Where’s all my stuff?? The Art of Living with Less

 

One thing I have learned since moving to London is learning to love living with less.  Less money, less space, less STUFF! After speaking with other ex-pats I’ve come to realize that this is a common complaint. It can be frustrating at times and can almost feel like you’ve taken steps backwards rather than forwards while climbing the career ladder where the the amount of money you make seems to be a direct reflection of the importance of your job or the hard work you’ve done to get to where you are. But looking at my life now compared to my life before following my dream, I think I can officially say I have never been poorer money wise but felt richer life wise at the same time!

Not to say I was ever rich. I’ve never been rich, but I was comfortable in Canada. I had a well paying job, owned my own apartment (which I now rent out) which was full of possessions that I had accumulated over my 33 years on the planet. I had my own car, and could pay my bills without worrying about making payments.  I would go shopping and not worry about whether or not I could pay the rent if I bought a pair of Converse. I definitely took it for granted! But I also spent money on so many useless items that gave me temporary happiness but did nothing to make my life richer or more fulfilling.

Fast forward to London and the British Pound! While I love my job and the company I work for, I don’t make anywhere close to the income I had at home even after converting to Canadian dollars. BUT I am a lot less stressed out, am working at a company that I can learn from and I can leave work at the end of the day without worrying about my never ending to do list for work the next day. I get to go to work and do what I love, and be able to come home and find other hobbies that I’m passionate about pursuing. However; the smaller income has made me more aware of what I choose to spend my money on.  I am much more concious about shopping trips because a pair of shoes could equal a flight to Barcelona, and for me, a weekend in Helsinki or Lisbon with some good friends far outweighs having another item of clothing hanging in my closet.

There is also a sense of freedom in knowing that all of my worldly possessions here could fit in 2 suitcases; meaning I am no longer tied to a property and if in a year or so I want to move to Paris or Dublin or anywhere, I am free to do so.  When moving to London I had to sell all of my furniture, box up all of my mementos and store them in my parent’s storage space, donate any and all clothing that I didn’t want to take with me, and take what couldn’t be sold or pawned off on friends and relatives to the dump.  All of that is time consuming and costs a lot of money! And the first time I considered moving to London,I found out I was unable to rent my apartment which would have meant selling it.  That was not an option!

Shipping my stuff was also not an option as I had no idea where I was going to live, and the cost of sending one box of clothes cost me $200 cdn and another $300 in taxes over here (which I still don’t understand).

In the beginning I was getting tired and bored of wearing the same clothes over and over again but realized I had the wrong attitude! Once I started focusing on WHY i had less clothing and that reason being because I had this opportunity to live in my favourite city, it no longer became a frustration, but more of a game of how I could take the few items I had and turn them into different outfits for different occasions! It also became MUCH easier to get dressed for work in the mornings because I no longer stood in front of a massive closet of clothes to choose from, I now had one pair of work pants, a few skirts, and a couple dresses to choose from. I now get ready for work MUCH quicker which gives me more time to sleep in the mornings 🙂 and more sleep is always a plus!

I’ve always been someone who loves to decorate (and redecorate) my living space.  I took a lot of pride in how I painted and decorated my apartment back home and was constantly thinking of ways to update my space and make it more cozy and reflect more of my personality in it. From a lime green kitchen with a blackboard wall, to my Tiffany blue painted bedroom, it was all decorated to my tastes and with my own two hands.  It felt like a step back to be renting again in London and have all of the little knick nacks i bought now sitting in boxes. But it also gave me this great opportunity to become more creative with how I decorate my space and to really focus on what makes me happy.  The only decorations in my room are pictures of my loved ones back home and all the encouraging cards and Christmas cards I received since I’ve been here. I did splurge on a super girly flowery duvet cover too which I love! And for me, those items mean much more to me than a flower painting I had bought for my living room back home because I “liked the colours”.

The more I’ve been in London the more I’ve realized that I used to spend so much on creating the “perfect home” because I spent a lot more time in my apartment than I do my flat here.  Sure I’d go out on weekends and occasionally during the week in Vancouver but never to the extent that I’m out here.  While I do like my relaxing nights in, I love the fact that if I want to go out here, there is usually someone up for meeting for drinks or dinner in town or going to see a show or random event happening nearby.

I’ve learned to have a less is more attitude.  I focus on spending money on experiences rather than things.  I’d much rather save money to spend on trips to experience different cultures, than for that Michael Kors or Marc Jacobs purse I had been coveting at Holt Renfrew for months. I think it’s that shift in attitude the past few months that have made me enjoy living in London more and more. And accepting the fact that while I may not have as much money in my bank account as I used to, I am learning how to spend in the best way to enhance my life and get the most out of my time on this planet! Because when i’m 90 years old I’m not going to look back on this life and say “I wish I had bought that Burberry Bag”, but rather “I’m so happy I took that trip that changed my life”.

Thanks for reading!

Krismas x