Kondoing this and kondoing that - thread 4 for Marie Kondo's lifechanging magic with tidying. All welcome!

[TheSporkforeatingkyriarchy]

Here's thread 4 for all the KonMario converts, wannabes, and guests to the magic!

Thread 3

I love hearing how everyone is doing and yes to a second wave. I know I will be doing my wardrobe again and getting rid of more.

Certificates will be a hard one for me - so many memories. I have a ring file with clear wallets for DD's, may do something similar when I get to the dreaded paperwork.

Packed tonight for a couple of days away, just me and DD. Normally I have trouble fitting everything in a wheely bag and sorting what to take, but it took seconds - I could see everything I wanted and I folded MK style in the case so lots of room and the toiletries bag sits nicely on top.

No more digging down into the case for my things at the bottom and messing everything up, I can see exactly what is there and lift it out - just like a filing drawer! Why didn't I know this!!!!!?

Oh and socks I roll. I think you should fold in half and then roll, but I find if I flTten them together and roll from the toe up, they stay better, but they do fare better being put in box swirly side up.

Hello all - I feel like I've made pretty good progress so far (6 bin bags of clothes to charity, another 2 to the bin). I'm trying to follow Marie's process to the letter and stick to doing clothes first but I'm itching to start on the komono, I see it everywhere!

My main problem so far is that while DP's & DC's clothes are all easily foldable, mine don't really fit into my drawers in the same way - lots are a bit too floaty / irregularly shaped to fold. Also, because a lot of my wardrobe is black, I can't actually distinguish items from each other when they are folded. Is anyone else having that issue?

IronMaggie I left all my tops hanging in the (now almost empty) wardrobe, so do what works best for you. I love how they look now with lots of space round them - and about 20 lovely spare posh hangers (they were a present last year and I was using all of those and more!)

• Dc's clothes all fold beautifully - they were anyway, but are now horizontal instead of vertical, so we can see whats there.
• Dh's - sooo many shirts/tshirts that there isn't drawer space for them! I Mk'd his shirts whilst he was away as he had 30 short sleeved shirts and hadn't worn any but 2 of them in a year or so - I 'moved' 11 and he hasn't noticed! He really just doesn't notice clutter. :(

Hi ladies, I'm hoping you don't mind if I join you! I've just spent the last 45mins trying to catch up (I probably should have been tidying not reading) happy new year - an organised one for me I hope

I've started! This thread is very inspiring although I'm not quite at the point of following the book religiously yet, more discarding the komono that's cluttering surfaces and random areas. And boxes in the cellar that DH keeps forgetting to put out to recycle. And children's clothes that have been outgrown.
I'm having a trip to the tip today with a broken TV and lots and lots of cardboard, DIY shop for hooks to hang up useful utensils that don't fit in the drawer and then using up some Christmas chocolate decorating a cake I found in the freezer. Entertainment for DSs and MKing!

Wow busy thread!!

To my CM colleagues - sorry I forgot who asked about if there was a link to being a CM and excess clutter/toys/paperwork?! I can say for definite, for me it's a no, business only 3 years old of which I was off for 15 months on Mat Leave and a cluttered house began a long time before having even my own kids (eldest is 5 and a half!!). Think my issues are because I struggle to let things go for 2 reasons -

1. I never had many material things as a child, my parents never had the cash flow and I was brought up in hand me downs. I was bullied a lot at school for this.
2. the death of my Dad over 10 years ago.

The fact we have disposable income means I overspend (though not in debt just spend everything I have). The eldest asks for something and I struggle to say no due to knowing how rubbish that felt myself as a child. If I like something, for example an item of clothing, I struggle to buy just one if they do it in other colours. We had a house full of stuff we didn't actually need and it only brought me dispair!

All this MKing is bringing me joy but there is a hint of sadness for me underneath it all as its making me address my issues I have been hiding from for so long!

Anyone else finding this?

I have issues it seems but 2015 is the year to address this and move on!!

I agree about the hint of sadness. I'm towards the end of my decluttering and I am starting to feel that if I can do this and be tidy, I can do anything! Loose a stone or be fitter, what ever!

We had hand me downs/charity shop stuff as kids and lived on a shoe string. I'm also the same these days but happy that way as we need to be economic. We have quite a nice life style though - we live just in the countryside and do lots of nice free/social activities.

