On the heels of compacting post: starting with almost nothing

[crazyestonian]

About a year ago we moved away from the US (to Europe) and brought with us about 1000lbs worth of stuff (mostly music and books). We gave away (freecycled, donated, gave to friends) everything else. We moved not planning to move back. Well, life has its ways and in the beginning of the year we will move back. So we will have pretty much only music, books, flatware, one pressure cooker and coffee making stuff, a tent, laptop, toys and clothes, this time less since I can leave memorabilia behind -- we live in my grandparents house and photos, art and some non essential stuff can all be left behind.

I am yet unsure how to go about getting everything neccessary for life. There are certain things one needs. We will not have a car so freecycling and thrifting will not do it for most stuff. Plus there will not be a lot of time to look for most things. After we get an apartment we pretty much need a bed, table, couple of chairs and pots and dishes straight away, not to mention towels and garbage can and such. I have a 2.5 year old dd to complicate the matters.

I am all for the reusing but I can´t see how we could make it work. There won't be helpful relatives to borrow a car close by, the friends who truly live in the area have had new babies within the last few months so not much help from there either. Plus my dh will have to start working very soon and I don't drive. We will live in a neighborhood where it is easy to be non-driver in day-to-day life but starting anew is something else.
What would you do?

[mamabear]

Couple of options:

I would look on craigslist if you're going to be in a relatively well-populated area (eg I live in the country, 1.5 hrs from where almost everything on our craigslist is listed, so it's hard). I would look on a Thursday or Friday and rent a car or pickup truck just for the weekend to pick up everything you buy on craigslist, assuming you can get 80% of what you need furniture wise from craigslist that one day.

If you can't make that work (either there isn't enough available all at once that's decent, or whatever) - will you be near an IKEA? I'd probably go to IKEA and get a cheap set of pots n pans (our "cheap" IKEA set is still going 12 years later) and inexpensive furniture. Put the 2.5 yo in the ball pit. oh you'll still probably need to rent a car if you can't borrow one.

[crazyestonian]

Thanks, I completely forgot about craig's list. Because of not being able to drive I have always been more of a walk to the actual thrift store kind of person and these online opportunities do not even occur to me. And we will have IKEA nearby, you can even get there by bus (if you don't count walking around half a mile, lol)! Our previous furniture was mostly from IKEA and after 5 years the only thing with wearmarks was the tabletop because I also did artwork there.

It is definately heavily populated area but at least a year ago freecycle was very slim on the actual daily life useful stuff. I will check craig's list out

[back2thebasics]

If you let people know your situation they might even be willing to drop off. It wouldn't hurt to put a wanted post on freecycle and ask for things to be dropped off. I know if I read it, I wouldn't have any problem dropping something off while on my way somewhere. You probably aren't moving to ND though.

Ikea will deliver their large items also. I think you can get by with bare minimums and find the other things along the way, unless you have the money to buy anything you like.

[KimberMama]

I was going to mention renting a car, or a pick up truck from a U-Haul place.

What would I do? I would start accumulating things very s-l-o-w-l-y, making sure that each item was absolutely necessary. For instance, for the kitchen I would buy (used or new, as available):

Plates, bowls, and cups for 4
A big pot for cooking in (stainless steel, enameled cast iron, or enameled tin)
A 12" iron skillet
A 3 qt. saucepan (stainless steel)
A chef's knife
A paring knife
A bread knife (if you make bread)
A stainless steel "jelly roll" pan (essentially a rimmed baking sheet), no coating
A covered casserole dish
A 9X13 stainless steel baking pan
A set of wooden spoons
A stainless steel whisk
A silicone spatula
A metal spatula (flipper)
A wood cutting board
Glass measuring cups for liquids
Stainless steel measuring cups for dry items and solids
Stainless steel measuring spoons

I use more things than this, but these are the essentials I can think of (and I can feel another kitchen declutter coming on).

