2019 Is all about getting your house in order, literally and figuratively. With Marie Kondo’s new Netflix series taking the globe by storm, we reckon it’s going to be an easy task to take on.
For those of you who haven’t heard of the decluttering guru, most of the series, called Tidying Up With Marie Kondo, adheres to the principles detailed in her international bestseller, The Life-Changing Magic Of Tidying Up.
In it, she advocates a five-step approach to evaluating one’s belongings on an emotional level. In a nutshell, if it doesn’t spark joy, it needs to go.
Suffice to say, the Japanese-born home organiser is inspiring many to declutter and re-evaluate their lives. And inadvertently, she’s not interested in the latest home decor trends or furniture design - all she wants is for you to imagine your home as a sanctuary.
If you haven’t seen the inside of your spare room in months or the bottom of your laundry basket, best you follow some of Kondo’s decluttering tips.
Everything in its place
Entrance ways are the place where lost bags and clothing disappear. Why? Because in your mind it’s organised chaos.
Stop kidding yourself and get into action. Kondo firmly believes that everything should be in its designated place.
She suggests organising most-used places in the home to make your morning and evening routine easier.
Arranging your things vertically. Picture: AP
Take stock
In the Netflix series, the first thing Kondo asks her clients to do is dump all their clothes in one pile. It’s a sobering realisation when confronted with a huge pile of stuff, most of which you don’t even need.
Declutter in order
Still wondering why you can’t get rid of accounts that are more than three years old? You’re decluttering wrong, according to Kondo. She suggests starting with clothes and books first. Then move onto paper and “komono” (bathroom, kitchen, garage and other items). Always leave sentimental pieces for last - by the time you move onto them you’ll already have a sense of what is important to you.
Store vertically
Most of her followers swear by this little nugget of wisdom, because from a practical point of view, it really works.
Arranging your things vertically will not only save on storage space, but are more pleasing on the eye. Here’s a nifty tip: next time fold all your T-shirts in a tower - it will be easier to see all the options available to you.
Kondo even has her own line of storage boxes. Picture: AP
Does it bring you joy?
A somewhat unorthodox method, Kondo says the best way to know whether to keep something is to hold it in your hand and ask yourself “does it bring me joy?”. You’ll know the answer instantly.
Her parting words of wisdom: Only surround yourself with things that make you happy.