Hi my friends and welcome back. The new year is coming, and so today, I'm going to be sharing with you 25 things that I'm not buying or doing in 2025. I do this every year and I always find it very fun to reflect on the things I had on my list last year, and how maybe some things have changed and others have stayed the same.
It's also just a good exercise to be more mindful and intentional when it comes to your purchases. So I find this very helpful to use as a guideline for the year to come. Of course, this list is very personal to me and my situation and my lifestyle.
So don't feel bad if you do enjoy buying some of these things. That is absolutely fine, we're all different. But my hope here is that you can find some inspiration to simplify your life, your spending, your finances, your home.
And just overall be a bit more mindful when it comes to your purchases. Feel free to grab yourself something nice to drink by the way and join me. It's nice, but it's still hot.
And today's video is kindly sponsored by Skillshare and I will chat more about them later. For now, let's dive right in with number one on the list, which is restocking containers. I'm not really on social media myself.
So I know that if a social media trend reaches me, then I know it is a really big trend. And I feel like 2024 was the year of restocking videos. People were restocking their fridge, their spice rack, their bathroom, their guest room, their car.
Just wherever and whenever, people are using these little plastic matching containers to organize and restock things. Now something to keep in mind when it comes to social media trends like this, is that this is not real life. This is 100% content for content purposes.
You can of course enjoy watching these videos, because they're often filmed very beautifully, and they're very aesthetically pleasing and satisfying to watch. So it's okay to watch them just for entertainment purposes. But for real life, this amount of plastic little matching restocking containers is not necessary in my opinion.
If you're home doesn't look like this, then that is okay. In fact, it's more than okay. I have a little organizer or drawer divider here or there, but that's enough.
Also, have you seen the trend fridge scaping? This is when people decorate the inside of their fridge to look like a forest or like a fall, autumn, pumpkin theme. Of course, everyone can do what they find fun and what makes them happy.
I'm not here to make fun of it. But for me, this is too much. I think it's okay if your the inside of your fridge just looks like the inside of a fridge.
Number two for me is a tricky one, teacups. As a minimalist, I do find that there is value in having some things that you just find very beautiful, and that elevate your experience when it comes to things you already enjoy. Like for me, tea.
For me, buying a beautiful handmade ceramic tea cup cup from Japan for my Japanese green tea is just something that I really enjoy. And if I find them in the store, which is rare, but if I do find them, it's a little bit hard for me sometimes to find the restraint. But I have six of these cups, which is what you use when you drink sencha the official way, in the small cups.
And then I also have four matcha bows. So you know where I'm going with this. I am really going to try and do my best not to purchase any more teacups.
Or ask them for my birthday or for Christmas or something, which is how I actually got most of these. No more. And that also goes for any kind of dishes, plates, mugs, bowls, glasses, cups.
I love all that stuff, but I have enough. Number three is tight clothing with no stretch. I personally find clothing, it is just so important for me that it is comfortable.
I personally don't mind it if it is tight fitting, but it needs to have stretch. Or I also don't mind if it doesn't have stretch, but then it needs to be a little bit looser fitting. The thing that I absolutely hate is wearing clothing that is very tight and does not have any stretch, because I feel so closed in.
I feel like I can't breathe. Especially in the summertime, when I'm already feeling like a little bit bloated and sweaty. It's just so uncomfortable for me to wear this.
And I tried a few more clothing items this year, which is why it's on my list now, that were like this too. And it really made me realize okay, I really don't like it if it is tighter fitting and it has no stretch. So this is a rule for me, basically from here on out.
Number four is bedroom decor, bedding, sheets, anything for my bed or for my bedroom. So I actually really really love how we decorated this apartment. I'm in love with all the spaces here.
I feel like, you know, I feel pretty confident about it. But the bedroom is still looking a little boring. But I actually did that on purpose.
Because I just find that it is nicest when my bedroom is really really low stimuli. No decor, no artwork, no distractions. Really just focused on finding my rest from when I feel over stimulated by life.
