Being a minimalist, you might be aghast that I would say such a thing. As in, “What?! I thought less was more!” Well, generally yes, however sometimes more is less. Let me explain.
For example, I have an amazing travel mug that accompanies me most everywhere. It’s called Contigo. The lid locks and it’s made of very durable stainless steel. Whether the drink is meant to be hot or cold, it stays that way a lot longer in this mug. I’ve had it for years and it’s been through a lot of trials. This one mug has saved hundreds and hundreds of disposable cups from entering the trash or recycling system.
When I go for a walk or a bike ride, the majority of trash littering the paths are disposable cups. So, you see, buying one super travel mug has created a lot less trash.
I don’t carry a purse, but I do have a little knapsack with a water bladder (I review the Deuter Race Exp Air in the linked article). Rather than buying zillions of plastic bottles of water, I purify my water at home and bring a couple of litres (or a gallon) of water with me. Buying one reusable water bag has saved all that packaging, transporting and expense as well.
Every time I need groceries, rather than acquiring new plastic shopping bags, instead I reuse cloth bags, or my bike panniers, or a plastic tote that doubles as my laundry hamper. So there’s another example of buying one item to actually prevent collecting a bunch of items later.
I have a marvellous mechanical pencil that I got as a gift. I love writing and drawing with it, more than any pencil I’ve tried. Plus I only need to replace the lead, so no trees are harmed.
Sometimes more is less.
What do you own that actually saves you from needing more later?