Lately I’ve been watching a lot of YouTube videos on the topics of decluttering, organising, and slow and simple living. As I was watching I thought it would be useful to write a post about my favourite (and top three recommended) simple living YouTubers for anyone else wanting to ease into a more sustainable, simple, spacious life.
The following three YouTube channels I recommend aren’t specifically about decluttering and organising, although they do discuss these topics and provide useful actionable tips. What I find is that watching these slow living YouTubers inspires me to simplify my life, often setting me off on a decluttering and organising session around my own home.
By setting a wonderful example of how to live sustainably, intentionally, simply with less, and honouring nature through art and lifestyle, I’d like to follow their example and adopt parts of their lifestyles that work for me and my unique circumstances. Maybe you’ll find them just as inspiring.
Let’s get into it!
1) Fairyland Cottage
Most of my YouTube search history last month was videos from Fairyland Cottage.
From her home in Ireland, Niamh talks about sustainable and simple living, with some cosy baking, eco-friendly products made by her, clutter clearing, and minimalism tips.
Her videos that often centre around the home or in nature are uplifting and soothing to the soul in an often hectic world.
One idea of hers that I’ve been implementing (in my own way) is to schedule just one thing each day as the focus and priority, and then have smaller tasks as well rather than over-scheduling. I’d much rather under-schedule with room to add more quality things than over-schedule and overwhelm and exhaust myself.
My favourite topics that she discusses in her videos are:
- Simplifying life
- Slow living
- Self care, health and wellbeing
- Walks in nature and nature sounds, including out in her garden
- Zero waste and sustainable living (including home made products)
- Baking and recipe-making videos – her channel started out as “The Little Irish Kitchen” before she renamed the channel “Fairyland Cottage”
2) TheCottageFairy
Another fairy-named channel is Paola’s channel, TheCottageFairy. She’s an artist, author of “The Cottage Fairy Companion”, YouTuber and ETSY shop owner (linked here) who works in a bookstore – an introvert’s dream.
Each week I look forward to her videos about life in her cottage, and am inspired by her interior decorating, baking, and slow adventures in nature. It’s lovely to see someone like me who is also naturally inclined to live at a slower pace as an introvert and uses her precious energy wisely.
On her channel, she has categorised her video playlists into the seasons. I love watching her winter videos where she ventures out into the snow or shows the frosty natural surrounds, while I’m watching in my underwear with cold herbal tea sweating it out in an Australian summer heatwave.
Videos from the northern hemisphere, for me in the southern hemisphere, are so interesting to watch with such striking seasonal differences.
I began watching her videos when she lived in her little rural one room cottage, and particularly loved watching the footage of her animals, especially of Mr Darcy the rabbit (who has since passed away). Her walks in nature and other footage of baking and creating works of art have also been inspiring.
While she doesn’t focus on decluttering and organising and is definitely not a minimalist, Paola reminds me in her videos of what’s important to me, what I really value, so that it makes simplifying my life and decluttering and organising my home much easier.
I enjoy tuning in every week to see the next instalment.
3) Madisun Gray
Most of my YouTube search history this month is videos from Madisun Gray. Talking about decluttering, extreme minimalism, and slow living, she has inspired me to really take a look at how I’m living my life and make some positive changes.
In her relaxed and relaxing videos each week, she authentically and humbly shares the way that she does minimalism and slow living, and encourages everyone to do things in the way that is right for them. She is transparent about how her practices aren’t perfect, aren’t for everyone, and that she doesn’t have everything figured out yet. Dare I say, relatable.
One thing in particular that interests me about her is the “mom stuff” that she discusses, for example how she goes about raising her two children with child-led learning and home schooling with an emphasis on life skills and the outdoors.
The other thing that interests me is her approach to creating a simple life in an urban setting – not out in the rural middle of nowhere where I’d like to live eventually in my cottage by the woods, but right in the thick of busyness and managing to still live a slow and non-toxic life with her family. How we live matters more than where we live.
Her videos are full of inspiring and useful information, presented with a lovely relaxed vibe that makes me feel calmer after I’ve watched them.
She manages to live a slow and simple minimalist life in an urban setting (but has possibly moved to another location at the time of writing this, or by the time you’re reading this) with her husband and two kids, and that to me is inspiring.
Final Thoughts
So these are just three of my favourite and recommended slow and simple living YouTubers, who in their own unique ways have inspired me to look at my own life, and decide what kind of life I want to create for myself every day by slowing down and living more intentionally. A continual work in progress!
Let me know what you think of these inspiring YouTube channels! Also let me know at [email protected] if you have any slow living YouTubers or videos that you’ve found particularly insightful or inspiring. I’d love to hear your quiet thoughts.
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Much love,
