During the last few months of 2023, I reduced the amount of things I owned to around 10% of what I originally had. And it was the absolute best feeling ever.

I think the time that I realised I didn’t need all of the things I had was when we went for our first long trip away in our bigger campervan. As we were a few weeks into our travels, I realised that if we never went back home I could live with everything I had in the van and I wouldn’t miss anything. I found my things don’t make me who I am. It is how I feel when I am in silence in the mountains, when I am jumping into freezing cold water, or when I am cuddling my doggo that I feel at peace with myself.

So when we got back to our house, even before we decided to sell it to travel in the van full time, I knew I wanted to have a big declutter. The amount we had accumulated after 5 and a half years was absolutely shocking. There were so many things where in the past I’d have said, oh but I will need this at some point, that I was like, well, off it goes to a new home!

And once we started, we got addicted to selling things, taking things to the charity shop, or putting it for free on Facebook marketplace and making someone’s day. I have countless happy memories of seeing how excited other people were to make use of things I would potentially use once every 5 years but probably would just be forgotten about in a cupboard.

Once we started shifting a significant amount, I felt so might lighter. I felt more inclined to draw now that I had a few pens and a sketchpad instead of a watercolour set, a set of acrylics, a lino set.. you name it, I had it. It was almost like the more I had, the less I wanted to use it as it felt too overwhelming to start. The same applied to cooking. I had everything you could ask for in a kitchen, yet I would use about 10% of it. So what happened? I reduced my kitchen equipment to 10% in the van and I have never loved cooking so much. I am lighter, happier, and I feel more free.

Everything I own now has a purpose, and if I don’t use it, it goes to a new home! You appreciate what you have so much more when you have things you treasure.