The How: We kept eight because our sixth baby is due in December and she'll need a towel too.
Mostly we got rid of baby towels and hooded kids towels and instead kept the more versatile regular bath towels. The nicest of the extra towels were given away to people expecting babies, a few became rags.
The Verdict: We really don't miss the extra bath towels at all. I'm not sure why we ever had more towels than people. It's just another example to us of how not intentional we were being about the things we brought into our home. We want to be more mindful of what we need and not hoard things in our home that other people could be using!
And when we have overnight guests we can use beach towels as extras!
In other news: Today is day 100! For one hundred days now we've been purging, decluttering, simplifying and making greener choices. We've given away van loads of stuff, everything from knick-knacks and vases to furniture, kitchenwares, toys, books and clothes. Our home is so much more functional, comfortable, organized and easier to keep clean. But more importantly, we are more content than ever with what we have. Consistently giving away our possessions has brought us to a place where we can really see the difference between something we need and more clutter. We almost never need to shop, we aren't looking to the stuff in our home to provide us with a sense of comfort and security and community, and we're spending less and living more! Hooray! I am loving this year of less!
We are doing one small thing (almost) every day for a year to create a simpler, greener, more intentional life. Take a moment to read all About Us, check out The Rules of our year long project and sign up for our RSS feed or "like" us on facebook so that you can follow our journey to radical simplicity!
Congrats on day 100!!! You guys are doing AMAZING! I'm with you, I need to get rid of the extra towels! We registered for 6 when we got married & added to that over the years. WHY oh why do 2 people need SIX towels?!
ReplyDeleteAck! SO true. We put our dirty towels in the wash, dry them, and hang them up in the bathroom again, so we have a whole closet full of towels that never get used. I'm gonna give them all away now! Thanks for the idea!
ReplyDeleteWe do the same thing! It's insane.
DeleteCongratulations on your 100 days.I de-cluttered the linen closet last year. There are 3 and a 1/2 (frequent guest)plus dog in my house. I cut way back on towels, wash cloths and we have 1 cotton and 1 thermal set of sheets for each bed. I wash, dry and put them back on. I put my heal through the thread bare flannel sheet last year and made due with the cotton ones but I like a flannel sheet and will get another set (I don't feel the need to have pillow cases match sheets so the pillow cases will be cut up for dust clothes. My thing was shower curtains. I had a different one for each season and holiday. I could do better but I kept 2 and got rid of all the others. I opened up 2 shelves and the other 3 were not crammed. It looks so nice in my linen closet.
ReplyDeleteYes, congrats on your 100 days. I have found this very inspiring although we have done this. My hubs and I joined two households and one over stuffed 10x15 storage unit four years ago. It took us about that long to get rid of 90 percent of it. We still think we could do more, as some things are taking longer to part with. Lots of head work with decluttering, not just physical.
ReplyDeleteI had to laugh about the one towel per person rule. I tell the menfolk I need extras for my hair. Cutting my 'drives me nuts' long hair would easily solve that issue.
blessings, jill
This post came at just the right time - I have an overload of towels in the laundry room and I was just thinking that I couldn't believe I have that many towels.
ReplyDeleteLOVE that "in other news" paragraph! What an awesome result ~ imagine how it will be after the year is over!!
ReplyDeleteGreat post. I was just thinking we have too many towels! Will be cutting down on those soon! Btw, I've recently come across this blog, and it was very encouraging! Thank you for taking the time to do this.
ReplyDeleteHmm. I find towels frustrating, because at times I feel like I don't have time or energy to wash and dry them. But then they sit around in a laundry basket for three weeks because neither of us puts them away, because we have enough towels without them, really. This is an excellent idea. I think I will towel purge this week. Having fewer towels will just force me to on top of the washing, and keep us from leaving the basket hanging around for weeks.
ReplyDeleteAlso, we seriously *just* got out the towels we received for our wedding seven years ago. And they're not absorbent at all, which bothers us, so we hate them. So why do I still have them?? Argh, the grip of *stuff*!
I've been thinking about towels just this week, we have 6 for 3 people and a dog! this is ridiculous, told DH that we aren't buying any other untill all the ones we own are going thread bare. My daughter got attached to my old pink one, the dog use an old thread bare one, and we still have 4 big ones, that are going to last us a few more years.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking the same thing the other day! The only problem in my brain is the clean up towels, I can't decide if I want to keep one or trip ugly towels for the messes that always happen with babies and toddlers or if I should just use something else. . . Hmm . . . Quandry
ReplyDeleteStephie N
SimplyBEEcause.blogspot.com
It would be great to only have 1 towel each, but with 10 kids, there are bound to be sick days where an extra towel or two would be handy, especially since I do not have a dryer. We have a few old towels for this purpose, and they do not get taken out unless there is a real need.
DeleteYou are clearly more diligent about laundry than I am. Two adults, one toddler, no pets and we are frequently OUT of clean towels.
