'The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying' - Marie Kondo

[FrancesHB]

Has anyone else read this? I did a search but couldn't find any previous threads.

Marie Kondo is a Japanese expert in tidying and decluttering and her book has been translated into English and is best selling. It's wonderfully eccentric and inspiring and in some ways rather a breath of fresh air compared to other books on the subject (have read 'em all and my house is still messy...).

She asks us to ask if an item brings us joy and if it doesn't we thank it and out it goes. A bit like fly lady 'you can't organise clutter', but in a less annoying and at times quite endearing way.

I wondered if any MNers had used her technique and if it helped them 'get their house in order'.

cool can you 'subdivide' paperwork? Eg just do bills, or receipts?

I have so much paperwork I couldn't possibly do it in one go. I have filed everything by years (I start a file and everything goes in it. It lasts for two or three years until full, then I start a new one).

When I get to paperwork I think I will dig the oldest one out of the loft and start there as the older it is, the easier it should be to throw away.

I have almost finished tackling the paperwork. To be fair it wasn't too bad as I did have a fair sort around 6m ago before we moved house.

I have got rid of paperwork for a lot of old pension plans that were all switched to a different policy though. I have one carrier bag full of stuff to be shredded and the rest I have stuffed in recycling.

Can you burn the papers on a multifuel stove? Don't want to clog up my flue but maybe I could add a small bundle every night for a week? I hate pur shredder with a passion.

I have kept a big lever arch file though that I have full of old documents relating to all the houses we have owned. It has the brochures and initial mortgage statements etc so it might be historically interesting one day and does bring me a joy of sorts

cool I have also realised that there are some things I genuinely need. For example, I decluttered three black jackets - two were too small and one was too big . I wasn't wearing them because they didn't fit, but couldn't bear to throw them out because then i wouldn't have a black jacket

mrscurrent my socks DEFINITELY feel better. They do! I swear it.

Not much going on here, still waiting to do the books before progressing but I've done loads of little jobs round the house that needed doing and am still losing weight, so the magic's still working. I've made a good start on paperwork and it's so bloody easy now to find the things I need, I literally laugh as I walk to the filing system (sorry MK no boxes for me, I need more order for our family shit papers). Write a cheque for the school photos you say? Done in a jiffy - pens where they should be and chequebook ditto.

I've also chucked out a load of old underwear and clothes which meant I finally had to replace worn out old rubbish that gave me no joy at all. I've been overweight since DS2 came along and waiting until I'd lost it. I am waiting no more!

I love this thread. It literally has changed my life.

In the spirit of not adding to my clutter I have just downloaded this book onto my iphone .

Following thread with interest.

mrscurrent my socks DEFINITELY feel better. They do! I swear it.

Not much going on here, still waiting to do the books before progressing but I've done loads of little jobs round the house that needed doing and am still losing weight, so the magic's still working. I've made a good start on paperwork and it's so bloody easy now to find the things I need, I literally laugh as I walk to the filing system (sorry MK no boxes for me, I need more order for our family shit papers). Write a cheque for the school photos you say? Done in a jiffy - pens where they should be and chequebook ditto.

I've also chucked out a load of old underwear and clothes which meant I finally had to replace worn out old rubbish that gave me no joy at all. I've been overweight since DS2 came along and waiting until I'd lost it. I am waiting no more!

I love this thread. It literally has changed my life.

I downloaded this and read it on kindle last month. I have to say I was in stitches over her passage on socks! The outrage at the rolled up balled socks

What a motivational thread! This way of doing things fits well with my natural decluttering tendencies, but somehow stops me feeling overwhelmed with the sheer volume of stuff I have to clear. DH is a hoarder, and we have a 6 month old, so people keep giving us sacks of hand me downs. Very kind, but I honestly can't use or house all of it! Our house is filthy, it really gets me down. So this thread has really got me feeling positive about sorting, decluttering and cleaning so I can actually relax in my own home!