And lately, I have just kind of been feeling like oh, maybe putting down a rug. Or maybe putting down a little something, or hanging something on the wall. And I was like no, I know that would look beautiful, but it would kind of defeat the purpose of a bedroom for me personally.
So I made the rule for this year, nothing else for my bedroom or for my bed. Number five is expensive hair care products. So I know you can't really see my hair today.
But I have wavy hair, blonde hair, that is naturally very coarse and very dry. I have tried so many products that were recommended to me by my hairdressing salon or by someone online, that were supposed to be amazing for especially my hair type. I have tried with silicone, without silicone.
Really expensive, kind of midlevel pricing, really cheap. And honestly, with the exception of the really cheap products, I do find a difference there, they really do make it worse, but if I buy just like mid-range pricing products, or really expensive products, I just don't notice a noticeable difference. And this year, I was just kind of fed up with every time I go to buy a set of shampoo, conditioner and a hair mask, paying like between 70 and 80 EUR for that those three products together.
I wash my hair only once a week luckily, because it is so dry. So buying a set like that takes me a while to use up, usually like the better part of the year. But still, it is a lot of money for not really noticing any noticeable difference.
I feel like my hair just does what it wants to do. Sometimes I wash it and it looks amazing. Sometimes I wash it, I do exactly the same things, I use the same products, and it comes out really looking not amazing.
So I feel like my hair is just going to do whatever it wants to anyway. And I'm just going to use products that I'm comfortable with using. And not buy those really fancy expensive ones.
Because yeah like I said, I just don't notice a noticeable change. So I want to give those slightly cheaper ones a fair chance. Number six, a fancy teapot with a warmer.
I know this is very personal. But earlier this year, I saw another YouTuber who works from home use a very beautiful glass teapot when she works. And it had one of those little candle things thingies underneath to keep the tea warm.
So she could just like keep pouring it for herself when she was working. And I saw that and first thought I had was wow that's amazing, I want that too. Because you know, sometimes as a YouTuber, I work here by myself from home a lot of the time.
It's a little bit like boring. . .
or well not boring, I like my job. But it's a little bit like isolating. Or something you want to sometimes do things for yourself to make it extra nice and extra cozy.
And so I figured like oh a teapot like that would be nice. But when it comes to minimalism, I do already like immediately start to think: where would I keep this teapot when I'm not using it? And I don't really have a space where I could easily fit, so that was bothering me.
If I don't know where to put it, I know it's going to cause clutter. And then I figured, I do have a thermos. So what I could do is just brew a big batch of tea, keep it warm in my thermos, and pour myself a little cup throughout the afternoon or the morning.
So that's what I'm doing now. I didn't have to buy anything. And it basically does the exact same thing.
So minimalism for the win. Number seven is any winter gear. So that goes for winter jackets, raincoats, a scarf, a hat, gloves, and even summer jackets.
I have all of those things enough. I don't have like a ton of different options. With some of them, like with the hat and the scarf and the gloves and stuff, I only have one.
But that's absolutely fine. I have a couple different types of jackets for when is like really cold, or when it's really rainy. So I'm all set in that category.
I don't need any more winter gear or summer jackets. Number eight is bags. Now, if you have seen more videos for me, then you've probably seen me bragging about being a one bag girly.
A one bag woman. And if you've seen my recent wardrobe update, declutter organizing video, I'll link it right here if you haven't yet, then you might have seen that I bought a new purse. So I now have options.
I have a black purse now. I felt oh. .
. I had to rush to the door cuz the doorbell rang. Anyway, where was I?
So after having used just a backpack for years and years and years, I just felt like maybe I wanted a black purse in case I want to look just a little bit dressier. Just have like a few more options. Or yeah, one more option.
And so, I got one. I'm very very happy with it. That said, I also really still enjoy not having that many bags.
