Marie Kondo’s book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up topped The New York Times bestseller list for over a year with over 8 million copies sold and over 40 countries now reading it in their own language. We recently shared her tips to keep your kitchen clean and tidy and you loved them! Well, there’s loads more that we can learn from this organisational queen, so here are a few more tips that will help you declutter your house and your life.
Clean by category. While it seems natural and efficient to go room by room, Marie Kondo suggests cleaning your house by category. Start with the hardest part, the clothes. Then move on to easier and normally way better organised items like books, kitchen gadgets and bath items. Sentimental items like photos, old albums and letters should be the last ones to sort out.
Keep what sparks joy. Unlike many people, Marie never judges belongings by how often they’re used. Instead, she suggests asking yourself whether a particular thing ‘sparks joy’. If it does, it stays! Even if you never actually wear or use it. Rather get rid of the pullover that makes you feel sad and bored because you’ve worn it way too often. By the way, here’s a whole list of things we tend to keep when they really belong in the bin.
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Thank your stuff. Thanking items for their service, before throwing them out, takes away some of the guilt we might feel when disposing of things we used to care about. Be thankful and keep going.
Take your time. Don’t hope to finish decluttering in one weekend. According to the writer herself, if you want a proper KonMari clean and tidy up it will take about a month. Keep on living your life, go to work, play with the kids and carry on organising different bits and pieces whenever you can. To get you inspired, Marie recommends starting with something as small as the sock drawer.
Label things. Once everything is in perfect order, put labels on cubbies and baskets so that your family knows where their lunchboxes, umbrellas and bike helmets are. That way they’ll also put them in the right place when they’re back after a day at work or school. Labels will keep your house cleaner and tidier for longer!
Store vertically. Arguably, Kondo’s favourite tip! Instead of piling clothes, papers or products on top of each other, store them vertically. This method saves space and ensures every item is clearly visible. Fold and roll your T-shirts, socks, scarves and even dresses and place them next to each other, so they look like a row of book spines. She claims you can fit 20 to 40 folded items where you’d normally be able to hang only 10.
Dump piggy banks. Why would anyone put their change in a jar and never actually use it, when it can be spent? Forget the jars and piggy banks that make your house look messy and cluttered and put the coins into your wallet instead. You can always spend them on coffee later!