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When I first heard this Coco Chanel quote, the first thought that came to me was food. That I had to refuse food to become elegant and trim like the bird-like Mademoiselle Chanel. And being a food-lover there was no way I could picture myself eating tiny portions so I’ve always had a bit of a block towards this quote.
Lately and from two different sources I have heard of a more enticing way to look at it, which ties in perfectly with my love of curating a beautiful life by decluttering items that do not fit the vision of the lifestyle I have for myself.
And that is just it – refusal of anything that does not elevate your life to exquisite elegance.
- Refusing junky foods in favour of high quality fresh foods.
- Refusing possessions that detract from rather than add to my enjoyment of life. And this includes refusal of excess possessions. We all like different ways of living, but I feel at my most content when I have less around me.
- Refusing clothing that does not make me look and feel chic and sophisticated. That includes clothing I wear to work or out, loungewear at home, nightwear and lingerie. Everything!
- Refusing to be around people that bring me down or make me feel bad about myself.
- Refusing to accept others beliefs as gospel. I’m cultivating my own wonderful and empowering beliefs thank you very much.
- Refusing negative thoughts because they don’t feel good and they weaken your immune system. Apparently it’s been proven in tests which gave me a jolt when I heard that.
- Refusing to listen to myself when I say something is too big or scary to entertain. What could I achieve if I believed I could do that huge achievement. Why would I block it from my mind immediately? Even if I never do it, I’ve at least not closed my mind to it.
Pondering this quote made me think of a decluttering challenge I did years ago imaginatively titled 100 Things. You can probably guess that the object of this challenge is to find 100 Things in your home to say au revoir to. I had such fun (isn't it great that we all have different definitions of fun...) so I’m going to do it again.
I don’t have a timeframe for this as that sounds far too stressful and I like to be relaxed. Perhaps I’ll report at the bottom of each week’s post how many items I’ve decluttered for the week and count up to 100. I’m sure I could come up with 100 items before Christmas though.
Some challenges count like items as one, such as a stack of magazines. I’ll be doing it my way which is one item is one item. Purely because I’ve been through so many layers of decluttering already. Still, I know I’ll have 100 items lurking around just waiting to be moved on so that someone else can gain use from them. And I can enjoy that much more room in my home.
My method will be to gather the items in my guest bedroom and donate when I am passing a charity shop. I’ve just done a big box-load last week so will be starting this challenge afresh.
Here is my starting list for this week:
1. One belt that I never wear anymore even though it’s quite nice and I think I should.
2. One magazine that I have read.
3. A top that I no longer like on myself.
4. A pair of trousers that I was given by a well-meaning elderly relative that don’t do anything for me.
5. A bra (it is still quite new but I have decided beige knit bras have no place in my stylish life, I don’t care if models wear them).
6. One home décor item that I never want to display.
If you’d like to relieve yourself of 100 extraneous items before Christmas, please feel free to join me in the comments section each week!