why I'm NOT a minimalist, and the secret to tidy maximalist living || Organize & Thrift with me! 

Great message! I can't believe people were criticising your house. I mean, you have kids & stuff. If they're gonna talk, they better come over & clean your house, right?!😂 I am tired of this idea of a sterile house. We are living beings, not FakeyGrams. You have pretty things, and you are pretty too☺️✌️🖖

Hi! You are restoring my faith! Homes that reveal nothing, that look like everyone else's, are so cold, sterile, and unwelcoming. You go!

Thank you for making a video that reflects the need/desire to let go of things without the condescending tone and get-rid-of-it-all mindset i see in a lot of decluttering/organization videos. This video is a good reminder that you can be mindful while also enjoying having things you love.

I was recently watching a bunch of minimalist videos thinking it would inspire me to downsize my beloved stuff. But those videos haven’t, this one has! Thank you so much for the inspiration!!🩷🤍🩵💜🩷🤍🩵💜🩷

Thank you for speaking my language! It's VERY reassuring to see someone who isn't on the minimalism/neutral train--both "styles" are extremely depressing to my eyes! Your video reminds me of the Woodsworth quote "have nothing in your home that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful". It's good for us to be surrounded by beauty! It's good to see the personality of the people in the house reflected in the decor!

My decorating style has been referred to as pirate shipwreck. My colors are rich peacock colors accented with gold. With a ocean sort of theme. I have antique ship paintings and beautiful furniture from Italy from my grandparents. I love to sew, collage, and persue creative pastimes. I have a layered decor. I feel most crowded when I have projects out that I'm not working on currently. I definitely need to put things in their places

This is the same approach that I take with my home! I love decluttering because it makes me feel like I can breathe. But I don't care for the minimalist aesthetic either. I love looking around and seeing a curated collection of things that I like and things that mean something to me.

It is awesome to see and hear REAL people with REAL lives not staged for the camera. I love that you share your thoughts and reflections in a matter-of-fact form, not in the form of preaching your lifestyle as the only right choice for everyone.

We had 🍓 strawberry wallpaper in our kitchen when I was growing up. My mom had several strawberry items and seeing yours made me think of her. You're doing great. I hope you are also feeling safe and loved. I hope you have a delightful day. Love&hugs

I love this. It took me too long to realize that being intentional does not only mean being minimal. If intentionalism leads to minimalism then, great! But, it can lead to just being intentional with lots of things 🙃

Thank you! The minimalist movement made people like us look bad and cast shame on us. Thank you Thank you thank you!!!

Beautiful video! I believe hanging to "things" was rooted way back since the great depression. Money was scarce and great grandparents had to make do and fix things. Today we are a wasteful society. Always buying the bigger newer stuff when we have probably good things right at home. My father always fixed things. Much love to you! ❤

Loved this video Kristina, such a great message! xx

I went through a really utilitarian minimalism phase as a coping mechanism for some hard times I was going through. Since then, I have come around to realizing there IS a purpose in beauty and that cultivating a warm, inviting, cozy home DOES matter. Unfortunately I did get rid of some (many?) things that I do regret and think about often. Alas! ... You have such a magic touch for making things look so cute and cozy looking!! Also, I didn't know that you are friends with Lindsay and Jonas, I watch their channel and they seems extremely sweet! Take care, Kristina :)

YES!!!! I like things too! I probably have too much and could use a declutter, but I love my washi tapes, my Color Street, my sewing patterns, my fabric, my makeup. I don't want to be a minimalist. I love the space you created. It looks nice and cosy and tidy and vintagey and beautiful. Thank you for the video.

I know this is an old video of yours, but, it truely is refreshing to see someone like me with a habit of collecting anything and everything working to make their home how they want it. It's easier to take advice (even if its the exact same words) from someone who isn't living a perfect instagram life where nothing ever gets messy.

I love your style it's very pretty. And maybe I thought about instead of getting rid of your vanity or your desk could just put some stylish painted bricks underneath the legs and raise it up. That's one way to make it higher and then you'll fit underneath it and everybody's happy. And you can keep it

Just a thought..... You could cut and glue light weight cardboard, like cereal boxes to fit around the plastic pattern bins, and then glue fabric ( strawberries....) over that -- essentially make a box they fit in..... Love your way of being you without apology.

I will never be a minimalist either . I completely agree with your mindset. I have shelves reminiscent of yours and I line my patterns up like books.

