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Housekeeping

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KONDO Thread 9

999 replies

Iqueen · 12/07/2015 09:43

Kondo your Home and your Life. Live the JOY!

OP posts:
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plipplops · 19/07/2015 10:12

Hello! Started Kondoing a few weeks ago. Have done clothes and DH is inspired and is halfway through sorting his study :) About 15 bags of goodness knows what to the charity shop. Docs room is looking much better and I've got the odd day to myself in the holidays to carry on. It's amazing how much lighter I feel and I can see how much more pleasant the house is going to be once we're done. It wasn't that messy to start with but to be able to clear cupboard space to store the things we actually want to keep has been enlightening. And lent the book to another mum who is inspired and has gone and bought her own copy!!

Iqueen · 19/07/2015 15:04

So many posts to catch up with - (tells self - keep up with the posts: there's yet another wave of Konverts! Grin) Posts were so fast and furious, over the first 6 threads, that it took me most of the day to read them all! It was so frustrating not to be kondoing, but I was afraid of missing any valuable tips.

Halo Welcome!

I'm sorry to hear of the loss of your sister and realise that her clothes are an emotional category for you. First, deal with them whenever you feel strong enough - now, later, or at the end. Second, they are not bringing you joy - they are reminding you of a vary sad event. Third, if you were kondoing with your sister beside you, what would she tell you to do with them? I'm sure she wouldn't want you to have them hanging around, out of sight, making you sad, instead of filling these moments, remembering all the happy times you had together! You do not need old clothes to remind you of someone so important, and so loved.

MK's method of thanking things for the job they have done (happy or sad) really works! Mentally, (or even out loud) ask your sister what she wants you to do with her clothes. You may be surprised to get an answer. And if she says get rid of them, thank each item for the purpose it has served, before you decide where they should go.

I've managed to part with a lot of clothes that made me sad about someone I've lost, and the relief is enormous. My memories are now only positive and joyful and I am grateful to have them. Flowers HTH

OP posts:
NotCitrus · 19/07/2015 17:51

Right - time for frantic tidying before clothes swapping party at my house, to be followed rapidly by all leftovers going to the charity shop (and as much komono as I can sneak in!).
Had argument with MrNC yesterday about all the ugly boxes in the lounge that he wants to save for when the kids are older/in case the video player breaks, etc. Basically until the dining room floor is done, and then the kitchen finished, there is too much stuff elsewhere and he has no time to sort anything so there's tools and bits of wood and packets of screws and shit everywhere. Argh... I guess I'll just attack the toys which have been breeding again.

Update: 4 charity bags ready to go, plus another for niece. And more plastic tat in the bin...
I acquired fewer clothes than I got rid of and should wear all the new ones soon.

Girlsbrigadewashorrible · 19/07/2015 18:17

I am a Kondo newbie. I ignored the other threads as I hadn't a clue what they were about...now I'm hooked. In the last few days I have sorted most of my clothes. I am not a big shopper or hoarder, but somehow managed to accumulate about 60 pairs of socks, 22 cotton camisole vests and numerous shoes. Not to mention all the clothes I actually don't really like or suit.
So, my first task was sorting the cami vests. I whittled it down to 16 (!) and they look lovely. Obviously I don't need 16 either, but I will wear them out and not replace them 5 at a time like I used to. I threw out most of my socks as they were tatty and just kept the ones I know I like. I also went through my tights - about 20 pairs of opaque tights! Yikes. I actually kept them all as they are all in good condition and I will wear them in the autumn.
My DD1 pointed out to me that since I wash clothes almost every day, I really don't need the volume of stuff. Shame she didn't write the book, really.

Lovewearingjeans · 19/07/2015 18:52

Sorted out my knicker and bra drawer. Got rid of loads of tatty pairs, and now everything looking neat and organised. Sock drawer next. Keeping stuff folded will be my problem.

funambulist · 19/07/2015 19:02

Girlsbrigade your DD1 sounds like a natural, how old is she?