So it is going to be a no buy for me. Number nine is single use period products. And this is because this year, I made the switch to reusable period underwear.
And oh my gosh, how I wish I had done that sooner. It is so much nicer. It is so much more comfortable.
I never have to worry about leaking anymore. And it is better for the environment, because I'm not using single use period products anymore. So only wins in this book for me.
And it really has been a game changer when it comes to my periods. If you are kind of scared of using cups, like me, I've never been a tampon girl, and so the cups just kind of look scary to me, try the period underwear. And even with that I used to be a little bit scared about.
Like how it's going to be when you wash them and stuff like that. But it is so much easier than I thought. And yeah like I said, it really has changed everything for me.
I feel so much better now. And as I was speaking about my wardrobe, number 10 is clothes. Like in general.
And this is not going to be a no-buy for me. Because I feel like when it comes to clothing, a complete no-buy is kind of unrealistic. So I'm going to set it at max three items.
I'm actually really happy with the state of my wardrobe right now. I did like I said a recent wardrobe declutter organizing video. I decluttered some things that I never wore anymore.
And since that video, I also made a few more additions to my wardrobe. And I feel like I have so many clothing items now. I haven't counted them, but I think probably around 50 or something total.
Including shoes. And that number three also has to include things like shoes. And then number 11 is clothing items specific for my body type or for my skin tone.
So for a little while there, I was kind of learning about how to dress for your body type, and which skin tone, which season are you, and which colors work on you, and things like that. And I do find that information very helpful. I have learned a lot.
And now I've come to a point where I'm want to let all of that go. So this is not me hating on those methods. If they work for you, definitely keep doing it.
But for me, I just find them a little bit too complicated now. Sometimes they invent things that are supposed to simplify things, but actually I find having all of those rules and having like a color palette that I need to choose from, and things like that, made it more complicated for me, not less. So I feel like okay, I have that information now.
But now I actually just kind of want to let it go. Basically I just want to wear what I like. I want to wear colors that I find fun.
I want to wear fits that I find comfortable. And I don't really care if that is like officially not right for my body type, for my skin tone. It's like I decide and I just want to wear what I like.
And number 12 is a big one, social media. I am still so happy living a almost social media free life. Even as a full-time content creator.
I do of course use YouTube. And I still love YouTube as a platform, also as a viewer. So YouTube kind of has some social media parts about it as well of course.
But I'm not on Instagram, Tik Tok, Facebook, what else is out there? I'm not on it. And I love my life that way.
Mostly just because it makes my life so much simpler, calmer, quieter. There's not all of that noise from all of these other people. All of these other opinions.
Having to keep up with what other people are doing or buying or having. Comparing myself to others. And just keeping up with all of the trends.
Like I said, most of the internet trends just kind of pass me by, because I'm not on social media. And so, there is just so much less noise in my life because I'm not on social media. I also just kind of feel like they can be a big time waster.
I would rather read a book. Or if I'm going to be spending time online, I would rather it be something that actually like puts a big smile on my face. Like watching cat videos or something.
Or having it be something that actually provides me real value, like learning something new, learning a new skill. Which is where, now that we are halfway in the video, I also quickly want to tell you about the sponsor for today's video, Skillshare. Skillshare is an online learning platform and they have thousands and thousands of fantastic classes about anything and everything.
So this has been my favorite place to go whenever I wanted to learn something new for years now. Both for my personal life and for my work. Maybe you'd like to get into a new hobby next year and you want to learn photography, or creative writing, or making your own clothing.
Or you want to learn to play piano or guitar. Or you want to take your career into a different direction and learn how to code, or make a living with your creative business. Skillshare has classes for all levels for basically whatever you want to learn.
Since I've been using Skillshare, it's just been so easy and accessible for me to always keep learning new things. So for example now I'm going to to take Lisa bardo's class called Kickstart your creativity with Procreate. I've been wanting to get back to making digital art in Procreate for a while.