I am a minimalist with maximalist aesthetic. I love colors, patterns and textures. But I cannot stand too much stuff. And I like cleaning to be easy. So I try to make most of practical things as beautiful as possible. Cheerful patterned pillowcovers. Beautiful Lenox and Royal Albert china plates and cups that I use on a daily basis. Colorful bowl from Paris that I use for keys and mails. A beautiful box that I use to keep phone chargers. That way I do not need to many decorative objects that I need to dust. Because almost everything in my house is useful AND beautiful. Even when I travel I do not bring home knick knacks, but pretty useful things like tablecloths that I can really use on a daily basis.

Not a minimalist but I’m not as max as I would like to be? because I don’t have time to clean. So I basically have as much as I need, everything has to have a place. I also have a rule that if I didn’t know I had it for a while and I have no use for it I let it go. I do love stuff, but I like to use all my things too. So I try not to have too much because I won’t be able to use it all. I love this video

Another wonderful, thoughtful video! A tip for your plastic baskets - use up remnants of cute fabrics by stitching it to the outside of your plastic baskets! It uses up what you have, and you can customise them to match your decor :)

I need someone like this because I am a lover of pretty things and cannot ever live with one painting, beige walls and not one pretty thing in the last video I watched. When I saw your vintage patterns and fabric II new we are kindred spirits...I want to pair down to what I love and still be happy.

I love your home and your style. I don't understand why the world runs like a bunch of mindless lemmings behind whatever the mainstream says to do. Your home is you. You are not everyone else. They aren't either, but they lack the ability to just relax and be themselves. I don't watch a channel to judge someone's level of perfection. The happiest memories of my life, personally, are of being in homes where there's laughter in the air, dishes in the sink, toys in the floor, and lots and lots of treasures hither and yon... some found at yard sales, some hand me down thing filled with memories and love... I'm annoyed with a generation that's gray and minimalist and everyone looks the same, abby's the same, drinks the same smoothies, wears the same clothes and stare down the ends of their noses at those of us who dare to do something differently. You be you. I promise you, that's a beautiful thing. Your channel brightens up my day. Not because of your channel, but because of who you are. I think it's lovely that you allow us to see your heart. ❤ I pray God blesses you and yours.

Beautiful beautiful. I have been on my own decuttering journey for the past year and wrestled with the same issue of donating vs. Selling and just held onto things I didn't really want, just because I would tell myself that one day I would sell it. And then on day, I took a bunch of stuff to the goodwill store and WOW!! I got such a rush just from finally "doing the thing" that I wanted to do it, again. I also noticed that when I got rid of those things that didn't fit into our lives, the things we chose to keep became that much more special to us.

You are so pretty. I have a big old house that I’m very thankful for God, and I never enjoyed the idea to have minimum because I grew up very poor. If I see something and I like it, I feel bad because people are so into minimalist. But I’m glad to see more people making their home seem like… home. :)

Be yourself, you're beautiful and so is your home!..I love unusual things and minimalism isn't part of my vocab!, way too clinical and would show nothing of my personality...I think it's sad to live in a tidy box. My home is uber clean, but I love my things!!. well done babe, you are showing your persona beautifully!

I think your sewing room turned out very cute. I made up a term years ago I call useful uselessness. Useful uselessness is anything I need to own that I choose to buy in a color or pattern I like,but don't have to. I am of the mind that anything you have to own should be something you want to own. The useful is something you need the uselessness comes in the fact the color or pattern doesn't matter, but it makes you happy. By trying to make everything I need to own something I want to own I buy less junk I don't need. I know that this doesn't work immediately for everything when on a budget and sometimes you get stuck buying things are not perfect until you can afford what you want.

Some people say maximalism gives them stress, but looking at things calms me. So did this video. Thanks!

I spent last year gradually decluttering all the lovely things in my house that I had thought I couldn’t live without, then my mindset changed and I decided to keep only the things that served a particular purpose rather than just looked pretty. I donated and gave away soooo much (I never try to sell anything, if I think someone else could use it I’d rather the money went to charity) and I started to feel so much lighter of spirit. Like you, I’ll never be a minimalist and wouldn’t want to be, but now I’m no longer surrounded by “stuff” I feel more in control. Everything has its own place which makes finding things so much easier and when I moved to a smaller property 2 weeks ago it was so easy to pack everything up into boxes and unpack straight away at the other end. I’ll always have things just because I like them, but not to excess anymore. Well done for the progress you’ve made 👏🏻. Sending a hug from England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🤗

Wow, this was such a nice message and one that I needed to hear. I definitely have a habit of hanging on to things, and one of my sons is the same way about wanting to keep everything, lol. The clutter can be overwhelming. I started trying to organize and get rid of some stuff in December, and now you've given me some motivation to try to move through more of it!