ReplyDeleteSo glad it's not just me! ;) Just said to DH I have no intention of going thru our towels :/ We've just bought a load more toddler towels for DD, we've saved the old baby ones in storage (free) for next baby hopefully and the rest of the towels we have, I don't intend to be washing and laundering that day. Don't get me wrong, I think it's great that you all are able to reduce your towels and actually I could probably get rid of some older ones (beach towel style) but not 'general'...
DeleteI wish i could be as good as this with towels - we're a family of 5 and we have so many towels its ridiculous!! I cant get my Husband to part with any either! May have to do a stealth job and start ridding us of them 1 a week! lol
ReplyDeleteI think this only works for large families. We are a 2 people household. If I would start a load of laundry for 2 towels every time we need them washed that would be even more wasteful than having a few more towels to wait for a full load. Besides what do you do when you don't have a dryer, they aren't ready to be used again in time, especially in the winter time. So I think it is great for big families like yours but it doesn't work for everyone.
ReplyDeleteI'm curious, why do you wash your towels separate from the other laundry? I often just throw a couple towels in an ordinary load of laundry.
DeleteI was also thinking the same thing, our dark colored towels go with dark clothing, and light colored towels go in with light colored laundry. Oh I do not seperate whites any more either, just lights and darks and kids clothing seperate( I have one with very sensitive skin and cannot use our homemade laundry detergent on his clothing so I just wash all kids clothes seperate).
Deletehttp://fluffybutts-aclothdiaperaddictsblog.blogspot.com/
I don't separate anything anymore! Except for the very first wash of something new (when they tend to bleed color), everything just goes into a wash with cold water.
DeleteI too love this blog- we've even gotten rid of the bed frame along with you! :)
And you're Canadian?! Where abouts?
I wash towels with the other clothing but would still not have a towel washed and laundered unless I really thought about it, in time for DD's next bath... I try not to use the dryer unless I have to and I just put the next load of clothing on when it's ready, so unless I thought 'I must wash DD's towel so put white washing on'...
DeleteI used to wash & dry towels with the other laundry, but now I don't have a dryer, so everything gets hung on the line. Since the dryer took care of lint, I now have to wash towels separately so that clothes don't end up full of towel fuzz.
DeleteI am taking another trip through our linen closet.
ReplyDeleteAnd congrats on your 100 days!
I am starting to try to not use the cloths dryer for things like towels, I know you did no dryer month as a challenge, but any tips other than vinegar for a softener? Also, we are in the midwest, so not outside drying for me for the winder =( I am hoping to make it work in the basement with the clothesline we have down there. Definitely am going to keep 2/person though because of the extra dry time down there!
ReplyDeleteKelly I'm so enjoying your two blogs! They have given me so much inspiration and wellness for my soul. I love the pictures - they say everything. I love your spiritual insights - so authentic and wise. I love your witty and quirky sense of humour too. And of course your simple and beautiful style.
ReplyDeleteSo far I have cleaned out my linen closet, my utensil drawer, my clothes closet and packed up bags and bags of clutter to give away. Not as drastic as you but a huge step just the same. It feels so awesome!
Today I was in Pier 1 oogling all the Christmas stuff and considering some loveley sparkly ornamental balls. I immedietly though "What would Kelly do?" - which is find something lovely at home to decorate with for Christmas. That and where the heck would I keep them for the other 330 days of the year?
Thanks so much Kelly!
Last year I went through our linen closet and got rid of several towels. Then just yesterday, I pulled out a clean towel and realized - it was a rag towel. It must have slipped through last year! I used it regardless, but once it's time to wash it, it's going into the rag pile for real. I really need to go through the towels again. Honestly, we never have more than 4 house guests at a time. Why do I have at least 12 towels?!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on day 100!
Out of curiosity, how do you dry your clothes?
ReplyDeleteWe dry them outside, so sometimes they aren't dry in the same day they were washed. So we need at least 2 towels per person.
But anyway, this is another great idea. And congratulations on the 100 days :)
I'm guessing you must not have overnight guests? My inlaws come over several times per year, so I have enough extra towels for them all.
ReplyDeleteOk we have 11 towels 4 bath towels, one each and 4 beach towels, one each which we take when we go youth hostelling, to the beach etc and 2 small hand towels for the toilet in the utility room and teh bathroom. My kids do love your hooded towels we do live in the UK so when you get out of the water a big hooded towel is a must in teh cool summer weather! I have one old towel for visiting wet dogs also!
ReplyDeleteA year and a half ago I packed up half our linen closet and put it in a tote in the basement 'just in case' because I was tired of everything falling out from it being stuffed. We never needed a single thing from that tote so today I emptied it out, saved a couple things and sent the rest to Goodwill. Then I had an empty tote to put all my summer clothes in and don't have to buy that extra tote I wanted now!!!
ReplyDeletehey there! big fan of your blogs! I was wondering how you do this without a dryer? we have no dryers in Italy and towels take at least 2/3 days ti dry in the winters...
ReplyDeleteJust found your blog via Pinterest. I will be reading more!!
ReplyDelete