It's been a while for me. And so this class is going to be just the thing I need. It's got a hands-on approach, so I'm going to be drawing straight from the first lesson.
And I'm really looking forward to it. If you also enjoy learning new things, or broadening your skill set, or finding new hobbies or interests, I really recommend checking them out. And you can even do that for free, because the first 500 people to click my link in the description box you get a one-month free trial of Skillshare.
So you can try as many classes as you want for a whole month, to see how you like it. Huge thank you to Skillshare, let's get back with the video. Number 13 is cable or TV streaming services.
And also just really being careful with streaming services in general. So we cancelled our cable years ago. And we switched over to a TV streaming service, which was a lot cheaper.
And we cancelled that this year as well. Like last week, we canceled it. We just realized that we weren't really watching a lot of TV.
Not enough to justify the € 10 a month anyway. We're also very careful with things like Netflix and Disney plus and everything. The only thing we currently have is HBO.
When it comes to streaming services, I feel like if you're getting value from them, then that is absolutely fine. But if you have a bunch of them, it really adds up. And you're paying a lot of money each month.
So I always do try to kind of like do the math in my own head. How many hours a month do I use them? And does that justify the cost for me, yes or no?
Number 14 are those really thick cozy comfy house socks. You know the ones that are lined with like the little fuzzy stuff, and they keep your feet nice and warm. I'm a sock girly.
My feet are always cold. I wear socks night and day. Literally.
I have bed socks that I wear in bed. But like regular socks. And with these house socks, at first I tried them, because I felt like oh yeah I'm home alone by myself a lot of the time.
And so I want to keep nice and cozy. And I figured that would be nice for me. But the thing with those socks, I find anyway, is that they break.
Like they tear or they come apart so quickly. After two months, I feel like I can't wear them anymore. And I just find that such a waste of resources.
It's a waste of money. If they were a lot more durable, I would probably still use them. But since they're not, I'm going to try and find another alternative.
Maybe like really durable house slippers or something. That just last a bit longer. Next is stocking up on personal care items.
And for that, I mean things like perfume, mascara, body lotion. I just want to have the rule for myself, I've been doing that for a couple of years now and I really enjoy it, to use up what I have first and then buy something new. And sometimes I feel like okay, I only have one3 of it left or something, but it is now on sale.
So then I might buy two, cuz they're on sale, and that saves money in the future. So that's okay. But I'm not going to be buying three different types of mascara.
Or if I still have body lotion left, and there's like a different kind of body lotion, with a different scent, or different brand or something, I'm not going to be purchasing that one, if I still have body lotion left. And if you always use up what you have first, before you go out buying something new, that's a great hack for simplify your life, your home and your finances. So I always read all of the books that I still have, that I haven't read yet.
And then I will buy a couple more books. And I'll read all of those. Same with video games.
I just find it such a waste to have books and video games that you have never read, or never played, and then go out buy something else. That doesn't make a lot of sense to me. So I always want to use up everything, get my inventory back to zero, tea, so many things, and then buy new one.
Number 16, things that look cute, but have no clear purpose for me. And especially I find that sometimes hard to resist with stationery, cute stickers, notebooks. Like this.
I bought this, it is a memo pad. It is handmade wooden box with these washi paper memo pads. And yes, it looks so cute and I just couldn't resist.
So I bought this a couple months ago. But I almost never use paper. And I have this much.
So I feel like this memo pad can last me literally my entire life. So I want to avoid more purchases like this. On the papers, he's actually running.
It's really cute look. But this is going on my no-buy list for next year. Number 17 is so-called mus have seasonal trends.
This is easy for me, because I'm not on social media. So most of the seasonal trends I don't even know about. And I don't, honestly I really don't care about trends.
When it comes to clothing, fashion, anything, hair care. I don't care about trends anymore. It's one of the best things about minimalism, because it frees up so much mental space.
