A year & a half ago, this little turquoise book hit the stands & I was completely oblivious to it. Over the course of the next 12ish months, I began to hear about a book claiming to contain the secret to cleaning up your space which will ultimately transform your life. The author, Marie Kondo, makes a bold claim...follow her course & you will NEVER be un-tidy again. NEVER! If you know me, being a bit "un-tidy" is all part of my charm & something I constantly struggling with. After a long work day, between laundry, dinner, the dogs, exercising, the reading challenge, my DVR (priorities people) oh & spending time with Joey...the last thing on my to-do list is clean/organize my house.
Even though this book was receiving rave reviews & became a NYT Best Seller, it still didn't motivate me to pick up a copy. Then I came to a category in the reading challenge, "A book originally written in another language." I was unsure what I was going to read until I discovered Marie's book was originally written in Japanese & translated to English. BINGO. I could read this book & possibly learn how to be a neater human being. #Winning!
"People cannot change their habits without first changing their way of thinking"
Even though this book was receiving rave reviews & became a NYT Best Seller, it still didn't motivate me to pick up a copy. Then I came to a category in the reading challenge, "A book originally written in another language." I was unsure what I was going to read until I discovered Marie's book was originally written in Japanese & translated to English. BINGO. I could read this book & possibly learn how to be a neater human being. #Winning!
To help give a better understanding of the book, I turn to goodreads for their summary of the book.
This guide to decluttering your home from Japanese cleaning consultant Marie Kondo takes readers step-by-step through her revolutionary KonMari Method for simplifying, organizing, and storing.
Despite constant efforts to declutter your home, do papers still accumulate like snowdrifts and clothes pile up like a tangled mess of noodles? Japanese cleaning consultant Marie Kondo takes tidying to a whole new level, promising that if you properly simplify and organize your home once, you’ll never have to do it again. Most methods advocate a room-by-room or little-by-little approach, which doom you to pick away at your piles of stuff forever. The KonMari Method, with its revolutionary category-by-category system, leads to lasting results. In fact, none of Kondo’s clients have lapsed (and she still has a three-month waiting list). With detailed guidance for determining which items in your house “spark joy” (and which don’t), this book featuring Tokyo’s newest lifestyle phenomenon will help you clear your clutter and enjoy the unique magic of a tidy home—and the calm, motivated mindset it can inspire
Despite constant efforts to declutter your home, do papers still accumulate like snowdrifts and clothes pile up like a tangled mess of noodles? Japanese cleaning consultant Marie Kondo takes tidying to a whole new level, promising that if you properly simplify and organize your home once, you’ll never have to do it again. Most methods advocate a room-by-room or little-by-little approach, which doom you to pick away at your piles of stuff forever. The KonMari Method, with its revolutionary category-by-category system, leads to lasting results. In fact, none of Kondo’s clients have lapsed (and she still has a three-month waiting list). With detailed guidance for determining which items in your house “spark joy” (and which don’t), this book featuring Tokyo’s newest lifestyle phenomenon will help you clear your clutter and enjoy the unique magic of a tidy home—and the calm, motivated mindset it can inspire
Ok got that? To be a bit more clear, Marie's book breaks down her two-pronged approach to tidying...& I use the word tidying because I it is Marie's favorite word (she uses that word A LOT.) Prong 1: put your hands on basically everything you own & ask yourself if this item "sparks joy"...yes, please ask yourself, "Does this shoe bring me happiness?" If it does, you keep it. If it doesn't? You purge without looking back. If you aren't sure, set it aside & ask yourself once again a bit later. Once only your joy-inducing items remain, then comes the fun of organizing & putting in a place where it is visible & easily accessible.
"Keep only those things that speak to your heart"
Sounds simple enough, right? But where to begin! Marie breaks down the process into categories & in each category, there are subcategories. It is extremely important to follow this order of tidying:
1. Clothes
2. Books
3. Papers
4. Komono (miscellaneous)
5. Momentos
Alright Kondo, I read your book & while I might be your most challenging client (& possibly the exception to your 100% success rate) I am ready to tidy up my life once & for all. She recommends doing the entire purge in one fell swoop...but if you're like me & don't have a spare week (or five) of time, then break it up- just make sure to complete each category in consecutive days.
OK Confession. I actually lied just a bit...I finished the book last week & have already tackled category #1. If you follow me on Instagram (if not, follow me @ Raalph120) then you're already aware of my lies. Since I had a 3 day weekend (thank you for my first ever Presidents Day off!) I thought it'd be the perfect time to dive into what I knew was going to be the most difficult category for me.
Let me back up a bit, for 5 years I was lucky enough to live in apartments with walk-in-closets & even though they were small, they still held a ton. Then we moved into the condo 2.5 years ago (cue sad music) & I said goodbye to my beautiful walk-ins (I know, POOR ME!) & hello to one of the most basic, poorly planned closets ever. Just don't get me started on the impracticality of the doors & my inability to be able to see the entire closet at one time. I started this blog with a promise to always keep it real so I'll give you a peak at what my closet looks like on the regular *hides face in shame* even though I'd normally just close the doors & hide my sins.
Yeah, that looks pretty. The top row of clothes ain't so bad, but you'd never know there is a 2nd row of clothing hanging below. So how did I do with Category #1? Check back on Monday for the results! (I know you're all really dying of suspense) Have a wonderful weekend!
"A dramatic reorganization of the home causes correspondingly dramatic changes in lifestyle and perspective. It is life transforming."
Let me back up a bit, for 5 years I was lucky enough to live in apartments with walk-in-closets & even though they were small, they still held a ton. Then we moved into the condo 2.5 years ago (cue sad music) & I said goodbye to my beautiful walk-ins (I know, POOR ME!) & hello to one of the most basic, poorly planned closets ever. Just don't get me started on the impracticality of the doors & my inability to be able to see the entire closet at one time. I started this blog with a promise to always keep it real so I'll give you a peak at what my closet looks like on the regular *hides face in shame* even though I'd normally just close the doors & hide my sins.
Yeah, that looks pretty. The top row of clothes ain't so bad, but you'd never know there is a 2nd row of clothing hanging below. So how did I do with Category #1? Check back on Monday for the results! (I know you're all really dying of suspense) Have a wonderful weekend!
"Once you have experienced what it's like to have a truly ordered house, you'll feel your whole world brighten. Never again will you revert to clutter. This is what I call the magic of tidying. And the effects are stupendous. Not only will you never be messy again, but you'll also get a new start on life."
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