Folding tips I find useful:

Pants - smooth out front face up. Fold sides in ( about half way along leg hole IYSWIM) to make the top and sides into a recatangular shape. then fold up gusset to complete rectangle. then fold in half ( top to bottom, horizontal fold) and stack edge on. in suitable container in drawer. I use something like this www.wilko.com/plastic-storage/wilko-handy-baskets-medium-3pk/invt/0202201
Socks - smooth out socks and lay one on top of the other. For trouser/ankle socks, fold into thirds ie top and toe folded over heel. Stack in suitable container. For longer socks, fold into quarters with top and toe folded into heel. Don't worry about the slight bump caused by heel. Stack edge on in suitable container ( I stack folds to sides and open edges to top for these in something like this www.ikea.com/gb/en/catalog/products/50102973/ ) or curl round to fit in pocket type storage ( I use something a bit like this www.amazon.co.uk/Honeycomb-Plastic-Divider-Storage-Organizer/dp/B00E1F0Z2S ) All storage I already had in the house I hasten to add.

I can't believe I have just written in detail on t'interweb about storing underwear!

Hi Inadaydream - it was me who asked about CMing, so thanks for replying. :) I completely get where you're coming from. My parents had v v little money when I was younger and also didn't do presents/pocketmoney (for us children!), so whilst I wasn't deprived per se, I also wasn't indulged - e.g. not being able to join in fads at school for shaped & scented rubbers, because I "already had a perfectly good rubber". So I have found it hard in the past to not indulge myself, and the children now, with anything we like the look of/desired - as why shouldn't we be allowed pretty things? I have also frequently done the 'get one in every colour' and 'buy anything if its reduced as its a bargain'. I'm trying to stop all these habits now!

Yy to the feelings of sadness that this fundamental decluttering/lifechanging can bring up - I think its like a detox, where you have 'healing crisis' as shedding will lead to uncovering old emotions. I've moaned mentioned some of these on here, including when I first started and did a bit of adhoc folding and felt really upset that I'd got it 'wrong' - stupid I know, but everyone has been so supportive on this thread and I'm trying to be kinder to myself.

Over past threads, several people (myself included) have mentioned feeling scared of 'what comes next' and 'what are we left with' or 'who are we?' once the clutter is gone and we would no longer identify ourselves as 'hoarders' (to whatever degree).

These seem to be big questions and I think by being aware of them and trying to address them, when we're ready and within a level that we're comfortable with, will help the changes to our lifestyles to be more permanent - and I hope we'll all be happier as a result.

Sorry, I've waffled on, but I hope that thats helpful? :)

inadaydream I think there will be a link between being a CM and clutter. It must be difficult to separate the business and your home, by the nature of the business and having your own children. Any other home-working may be easier to keep separate, by working in an 'office' space. Maybe there are some ways of keeping the business more separate, and not just the paperwork?

More, is not better! I have found that, when one has been brought up in straitened circumstances, we tend to go a bit mad, when we find ourselves in a more comfortable position. It has taken me years to realise that 'more' is not 'better'. For some time now, I have been avoiding tat/junk, and buying less, but better quality.

After a comparatively impoverished start, when finances improve, we have the choice, to buy, or not buy - it is not compulsory to buy! HTH

Didn't manage to finish all my tops yesterday! Very few 'sparked joy', so it was generally a matter of choosing the ones that I disliked least/wear most. I think I shall need a second run at these, like some OPs!

On the good side, those that I have kept, are beautifully filed in the drawer! Sweaters next.

leeloo1 I don't think we need to worry about 'what next?" Most of us have already had that 'stepping of a cliff' life-change - we've had children! That was a huge life-change! And we changed with it.

With a permanently tidy home (well almost always!), we will have space and time to expand our lives. Housework will still be there, but it will be simpler and quicker.

Roll-on the finish of kondo-ing! The new 'us' is coming!

Oh dear - I've just ordered some (expensive!) clothes on line but
a) they will hopefully be very joyful
b) they were actually in the sale (but still v expensive for me!)
c) I used Christmas money - so meant to buy something nice/indulgent? no?

Don't beat yourself up, educatingarti. More IN, should mean, more OUT! And Quality, not Quantity! As long as they bring you long-lasting joy, rather than a passing moment of pleasure!

Must stop lounging around here and Kondo some letter-writing that I've been avoiding since Christmas Eve! Not Christmas related, and rather important!

Thanks Mango and everyone who's given moral support and underwear tips... I guess the trick is to experiment and find what actually works for my stuff and my space.

I'm totally on board with leeloo's "healing crisis". Those wobbles about whether you've got rid of too much... Once in a while you might make a mistake and overdo it, but you're much more likely to be suffering from your lifetime of conditioning to accumulate. I can't help thinking that hanging on to the discard pile, and going through it again before you ditch it, really just gives credence to your inner hoarder. I'm currently wavering about the fairly new, slouchy jumper, that was comfy to wear, but made me look like a potato... Well, the decision has been and gone, so I have no choice but to move on from it. And because I worked through my clothes so quickly, I now have the joy of a streamlined wardrobe to comfort me, and make me excited about the next job.