I started on Wednesday and it's slow because of looking after the baby at the same time , but so far have sorted:

My clothes (2 black bags to clothes banks, everything else beautifully folded or hung up looking lovely)

DH's socks and pants (most went in bin as full of holes)

Baby's chest of drawers (contains only clothes she currently fits. Still have a lot of bags of too big/too small stuff to sort through and store or rehome)

Scarves and ties

I'm so far resisting the urge to buy new shelves and boxes that I know will make the place tidier and easier to clean. I want to try to sort through everything first and then reward myself with the new furniture!

Gave myself an hour off teaching prep and marking last night and blitzed the cupboard of doom under the stairs.

Massive bin bag went into the bin, one for charity shop and lots of DIY stuff sorted and being moved into the garage into tidy boxes.

Sewing machine and all craft stuff also in a pile to go to charity shop, more will be added if I get time before it leaves the house tomorrow - poor DH volunteered to take my stuff and then went pale when he saw how much there was!
Have sorted out work sport uniform that I won't need as duties have changed and will be returning that tomorrow too, 2 medium bags gone!

Have gathered all my shoes and boots into a giant pile to go through tomorrow, she's right that you only see what you've got when you gather it all, I had shoes in 4-5 different places.

p.s. am I allowed to buy photo albums - my photos def bring joy but they are in 2 old carrier bags right now which is a nightmare when I try to find one. I want nice ones from MUJI but not sure if this is breaking the rules

Well we've moved - hurrah! But I now have to start again with putting everything away... I am very glad I did the decluttering before the move though!

Peonies I would first choose the ones you want before buying album so you know the size. I.e. Just album the best ones that sum up that year/holiday whatever and scrap the rest (!!!)

BeCool your advice on towels was spot on. Sadly I will need to repeat the process as DH is for some reason sentimentally attached to his skanky pre marriage towels from his student house. I'm trying to get him to donate to a friends farm! Even towels are shared possessions. I can tell our lady lives alone as the only category that is truly your own in your house is clothes and jewellery/hair/nails/books. Then is gets trickier!

By the way the rolling worked great n the towels. Look better, easier to access and take less space!

We have two towels. That's it. One on the rail and one in the cupboard plus swimming towels and hooded towels for the baby And that's it! Two sets of sheets for each bed and that's a nice easy cupboard to keep tidy.

Holmes congratulations on your new holme

ok so borrowed book from library, on page 18 and have already encoutered problems/dilemmas a

I don't get this "tidy in one go". how do I do that? I don't have time to tidy all day long! I'm hoping this is explained later because for now this idea just makes me feel annoyed. I spend hours every day sitting down to bf baby which makes the other basic things like housework, cooking, looking after the kids, doing schoolruns and clubs already quite difficult in terms of time management.
Then there's the permanent tiredness that makes it almost impossible to think about or plan anything that is not absolutely necessary.
the children have been ill one after another and honestly there are days I just want to survive and couldn't care less what clothes I wear.
There's so much to do, constantly and sometimes they all need things at the same time I don't know whether I'm coming or going.

so to sum it up I have no time, energy therefore hardly any motivation to think.
(I have time to MN while I bf though. lucky really! )

then there's the fact that we are doing a double storey extension on our house next year. We moved in May because we needed more space.
so the question is this: is there a point beautifying our home as it is (horrible tiny kitchen I hate, ugly decor and basically organised chaos) or shall I just lived with it and plan for the future instead where we will have the space we need, designed & built to make organising easier?
things we are going to have include an upstairs laundry room with sorting area; a studio for me to keep all my fabrics, sewing and jewellery making stuff in one place; a wide entrance hall with a built in bench & storage for all of our shoes, wellies, coats, bookbags; and basically everything designed to be practical, time-saving and organised.

so what now? is there even a point to try this now when I'm not really in the position to see it through? I'm having an op in 2 weeks time, and must get school clothes sorted before that, but that is the only thing I can schedule in with the demands of such a busy household.
have I mentioned we have 7 kids? they help, but also make mess fast and constantly. it's depressing.

i just don't know how I could even contemplate starting any longterm tidying project. and I hate starting only to stop and feel like a failure.

