What Minimalism is Compatible With But Doesn't Imply

This blog veers into other territory sometimes and I want to establish what is and what can be minimalism.

Anti-consumerism

It's easy to become jaded with the system after you've started to unhook yourself from having so much stuff. However, that's not necessarily a direct connection. You can be minimalist without being anti-consumerist. The latter is more of a political, social way of looking at ownership minimalism. If getting more stuff is so empty, then why do we do it? It makes sense. However, what personally works for you doesn't have to be reflected on what you think the world could use.

Simple living

Simple living is becoming harder to define. Like "hipster," it's become a cultural mirage which we attempt to grasp onto but never quite nab, due to the many voices talking at once. So I'll do my best here.

Simple living takes minimalism and skews it even harder into old fashioned, vaguely Walden territory. Live in a small house if possible. Live with as few pieces of technology as possible. Consider the environment. Be self-sustaining. Live frugally and forgo work if you can. Repair your stuff and avoid new purchases at all costs.

I see simple living as encompassing minimalism, but expanding it to a much greater definition. It defines the difference between what can be perceived as a more modern minimalism (aesthetically very blank, lifestyle very open) with a aged, nature-focused minimalism from the past.

This blog is occasionally simple living themed.

Frugality

I see two sides to this coin.

Common ground: I should spend as little as possible on stuff, avoiding it as much as possible and only buying what little I need.

Option one: I should spend a lot of my stuff that I do buy so that it lasts me a long time.

Option two: I should penny pinch so I can not have to deal with buying stuff, save up money and possibly avoid working entirely.

This just illustrates that there can be different tactics, and all of them are common.

Aesthetic minimalism

The artistic method. A suitable end-goal for anyone, certainly, but not necessarily useful or utilitarian in a lot of cases.