I love your space/place 💕 I love shelves, hooks and boxes 😉 my gramma said "a place for everything and everything in it's place" 🙌

I love your channel. You are such a BEAUTIFUL SPIRIT. Thank you for all the advice and perspective. You matter so much to our world!!

I love this! Of course everyone is free to live the kind of lifestyle that makes them happy. If minimalists love having very few belongings then all the power to them. But for me personally, I never liked that kind of minimalist aesthetic. I very much approve of getting rid of things that don't serve a purpose, but pretty much every minimalist video I've found on RU-vid shows off homes that all look so empty and overly sterile. Once again, to each their own if those people enjoy living like that. But I love having a lot of things. My room is still quite tidy, but even the little decorations and trinkets I have displayed in my room serve a purpose, even if that purpose is simply to make me happy. I even did a bit of decluttering of my own because my wardrobe was a big mess and I even had other bits of clutter sitting around collecting dust.

I am horrified that people would feel so free to say such things or to judge how you live. If they want to give so much advice and "care" for you, perhaps they should consider a career in social work or therapy. Those fields are dying for new people. You are a constant delight!

I have a broad range of interests that are mostly home based and I like my stuff, but will part with some now and then. I also live in a house thats been in my family for over 100 years so I've inherited a lot, too. I've watched a few RU-vidrs who are professional organizers and I find myself feeling extremely uncomfortable at times listening to them say stuff has to go, but yet some of their clutter to be purged is just stuff that should have gone in the garbage when it was emptied. It just seems mind boggling to me. Today I decided to see if there was anyone who is more on the maximalist side that could offer cleaning ideas and that's how I found your channel. I like what I've heard so far and it's much closer to my heart. I'm tired of thinking of about putting myself into those uncomfortable cubicals so I appreciate what you've said here. And you've done it without sounding demeaning, too. Looking forward to hearing more of your ideas. Thank you!

This video is awesome. We have whatever is “trending” trying to tell us how to keep our homes. Right now it’s minimalism. But some of us like our pretty things! “That’s OK!”

I looooove your maximalist style wish I was more maximalist!!!!😂 so funny. It’s so crazy that you got negative comments I think your style is completely beautiful😍😍😍🫶🩷🩵

I loved this one! I have that seller’s mindset for sure, and it’s taken a long time to start being okay with donating or giving away things that I could potentially sell. It is such a release though, when you don’t have the time or energy to try and sell something, to just let it go.

Doing a partial makeover of my bedroom. Sat down to cool off under the ceiling fan after being out in the yard spray painting some thrifted frames (it's over 100F outside) and am going through my embroidery floss stash. Searched "how to declutter while still being a maximalist" to find something to listen to as background noise. And, that's how I discovered your WONDERFUL channel and have now subscribed. THANK YOU for this video! You said some things that are exactly what I needed to be reminded of today! I look forward to watching a whole bunch of your videos in coming days.

I’m glad to have found your channel!

Thank you for giving a filter for what to an not to keep. Ie “is it useful?” And does it have a place in my home?”

I agree with things having a purpose, as well as having a love for the item too. I'll take this going forward as I try to finish my home - thanks.

Beautiful idea ❤️ I just moved into a small home and am in the process of decluttering my life. I too will never be a minimalist but will be more focused on keeping things I love that are also useful.

I got rid of truck loads of my stuff only to buy more , I need to accept I’m not a minimalist , I love things also , I need to organize and declutter but also be aware this can get out of hand , Marie kondo helped me understand things that bring me joy . I needed to see this it made me feel I’m ok and not alone . Thank you

I donate my unwanted things and then return in a week to look at them on the shelves of the thrift store. It's a nice feeling, I just smile.

So relatable: "there's people over there, don't look at me".

I love the strawberry jar! I just found your channel and I'm obsessed already. I was trying to find a similar RU-vidr to Darling Desi, because I love the simplicity, the books, the coziness and all the florals. Lol. And I'm a mom so I can relate ❤️❤️

I even want to keep all my childhood and my parents stuff in my house :) Maximalist people are lovely, they like stories and histories and LOVE :)

The desk you’re organizing in the beginning it’s the same one I had as a child. I love your over all style and I also like pretty things!!!

Your sewing area looks fabulous.

I agree with you Kristina! I too like pretty things but now have to ask myself “where would this go?” Enjoy!!!

Love your style- and advice. I am a clutter culture queen to a point of “drowning “ in things

MA'AM! Can you please stop pulling out all the stops? When you said about letting go of projects that you meant to get to, or dresses that no longer fit, I about busted into ugly tears in my dang living room! Thank you for saying these words that I didn't know I needed to hear.

