If you have been working towards a simpler life, you may already be in the habit of clearing the clutter. While it is great to work on your entire home, it is important to mindfully approach certain areas. You can create beautiful, simple spaces in your home, especially after most of the clutter is gone.
Start with your nightstand and the area next to your bed. This is typically the last thing you see just before you go to bed, as you reach over to turn off the light, and as soon as you wake up in the morning when you hit the snooze button. With that in mind, it should be an area of your house that is relaxing and calming.
While the drawers in my nightstand used to be filled with things I never used, they are now almost empty. If your nightstand has drawers or shelves, I recommend following the method I posted earlier this week. Once you have the space cleared and clean, think about what you need or want there, if anything.
While you don’t need anything on your nightstand, or even the nightstand itself, if you do have one, make it a great space to be around. If you are simplifying with a family, it might be challenging to change your entire home, but you can transform this small corner of your life.
When creating this minimalistic santuary do not include:
- anything work related
- piles of books
- clutter
- cell phone
- any phone
- tv or needless electronics
Items that make sense for this space:
- one book you might read before you fall asleep
- chapstick
- candle
- lamp
- alarm clock
- pen and paper or journal
You might include some of these items, or none of them, depending on what works best for you. I always keep a glass of water on my nightstand before I go to bed. I rarely drink it, but if it’s not there, I wake up thirsty. Maybe I should explore that another time!
Creating a minimalistic sanctuary in your home, will inspire you to transform more of your space. The state of the space will also be a good reflection of how calm or crazy your life is. When books and papers start to pile up, it might be time to address what is piling up in other areas of your life.
What’s on your nightstand?