Monday, February 17, 2014

A Small Change

Before

After

Sometimes a small change can feel good.  As we are going through every nook and cranny of our home to get our possessions down to the very few, I thought to take a large wooden book case that was upstairs holding books and bring it down to the somewhat sparse kitchen.

Over the weekend, I painted it and then was able to put our plates and bowls on its shelves to make more room in our small pantry.  I also filled it with garlic, onions, and some pretty things that make me smile, pretty - but useful.  A welcome, warm change.

We never buy anything new - at least very, very seldom.  So I am often thinking about ways I can rearrange what we have or how we can utilize what we have to make improvements.

It is easy to say that we seldom buy new and instead buy second-hand or wait until we are given the cast-offs from friends, neighbors and family because of our value of caring for the earth.  You know - re-use, recycle, repair, etc... Yes, this is so very important to me and it is the basis of many of my decisions.

  Sometimes, though, I wonder how much harder that would be if the fruits of our labors gave us rich earnings.  I think the value would remain but I think it would be more challenging at times.  Sometimes I think it is just easier to not have money.  It offers less options in some ways and more in others - opportunities for creativity, for example.

12 comments:

  1. You kitchen looks very cheerful and pleasant with that bright white shelf and the little wooden kitchen there! I too am working on paring down our belongings. That's not a very easy job is it?

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  2. We are like you. Most everything we have in the way of furniture has been second hand and redone to suit what we need. We recently bought a solid oak dining table with only 2 legs for $5. We cut off one side and cut down the two legs to little people height. My husband mounted it to the wall in our kitchen area for our grandchildren. We have 3 mismatched thrift store wooden chairs up to it. A little paint and it all goes together. The grandchildren spend many an hour coloring and doing crafts and eating snacks at this little bar. We still have much of the table in the garage awaiting another project.

    I really like what you did in your kitchen and the little people kitchen for play right along side.

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  3. Wow! That looks great! I am interested to know how you re-purposed the furniture that was there?

    My kitchen also needs a change. I'm brain storming how to update my cabinets (which are not even real wood). I think I will have to paint them, but then what color? There are to many choices.

    Thanks for sharing your project!

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  4. Looks so cozy! I thought I would mention my experience with the dishes on open shelves.....the bottom shelf can really get dusty fast. ;). I started putting the bowls and cups upside down to keep the insides cleaner between use and have some fun vintage napkins I drape over the stack of plates....for the same reason. Now I have a curtain that I attached to the bottom half of the shelf....but those shelves are often quite messy. ;)

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  5. The white cupboard looks very nice there. We can't have open shelving in our home because of all of the pets, but I like the look. It is an interesting idea that you present - putting a positive spin on having less money. I agree. And also having more money and more options can lead to more stress in decision making.

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  6. Looks great there, a perfect fit. I also need to find more shelves for stuff in my kitchen.

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  7. What an inviting space to live in, Tonya. I am having trouble paring things down and our house is often such a cluttered mess. Truly, moving a little furniture around is all the inspiration I need to roll up my sleeves and fill some boxes for the goodwill.
    xo Jules

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  8. I love the small change that you made, and I do agree that sometimes the smallest of changes can have the biggest of impacts.

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  9. It looks wonderful! Thank you for sharing your outlook about money - I've been a little lustful of late - wishing I had some money for yarn and nice art supplies for my little girl and such. It's good to be reminded of how having money actually does complicate things...that is so true!
    -Jaime

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  10. This is important to us too, not just out of necessity but by choice also.
    I think the "new" kitchen shelf looks wonderful. Pretty little things make me happy too…
    Sending lots of love dear Tonya… XOXO Renee

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  11. I love how you picked out the most special things to include on the shelf, giving everything the space it deserves!

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