Feeling like you can’t move forward without your dream homestead property? Start homesteading without living on a Homestead by learning new skills, becoming an expert researcher, and preparing for your future, right now!
The Calling to Self-Sufficiency
I did not realize I had a desire to own land, livestock or a homestead; It was not the way I grew up and it definitely wasn’t a common dream amongst my peers. I grew up with a small garden in our suburban backyard and looked forward to having my own little yard and garden someday. But when the world was turned upside down in 2020, becoming more self-sufficient and less reliant on the mainstream comforts of modern life became top priority. But, I was living in an apartment with no way to grow a garden, raise any of my own food, or homestead…
How to Start Preparing for your Homestead Dream Today
I like to say my homesteading journey started back in that apartment in the middle of the city. I spent those few years absorbing whatever information I could get my hands on about self-sufficiency and gardening. Homesteading YouTube channels taught me so much of what I would need to know when I was actually able to buy my own piece of dirt. Some of the best info I found on YouTube was from Jess at Roots and Refuge, Sarah and Kevin from Living Traditions Homestead, and Jessica from Three Rivers Homestead. I have been watching these channels for years and still find them to have some of the most relevant and valuable homesteading information on YouTube today!
Start Homesteading with Cooking and Food Storage
I also spent a lot of time learning to cook from scratch. I have always loved cooking and being creative with food. But, I didn’t realize how much I relied on premade and packaged convenience items. With all the fear floating around before the major shutdowns in the early months of 2020, I bought whatever pantry staples I could get my hands on (of what little was even left on the shelves at that point).
As those quarantine days turned into weeks, and those weeks turned into months, those pantry items sat on my shelves. I realized I had never cooked dried beans before nor had I ever used a packet of yeast. It was time to get creative and avoid letting those items go to waste. I learned how to soak beans for faster cooking times, how to make delicious rolls with those yeast packets, and I tried more baked good recipes than I ever had before.
With homesteading goals always in the back of my mind, food storage was top priority. I learned about how to store foods properly for maximum shelf life. What items stored best in the freezer, refrigerator, or in a dark and cool pantry. I learned that having my pantry stocked with staple ingredients was not only responsible in case items became unavailable at the store when I needed them, but was a great way to save time and money because I had everything I needed at home already when I got that late night chocolate chip cookie craving.
Start Homesteading by Growing your own Food
I spent years wanting nothing more than my own property to get my hands in the dirt and start growing. I truly believed I couldn’t start homesteading without a homestead. But, I researched where our food came from, how it’s made, and how it’s grown. The fire was officially lit inside me to do what I could and grow as much of my own food as I was possibly able. I prepared as best I could for where I was at in my life at that time.
I learned about starting seedlings at home and what supplies I would need to successfully grow my own garden. Handwritten lists of varieties to grow found themselves all over my home. Check out my post about how to start seedlings indoors for more information. I read about keeping backyard chickens and which breeds were best for egg production. Shopping at the local farmers market became a habit and I ate the foods that were in season. I talked to anyone and everyone that would listen about my dream to live a self-sufficient life. I did everything I could to prepare for when that day would finally come and I would own my very first piece of land!
This is all meant to encourage you to appreciate where you are at in your homesteading, gardening, or self-sufficiency journey. Some days, it will feel impossible to believe that you will ever get to start homesteading on an actual homestead. But, don’t waste your time just waiting. Start now!
How to Start Homesteading Without a Homestead
- Grow some herbs in a pot in the window.
- Become an expert researcher on the topic that you are passionate about.
- Visit your local farmer’s market and start cooking with seasonal produce. Learn how to preserve what is in season by freezing, dehydrating, or canning.
- Talk to family members with experience or others who are currently living the lifestyle you want to live. Listen to their experiences. Facebook groups can be wonderful resources from people in your local area and beyond.
- Try your hand at a new skill like sewing or candle making. You can find how-to videos on almost anything on YouTube.
- DIY or build something and learn how to use basic tools.
There are endless ways to grow your skill set and prepare yourself for the life you want to live. You will be so glad that you spent this time learning these skills now so you can maximize your time and resources later on. Comparing your journey to others is the easiest way to bog yourself down. You have probably heard the saying by Desmond Tutu, “There is only one way to eat an elephant: a bite at a time.” It means even the most daunting of tasks can be accomplished if you break it down, and only worry about the single “bite” that is in front of you right now. So don’t wait! Start today, make a list of a few items you can do right now, right where you are, today!
More Resources on Homesteading
Check out my series on Gardening for Beginners, or keeping Backyard Chickens to learn more.
Azure Standard is a fantastic resources for high quality bulk food and other products. If you are interested, read through my post on how Azure Standard works. This is a great place to find items in bulk quantities to start stocking your pantry.
I hope you enjoyed this peek into Life at Metzger Acres.
Nice post! I’m still on a journey to homesteading, so this hits home and reminds me that it’s definitely a journey with trial and error and research. Learning and honing skills is the priceless treasure. I may never get a 100% fully functional homestead, but I can get pretty darn close! Congrats on achieving yours!
Thanks, Christie! Don’t give up on that dream, it is so so worth it!
Appreciate the encouragement! ☺️
Same!! So much to start learning and available to learn before you even own the land. Starting in the kitchen is easy. Start subbing out one bought item for an item you grew. Oregano has been an easy start for us. I don’t have a need to buy my oregano any more. I have it fresh – and – got a dehydrator off of Freecycle, so I pick and dehydrate my own to use year-round. Small changes can help prevent overwhelm.
This is great! You are so right, small changes will help prevent you from getting overwhelmed. But, it is also the compounding effect of a small change every week or every month will add up to BIG changes over time! Keep it up!
Great tips! So many people are looking for places to start getting more self-sufficient.
Wow!! Thanks for sharing, this was good information and so encouraging Congratulations on your homestead!!
Suburban homesteader here in Virginia. We only have .95 acres but use it wisely. Big garden for veggies, grow a lot of herbs (I’m an herbalist), have elderberries, blackberries and raspberries. We want chickens but because of zoning rules, we can only have 4. But there’s only 2 of us, that’s probably enough. We both grew up poor farm kids, so we were raised to be as self sufficient as possible. I can, dry and freeze as much as we possibly can. I see, quilt, make jewelry and soap. We are both in our 60’s so we’ve being doing this a long time. Next major purchase after chickens, plan on putting in a few apple and pear trees, but there’s several nearby orchards, so we’ve delayed this. But seeing how expensive apples were this fall, we will be moving quicker on purchase.
WOW! Thank you for sharing, Mary. I love hearing where other are in their homesteading lifestyle and journey! I highly recommend getting chickens! They are so much fun and such a blessing to have around.
Starting my homesteading journey in a New Jersey condo that has no sunlight because our backyard is woods. FUN challenge that I am up for! My daughter and I always dream of living on a farm. I can’t give her a farm yet, but I can give her the knowledge on how to prepare for one.. if we ever get there. I grow indoor herbs, learning to pickle, and just made my first batch of yeast from scratch. Next step is conquering breads and soaking up all the information we can. Looking forward to our wins/fails as we continue to grow!
I love this! You have to start somewhere, and right where you are is perfect. I wish I would have started preparing for farm life way before I actually did. You will not regret any time you spend preparing! Good luck!
Where did you get labels for the azure jars? I have jars but need the labels. Love them.
Hi Cindy,
I make all my labels on my Cricut Joy machine!