The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up

It's Hump Day!  Hope your week is going well!  

Let's face it.  With all the clothes, shoes and accessories (oh, the accessories!) we collect, our closets can get a little unmanageable at times.  Enter the KonMarie Method.  

Unless you've been living under a rock, you've probably heard of this wildly popular book called The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up.  The author, Marie Kondo, is a now world-renowned cleaning consultant from Japan who has revolutionized the way we keep house.  After seeing a blurb about this book a few weeks back, I decided to see what the fuss was all about.  

Right off the bat, I felt as if Kondo was speaking directly to me (as I'm sure is the case with most of her readers).  She pin points every possible rationale I have for holding on to items that inevitably turn into unwanted clutter.  Apparently,  LOTS of people have the same reservations when it comes to parting with their belongings.  As a result, Kondo has developed a very concise formula for this problem.  Simply put: keep only the items that spark joy and discard all others.

There is also a strong element of anthropomorphism which I (strangely?) identified with.  I admit- I have been known to feel sorry for discarded furniture or electronics, much to the amusement of my husband.  But Kondo actually advocates having such relationships with one's belongings as a way to  respect the role they play in your day-to-day life.

While I felt some of her suggestions were a bit over the top, like decluttering your entire house in one sitting, um who has time for that? her method as a whole is refreshing, unique and well thought out.  Following her formula, we have painlessly discarded three full bags of clothes with half our wardrobes to go!  A little teaser for ya, this right here is the BEST tip in the book:  

You'll have to read it to find out the reasoning behind this but let me tell you, it makes getting dressed in the morning so much easier! 

While I've still got a ways to go in achieving a clutter-free home, I would definitely recommend this book.  It's a quick read and offers a fresh way to approach the often enormous task of getting your home in order.  

Have you tried the KonMari Method?  What did you think?