Multi-Purpose Household Items That Will Save On Clutter

In the past year, I have started my transformation from Junk Collector to a Neat Minimalist. I am still nowhere close to being a Neat Minimalist but spending time with a minimalist and watching Marie Kondo’s series has started to nudge me in that direction. A great way to meet my many non-essential “needs” is to get multi-purpose products! There are a few household items that you can merge to become multi-purpose. Although I must say, a potato masher is not one of them.

Pitcher/Vase

My wonderfully clever and kind partner who is terrified of clutter once surprised me with flowers at home. Since we didn’t have a vase, he bought a very well-made and minimalist water pitcher to use as the vase. We also didn’t have a water pitcher so it was a great call to buy a 2-in-1 product. Now this only works because water pitchers and vases are not things we use on a daily basis. It was a great way for us to have one good quality, multi-purpose item rather than two items that would have probably been less well-made or more expensive (and most likely to collect dust). I did not even realise it was a water pitcher until a few days later!

Fairy Lights/Bedside Lamp

This is a not very original idea that I came up with when I was setting up my dorm room whilst studying abroad. I was trying very hard not to spend more than I needed to so I thought I could get fairy lights and skip on the bedside lamp. The fairy lights were beautiful and atmospheric when I had other lights on but also the perfect level of brightness on their own when I winding down for bedtime. They were festive in the holiday season and cozy for the other months. After I got the fairy lights, I had no need to get any other decoration items because it instantly made the room look polished and personalized (even though fairy lights are not exactly unique).

Mug/Phone Speakers

When you are travelling, chances are you will not bring anything extra. By living with this mindset for over a year, I learned to be less picky and make do with existing items for many different purposes. This mindset of adaptability and resourcefulness I have just started to grasp has been very helpful since I have moved home because it has helped me minimize on unnecessary purchases.

Phone stands are helpful and convenient but far from necessary. When I was in a meeting with my beloved classmates, one team member was sick at home so we called her from school. Since we were sitting in a circle, we needed a way to make her heard to everyone in the group. My very clever friend popped the phone in an empty mug and placed it on the floor in the middle of the circle. It magnified the phone’s speakers immensely and it was so much fun to talk to our classmate in a mug. Whenever my speakers aren’t charged and I want to listen to the Mary Poppins Returns soundtrack in the shower, I think back to this delightful memory and pop my phone into a mug.

Plants/Bookends

Anything can be used as bookends so there is really no reason to buy them. Use potted plants or stacks of books instead. Not only are they a waste of money and space but also a waste of resources. Any heavy object can be used as a bookend even if it is picked out of the recycling bin! Fill a glass jar with moss or your rock collection and you have a bookend! Of course there are exceptions so no judgement if you find an amazing set of Hogwarts Express bookends.

Water Filter/Kettle

This really amazing product has been the ultimate space-saver in our kitchen. It is a glass electric kettle and Brita filter in one! It is commendably well-made and fun to use. Although the cost is higher up front, it is a more eco-friendly, cost effective, and space-saving option.

Later on, I ended up buying the two items separately back at my parents’ house because they already had a Brita filter. However, the two items do not work nearly as well as the one item on its own. A big bonus is that it eliminates the issue with limescale in kettles and you never have to pour the water from the Brita to the kettle.