"People tell you you need all this stuff for a baby. All you really need is diapers, a place to change him and boobs."
--mom/ceramicist Kelly Breslin, who shares a tricked out, 380-sf, converted bachelor pad in Echo Park with baby Thurston and baby daddy/South Willard guru Ryan Conder, who have all heard about co-sleeping, but have apparently opted not to try Elimination Communication, in the Los Angeles Times.
Small space living - by design [latimes via ready for the house]
people who live like that are an inspiration. And, how right about the needs of babies. Actually I have seen several youtube videos about this recent trend towards minimalist living. Minimalist without being uncomfortable -- not like hobo living. It's economical, ecological, and much less stressful. Thanks.
How right this is - I used to freak out about all of the stuff I thought we needed whenever we went anywhere with our baby, and my husband would say, "Do you have diapers? Do you have your breasts? OK, I think we're set." Also, I've just started reading the Dr. Sears books (which are not new, of course), and he says something along the lines of, save yourself the expense of all of the plastic swings, saucers, and other crap, and just buy a sling and a bigger bed. Wish I'd read that advice years ago. ;)
"When you have this small space, every decision is critical," Conder says. "You can only have things that fit within the scale of this space. And these are all things I have wanted for a long time. Everyone needs to question the idea of what we really need." (Emphasis added.)
How about some, oh, toys? Of course baby wouldn't want those, and besides, they might crowd your collection of noted ceramics and vintage Japanese textiles. Smug, self-involved...ahem.
Can you tell this annoyed me? We also have a 9 month old, also live in a tiny space, and I'm also happy to do so because it gives me the freedom to stay home with the kid; however, when the time came we got rid of *our* stuff to make room for the kid to have fun. There's nothing minimalist about this house, it's just that all the crap belongs to the grown-ups and has a cooler pedigree.
yeah, somehow I can tell this annoyed you; must be my highly attuned sense of sarcasm. Why not take it up with the writer of the LA TImes piece, or the stylist who may have hauled a giant plastic Exersaucer out to the driveway for the photoshoot?
If the kid plays with vintage Danish teak salad bowls and handcarved wooden spoons all day but it doesn't make it into the article, is he still abused and neglected?
Thanks! It is cool to know that people liked the article.
Oh, and yeah baby T has a TON of toys, all tucked away for the photo shoot. Stock pots, wooden spoons, rubber balls from germany, a fancy french giraffe, indian drums, sticks, rocks, stuffed animals, books, a toy piano, a wire toy with beads, a rain stick and a mess of trucks and little toy people and animals.
And besides, what's point of an inheritance if it is all junk.