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Downsizing Your Life - What to bring aboard from your land home

sailawayblog
Mar 7, 2016
6 min read

Are you preparing to move aboard, and downsizing your life? Deciding what to take from your land based home to your floating home is not easy or fast business.

Our totes adorbs niece, Lila, in Missouri was curious about the process, and sent us this question:

Well, excellent question little L-Bug! Basically, you don’t know what to bring exactly, until you're sitting on your boat in the middle of nowhere craving bread, but you sold your bread pan in the downsizing process. What a morale killer!

The downsizing process is different for each person, but for everyone, prioritization is hard when you don’t know exactly what you might encounter out at sea. I sold many things back in KC, just to buy new ones once I realized I needed them aboard (eg; curtains, bread pan, and rugs). This is the list I WISH someone had given me when we downsized our 2000 square foot home into our 250 square foot sailboat. It would have saved me a lot of time and money in the long run.

Also, if you're just beginning downsizing your life, I highly recommend reading The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo, for tips on how to tackle this crazy process!

(And if you buy the book from this link above, S/V Wanderlust gets a little kickback! :) )

Without further delay, below are all the belongings from the v-berth, to the head, to the galley, that have been useful on our liveaboard home while sailing the Caribbean. The list excludes personal items like medications and toiletries, provisions, and tools (I'll have to get Ben to write about downsizing tools - stay tuned!).

First of all, here’s what NOT to bring aboard

On our 38' monohull, we don't have enough space, power, or time to have these things in our tiny floating home. Catamarans may have more luck storing items like this (and I'm green with envy!).

Multiples of non essential things (kitchen utensils, purses, shoes, etc. - It is hard, but try to pick just one)
Large appliances like a blender, microwave, coffee maker, toaster, or mixer
Formal dishware
Holiday décor
Desktop computers
Camping gear
Large exercise gear
Large power tools
TVs, DVD players, or gaming systems
Roller suitcases
Iron and ironing board
Laundry baskets
Formal attire
Loads of hair and beauty products (The sea is not kind to make-up or hairstyling! Prepare to embrace your natural beauty!)
Coats, hats, scarves, boots, gloves
Jewelry (Gold, silver, jewels and diamonds are not as widely worn in other countries as they are in the US. These items, even your wedding band, could make you a target for theft and robbery. We like to leave them with a trusted family member, or in safe storage until returning from travel.)

HERE'S WHAT YOU SHOULD BRING ABOARD:

Galley:

It is easy to overdo it in the galley. Ensure everything you bring has a necessary purpose, or multiple purposes.

Cookware and Bakeware

2 saucepans with lids
1 medium sized pot with lid
2 skillets, one big and one small, with lids
2 plastic cutting boards (one large board specifically for cleaning seafood, if your vessel doesn’t have a fish station)
1 wood cutting board (for baking)
1 collapsible strainer
2 mixing bowls
1 bread pan
1 baking sheet
1 small baking pan with lid
1 small muffin pan
1 measuring cup set
1-2 fillet knives
2 butcher knives
1 bread knife
1 knife sharpener/stone
1 measuring spoon set
1 two-cup French press (not glass)
1 immersion blender
1 oil dispenser
1 ice cube tray
1 rolling pin

Utensils

1 whisk
1 spatula
2-3 serving spoons
1 tongs
1 ice pick
1 wooden spoon
1 can opener
1 wine/bottle opener
1 pizza cutter
1 meat tenderizing mallet
1 grill scraper
2-4 long stemmed lighters

Dinner Ware

6 plates
4 drinking glasses
4 cocktail/wine glasses
6 forks, steak knives, butter knives, and spoons
4 coffee mugs
2 travel mugs with lids
2 canteen water bottles

Linens

6 kitchen towels
4 pot holders/oven mitts
6 cloth napkins
6 knee socks (used to protect glasses, wine and liquor bottles)

Food Storage:

5-10 large (1 gallon or more) airtight storage containers
5-10 small airtight storage containers
6 mason jars (for refrigerator storage and also extra drink glasses for guests)
2 storage hammocks

Head

Bathroom essentials.

Linens

4 bath towels
4 hand towels
4 wash cloths
Shower curtain

Organization

3-4 small bins or baskets for organization
2-3 wall hooks

Personal Care & Hygiene

Hair cutting scissors
Beard trimmers
Hair clippers
Hand soap dispenser (not glass)
Toilet brush with cover
Plunger
Small wastebasket with lid
Basic first aid kit

V-Berth & Accommodations

Sleeping soundly afloat

3 queen or king size blankets (more if you have more berths)
6 queen or king size sheet sets, including fitted, top and pillowcases
2 throw blankets
3-4 pillows
2-3 throw pillows
Alarm clock
Small lamp/reading light

Salon & Décor

This is one area that I misunderstood – thinking décor wouldn’t matter on a boat! I’ve learned this is probably even more important on the water than on land, to really make your boat feel like the home that it is. Keep your favorite items instead of wasting money to buy new, and alter things if necessary to make them fit on board.

2-4 small interior rugs
1 small outdoor mat
2-4 8x12 or smaller wall frames with your favorite artwork
4-5 throw pillows
4-6 curtain panels (even if you don’t need the curtains, you could use the material to make new items)
3-5 storage baskets or bins
1 corkboard for the navigation station or galley
1-2 throw blankets
Wall clock

Clothing & Beachwear

Consider creating a “capsule wardrobe” to fit into your limited space. Stock your closet with only your favorite color-coordinated items, and purchase any new things before arriving to tourist destinations.

Note: Cruising the Caribbean, we’ve had no need for foul weather clothing, or “foulies,” and have done fine with light waterproof jackets and pants. However cruisers traveling to colder destinations should seek other advice on foul weather gear.

For Her:

5 sundresses
1 semi-casual little black dress (that can be dressed up for formal occasions)
1 maxi dress
1 cardigan
3-5 shorts
5-10 t-shirts/tank tops
1-2 hoodies or fleece
2-3 sets exercise/lounge clothes
2-3 sandals
1 closed toe casual shoes (deck shoes or tennis shoes)
3 pair socks
1 parka or light outdoors waterproof jacket
1 waterproof track/outdoor pants
1 sunhat
1-2 polarized sunglasses
1 pair closed toe water shoes or booties
5-10 swimsuits
2 sarongs/swim cover ups
2 rash guard/wetsuit shirts
1 backpack
1-2 purses

For Him:

7-10 t-shirts
1 polo or button down shirt
1 pair khaki pants
2 pair shorts
1-2 set exercise/lounge clothes
1-2 hoodies or fleece
1 parka or light outdoors waterproof jacket
1 waterproof track/outdoor pants
3 pair socks
2 pair sandals
1 pair casual closed toe shoes (deck shoes or tennis shoes)
1 sunhat
1-2 polarized sunglasses
1 pair closed toe water shoes or booties
3-5 swim trunks
2 rash guard/wetsuit shirts
1 backpack

Personal Electronics & Entertainment

Things to keep you connected and amused.

Laptop
Kindle/IPad, stocked with movies and books
Smartphone with GPS capability (for anchor alarm, Active Captain, and Garmin Blue Charts)
Digital Camera
External storage device
Bluetooth waterproof speaker
10-15 DVDs
5-10 books (If this doesn’t sound like enough, remember you will encounter book exchanges at many marinas and cruising destinations)
Musical instruments