howdy again

[tylergirl72]

a while back i joined and mostly just been reading and learning and talking a little here and there. I also stated that i was going thru a divorce and living on a friends couch. Well six months later my divorce will be final this friday. I also will be moving into a 8 by 32 fema trailer on a rv park. which is all i can do at this time. Ive seen it its nice and very small, more so than im used to but i consider this training. My question is, how do you utilize space? I dont have very much belongings anymore, but certain things like hair straightener, cooking utensils, books etc. I appreciate any advice. THanks to all..

Tylergirl!

 

[blkjak]

welcome from s.w. florida .... blkjak

 

[ccbreder]

welcome back tyler. Put stuff in boxes and slide under couch.
I have got down to a 12" saute pan and a 4 quart sauce pan for cooking. a lot of one pot things done with planing. lids for the pots help. plus a coffee maker. I tossed all the dishes and silverware except for two settings, just in case i get feeling host-like.
An 8x32 is much larger than a 6x12 van. and why change your hair? i found myself spending too much time in front of mirror and so cut it short, very short.

 

[Patrick46]

Hey TylerGirl!

CC's right in that now is a good tyme to downsize and see how 'small' you can live. If it's just you, then you certaintly won't need a bunch of cookery, or tons of clothes, and over time, you'll figure out what you can live with and without.

Books...I'd consider getting yourself a Kindle. You can download more books then you'll ever read, and of course, once you read those, you can delete 'em and download more. My wife adores her's! (great birthday present)

What kind of rig are you thinging about living in?? A car, a van, an RV??

Welcome back to the forum, and there's alotta folks on here to lend advice and help.

Patrick from Oregon.

 

[rvwandering]

We use plastic bins in all of our cupboards to keep things organized. If you need more room stack them. It also helps to get different sizes so that you don't waste space.

Most of our boxed and bagged food like pasta, rice, flour, sugar etc, is stored in square plastic containers to keep bugs, stop spills and leaks and to save space

 

[Stargazer]

Hi Tylergirl,

8 x 32??? Wow!! That's huge!! My van is a standard E-150, not a high top, and the trailer, which serves as a home base, is 15' long. When I'm on the road, I live in the van and leave the trailer behind.

Ditto what the others said about containerizing. And you will be surprised at how little you need. One skillet meals. Two of each with dishes. Two towels. One set of sheets. I use over the door hooks a lot for robes, coat, towels since closet space is almost nil. Kitchen cabinet (one) I used one of those white wire shelves to use vertical space. Also, a double tiered round spice rack. For bathroom, I used a colorful purse to hold small items (manicure kit, comb, stuff like that) and hung it from the doorknob (decorative, useful for holding stuff, close at hand, and as a handbag if I need one). I have a tray that just fits over the two burner stove top that is very handy! I placed on the tray a dish drainer (just the drip tray), and on top of that I keep fruit and veggies. When I need to wash dishes, I remove the produce to the table in the tray, and use the dish drainer on top of the stove. Everything has double duty.

Be creative! You'll figure it out, and best wishes.

 

[Darth_Muerte]

Sorry to hear about your divorce. I just went through the same thing. Even though I miss my kids, having my freedom back is good. I plan to be on the road by Jun 1 at latest. I already full time in my van. I found myself still downsizing. I use 1 stainless steel 4 qt pot for all "cooking". I painted it black, and when the sun is right I can slow cook my food quite well on my dash using my windshield shade as a reflector. This doesn't work so well during our recent cold snaps though.

I have found that we don't "own stuff", stuff owns us and dictates how we must live our lives IF we let it. Free yourself, get rid of anything you haven't used in the last year, then make it 6 months with possible exceptions for seasonal clothes. At this point, if I don't use it at least monthly it is gone.

 

[WheelEstate USA]

Glad to see ya back here. Hope you find your new home comfy. I know you'll get creative and figure it out....its like a game, have fun with it.

Downsizing isn't easy. We went from a home to a 1 bdrm apt before going into our motorhome. We had tons of nice antiques and used 200 y/o china and silver, all of which we loved having around us. I had a shop full of tools too.

We gave up a lot to travel and to enjoy being in places where we didn't mind at all eating a one-skillet dinner off a plastic plate sitting in a lawn chair while waiting for a wonderful sunset to amaze us once again.

By golly, we're in no hurry to go back to that other life.
The more stuff you have the more it drags you down.

To add to what Darth said...We chose not to store anything for "a future".
Storage is costly over time and often the person never makes it back to claim their stuff (quit paying). Thus, lots of storage units to be auctioned off. We bought at those auctions and made buckets of cash off all those things that were once so important to someone.

 

[Simran]

Welcome to the tribe Tylergirl

 

[Patrick46]

Storage is costly over time and often the person never makes it back to claim their stuff (quit paying). Thus, lots of storage units to be auctioned off.

My daughter has a storage unit that's full of nothing but JUNK!!!! The stuff she's storing isn't worth one month's payment on the unit. I've tried to convince her that her old bashed up furniture and her old books from elementary school are mouldy and not worth keeping, more or less actually paying storage fees on.
Ahhhh...but whaddo I know!



don't be like my daughter and pay good money to store old junk!

 

[GotSmart]

To add to what Darth said...We chose not to store anything for "a future".
Storage is costly over time and often the person never makes it back to claim their stuff

I have a creative solution.

I have some cookware that will not handle traveling cooking well, as well as some furniture that I do not want to "give away." This includes a 50+ year collection of books. I will have these things in "storage" at my daughters house. (she can use it without buying it.) I will have it covered by renters insurance. ($150 a year) and this will cover everything in my van that I is not covered by the auto policy. All my tools and clothing, as well as the electronics, Computer, TV, and so on.

I already ran this by my insurance company. I will be having a moving sale to get rid of everything I do not want or need. The balance will be donated to a couple of local resale shops nearby. Cause For Paws, and Salvation Army.

This will save my daughter about $2,000 to $5,000 by not having to buy these items. I would not get anything near what I value them at if I sell them. If I need a place to crash, I will have a bed without BedBugs! We share a passion for the same kind of books also.