Im not a minimalist by any means, I have a large porcelain doll and Elvis collection. I have lots of plants and I love pictures of flowers and cottages, but my house is clean snd tidy. I feel people should have things they love ad long as their home is clean and tidy. Not everyone had to like how anyone else lives!nice cozy home you have there.

I feel like minimalism can be a bland asthetic to just having less- not in relation to style. For me I’m a minamilist Victorian meshed with farmhouse- decor girly. I looove the look but I just keep less and I’m intentional about how much I decorate because I know it will have me clean more which Is a no bueno as a neurodivergent girly. And I know thrifting is dangerous cuz of how much I was to buy so I ask myself if this is needed or will be put to the side🥲 I love your channel and the journey your showing us❤️

Loved the title had to check this out. Watching now. I could never be a minimalist it's just not who I am and I know me .. organized = yes ! .. a place 4 everything = yes ! love minimalist people = oc !!! and I am here to help them whenever they find they need to borrow anything I have (that they have not) : )

I love your love for strawberries. I love them too, especially for decor. Same as cherries.

I love the pretty things. Thank you for showing such a caring way to declutter and still staying true to enjoying your things! I feel this is a much needed message for those who actually enjoy having "stuff," but do not want to feel overwhelmed by it. You're a gift.💝

I enjoyed your space & insights on the stuff & why we hang on to it... your very beautiful in the vintage floral dress at the end....I loved the cut in back above the shoulders very flattering & simplistic. Have a blessed day ☺

I love your videos - you are just like me, a normal woman with a family who is absolutely not perfect, but is continually trying to be her best self.

I had that exact desk growing up. It was a part of a bedroom set that was for children to teens. I had the dresser/ mirror combo, desk and canopy bed. That is probably why it seems lower to you.

This was fabulous! I loved seeing you tidying your space, enjoying your thrifting and most of all I loved your encouraging words to help your viewers think more joyfully about their living spaces. You're fabluous, Kristina!

Minimalist environments just don't bring me joy but neither does chaos and personally it's taken a really really long time to move away from just having ALL the things to a carefully curated home. I am very emotionally attached to to my things but don't want anything superfluous. I'm getting there, it's a constant project but I always try to stick to William Morris' "have nothing in your home that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful" We clear out really regularly as a family and I'm slowly distilling all of my collections of vintage goodies to the things I truly adore. If I can't think of where it will live in my home it doesn't belong with us 💗 Your home and channel are beautiful and bring so much joy to my little internet world, thank you.

I was watching tarnished Treasures one day and she said something that stuck with me. She said she likes to curate her collection. As soon as she brings something home she arranges and displays it and I have been following her lead.

This video was so encouraging right now. I have been building myself up to tackle my space (while dealing with life/depression) and these are some of the same steps I am trying to take. I think I got stuck on the little bits like I collected storage options and then got too overwhelmed to commit to them. I literally started hoarding shelves and jars in the process! I realized for me a big part is that I just needed to try one step, start with moving one furniture piece and not think about everything that needs to happen, just this task. I find I have to put worrying about the overall look of things last. Anyways, thank you for such a relatable video! I loved this one and your bathroom update. ❤️❤️

Such a cute cozy and lovely corners in your house and I so much agree with you ♥️👍🏻

This was a beautiful video! Your sewing room transformation was awesome! I love your kitty planter. Your son was so adorable in the video too. Thank you so much for sharing all of your wonderful inspiration.

I really like this idea. I too struggle with clutter. I’m also a collector and lover of vintage. ❤️

I love things too especially vintage things! I have one room I keep all my vintage dolls and games in and when I say there’s no room for nothing else in there that may be a under statement, but every now and then I see one more of something that I just love and I alway find room. I love how you put it, your home should serve you, that’s just how I feel! My home and the thing’s in it is just that “my home” so I really don’t care what others think of my things! Love your channel and your home just the way it is!❤️

I tend towards minimalism because chronic health conditions leave me with very limited energy. Knowing I have to manage a lot of things is stressful and overwhelming. I don't aim for a sparse, all white aesthetic though. I like colors and textures. I love the look a cozy, slighty chaotic cottage. I can enjoy it. I just can't live in it. I'm glad I can enjoy different styles vicariously. 😁

It's nice to see from different perspective. I'm not a minimalist but not a maximalist either. I just keep the useful things in my home.

Kristina you look beautiful in that gorgeous dress👗💐.. I want it 👌I love chaotic hobbit 😂I will take what you say on board.and start looking at the mountain of what I class as beautiful things in my cottage..... doesn't help when you have an antique dealer as, a husband 😱.. 👍

What a lovely home you have created! And I was charmed to see your book "Hankie Couture," written by a neighbor of mine.

