Konmari (the life-changing Magic of tidying up)
- Thread starter emilu
- Start date
Found my Art of Tidying Up under a pile of miscellaneous ‘stuff’ in my office this morning ... 
Found my Art of Tidying Up under a pile of miscellaneous ‘stuff’ in my office this morning ...
H
I am really considering doing this, but I have a fear of letting go of things. What if I will want it back in 10 years? That actually happens once in a while, and then I go and retrive said item from the basement.
Also: what to do with the stuff I am letting go?
I want it to go to good homes, and I know there is no way I can guarantee that.
I know this is just stuff without feelings, but it is really hard for me. This sounds so silly when I look at it in writing.
The things that will be the hardest for me to part with are clothes/accessories, books and smaller interior-decorations.
I am thinking of doing it like this:
The things I am sure that I can let go of, I do. The ones I am uncertain of, I put in a box in the basement and go back to.
Have any of you done it that way?
I don’t know if it is “against” the Konmari-method, I have only watched the Netflix show.
Any advice and input will be highly appreciated ❤️
I am really considering doing this, but I have a fear of letting go of things. What if I will want it back in 10 years? That actually happens once in a while, and then I go and retrive said item from the basement.
Also: what to do with the stuff I am letting go?
I want it to go to good homes, and I know there is no way I can guarantee that.
I know this is just stuff without feelings, but it is really hard for me. This sounds so silly when I look at it in writing.
The things that will be the hardest for me to part with are clothes/accessories, books and smaller interior-decorations.
I am thinking of doing it like this:
The things I am sure that I can let go of, I do. The ones I am uncertain of, I put in a box in the basement and go back to.
Have any of you done it that way?
I don’t know if it is “against” the Konmari-method, I have only watched the Netflix show.
Any advice and input will be highly appreciated ❤️
To sum up KonMari- everything came into your life for a reason. If it makes your life better and makes you happer, keep it so that you can appreciate it. If it used to improve your life, but isn’t now - let it go. Let it find the life it’s supposed to live.
No one needs photos where people look bad, toys that are rotting, or linen which doesn’t fit the table.
No one needs photos where people look bad, toys that are rotting, or linen which doesn’t fit the table.
Thank you! That makes so much sense
I’ll continue reading this thread, I’m only missing 1/3 of it.
I think that with the popularity explosion, a lot of people are applying KonMari as a form of virtue or a form of status. “I’m well off enough I live in a insta-ready home!”
But I don’t think that is the intention in KonMari. I found it fascinating that Kondo worked as a miko because I see a lot of Shinto beliefs in KonMari. There is her heavy emphasis on ritual, (thanking the home, thanking the discarded items, covering the eyes of discarded toys, renewing charms) and the idea that beloved things possess kami
But I don’t think that is the intention in KonMari. I found it fascinating that Kondo worked as a miko because I see a lot of Shinto beliefs in KonMari. There is her heavy emphasis on ritual, (thanking the home, thanking the discarded items, covering the eyes of discarded toys, renewing charms) and the idea that beloved things possess kami
I have started now, although not in the KonMari order, and only little by little as I am home alone with our baby.
I found 3 spare sets of cutlery to donate. I have asked a few friends that are moving away from home/moving to a bigger place, if they want them. There is a quality set and two IKEA sets. We already have cutlery for 12 people and our appartment is not big enough for that, so in the rare case that we would need more, we’d have to borrow from my parents.
I did my closet this summer, so I only have what I wear and can fit. And it looks beautiful. I can show pictures if anyone wants to see. My underwear is not folded the KonMari way, but I have very little (3 sets with 3-5 pairs of panties for each bra) so it is very easy to spot which is which. I need to try to fold my sock, pantyhose and tandtops (worn as camisoles) the KonMari-way, even though it is still very simple now as well. I don’t have much clothes, never did. Other stuff though [emoji1]
Books will be difficult for me. So I think I’ll do the kitchen first.
I found 3 spare sets of cutlery to donate. I have asked a few friends that are moving away from home/moving to a bigger place, if they want them. There is a quality set and two IKEA sets. We already have cutlery for 12 people and our appartment is not big enough for that, so in the rare case that we would need more, we’d have to borrow from my parents.
I did my closet this summer, so I only have what I wear and can fit. And it looks beautiful. I can show pictures if anyone wants to see. My underwear is not folded the KonMari way, but I have very little (3 sets with 3-5 pairs of panties for each bra) so it is very easy to spot which is which. I need to try to fold my sock, pantyhose and tandtops (worn as camisoles) the KonMari-way, even though it is still very simple now as well. I don’t have much clothes, never did. Other stuff though [emoji1]
Books will be difficult for me. So I think I’ll do the kitchen first.
Interesting point. I think the context is so different now though. Being compliant nowadays is rather buying all that stuff we are told to want. I think the minimalist movements touch a cord because of the utter excess levels reached by consumerism across the world and across all social classes, which certainly is a very different scenario to that of the early XXth century... Beyond the specifics of her method, my sense is that the Kondo approach has been so successful because by developing this "things that give you joy" concept she departs from the typical "live with less" idea to bring attention to the emotional link between objects and persons and a sense of value which is what we have seemed to have lost in this era of material excess.
Everyone seems to get hung up on the books section.
I am a big reader and so are my family members. So 30 won’t do it for me.
I think the intent is to get rid of books that don’t bring any joy. If you love it, keep it.
That makes sense. I am still new to this, and it is - like the above post - different from other organization regarding not having to have less for every cost.
I agree. Although when I got into clearing up a few years back, I was inspired to get rid of books. I have never been a hoarder, but I am an obsessive reader and I had thousands. To be honest, they are probably still in the thousands but I got rid of hundreds of them. Basically the criteria was that I would not see myself reading or checking them again, that I would not expect my children to read them (and they will never be as avid readers as me), and that they had not made much impact on me at the time. Before that, I always thought I had to keep books I'd read, even if I hadn't like them (I also had the idea I had to finish books that I'd started, what a waste of time). Now I get rid of books all the time. Liberating.
A girlfriend of mine did a clear out when she got divorced.
As we looked around at all the books that were literally falling apart she said “why’d I keep all these? I should have passed them on to someone who would have enjoyed them before they fell apart”.
I try to keep that in mind and only keep books I’ll go back to.