So, if you follow me on Instagram (or look at the side bar on my blog…), you’ll know that I finally got to the top of the waiting list at my library to borrow “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up” by Marie Kondo.
I have read so many blog posts and book reviews on the subject, that I wasn’t sure I even needed to read the book, but I made it to the library and picked up my reservation. I had to see if reading the book really did “change my life”…
Now, to be honest, I actually haven’t finished the book yet… It’s a quick and easy read, but I’m not in the habit of taking time to read these days… and I’ve also had some pretty busy and stressful work deadlines, so when I’m looking to chill out before bed, it’s really “turn brain off” time… Not “get immersed in a new project” time…
But anyway, the point is that I’m starting on this process… I have big plans… Marie Kondo says I can take up to 6 months… and I will need that amount of time for sure… But unfortunately I need to get everything out of the book that I can in the next week and a half. The book is so popular that it is still on the “fast reads” shelf, so I don’t get much time with it… Must find time to read and take notes…
I’m not going to bore you with explaining what the book says… the internet is swamped with reviews and summaries. I want to just document my journey with the process. So to start, I want to go through the first part of the process… the “why” and the inspiration.
“Before you start, visualize your destination”
I want my house to be tidy and organized… Why? Because I have many interests, and I want to be able to explore all of them at different times in my life, without the problem of searching for the supplies. I want my house to be clean, but also I really love having a spot or home for everything, preferably with a label… I love things being labeled…
I want to decrease the amount of stuff in our house to only things that are useful or bring joy so that it is easier to find things. Why? I want to know exactly where to find the supplies and football decorations to host my annual Superbowl party. I want to know exactly where things are so that when we put up the Christmas lights next year, we know exactly where the extension cord is.
I want my “to-do” list of organizing to be empty. Why? I want us to be able to plan our major home renovations and have a really clear idea of what storage we need to keep in the house, and what space we can convert to living space. I also want us to have a lot less stuff to need to move around while we are tackling those major home renos.
When I come home from work, I want to be able to decide on an activity or project and be able to jump right in to it… not have to find all the pieces, scattered around the house, then have to clean up an area to find a spot to work on the project… I don’t want to feel the weight of a big “To-Do” list on my shoulders if I decide to take an evening stroll down to the beach instead of working on something around the house…
Another thing about having a clean and tidy, and perhaps slightly minimalist, house… when you want to host a theme party, like the baby shower I hosted in November or more puzzle club meetings, you don’t need to take down or move a bunch of things, you can just put up the theme decorations easily. And I LOVE hosting parties. If I had a clean and organized house, maybe I can host more parties!!!
So, that’s the first step, determining the “why” I want to tidy and organize.
Have you read the Marie Kondo book? Have you tried her methods yet? Next week I hope to get started with the first category of things to sort through, clothes…
All-Round Better Me 
…so hello again 🙂 I really like your first post. And your dreams and visualisations make total sense! I know what you mean by just wanting to be able to get home and START on anything you’d like without first feeling the burden that you should actually tidy up a bit first or look for your stuff (although the second one is not really a problem of mine, but the first one is… I’m constantly tidying up I feel!). It surely will be more inspiring and feel more inviting to prepare parties in a clean and more minimalistic place. I’m anxious to see and read about your progress – harharhar, may I say, when I think about tackling clothes… Go girl, I’m sure you’ll manage well and trust me – you’ll feel very, very relieved afterwards 😀 !!! Have a look into my Big Closet Purge post if you’d like to get a feel of it – so far it’s my most popular post X-D Good luck!!! ❤
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I have read your posts, but will go back to re-read them as I go… I am excited to get started, just have to set aside the time…
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I get excited about following your experience and your start 😀 !!! Wish you a fantastic one!!! ❤
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My review of the book was actually one of my first blog posts. I read it in one evening, and felt completely inspired to start tidying my home. I was really satisfied with how the tidying process went, but it’s been a couple months, and I’m back to feeling overwhelmed by clutter. My husband does not subscribe to the KonMari method at all so I’m forced to organize his stuff verus purging anything. And we are holding on to a TON of old baby stuff right now while we wait to find out the gender of my SIL’s second baby. For a family household, I think it’s much easier to do a big tidy every 3 months versus just hoping you can take care of everything in one fell swoop. It’s much easier to finally convince a spouse/packrat to get rid of something if he/she is being reminded every 3 months that the item has not been used. I wish you a ton of luck with your tidying process, and I can’t wait to read about how it goes!
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I haven’t read your post, so I will have to go do that… I’m not 100% sure my husband will be totally on board with the process, so I totally understand what you are dealing with there… The key is for everyone to find the method that works for them. I’m hoping that by doing the big tidy, my future tidying will be at least significantly decreased if not eliminated completely. We will have to see how it goes….
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Surprisingly this is the first time I’ve hear about this book! Seems like a lot of excellent tips. Will add it on my ever-growing to read list.
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I guess I follow a lot of lifestyle blogs that have discussed the book. I’ll be going thru the process over the next few months and hope to blog about the whole thing as I go, so you can probably get the general idea from my posts…
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I too have it on hold!! I want to see what all the fuss is about. I TOTALLY agree on not having a cluttered home when it comes to decorating – I love seasonal decoration, and its so nice to be able to put the christmas stuff up without packing up tons of other crap to make room!
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I had to return the book to the library this morning… and I didn’t get 100% thru it, but I took notes on what I did read and hope to get started on the process this weekend…
I totally agree that not having a bunch of stuff around lets you be able to much more easily decorate for the holiday season. I’ve always loved seeing photos of people’s houses where they are able to put up decorations for the various seasons or minor holidays throughout the year too. If I can declutter everything, then maybe I can do that too!
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