nd bedroom and have more time to enjoy it!
We sold our old house with two car garage and a car to get our new house, with one garage, and the ability to walk to work and most of our evening activities. In the process, I gained a long list of things to fix up and improve. Current projects: wiring, insulation, and now the dryer... >:(
I think I'm going to be forced to simplify our kitchen - we've gone thru 3 dishwashers in 18 years. Our hands have a better track record than that. I think it's time to just remove the latest one that broke during christmas and use that space for additional storage - which my kitchen lacks as a small galley style.
Our dishwasher broke this winter also, and when we got the repairman out, he told us that these days dishwashers are made to last about 3-4 years!!! We were amazed and appalled! However, we did buy another one at Home Depot's Black Friday sale for $298. That's the most I'd spend now, knowing it might be dead in 3 years. I'm willing to pay $100 a year for the labor-saving and also they say that if you keep the water running while you wash dishes, your dishwasher uses less water.
I live in a rented flat that has a BAR occupying about a third of the kitchen.
When I first saw this I thought of the kind of bar where they serve you drinks! I thought "Why would she want to get rid of that?!"
clear water
2-19-11, 4:31pm
I am planning to give up our currrent home. Now that the kids have grown up we can easily downsize. So were painting and updating a bit and hope to sell next year. I've loved it here but its time to move on . A huge house on 5 acres has less appeal to my husband and I now that were nearly 60. I would like a 2 bedroom 2 bathroom no basement, at least one covered parking spot. I love to garden so a small yard would be good. I am not taking a lot of stuff with me. What my kids don't want is going in a garage sale! Downsizing garage sales are well attended in our town.I can hardly wait. WE want to travel more, and have time for grandkids and friends family etc.
Ohhh I thought of something. I'd gladly give up most of the grass in my lawn. Happily. In a heart beat. However, I can't spend to xeriscape it right now, nor can I physically do it myself right now. I would maintain a small area of grass just because the dogs love to roll around in it. However, it would be about a ten minute job to mow that amount of grass with a reel mower.
Simplygib
2-20-11, 12:57pm
Two things:
The house: Did this in 1994. Every time I came home from work everything that was wrong with the place stared me in the face and begged for money. The roof, the paint, dry rot in the bathrooms, etc. My brother really loved the place so I sold it to him and moved to my little houseboat, which was pure bliss.
The wife: Did this in 2006. Every time I came home from work I heard about how she needed a bigger house (we were in a 3 br mobile home), a nicer car, a better husband, etc. Got rid of her and the mobile home in one fell swoop. Now I live in a 5th wheel trailer on 5 acres in the forest. Never been happier.
ApatheticNoMore
2-20-11, 1:51pm
Pretty darn happy with my one bedroom apartment. The only thing I'd want different is a large yard :D. I guess I'd gladly give up packaging but haven't managed to yet. It keeps coming into the house and causing clutter. And then has to either be taken to be recycled when I'm good, or be thrown away in exasperation when I just give up on ever getting a handle on this clutter and NEED to do SOMETHING.
The one thing I would give up is our tiny little patio - just big enough for a few chairs. We rarely use it. The units without a patio have this extra 30 square feet of additional space in the living area. But when we leased this apartment, everything else about it was exactly what we wanted, so I have little to complain about. :)
Two things:
The house: Did this in 1994. Every time I came home from work everything that was wrong with the place stared me in the face and begged for money. The roof, the paint, dry rot in the bathrooms, etc. My brother really loved the place so I sold it to him and moved to my little houseboat, which was pure bliss.
The wife: Did this in 2006. Every time I came home from work I heard about how she needed a bigger house (we were in a 3 br mobile home), a nicer car, a better husband, etc. Got rid of her and the mobile home in one fell swoop. Now I live in a 5th wheel trailer on 5 acres in the forest. Never been happier.
Hey you joined!!! Yoo Hoo!!!!!!!! Now gloat at us baby! Lindi/Spartana - formerly She-Rah.
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