Simple Challenge #2 – Spice it up
September 22, 2012 in Simple Challenge
Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Hey there,
How did you do on last weeks challenge?
I already have a pretty small wardrobe but when I went through I ended up putting away 2 dresses, sandals, and a shirt. I also got rid of a swim suit(plus cover-up) and 1 shirt (that I have held onto forever because it looks alright but I hate wearing it). Down 7 things! 
I love as little as possible in the closet because it makes it easier to keep neat and easier to find what to wear. I have a pair of khakis and a that I haven’t worn for a while, but otherwise I have worn everything in my closet in the past month.
Ready for your next challenge?
Spice it up… or spice it down, however you want to look at it. Go through your spices and clear out anything:
- past due date
- you can’t remember using … or don’t know what it is
- you don’t have a recipe that calls for it
Also clear out spices you don’t like or spices you you have purchased too much of. I did this last year with my spices and gave duplicate jars or extra spice (purchased in bulk) to friends.
Spices are great and I love cooking with them! However, I have my favorites that I like using and the fresher the better for flavor.
Do your cupboard and your cooking a f(L)avor and clear them out.
What are some of your favorite spices to keep?
Some of my favorites are basil, cilantro, dill, cinnamon, and nutmeg… I will see what else I find up there when I go through this week too
I have pared down my wardrobe a lot over the past month, but I still feel like I have too much clothing. My husband and I are both working towards a basic, ten-item mix and match wardrobe for each season. Since we live somewhere with four seasons, in the summer we will swap out pants for shorts and in the winter we will layer with hoodies, but we do not want to have more than 10-20 items each of clothing, total. The challenge with this is that we want the bones of our basic wardrobes to be clothing that is high quality, versatile, and that reflects our personal style, so we are not just getting rid of much of what we have right now, because we are going to be coming thrift stores and sales racks to replace worn or ugly items with items we love. Anyway, this past week I did get rid of a yellow sweater I’ve been hanging on to (I used to love it but it shrunk), a pair of black pants with a button missing, and some old t-shirts that won’t mix and match well. I’m also putting aside a cashmere sweater (that I’ve worn a total of two times!) to sell at a consignment shop. I wanted cashmere so bad that I put “own a cashmere item” on my goals list for one year(!), only to find that it really itches.
awesome! I don’t think I have every gotten down to 20 items. I am sure it is possible though
I went through the spice drawer today and got rid of quite a few things!!! Arrowroot powder, cream of tartar, and garam masala – out of date, never opened, and have no idea what they would be used for, so OUT THEY WENT!! : )
Also had quite a few items that came from my Mom’s spices, from when I was a kid (ummm…yeah, that is at least 25-30 years old) so pitched those!! *S* Some of my own spices which went back to 2007 expiration dates have also hit the trash can. Much roomier in the spice drawer, but no things are sliding around, so going to have to work on a solution to hold the good ones in place!! : )
I tossed 12 spices, but I had trouble finding expiration dates on many. That is probably a sign they are old! I still have too many, but I am only beginning to learn the minimal lifestyle. We got rid of about 6-8 boxes of various items about 6 months ago, so I figured I would join the challenges and see what happens…
Virginia, great to have you! I know some of mine don’t have expiration dates and just have a ‘packaged on’ date. …not sure how long they are supposed to last. Right now I am about 2 years on a few that I bought in bulk (right before we decided to simplify).
[...] did the challenge go last week? How did your spice cupboard [...]
Do this challenge tonight! So excited. I have so many spices to dash (no pun intended)away!! I have even rancid sunflower seeds. Ugh!
these are great little challenges…just to make a small change that when added to other small changes has a BIG impact!
thanks so much!
Thank you for the inspiration to do this. I will never use that massive Jar of Fennel Seed…
haha, …understand… I think I may have had a large jar of those too.