For linens:

One set of sheets for each bed
One bath towel for each person
Two hand towels per bathroom
Four wash cloths
Four dish rags
4 - 7 kitchen towels (depends on how often you'll do laundry)

Furniture:

I'd start with futon mattresses, stackable, organic if possible. The actual bed can come later (if you need a couch you can get a futon frame)
A wood or metal table and 4 chairs that can take abuse
A small wood bookcase

IKEA actually notes if items are made from sustainable materials.

[xt]

Where will you be going? I actually have had to acquire doubles of a few essentials I accidentally left in Atlanta. When I go back and pick them up, I'll have an extra set of decent knives and a few other things. I'd love to mail you a package of day-to-day stuff.

Definitely check craigslist. DH and I left a LOT of our big stuff - most of the furniture - when we moved. Word of mouth, a borrowed trailer, and craigslist, and now the new house is completely furnished a month later. A friend of a friend gave us a futon frame and a futon bunkbed frame (I had to call the manufacturer for the nuts and bolts). I found mattresses on craigslist. An aunt brought over a lot of modular shelving parts that we arranged into desks, storage, etc. We found bookshelves on craigslist, a loft bed for my other son, a table, an old TV, everything we could want or need. I've spent $300 or so on everything.

[Korwynne]

if you're coming back to the seattle area, please say so.. I may have some extra stuff I can set aside for you

[crazyestonian]

I am coming back to Seattle, yes. I will definately take you up on your offer Korwynne

And wow, Kimbermama, your list is bare basics but there are things in it I never use! For one, I measure everything in glass measuring jug (cup size) and I bake a lot, as in bread pretty much every day and other stuff about 3 times per week. I have never had a covered casserole dish (I don even know what it is, maybe something like a dutch oven but shallower?) or 9x13 pan for one. Some stuff I am lugging with us too, like knives and silverware (both wedding presents) and our 8 quart pressure cooker.

It is a bit easier since a few years ago we went through a period of living in a wv camper van (travelling for 2.5 months) and I learned to manage with very little stuff. And it is my second move. Last time we shipped some stuff away about 2.5 months before moving so I learned to do without many things.

Even though we are totally ¨less is more¨ kind of people, it seems there is so much you need the first time. I have been making mental lists and it is driving me crazy Thanks for letting me share here.

I think we'll get a bed and dishes from IKEA and then start rounding up most of the other stuff via craig's list and thrift stores and word of mouth. I wish we could do organic mattress.. they seem to go for about $1500 for queen and its too much. I wish I could convince dh to go for futon. He thinks it is too uncomfortable. Dd had organic mattress but I freecycled it.

One good thing is that we don't use much elecrical stuff, like coffee maker or electric mixer (haven't had one for 7 years!) or hairdryer or tv/dvd stuff. The only appliances I plan to get are blender (the stick kind), vacuum cleaner and sewing machine. Dh has computer stuff already and our music comes from there. We don't even use electrical clocks, lol. I suppose we are just weird.

[ThirtySomething]

Originally Posted by crazyestonian

One good thing is that we don't use much elecrical stuff, like coffee maker or electric mixer (haven't had one for 7 years!) or hairdryer or tv/dvd stuff. The only appliances I plan to get are blender (the stick kind), vacuum cleaner and sewing machine. Dh has computer stuff already and our music comes from there. We don't even use electrical clocks, lol. I suppose we are just weird.

Sounds wonderful! I must have my coffee pot though!

[Kerri]

We're doing a similar thing. In one year we're moving back to New Zealand for 3 years and will be just basically starting completely from scratch when we get there. And at the same time, we'll be giving away or selling really cheap pretty-much everything we have here. We're keeping our house here to rent out and move back into when I'm done my degree. Yikes. I can't even begin to think about it all. I'm hoping we can just garage-sale for everything.

