Kondo thread 10

[SnozzberryMincePie]

Just noticed the old thread was full, so hope no one minds me starting the new one

methen I use a cardboard box in a kitchen drawer for sellotape etc, the envelopes are under the box. There's also a box for pens with a press button to make it harder for DS to access.

I have a wrapping paper bag hanging in my wardrobe on an S hook (close to the gift storage drawer) with an extra sellotape, pen & scissors in the top pocket so I don't risk revealing the gifts travelling downstairs to get the other scissors from the kitchen.

DS only has 2 pairs of shoes, we each have a storage box from Ikea under a bench in the hall with our currently used shoes in and the rest of mine and DH's are in underbed storage drawers. Wellies are in a big plastic box in the garage and the box gets put in and out of the boot of the car as needed to save getting mud everywhere, plus they are always easy to locate in a rush.

That's a great idea Methen! Thank you for that suggestion. We have a cupboard in the hall for coats and shoes. Do you have some space under the stairs? We use a special open shoe storage but if space is tight, how about in the wardrobe? I have a storage thing with pockets from i kea that I put tops in. It hangs from the pole in the wardrobe

I sorted my wardrobe out again yesterday so it is no longer in 'maternity mode' and is progressing into 'breastfeeding mode'. I've had to keep a few maternity bits like leggings as I don't own any non-maternity jeans having kondoed my size 18s. Since starting kondoing and SW I am a size 16, despite having had DD 2 weeks ago.

I've identified a few gaps in my BF mode wardrobe and I'll need some wrap tops and button up shirts as well as a pair of comfy jeans. My maternity jeans were skinny fit and absolutely hellish to wear on long car journeys. I need some joyful jeans!

I am not going crazy with the BF clothes as I've learnt how few items I need but what I do buy needs to be joyful for the next 6 months.

Completely kondoed the clothes. 3 black sacks for charity in the car, 2 black sacks to be ebayed (too good not to try and recoup some money but might end up the charity shop if I haven't ebayed by the end of the week). 4 huge storage box sized up properly for ongoing diet and removed to the spare room, two massive suitcases filled with different sized holiday clothes and wardrobe now only filled with clothes that give me joy.
Possibly not completely by the book but since beginning the Kondo threads I've also kondoed 17 lbs so the clothes will be ongoing.
Nothing is staying unless I feel joy!

Stiffstink well done on the weight loss already

Is this your first DC? I never got on with special bf clothes, I prefer to wear a loose top over a vest top and bf by pulling the vest top down and the loose top up.

My shoes are stored upright in a box at the bottom of a cupboard. The box is quite full or they would fall over. I have a couple of pairs of tall boots next to the box on their own.

Second DC but I couldn't BF with DS - he hadn't read any of the breastfeeding books I had! I have been wearing layers like you say, which is fine but not ideal if I need to feed in public - I'm using nipple shields so I need to master easy access with one hand, juggling baby with second hand and putting the shield on with my non-existent 3rd hand!

All the new baby cards have been kondoed and I'm just about to order thank you photo cards.

Bakeware and kitchen gadgets were this weekend's target. Chucked an ice-cream maker and one baking tray and put everything else back as although none of it makes me particularly joyful we do use it and I haven't got much in the way of this sort of stuff anyway. The steamer is getting a reprieve in the loft for now.

Big walk in loft is a very mixed blessing...although there's a lot less in it now than there was 2 weeks ago. Next weekend I'm away but I'm going to try to duvets and blankets this week. I have enough to host a sleepover of most of DC's class.

For the last hour (since 430am) I've been feeding DD and thinking about a top that I hung in the wardrobe earlier. Its one that will need to be ironed and I just can't see that happening. Its gotta go!

Well done everyone on your kondoing! I tackled the bathroom today. DH is hindering me though...he wouldn't let me throw out razors that had no heads and he has about 5 toiletry bags!! And loads of mini toiletries that I feel I have to ask him about before I can get rid. I think I need to make him read the book too!

Ok hello everybody. I need your help and advice. Our house is a shit heap. Full of shit. I hae 4 kids and they are all insanely messy. Did I mention that my house is full of shit?

So anyway I was pointed in your direction.

I am a hoarder. I hate throwing anything out. And if I do I always regret it. Most recent example. We have a playroom that's full of shit. A while ago I was (for me) ruthless. Toys and loads of random stuff gone. Totally cleared half of the (big) shelves.

So yesterday I decide to make lemon infused olive oil. I go to the playroom to get the fancy bottle set I bought in a sale yonks ago thinking they'd make a nice present "for someone" and instead they've languished on the playroom shelves for years. Suddenly I need them and they're gone. now I have no bottle for my oil . Also dd invited to a star wars party. I just threw out the light sabre which was on the playroom shelves. 2 things.

So now I'm pissed off and it's put me off getting started and ever throwing anything out ever again.

So. Advice?

Ernest Hi
There are gazillions of bottles on the world, some of them are in your house, and there will be a better one turn up. Your little one will still have a ball at the party, she will borrow a light sabre from someone and make a new friend....

But they were special fancy twirly bottles. I'm afraid I'll regret throwing out every little thing. We never threw out stuff when we were kids. But my mum deemed me too old for my favourite toy and gave it away when I was at school.

Shit. We've just tentatively talked about downsizing to a 3 bed flat in 10 years time. How about I just never buy anything again in 10 years will that clear it?