Any advice?

holmes yay! enjoy your first weekend in your brand new home!

oops sorry about essay. living in a messy house and being unable to properly sort it is a very sore point.

Zing

I think you can just plan and think and prep mentally
maybe look hard at everything and make sure you really need it/love it as the less ''stuff'' about the easier to cope with all the building et al

I found the folding helps me know what clothes everyone has so I'm not tempted to buy anything

Welcome Zing! Seven kids? I can't imagine the tidying involved in that, never mind what KonMari might say! Did you click on this because you do need some magic to get tidy?

If so, I would say, why not find two hours in peace to do your own clothes and see how it works for you? I.e. Get rid of all the stuff that doesn't bring you joy etc and fold up your own clothes using her method. Then you will at least feel in control of the biggest chunk of your own stuff and ordered in a way you can see it all, so you'll be able to quickly get dressed in the morning. I found this is the thing that really improved my mood about the rest of the house because I just think. Well, im committed to being tidy because all my shizzle is together looking great! And it does make getting dressed a lot better if you are really brutal with stuff.

Then if you get the bug. It might motivate you, if not, your clothes will be really nice!

Zing have you read the bit where she says it takes 6 months to do it properly? For me that is really working. Instead of thinking I have to sort out an entire room I can do just one thing. So tonight I did the magazine rack. Not much I know but that's another load of recycling gone and the living room looks much better without the overflowing magazines

Yes Jilted I was going to add that, her definition of all in one go is 6 months. I think it just means don't try and do one item per day. Do a category or sub category of stuff at a time and all categories can take up to 6 months. I think her reasoning was that if you do just a bit at a time, you don't get the full impact of the category e.g. "wow, I own HOW MANY tubs of cotton buds?"

zing seven kids? I'm impressed you even have time to Mumsnet!

I think by one go she doesn't literally mean one day, more that decluttering is a project with an end date, and not something you have to do forever.

I reckon just keep splitting the categories until you have a manageable amount, so if you can't do all of your tops in one go then how about doing your jumpers one day, then long sleeved tops, vest tops, etc? So long as you are doing it by category not by location then I think it's fine.

Yy to all of the above, "do it all in one go" is not as scary as it sounds. Remember that once you've done a category it tends to stay done, so you're not going round and round in circles. Even though my papers are still a mess, I feel happy every time I open my drawers.

Evening all :D

I seem to have trouble doing a proper sort out as I find myself going back to areas/categories multiple times...guess I wasn't brutal enough the first time round...it's annoying that I'm dragging out the process. But at least I don't worry about getting rid of stuff as much as I've had extra time to think

Think there's some really good advice there about the poster who is getting started soon. Hope it helps to kick start you! It's soooo worth doing. You could think of some quick wins, like stuff without emotional attachment (for me it was paperwork), or something you know you have tons of (eg scarves) or do just one drawer/area you use often to remind you how effective it can be

Thanks all, that makes me feel better and I will carry on reading the book.

I already fold clothes so they are all visible

in the drawers. I even fold my knickers!

I just didn't understand why she says don't do bits at a time when then that is exactly what you have to do! So thanks for explaining, panic over.
Anyway, I'd better carry on reading instead of criticising!

I have sorted school clothes for DS4 and went through a bag of assorted school workbooks they brought home last summer - binned all of it but the unused pages that we always keep for using as shopping list paper.
I wanted to keep a lovely picture DS4 made, but he said chuck it ( ) so I took a photo, said bye and put it in the bin.
I'm tempted to take it out though, but must be strong!
oh and he kept a name tag he made because he wants to use it as a bookmark.

That's all I could do today while DS1 was holding unhappy coughing baby, but it's a start.
And I cut 80 nails, I've been meaning to do that all week!

How is that for a start?