Thanks everyone for their feedback on what storage shelving unit I should buy to house all of our newly acquired toys and books for the kid's room. In a recent post, I shared a few options that I was considering for our kid's mounting possessions, all the while blind to the real solution. Brad was happy to help me see where I'd wandered off, however. Might the real answer be that I re-embrace minimalism with our kid's toys and books and actually donate a significant amount of these items, instead of buying a new storage unit to store it all? Ahem. Right. Exactly. Why didn't I think of that?
I'd like to say I responded humbly to Brad's obvious suggestion but I totally fought him. And I totally fight the deep seeded desire to always have new things. Even though my "new things" come from the thrift store 90% of the time, they're still new. It's still materialism, albeit budget-conscious and eco-friendly materialism. I love change and I love design and I love constantly re-creating our nest. I'm proud to say I'm consistently below budget in the realm of clothing and decor, because I love hunting down a good deal, and I'm not afraid (heck I prefer) to shop second hand. But here's where I get into trouble - my heart.
Honouring your family's budget and rescuing endless goods from landfills is great and I highly recommend it (and I love to show you how I do the same on this space and on Instagram), but at the end of the day, whether you spend thousands at Big Box stores, or $30 at Salvation Army, your heart can be in the exact same place - craving new and exciting things and believing the lie that acquiring more will bring you joy. Idols, which I'm suggesting are things we worship or look to for joy, thrive in materialism and minimalism. Whether we want more more more in a crowded space or that one perfect object in a sparse room, we can easily slip from appreciating God's good gifts to trusting that thing (or those things) to bring us joy. As a Christian, I believe Jesus is the only source of true and lasting joy, but I so often seek joy elsewhere, and I'm always eventually disappointed. A perfectly clean kid's room won't bring lasting joy, neither will new possessions whether they're bought secondhand or full price.
So how am I preaching this while sharing pictures of our kid's room? I feel the dissonance, too. I'm sharing because I was convinced that to make their room better, I needed this one shelf. I donated a lot of brain power and energy to finding the perfect shelf, only to be reminded by my wise husband that the shelf wasn't the need. Jesus was the need. And I had bought a lot of stuff that my kid's didn't even love instead of being thrilled and satisfied by Him.
I still love design and decor, and I believe it's using a creative side that Jesus actually gave me, so I know there's a place to honour Him as I share my ideas for room sharing and minimalism. But please don't lose sight of the truth that Jesus is all your heart truly desires. Not the perfect capsule wardrobe or minimalism nursery or cart full of new things, used or fresh from the mall.
I nearly fell off the minimalism bandwagon this winter, and I bought way too many things and even thought I needed to buy a huge shelf to accommodate it all, instead of realizing that my tendency is to search for the thrill of new things instead of being satisfied in Jesus. Well, that ended up being rather deep for a post promising new pictures of the kid's room, but I guess I couldn't have the latter realization without the former topic. I ended up, with the kid's help, collecting a garbage bag full of stuffed animals, blankets, books, and toys, and no longer need a shelf. But boy do I need Jesus!
SOURCES ///
white desk - side of the road (see transformation on Apartment Therapy)
bunk bed - IKEA, white washed
desk chair - Structube
reading couch - an old padded ottoman covered with a sheet
baskets - thrifted (Village des Valeurs, Renaissance, Armee du Salut)
digital clock - Target
books - 99% thrifted
white bookshelf, wooden side table - IKEA, second hand
stuffed animals - 99% thrifted
globe, brass piggy bank, Quebec flag, doll house, mini baskets - thrifted
Victroian man and woman cross stitch - road side find, frames painted
ABC print - Lili Graffiti
framed doily - thrifted
Lego bins, rug, closet organizers - IKEA
black out curtains - Walmart
Calico Critters tree house and animals - Kijiji find
I'd like to say I responded humbly to Brad's obvious suggestion but I totally fought him. And I totally fight the deep seeded desire to always have new things. Even though my "new things" come from the thrift store 90% of the time, they're still new. It's still materialism, albeit budget-conscious and eco-friendly materialism. I love change and I love design and I love constantly re-creating our nest. I'm proud to say I'm consistently below budget in the realm of clothing and decor, because I love hunting down a good deal, and I'm not afraid (heck I prefer) to shop second hand. But here's where I get into trouble - my heart.
Honouring your family's budget and rescuing endless goods from landfills is great and I highly recommend it (and I love to show you how I do the same on this space and on Instagram), but at the end of the day, whether you spend thousands at Big Box stores, or $30 at Salvation Army, your heart can be in the exact same place - craving new and exciting things and believing the lie that acquiring more will bring you joy. Idols, which I'm suggesting are things we worship or look to for joy, thrive in materialism and minimalism. Whether we want more more more in a crowded space or that one perfect object in a sparse room, we can easily slip from appreciating God's good gifts to trusting that thing (or those things) to bring us joy. As a Christian, I believe Jesus is the only source of true and lasting joy, but I so often seek joy elsewhere, and I'm always eventually disappointed. A perfectly clean kid's room won't bring lasting joy, neither will new possessions whether they're bought secondhand or full price.
So how am I preaching this while sharing pictures of our kid's room? I feel the dissonance, too. I'm sharing because I was convinced that to make their room better, I needed this one shelf. I donated a lot of brain power and energy to finding the perfect shelf, only to be reminded by my wise husband that the shelf wasn't the need. Jesus was the need. And I had bought a lot of stuff that my kid's didn't even love instead of being thrilled and satisfied by Him.
I still love design and decor, and I believe it's using a creative side that Jesus actually gave me, so I know there's a place to honour Him as I share my ideas for room sharing and minimalism. But please don't lose sight of the truth that Jesus is all your heart truly desires. Not the perfect capsule wardrobe or minimalism nursery or cart full of new things, used or fresh from the mall.
I nearly fell off the minimalism bandwagon this winter, and I bought way too many things and even thought I needed to buy a huge shelf to accommodate it all, instead of realizing that my tendency is to search for the thrill of new things instead of being satisfied in Jesus. Well, that ended up being rather deep for a post promising new pictures of the kid's room, but I guess I couldn't have the latter realization without the former topic. I ended up, with the kid's help, collecting a garbage bag full of stuffed animals, blankets, books, and toys, and no longer need a shelf. But boy do I need Jesus!
SOURCES ///
white desk - side of the road (see transformation on Apartment Therapy)
bunk bed - IKEA, white washed
desk chair - Structube
reading couch - an old padded ottoman covered with a sheet
baskets - thrifted (Village des Valeurs, Renaissance, Armee du Salut)
digital clock - Target
books - 99% thrifted
white bookshelf, wooden side table - IKEA, second hand
stuffed animals - 99% thrifted
globe, brass piggy bank, Quebec flag, doll house, mini baskets - thrifted
Victroian man and woman cross stitch - road side find, frames painted
ABC print - Lili Graffiti
framed doily - thrifted
Lego bins, rug, closet organizers - IKEA
black out curtains - Walmart
Calico Critters tree house and animals - Kijiji find
I really appreciated this post! Thanks so much. Funny timing - just last week I was feeling convicted about Col. 3 "put to death... greed, which is idolatry". I focus way too much on trying to find nicer things for our home to replace the old, battered things we have. Or trying to find "the perfect _____ (stroller, cardigan, duvet cover)". It's an ongoing struggle for me with trying to have a nice home and be surrounded by things I like, versus it taking up WAY too much head space and time spent searching. What you say it right on. Contentment won't come from those things. Thanks for the reminder and for speaking truth.
ReplyDeleteBtw - your kids' updated space looks great!
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