I didn't do any Kondoing yesterday as we had visitors, but have done a bit more in the loft today. I'm continuing to sort through old school uniform which is easy but boring. All my children have left primary school so any uniform from there can go. Embarrassingly I now have 5 bin bags full. And I thought I'd been quite good about passing outgrown stuff on to the second hand uniform sales. I'm also managing to sort through quite a lot of old baby clothes. Everytime I have a pang about something I put it aside for sorting through when I do the sentimental category. I'm thinking that I might keep just one item of cute baby clothing per child?

As I'm in the loft, where lots of the old photos are, my wedding dress etc., I keep coming across sentimental stuff. Previously I would have allowed myself to get horribly distracted by this, and, probably, just grind to a halt as usual. The Konmari method is great for keeping me focused on the easier clothes category so that I actually get some sorting done.

fishboneschokus · 19/07/2015 19:09

Well done Girls. I have done clothes and it does make life easier.

Girlsbrigadewashorrible · 19/07/2015 19:27

Fun she is 17 and very wise. I ask her for advice more than she asks me!

Fish Thank you!

I now have four black sacks to go in the recycling bin tomorrow. I also got rid of five pairs of school trousers, a bleached bath mat (dd1 isn't great at everything), and am going to tackle the book shelf tomorrow.

Halojones2014 · 19/07/2015 19:45

I'm touched by all your kind words. Iqueen - you made me well up, in a good way, my sister would have definitely said "bin everything!" I have found it easier thinking of her things as sentimental items rather than clothes to be assessed.

I have done 90% of my clothes. I have two suits that I don't wear anymore but I think my DD's might like them when they're older. I know you aren't supposed to do that though...

I have also done quite a bit of komono today. I know I should have done books next but I had a child free day so I thought bits and bobs would be easier to do alone. It's a bit frustrating though as the house doesn't look that much different but the inside of cupboards are amazing! I think toys, books and paperwork I will make the biggest visible difference.

I started today thinking I would need more boxes to store everything but ended up with 6 empty boxes instead! Hurray!

I know that our leader's advice is to get everything out, discard, then work out how to store but I find sometimes that's hard to do in the time I have so end up putting things back or not fully doing the pull everything out bit. How do other people manage it?

Lovewearingjeans · 19/07/2015 21:20

Also socks done and shoe box dividers made!

Iqueen · 19/07/2015 23:51

Halo I'm glad my words helped a bit, and you, obviously, got your sister's answer! Perhaps you can keep one of her items that you can wear joyfully? I kept a scarf of my mother's, which is typical of the colours she liked and I like wearing it. I'm sure your sister would be happy for her clothes to go to a charity shop, bringing happiness to others, who will love them. There's a lot woo psychology hidden in MK's book! Smile

Unless your 2 suits are pure classics, in style, colour, and fabric, don't count on passing them onto your DDs! Fashions change quickly! It's almost guaranteed that they either won't want them, or one will be working in racing stables and the other in the Forces! Grin Or they will feel obliged to take them, and the suits will clog their wardrobes, unworn, because they will be afraid of hurting your feelings by donating them! Sad

Odd bits of komono tend to be small, quick successes - useful when you're pushed for time or just irritated by them. Some people allow such things to collect in separate boxes, until the whole of each komono sub-category is all together, for sorting, unless you know needs discarding anyway.

What a brilliant surprise to end up with all those empty boxes! Well done! I wish...

Sorting out discards and getting them out of the house is an important key to success. Try to recognise how much you can get done in the time you have (don't over-estimate!) Break the task into bite-size chunks, even if you have to sub-divide sub-categories. Pull out less than you think you can manage, and put 'keepers' in a box/bag, until you have time to do the rest. When you have worked through the whole drawer, shelf, or cupboard, it will be clearer where the keepers will best be stored. The solution will find you! Wink Sometimes OPs have found that the place to store a particular group of things is quite different from where it 'has always been kept'.