Apparently this fall, everyone was wearing burgundy bags. You know, if I happen to have a burgundy bag, I might like pull it out or something. But I'm not going to be buying something, just because it's like the color of the season.
Or because it's trendy. Again, if you enjoy doing that, that is absolutely fine. Everyone does it differently.
But for me, I love my trendy free life. I love just using and buying classic things that I know I'm going to be liking for years and years. And I don't have to worry about whether this color is in or out right now.
Number 18 is sodas and sugary drinks. For me personally, this is one of those things that is really easy for me to not buy, not drink. And do for my my health.
Because if you only drink water, tea, coffee, with no sugar, then it is just a really easy way to not get so much sugar into your body. And so, even though I do kind of like a sugary drink every now and then. It is very rare, sometimes I will order one when I go out or something.
but I never never never never drink sodas. Just never. Number 19 is nail polishes that are not non-toxic.
So like the standard nail polishes. Unfortunately, with the nail polishes too, they can contain harmful ingredients. And that sucks.
Because you know, it's a tough realization to think that the companies just don't care if they're poisoning people, as long as they're making money. But yeah. I don't want to scare anyone who likes to use nail polish.
I've used nail polish almost my entire life. The nail polish industry is really not transparent. They can have chemicals in them that that they are not disclosing.
Or it's not like super regulated. So I just feel a lot better buying from a brand that makes them with natural ingredients, not toxic, they have the made safe certification. They're vegan, cruelty-free, sustainability efforts, all that stuff is there.
I would just especially recommend staying away from nail polishes, or basically anything that goes on your skin, or on your body, or in your hair, from unregulated retailers. Like Shein and Temu, and AliExpress and Amazon and stuff. Because you really don't have any idea what they really put in their products.
Which brings me to number 20, which is anything from Shein, Temu, AliExpress, Wish. What else is out there? This is not me judging anyone who does buy from these companies.
It's just for me personally, I don't want to support them. They are pretty awful for basically anyone and anything. And they are also very bad quality, so it's not going to last.
I personally know many people who do shop from them. Maybe it's also a bit of the Dutchiness, that people enjoy buying things that don't cost a lot. People enjoy buying things that are very cheap here.
But there is a reason that these products are so cheap. And those reasons are not very fun. So I have chosen to stay away from them, as much as I can, or at all, next year too.
Another one of those things that I will not be using in 2025 is generative AI. Now where to start with AI? We're all using AI in our life without realizing it.
You know, Google Maps is based on AI I think. And so like okay, we're not going to stop. I'm not going to stop AI by not using it.
I know that. But generative AI freaks me out to know end. I wholeheartedly agree with the famous quote from Hayao Miyazaki, who's a filmmaker for Studio Ghibli, when he said that he feels deeply that AI is a deep insult to life itself.
And I couldn't agree more. There are many good videos on YouTube about how AI is ruining the internet. One that I really enjoyed was from Drw Gooden.
So you can check it out if you want to, no pressure. But I just find it so scary also. And I've seen videos AI videos that are copying my videos, and many other creators out there.
I have seen a picture of someone completely different from me, using my voice to say things, because of AI. It's so scary. And it is not going to make the world any better, I truly believe that.
So as much as I know that it is easy to make a little artwork with AI, or to ask AI to come up with a recipe. Or I know many creators use it for video scripts or video ideas. There are so many things to use it for.
I stay away from all of it, as much as I can. Because I don't want any part of it. Again this is personal, I'm not judging anyone using AI.
But for me, I want to stay away from it, as far away from it, as I can in today's world. Sticking to tech, number 22 is a new phone, or basically any tech products. This phone is about 4 years old.
It's getting a little bit slow, but other than that, it still really works. And I always try to use my phones for at least 5 years. So I really want to try and stretch it at least another year before I replace it.
Now I can't make any promises. If it starts to break, or if it starts to like really get so slow that I can't work with it anymore, or it starts getting unsafe in terms of updates and things like that, I might replace it this year. But I really really hope not to.
