Tidying up Guru Marie Kondo has been tidying up since she was five. Today she owns a business in Tokyo where she uses her diligently devised KonMari & Method to help people transform their condos into inspiring and peaceful spaces. If you are feeling overwhelmed by the size of your Toronto Condo don't hesitate to declutter!
See everyone out!
For hardcore cleaning, make sure that you clean up your condo all by yourself without seeking help from people whose comments or opinions may dissuade you from tough decisions. Trust your gut instinct and have the courage to throw anything that is defective, broken, worn out (Don't flatter yourself into thinking you might recycle), and keep only what is useful. While you may be tempted to go at it one drawer at a time, cleaning up your entire living space all at once and optimizing its storage is more efficient. You should do it in one clean sweep over a set period of time and take out absolutely everything. That way, you can affect real long-term changes and see how much work there is to be done.
Master the Art of Folding
If you stick to her fine art of folding, you can free up ample amount of closet space. When you arrange tops and blouses like envelopes, not only would your closet look like a work of art, it would help you see everything clearly. Think of it like this, instead of storing your shirts in an up-and-down stack, so the only visible one is the one on top, store them side by side, folded side-up, so that they'll read a bit like a row of book spines. Because let's face it, the jumper surreptitiously tucked under the bottom of a stack hardly ever gets worn! You can't wear what you can't see! This video starring Marie Kondo will show you how to fold and organize your underwear drawer. Take notes!
Store by category, not location
In every other condo I see, items falling in the same category are hardly ever stashed together. For instance, if you are organizing your clothes, collect clothes from every drawer of every closet in every room and pile them together. Start your journey from tops, moving down to your bottoms, and so on.
In general, this is how it goes. Electrical cords go with electrical cords, envelopes go with other pieces of stationary, shirts with shirts, and so on. Do this and you will never find yourself running around your condo frantically searching for that screwdriver, wondering where on earth could you have placed it. Some things may not be so easy to categorize, so when you are sorting through those wildly miscellaneous items in your junk drawer, place items that are often used together under one umbrella. For instance, your stationary drawer or section can house together anything that you might use to craft a letter or jot down notes, or even wrap a gift!
These are the KonMari categories, and their explanations:
Clothes: Dump every piece of clothing that you own on your bed. Yes, your bed will temporarily resemble a vibrant mountain of fabric, but it will all be worth it. Touch every piece of clothing and think about how it makes you feel. If it sparks joy and conjures up good memories, go ahead and keep it. If not, it can serve a better purpose in donations.
Books: The hardest part of a decluttering mission is to sort through your books and bid adieu to a few. Considering the emotional connection that most people have with their books, don't just collect books at random. Only keep those that mean something to you.
Papers: If you are looking to go paper-less, all your files and documentations can be scanned, and a copy saved in your phone.
Miscellaneous Stuff: This broad category includes everything that you can imagine, such as the bathroom stuff, the kitchen, living room belongings, or everything that isn't a sentimental thing, clothes, papers, or book.
Sentimental: Once you begin to make more space for the things that bring you true joy, display those sentimental items with pride, be it a family photo or an heirloom.
Listen to your heart
The biggest mistake that people make when organizing, is that they focus too much energy and time in finding storage for things that they don't even need. I would be hard pressed to find a person who hasn't complained about not having space for clothes when we hardly wear a tenth of those in regular rotation. When you are cleaning out your closets (literally), why not weigh everything in your hand one by one to analyze if that thing triggers feelings of connection, joy, or love. You love that silk halter neck, but you haven't worn it in the past year. Is it still in? Do you see yourself wearing it soon? Could you still bring it into rotation? Take the time to ask yourself these questions before making an informed decision. You should define three categories before you start sorting: give/sell, throw away, and keep. You could give your possessions to family members/friends, or you could sell them.
Post a comment