Everything will gradually become much clearer, when you reach the 'tipping point' and see that kondoing is really working. The magic moment! Smile

OP posts:
Iqueen · 19/07/2015 23:53

Congratulations, Lovewearingjeans - great start and you'll love the dividers! Cake

OP posts:
PinkFlamingoAteMyLipstick · 20/07/2015 00:34

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mathsmo · 20/07/2015 07:37

I did it! I completely Kondo'd my wardrobe all in one day. And it feels brilliant. When I look at all the lovely things hanging on the rail and folded in the (now half empty drawers) it makes me think wow I actually have a really nice grown up set of clothes! Never felt like that before. Always felt like my wardrobe was overstuffed with random items and colours and some things that felt 'too young' and were hangovers from how I used to dress 10-15 years ago and others that were my attempt to feel more grown up but actually made me feel middle aged (I am) and mumsy.

I went through it all one sub category at a time, starting with tops and ending with bags and shoes. I took photos of the discard and keep piles and it was obvious straight away which pile sparked joy. The discard piles always looked a bit sad and full of mismatching colours. The keep piles somehow looked like they belonged together. Even though I had thought about each item in isolation. The magic!

I started off with a total of 260 items (inc bags, shoes, coats, everything) and ended up with.... 123!! So I discarded over half!! Never thought it would be that much.

Next job is to go back through the discard pile and pick out a few bits to eBay then bag up the rest for charity. But this job is probably only an hour so it'll be easy to find the time to do that. Whereas I definitely needed a whole day with no distractions to do the Kondoing. And I already know I'll be able to do all the other categories (books, papers etc) in shorter bursts so that fills me with motivation because I'll be able to fit it in bit by bit when my DD is at nursery and DS is napping or after bedtime. So motivated right now.

Lovewearingjeans · 20/07/2015 09:10

Thanks Iqueen. Tops, pjs and other drawer items today. For me it definitely helps breaking them into chunks and sub categories. I can't wait to get onto DVDs tbh. Three boxes that are hardly ever watched.

funambulist · 20/07/2015 10:19

Thanks for your post Iqueen it's so good to hear from people at the end of the process.

My clothes are now kondoed and bring me lots of joy, but pulling out all the uniform and baby clothes has made the loft look far worse (at the moment) so I'm having to have faith that once I've done the discarding bit it will look better. There's a lot of komono and sentimental stuff in the loft as well, so it will still be very full when I've finished clothes.

My three DCs find the Konmari way very funny and are teasing me about it. However, they do like the way I'm beautifully folding their clothes and I've found that they are far better at putting them away now. DD has also had a bit of a clothes clear out.

Iqueen · 20/07/2015 12:07

funambulist Yes, it's so good to hear from people at the end of the process.

Unfortunately, I'm nowhere near there yet! Grin

It's very slow progress for me - the house is SO cluttered, my energy and stamina have waned with age... plus, all the other age-related excuses! Wink

I don't expect to reach the end until at least Christmas. (NB - no year mentioned!)

On the other hand, I have read every post on all 9 threads here and a similarly large thread elsewhere.

So, I'm plodding along, and have taken in (like a dustbin!) all the tips, advice and insight that OPs have passed on - just hope my short-term memory has held on to some of it! rofl!

OP posts:
JKSLtd · 20/07/2015 12:33

Haha iqueen I am the same. Taking in tips but not much energy to use them!

I've finished the last bit of jet washing I've had on my list for ages so have put the washer in the shed (the black hole of doom!!) so at least I can stop tripping over it in the kitchen.

Tonnes of laundry to sort out so should get to that next.

fishboneschokus · 20/07/2015 12:47

Well done love and math. I did it about a month ago. I would recommend kondo even just for clothes.

Pink
I had the same idea. I put my labeled cables in doggy poobags with cute little paws on them. It helps to tame the cupboard of doom.

Lovewearingjeans · 20/07/2015 13:09

Been doing tops this morning, which kind of evolved into lining the wardrobe long to short. I had already culled in there a few weeks ago, and it was only tops to sort. I work in a school, so put all my Autumn/winter work clothes away, which felt very satisfying. I'm just running out of shoe boxes now!

JKSLtd · 20/07/2015 20:02

I like the cable idea :)

I did go through them already but maybe again with bags would be useful.

Despite not really kondoing today I have done some extra jobs instead of just the usual drudgery.
I feel once I get some of the crap out of the way maybe I can find my mojo again and get going.

Off to hosp the next two days to see dh though.