I am so sorry people have been mean to you! New sub here and I must say I LOVE ALL YOUR STUFF! I think we need to understand not all people fit into a pretty minimal little box! I LOVE my things too.

As the great William Morris said “ Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful”. I have many collections of “stuff” and I’m a crafter and artist, that makes for a lot of containers in a one bedroom flat and clever ways to store- you’re doing the same. When you were in the thrift store I was psychically shouting “ GET THE STRAWBERRY POT!! “ but you got a strawberry mould instead so I’m happy! 😆🍓 xxx

Thank you for this. As I step into the big job of decluttering and downsizing for a smaller home this message helps me so much. I watch this once a week to calm my brain and feel not so alone in my journey. Thank you.

I have that exact same desk. It's my sewing desk. I completely agree about the chair situation. I can only use a small chair as well. Good desk hunting!!💖💖

Thank you for your honest video. I love listening to your voice.

Yes I definitely resonate with your mindset towards minimalist. I love collecting the beautiful things that I save for later 😌 love the space you created for your sewing projects

I think I needed to hear this thank you 😊

I love it your house has character. Minimalism works for some, but they push their lifestyle on everyone.

Wow, this video is the best , thanks because I know how it's difficult to rearrange a craft room or space

Aww thank you for this video ❤️🍓 i love your style and your homee

I love the direction you are taking. I can tell it’s coming from your heart! Also, you seem lighter, more joyful. (Not that any content you’ve done hasn’t been delightful) but you seem in a good place. And it’s always lovely to see!

thank you for this video.I knew that Minimalism was not for me right from the start & so it's so difficult to find cleaning motivation.

Loved this video. Very relatable. One thing that has helped me to let go of some items in my home that no longer serve their purpose is that I joined my local buy nothing group. I enjoy giving my things away to someone that needs them and I know will appreciate them. It makes it easier to let them go. In return I have also been blessed by picking up items that I need or that add beauty to my home. I have made friends & found community in the process which is so needed.

Love this! I love collecting vintage items and craft items, but I was finding myself with a bunch of things that don’t really work in my home, so I started donating or saying does this work for me before I buy it! Great message!!

I love this message so much. I love your channel because you’re extremely honest and open about your journey and you show it. It’s okay not to have a house that’s super empty. It’s great to find joy in beautiful things.

we are kindred spirits! I love your home and this video, it's the first one of yours I've seen. I think of our style as carefully curated maximalism. I can appreciate negative space, but not in my own home, where I want it to feel like a warm cosy nest. And we ask ourselves the same questions to declutter! I'll join your tribe!!

One thing I loved most about this video, is the fact that you thrift "with your fingers" (much like I do) haha. I have to touch and feel items, I cannot just look at them.

Beautifully said my friend!! It's a journey to let go of things we've accumulated I hear you! Whether those things were gifts or something we once loved, when we have to much it overwhelms us! I'm also in the process of decluttering our home, I found my life box recently and it had letters from old boyfriends, hospital wrist bands from loved ones and momentos from the last 40 years in, it was a roller coaster of emotions to digest but I think the truth for me is ,it's ok to let go of all of it because the story is IN me🤗 Gosh isn't opp shopping fun, I adore this activity so much too and decorating the home and rearranging to make a space functional, comfortable, aesthetically warming and gorgeous for all who dwell in our home 💚 Love and gratitude to you Kristina for your beautiful inspirational work🤗x

Sewing stuff takes souch space, mine was in a cupboard in the kitchen, when my youngest daughter got married i made her bedroom into a sewing room, from a cupboard to a room and im still tidying it between projects lol

Once again a great video thank you so much for sharing. I always love your organizing videos or your tips of how to do things because we all do things in our own way this was a beautiful video I think a lot of people suffer from letting things go because everyone's a collector and some things you had a lot of valid points in this video and it was wonderful thank you for sharing. This turned out beautifully I love your little area

I loved this video!! I have been trying so hard to declutter my house over the past couple months and it does make you feel better. I feel like my hubs and I are both pack rats and love knickknacks and stuff and it can just get overwhelming quickly. But now that we are done having babies and the kids qre getting older, I've found it easier to purge.

Well said! Thanks for sharing!

The points you made were so true for me! I love collecting things and always have had far to much clutter on my table surfaces, but I also love the minimalist aesthetic. I think this video with help me with my next deep clean

I love this

This is simply great. Thank you so much!!

I am so happy I found your channel about a week ago and have been watching you since. The message in this video resonates with me so much! My daughter loves watching your videos too ❤️