[KimberMama]

Originally Posted by crazyestonian

And wow, Kimbermama, your list is bare basics but there are things in it I never use! For one, I measure everything in glass measuring jug (cup size) and I bake a lot, as in bread pretty much every day and other stuff about 3 times per week. I have never had a covered casserole dish (I don even know what it is, maybe something like a dutch oven but shallower?) or 9x13 pan for one. Some stuff I am lugging with us too, like knives and silverware (both wedding presents) and our 8 quart pressure cooker.

LOL. I don't actually use a covered casserole dish either (1.5-3 quart pyrex type glass dish with lid). I listed it because it is versatile and inexpensive. I use a small enameled cast iron dutch oven. But for years, when we were broke, I would make Amy D's lentil-rice casserole in that dish. I would make a cabbage salad in it and take it to potlucks because it had a lid.

The 9X13 is just my recommendation of choice if one isn't going to have muffin tins (bake muffin batter into pan bats), round cake pans (bake a sheet cake), etc. You can bake in it, or cook savory dishes (stuffing, au gratin potatoes, lasagna, etc.). Those were the only two dishes I mentioned that are specifically designed for oven use.

I am happy to have glass measuring cups in larger sizes. I like a 1 cup and a 4 cup for the most versatility. I do use dry measuring cups, which are essential for accurate measuring with gluten-free goods. But then again, I could get by without them.

I have a a couple of electric appliances that I love like a programmable rice cooker and an electronic pressure cooker. We have a coffee maker that we store for when people come over and look at us like we have three heads when we say we don't make coffee everyday.

I cook every meal, every day (with few exceptions), from scratch. Breakfast will be a porridge or eggs. Lunch and dinners are similar. I make homemade stock every week, and multiple soups, and every dinner. So I'm actually glad that I don't have to start with a bare bones kitchen again, although I do like it decluttered.

This has been a fun exercise.

[BlueRoseMama]

I think that this issues isn't going to be near the issue you think it will. Just because of the way you think already. You will be going by a garage sale, and thinking wow, we could really use a larger pot. And then you go and you don't find a larger pot, and so you leave. Or you buy a good wooden spoon (because no good cook can have too many of those) and then you leave. lol... you don't buy the wall clock, arm chair, and a bag of clothes becuase they are a good deal. So you won't run into trouble finding the things that you want, because you won't be spending your money on other stuff. And you have lived here before, you know the area, so you can go to Ikea if you don't find something after a while and spend a decent (albeit not a 'wonderful' deal) amt on something and have it be new and exactly what you want.

I seriously don't think you will have an issue with this.

Creig's list is a great idea... as is Ikea. Both have great deals and you can find simi earth friendly, simple minded things there. Other than that, you can just go about your life and pick up small things that make it easier along the way.

Val

[DEandF]

Originally Posted by crazyestonian

I wish I could convince dh to go for futon. He thinks it is too uncomfortable.

We have the cheapest Ikea futon in the kids' room, and it's really not uncomfortable at all. I've slept on it (with dd), and a friend of ours slept on it a couple of times, and he is a really big guy. He thought it was comfortable too! Maybe when you get to Ikea, you can talk your dh into at least checking them out? Last time, my kids were all over the display beds...

[tara]

Does Seattle have a car share company? In Philadelphia, we have Philly CarShare (I think that's the name) where you can rent a car by the hour. You sign up as a member, and then you can reserve a car to be picked up in a specific lot at a specific day/time for a certain duration. Lots of city people use the service for things like a big weekly food shopping trip, a monthly trip to visit relatives in the far-flung suburbs, or like you said--a trip to IKEA.

Tara

[ThirtySomething]

Originally Posted by tara

Does Seattle have a car share company? In Philadelphia, we have Philly CarShare (I think that's the name) where you can rent a car by the hour. You sign up as a member, and then you can reserve a car to be picked up in a specific lot at a specific day/time for a certain duration. Lots of city people use the service for things like a big weekly food shopping trip, a monthly trip to visit relatives in the far-flung suburbs, or like you said--a trip to IKEA.

Tara

nak

BRILLIANT idea!!