My interior design hero is Rick Rubin, the legendary music producer of mind-blowing albums such as License to Ill (1986) by The Beastie Boys, Blood Sugar Sex Magik (1991) by Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Audioslave (2002) by Audioslave.
His brilliance derives from his minimalistic approach to producing music, reducing rather than adding. His Malibu house is a reflection of his work philosophy with every room empty except for one or two defining pieces of furniture and a speaker.
“There’s a tremendous power in using the least amount of information to get a point across.” – Rick Rubin
Minimalism is difficult as our society and market economy is hellbent on adding more to everything to create the illusion of value while it mostly only creates clutter and confusion. We need to become smarter about what we let into our spaces and how we divest the non-essentials to protect our precious time, money, and attention.
Over the past two years more stuff has entered the surfshack than left and a few weeks ago I decided it was time for a radical change. I wanted my “just moved in” look back and began reducing like a music genius at work in his studio.
Three surfboards down to just one. Find what works 80 percent of the time and stick with it until the need changes.
Two outdoor lounge chairs down to just one. Keep the best, let go of the rest.
Sold all books and old tech devices, incl. bluetooth speakers and headphones. Now only borrowing library books, one at a time. New music output TBD.
Reduced the closet and sold all old fancy city and work clothes. TheRealReal luckily took everything, providing an easy consignment kit via email.
Cleaned out all sports equipment except for a performance surfboard, my mountain bike, and the kettlebell. All dropped off at Play It Again Sports.
Divested ancillary furniture; only kept vintage bed, couch, and rocking chair. Gifted, freecycled, and donated – back into the marketplace for better reuse.
During a few days I practically cut my few and very humble belongings in half to only keep what I really love and frequently use. The shack is now breathing again, spacious and clean, white-walled and close to empty looking, and I’m flush with extra cash and gift cards at my favorites sustainable brands.
The feeling of reducing, of letting go of the materialistic that induce fear in so many, is extraordinary. I feel lighter like I’ve been relieved of a very heavy physical and mental burden – feeling free again. Now I can focus on life’s essentials.
Since I began decluttering my life in general over 15 years ago I do more, read more, travel more, exercise more, cook more… you name it. I’ve exchanged mindless consumption for mindful activities that keep mind, body, and soul alive and happy.
Interior design should really be like making great music, reducing everything until there is only genius left. Just like Rick Rubin’s timeless albums.