About the next job: books... I've got some serious soul searching to do about my late father's academic book collection. They make up about three quarters of the books in our house, and there's a whole shit load of emotional baggage there. If I'm honest, it's like he left me an albatross round my neck, because they're all tied up with my guilt about having engineered a better relationship with him than my siblings had. I could leave them to the end, but I'm going to start talking to my sister about them first, and see how she would feel about me getting rid of most of them.

Do be kind to yourselves. Facing up to ourselves is emotionally courageous. Do not underestimate it. It is also often worth it. It is a fantastic example to set to our children, to continually engage with the process of personal development. Every single person has their own stuff in life to deal with. Good on you for working on yours.

On a more prosaic note, I now have £20 of books for amazon trade in. Whoop. The rest are off to the chazzer....

Educatingarti, I don't think buying new stuff us automatically a mistake. Clothes wear out, or you change size, or taste etc., so sometimes you're going to have to bring new stuff in. But when you get the new stuff and have tried it all on, BEFORE you take the tags off, how about you spend some time getting back out all your old stuff in the same category, and going through the process again. You might find that the new stuff doesn't spark the joy you thought it would, then you need to send things back. Or you might find that, having a beautiful new top throws some light on a couple of old tops that actually are pretty unsatisfactory, so you can ditch more of the old stuff.

I know MK says once you've tidied, you don't need to do it again, but I suspect it takes a while to really internalise the principles. Until I find I automatically edit my stuff, I have no problem going back to the method and working through it again.

Another bag dropped off. I'm keeping about 20 coats, jackets and blazers that don't quite fit, but I hope they will do by next autumn! If not, I will give up and rehome them too. But I can't let go of expensive coats as easily as I can let go of t-shirts and trousers. I'll consider them again during the inevitable second wave!

Now I have to confront sock mountain...

This morning I picked up a new card reader from Barclays even though I know for a fact that there are two others in the house somewhere. For the first time I'm anticipating a system where I will know where to find things. It's exciting!

My living room is covered in piles of stuff too. I'm resisting the urge to stuff it all away into drawers!

Oh dear. Ds just had a major wobble, with tears, about a nail clipper that I said I was going to discard because it's useless and we have three. He mistakenly thought daddy had bought them for him because it's mini-size. Aw.

He knows that I don't touch his stuff without permission but he must be feeling jittery and anxious about all the discarding of my things/household things that I have been doing. Tbh, I think he has handled the kondoing really well.

Mice in the shed mean today sees the whole contents emptied onto lawn and about half put back. Am Considering whether we need a skip actually.

Hello everyone - another newbie here. Been readin all your threads over the past few weeks and and itching to get started once I'm home from Japan.

In the meantime, and in the interests of research, I've had several interesting conversations with DH and MIL (who are Japanese) about KonMari and the influence of small japanese living spaces on her philosophy. I've also been flicking through her second book, which has some stuff on what to do when faced with some of the dilemmas mentioned above (particularly what to do when things don't 'spark joy').

It runs counter to the spirit of the thread but I'm bringing some of her subsequent books home with me to laboriously translate. Will be good practice!

On 'sparking joy' - DH wasn't hugely keen on this as a translation of the original Japanese phrase 'tokimeku' and we came up with 'resonates' and 'rings a bell' as additional ways of understanding what she's getting at.

Hi, have completely fell off the kondo due to horrible tonsillitis over Christmas but today I've kondoed my dressing cupboard. (huge cupboard filled with stuff on the sides and my makeup hair stuff ect on the shelves in the middle)

I've put all mine and dds hair stuff together in a shoebox, I've put all my extra shampoos and shower gels in a nice bag so they're not cluttering up the bathroom (I can't afford to throw away expensive products) and went through all my lotions and potions and makeup.

I also have another two black bags filled and another box of books for the charity shop. It still isn't perfect I have my grandads books about space that I can't throw out and about 8 crystal decanters from him. How do you really get rid of dead relatives things!

Plus side I've found his lovely brandy glasses that will be put to use tonight!

I had a wonderful tip about getting rid of dead relatives things. Think of them as a Kondo category 'stuff from my grandad'. Don't put them in with 'glassware'. Keep the ones that you love or the best instances. Does that make sense?

Just culled a two foot high stack of magazines, catalogues and brochures from the coffee table and DVD cupboard (not in right order I know but recycling collection tomorrow) I think there is now enough room in the DVD cupboard for all the DVDs that currently live on the floor next to the tv! Result! Will have a sneaky cull of the DVDs in a bit too since dh about to go out on his bike with ds, then I'm off to do dds clothes! Yay!