I'm fact whenever I decide not to buy anything for a while somehow it seems to trigger a list of "urgent must haves"

Ernest, my clutter is doing my head in so much that I think I would gladly put up with some feelings of regret if it meant my house was properly in order.
I think your problem might be that you've chucked some things out - but still have clutter, and now you don't have those things anymore either.
By following this KonMarie thing and being quite methodical about discarding things - I'm getting pleasure from the cleared areas I've sorted and that makes me not miss what's gone. I'm glad it's gone.
Perhaps try following the method - when you gather things together by type, maybe you would have thought the bottle special enough to keep on display somewhere, I don't know.

Are you all keeping things together by type? I'm still having things too spread out perhaps. Books in the lounge, recipe books in the kitchen.
What about electrical things - are you all keeping them together: hairdryer stired with say fans/iron. I'm not sure I can do that.

This will seem bonkers if you haven't read the book but I think you should thank the bottle and the light sabre.

Thank the bottle for teaching you not to keep kitchen related items in a playroom.

Thank the light sabre for teaching you that a designated area is needed for different types of toys.

Ok I am open to this but I'm not sure I followed that.

The bottles were in the wrong place I guess but they had been intended as a gift, that was never given ) when I suddenly realised I had a use for.them.

The light sabre was in the playroom. Is this not the right place? I don't see where I went wrong with the light sabre, other than chucking it out.

This is a real question, if you are bogged down by the state of your home and overwhelmed with all the shit, does reading the book actually.motivate you to fix it? In my mind right now it's all wishful thinking. Does it also tell you where to start, and how? I don't know where to start!

Final question, is the nature of the book suitable for either paperback or kindle? Or is it one of those that would be a pain to have on a kindle, or ?

I have it on Kindle. Reading the book makes all the difference. It's hard to 'get' the philosophy and difficult to get started if you haven't read it.
I've finally embraced MJ's handbag habits (emptying it when you come in) and it's really helpful!

I read The Life Changing Magic of Tidying on my kindle and that was fine. Not a pain at all.

I found the book very motivational - I was at the point where I felt like I was being suffocated by clutter when i started the book. It does give advice on where to start. The plan is that you tidy in categories, rather than by area, so you start with clothes, then books, then papers, then komono (which covers anything not included in the other categories), and finally sentimental items. And the advice is to only keep items which "spark joy", except for certain essential items (mostly important paperwork). Kondo also is very against keeping things just in case you might need them at some unforeseen point in the future.

So to take the lightsaber example - did you love it? Did your DC love it? Did they play with it? If it was a toy that was ignored, and one that they'd only ever really want to play with at a Star Wars party, then there's nothing wrong with chucking it. But if the DC like Star Wars and like playing at lightsabers, or if looking at lightsabers makes you happy, then it might have been better to keep the lightsaber, but put it somewhere more accessible / visible.

The kondo method might sound a bit wishful thinking at first, but it's really working very well for me.

Ernest

The bottles were in the wrong place I guess but they had been intended as a gift, that was never given ) when I suddenly realised I had a use for.them.

I had so many items like this in my home. Since starting I have found homes for almost all of them. We still have some things to put away/find homes for but the space is appearing.

This is a real question, if you are bogged down by the state of your home and overwhelmed with all the shit, does reading the book actually.motivate you to fix it? In my mind right now it's all wishful thinking. Does it also tell you where to start, and how? I don't know where to start!

Yes it does, yes it does, and yes it does.

Final question, is the nature of the book suitable for either paperback or kindle? Or is it one of those that would be a pain to have on a kindle, or ?

I have the paperback as I don't have a kindle but I can't imagine it would matter either way

I have decluttered in the past and I have always regretted something going. This time round we have got rid of so much stuff, I would guess approximately 2 large skips worth. There is not a single thing I regret.

Ijershaanddup.com/konmari-checklist-free-printable/

If you cannot, for whatever reason do big categories or in the order that Konmari says, try printing off this list.

It breaks it down into about 200 sub categories. Not all of them will be relevant but it is a good starting place to understand the method. Pick 7 sub categories, do one each day for 30 minutes. I bet you will"be converted.

Re:the light saver and the bottles. What effect has binning them had on your life? probably,
A few moments regret that you were too hasty.
A lesson learned for the future.
I guess the value of the second outweighs the irritation of the first.

I have had 2 ornaments for over 30 years. I was fond of them but rather bored with them. I decided to store them away and bring them out at Christmas. In the process of packing them up, I dropped them, they smashed.

After a horror struck moment, I thought...
They were only ornaments
Konmari was telling me not to store them.
(Or possibly they were so distraught at being stored away. Bit like sending a relative to a care home. That they decided to throw themselves to the floor)

I opened DS's pyjama drawer last night and discovered DH had folded them all up, Kondo style! Its kon-tagious!

I have had minor regrets about things I kondoed, eg a box which would have come in useful, or some bits of plastic which turned out to be part of the buggy...however the extra space we have has more than made up for the few things I've had to replace.

I think it's so interesting how few regrets people have from kondoing. Any theories why??

I think if you are only throwing things which don't bring joy then you won't feel regret.

What are you all doing with the decent clothes you are getting rid of? I've got some lovely evening dresses that are barely worn.

Dulce I have tried ebaying them and selling at a nearly new sale...I have sold nothing!

This weekend everything I previously owned that no longer fills me with joy will be going to the charity shop.

I will be so much happier once it is no longer in the house.

A very important KonMari lesson learned - it owes you nothing, it did it's job already...profound but true!