OneDayWhenIGrowUp · 21/07/2015 07:47

I have started to Kondo the last few weeks and been following the threads for a while. I got the book a few months ago but was putting off getting started! But just realised that a cluttered home environment was negatively affecting my moods too much and making it difficult for me to achieve other goals because of feeling down about my living environment.

So far I've done clothes/shoes and books, and even just with that done feel so much better already, so have been sticking to my basic cleaning routines as well and everything feels happier in my home :)

I wanted to share a few kondo victories: 1 was taking my box of books to a charity jumble sale, and NOT bringing anything back with me. Despite seeing at least 10 books and knick knacks that I wanted! Felt very good about that. I bought cakes and gave a donation instead. The second was, at a local festival this weekend, I saw a woman wearing a dress that I took to the charity shop 2 weeks ago. Now I don't know if it's the exact same one, didn't ask where she got it! But seeing a stranger happily enjoying something I'd released back into the world felt pretty karmic Grin

Next on my list is papers; this is a sticking point for me. I have a lot to go through, feel very disorganised with my finances overall and really just don't want to. Planning to do it on Thursday and dreading it. I tend to stick my head in the sand about that kind of thing.

I've got a bit sidetracked from The Order; I need to clear out my storage space which is full of empty cardboard boxes I've kept for every appliance etc- these need to go, so I can store actual joyful things there which are otherwise cluttering up useful spaces. That's the plan for tonight.

Iqueen · 21/07/2015 08:44

Glad to see that everyone is getting on with it! Grin

I was planning to do an 'off-load run' today but it's raining, so will wait to see if it clears up, so I don't get soaked loading and unloading the car!

I'm going to deal with some current paperwork, and have the nth go at clothes, in the meantime. This time, I am going to start by picking out ONLY the garments that tug at my heartstrings - the ones that I would like to never wear out, the ones I adore, whatever occasion they were intended for! That will then be my yardstick for JOY.

I will then add in a necessary few for 'decency' - only for the time-being! I'll then look out for Chazzer/eBay things that will build up my Older Boho image! I'm really excited about this, because since starting kondoing, I've had no idea what my current style is. Thanks MK and Pinterest! At last I know who I am again - the hippie maverick that I've always been, but more daring! I shall wear whatever brings me joy - ignoring my age, shape and size... Life is about being happy, otherwise, what's the point?

Cables: For some years now, I have been folding a rectangular sticky label over each new cable (and the older ones, in use). Then I write identifying details on the label. The bagging idea is also a good idea for keeping them from tangling in storage. Smile

Be happy! Wink

OP posts:
Laska42 · 21/07/2015 13:27

HI i'm new ( havent read the book yet, but already feeling the love..) Anyway ive decided to do this because

a, weve not had a clear out since moving here 9 years ago ( and its a small house)
and b, because ive been actually feeling physically sick thinking about the huge amount of unworn clothes etc i have.

Some of this is because i lost a lot of weight and have put about a stone back on ( but im going back onthe 5:2)

Some of thes is I know i bought because of emotional reasons ( wont go into that here right now but mostly due to empty nest syndrome I think )

But my question is :

Ive gone through one wardrobe ( theres 2!! ), and have a pile of stuff discarded . (lots totally unworn and good quality , but its going anyway) ,
and i now have a pile of things I love that are fine to wear and one that i love but is a bit b too small.. . I realise they should go , but im not sure i want to i love them so much and know that if i lose the weight again , ill want to wear them ..

if it put them in a box how long do you think i should keep them for.. ( one season?) please dont be too hard on me... im emotional!! Smile..

I plan do the whole house.. my Dh is early retiring soon and we have the contents of another house he lives in during the week to fit into this one.. ( hes not like me though so its quite spartan) Despite the fact that a lot of it is good stuff and sellible ive decided NOT to ebay, but just take it to the local hospice charity shop so it can do some real good .. (i think that will make me feel kondohappier )

prettymess · 21/07/2015 16:02

Laksa, read the book and don't do it by location.

I have a similar issue with weight loss clothes. I went through them again the other day and only have two skirts and work uniform left that don't fit.

Today's small victory! TV cabinet organised

KONDO Thread 9