And that also goes for my laptop, any kind of tech product. I think I'm settled. They all still are working fine and yeah, I want to try and buy no tech products next year.
Number 23 is maybe a strange one, scotch. So I haven't been drinking much alcohol for ever? I think.
Well, when I was in high school, I used to drink a bit. Like party and stuff. But after that I was like okay, I've been there, I've done that.
I don't like getting drunk anymore. Or I don't like feeling hangover the next day and stuff. So I haven't been drinking a lot for a really long time.
But right now, I'm drinking even less than that. So maybe I'm drinking one drink every 3 months? Something like that.
If I am drinking something, it's usually either scotch or beer. And there was a while when we were purchasing scotch for when a friend came over, or if we want to celebrate something among ourselves. I would always just have one drink, but still.
And we still have I think like maybe 3/4 of a bottle in the thing. And with how little we drink now, that's going to last us a long time. So I'm kind of, I'm kind of over it.
Alcohol is just not something that I want in my life and in my body. Maybe next year I'll buy a beer or two every once in a while. But no scotch, or yeah, hardly any alcohol even.
And kind of in the same category, although for me with this it is an absolute no-buy, is lottery tickets, things that have to do with online gambling, or with video games, loot boxes, which is basically also gambling, but then for content. Again I'm not being here like judgy, everyone can do whatever feels right for them. For me personally, this feels wrong.
It feels like these companies are purposefully trying to use our psychology against us, to make a lot of money. And get people into debt and into trouble. And I don't want to support that with even one cent of my money.
I always have to laugh in that episode of Modern Family, I don't if you've seen it. But Andy says something really funny. Where they're gambling in Las Vegas or something, and he says: Oh how fun, you give your hard earn money to a stranger, and pray it comes back.
Like that's how I feel when it comes to gambling, lottery tickets. Like the chances that you win something with a lottery ticket are astronomically small. And number 25 is items that will only be good for one year.
And I'm specifically thinking of holiday decor, just because like the season of the year that we are in now. So when I go to the grocery store now, there's always so like a decor section with these little like stuffed Santa Clauses. And they have a little tiny Christmas tree tacked onto a piece of wood for example.
And yes, it looks cute. But the little Christmas tree is going to die and then people throw them away. And they buy new new things next year.
And I just think that is a really big waste of resources, of money, of yeah, waste literally. And so, if I'm going to buy holiday decor, which I don't think I will, but I don't know, maybe. I I don't currently have any.
So maybe I might buy something this year, next year, the year after that. But it has to be something that I can keep using for years and years and years afterwards. And preferably something that isn't just cheap crap.
I'm thirsty from talking so much. And of course, now that we are nearing the end of the video, I would love to know from you, if you have a list of things that you won't be buying. Or you only want to buy a certain amount, maximum of the things.
So I'd love to see yours in the comments. I always like reading those. I want to thank you all for staying around until the end of the video.
And a really special thank you to my patrons for supporting the channel and helping me to keep doing this in 2024 as well. You are all amazing. And if you want to join my Patreon too, you can go to patreon.
com/simplehappyzen to sign up. There are currently around 120 videos something up on my Patreon, because I've been doing it a while. So I post extra videos over there, two videos a month.
And some extra bonus behind the scenes content of my life. And by signing, up you will immediately get access to all of that. And also help me to keep doing this as my job.
So it's a win-win. And feel free to check it out. You can also cancel again anytime.
And if you have any questions about it, you can always ask. Last little thing. If you enjoy learning new things, then use my link to get get a free trial of Skillshare.
30 days to try them out. Link in the description box. And as always: questions, comments, conversations down below.
Have a wonderful, wonderful day. And I will see you all again next week, with the last video of the year. Bye-bye.
It's always fun answering the doorbell when you're filming, and then your neighbors seeing you hooked up to a microphone, and wondering: What is she doing? Awkward. .
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