The Life Changing Magic Of Tidying Up

I was at a bookstore this weekend and was browsing through the best-sellers, and came upon this book by Marie Kondo.  I was intrigued and am still thinking about the book on this Monday morning, so I decided to buy the Kindle version.  I’m excited to get to reading it and hope that it will give me the bit of inspiration I need to get my spring organization into action!

Here are some things I have learned about the book from around the web:

WHAT IS THE KONMARI METHOD?

The Konmari Method was created by Japanese organising expert Marie Kondo and is described in her book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing.

Kondo’s theory is that we are happiest when we are surrounded by things we love.  The Konmari method consists of gathering together everything you own and then keeping only those things which ‘spark joy’.  You hold every item before you decide what you want to do with it, and items that are not kept are thanked for their service, which, believe it or not, makes it easier to let things go.  Key points in the Konmari method include decluttering by category and using efficient storage methods.

DECLUTTERING BY CATEGORY

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up espouses a specific order of decluttering by category.  You begin with clothes, then books, then papers and finally Komono, or miscellaneous items such as CDs, skincare products and electrical items.  You finish up with photos and other sentimental items because they are the most difficult to part with.

EFFICIENT STORAGE METHODS

Marie Kondo advocates carefully storing items so that they are well cared for and easy to find.  For example, she suggests folding clothes so that sit upright in your drawers and allowing socks to rest by not rolling them up into balls.

 

{a short video of Marie folding an underwear drawer}

BASICS OF THE KONMARI METHOD

{source}

1. Discard first, store later.

You cannot organize clutter.  The first step is to get rid of everything you don’t need.

 

2. Tidy a little a day and you’ll be tidying forever.

“Tidying is a special event.  Don’t do it every day.” If you do the job right, once and completely, you won’t have to do it again.

 

3. Storage experts are hoarders.

“Putting things away creates the illusion that the clutter problem has been solved.” But organized clutter is still clutter.

 

4. Sort by category, not location.

“Tidying up by location his a fatal mistake.” Sort by category instead, in the following order: Clothes, books, papers, miscellany, and then things with sentimental value.

 

5. “Does this spark joy?”

If it does, keep it.  If it doesn’t, get rid of it. (Important documents not included, but there are fewer of these than you’d think)

 

6. Never pile things.

Vertical storage is the key.  Stacking has two problems: you can stack much more that you can store vertically (not a plus if you’re aiming for clutter-free:, and stacking is hard on the things at the bottom.

 

7. Learn how to fold.

Kondo is adamant about proper folding technique, which enables you to store things standing up rater than laid flat.  This method is amazing for visual types, because you can see everything at a glance, much more effectively than you can if your clothes are hanging or vertically stacked.

………………..

I’m eager to read the book & will let you know if I use the techniques.

Does this appeal to you? Have you read the book?

For more KonMari inspiration, check out these Kon Mari Pinterest Boards.