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Marie Kondo book: Pick it up

ironkurtin

Veteran

I recently posted a link to a review of the Marie Kondo book: The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. Here's a link to Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Life-Cha.....f=asap_B00

I recently purchased it myself. It's a little hand-sized volume and it is amazing: a whole new way of approaching what you have, what you keep, and where (and how) to store it. Some of it is a little OCD, some of it is very culturally specific, parts won't work for everyone, but the main message is incredibly freeing. Not just her basic tenet that things should spark joy, but understanding WHY they spark joy to us and how we should interact with the objects in our life.

I applied her concepts to several categories in my home already: cleaning supplies, pants, shirts, and sweaters. (One of her approaches is to tackle categories, not places, and to store everything that is the same in one area.) Do you know, I had FIVE separate sprayers of Scrubbing Clorox with Bleach around my very small house? Why did I need five? Once I had them all in a single spot, it became clear what I need and when I need it. As for the clothing categories, I am now getting bidding farewell to FOUR HUGE BAGS of things on those three categories alone -- things I never thought I could get rid of, for sentimental or value or potential-use reasons. But now I know they have taught me what I needed from them and I respectfully let them go.

I definitely think this book is of interest and will be helpful to forum members. Check it out and let me know what you think!

28 replies

Latest reply was from Beth Ann

Joyce B

Veteran

I'll check it out. Thanks for sharing, I think it will be useful.

PalmFronds

Sounds like the approach from six sigma teaching. I agree it's awesome. Did it to my kitchen two years ago. Good grief the stuff I had in there! Bags abd bags given away

Gaylene

Veteran

I downloaded a copy after your original post, IK, and found the book really helpful in getting us settled and organized in our new, severely downsized, condo. Marie's ideas about folding items instead of hanging them (along with HOW things should be folded!) were especially useful. I have also tried thanking my socks, but the ungrateful wretches still surprise me with holes at the most inopportune times.

JayS

Veteran

IK..thanks for the heads up. This looks like something I could benefit from.
Gaylene..did you have any issues with the Kindle edition? After downloading some books, I wish I had gotten the book instead.

ironkurtin

Veteran

Gaylene, the whole "thanking" thing does seem a bit off the hook, but oddly I found being grateful for the service of objects was rather pleasing.

jackiec

Veteran

Thanks, IK! Just ordered a copy for me and for a friend (getting through my Xmas list ). Looking forward to it.

Anonymous

intriguing! will check it out today in fact:)

UmmLila (Lisa)

Veteran

EDITED TO ADD - you probably posted this same link. Sorry!

I read an article about her in the New York Times a couple weeks ago, and it made me happy.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10......html?_r=0

Ms. Kondo’s decluttering theories are unique, and can be reduced to two basic tenets: Discard everything that does not “spark joy,” after thanking the objects that are getting the heave-ho for their service; and do not buy organizing equipment — your home already has all the storage you need.

Obsessive, gently self-mocking and tender toward the life cycle of, say, a pair of socks, Ms. Kondo delivers her tidy manifesto like a kind of Zen nanny, both hortatory and animistic.

“Don’t just open up your closet and decide after a cursory glance that everything in it gives you a thrill,” she writes. “You must take each outfit in your hand.”

“Does it spark joy?” would seem to set the bar awfully high for a T-shirt or a pair of jeans, but it turns out to be a more efficacious sorting mechanism than the old saws: Is it out of style? Have you worn it in the last year? Does it still fit?

Alone in my bedroom, with the contents of both closets strewn over every surface, I fondled stretch velvet pants (don’t judge me) and enough fringed scarves to outfit an army of Stevie Nicks fans, and shed a tear or two for my younger self. (Where did the time go?)

“Sparking joy,” I realized, can be a flexible concept: That which is itchy, or too hot, is certainly joyless. So is anything baggy, droopy or with a flared leg.

Tidying is a dialogue with oneself, Ms. Kondo writes.

Of course, after 10 or 12 hours of this, you get a bit silly. You forget to thank your discards. (Country music can help. Try George Jones and Lucinda Williams.) By 9 p.m., I had lost Ms. Kondo’s book in the layers of clothing, hangers and shoe boxes. And my glasses, too.

Continue reading the main story

How to distinguish one black turtleneck from another? Why would anyone buy purple tights? What is joy, anyway?

At 1 a.m., my daughter appeared, raised an eyebrow at the piles still obliterating my bed and offered up her own. But I was ready to fold, the primal act of Ms. Kondo’s method.

You can find YouTube videos of her technique, but it’s not so hard: Fold everything into a long rectangle, then fold that in upon itself to make a smaller rectangle, and then roll that up into a tube, like a sushi roll. Set these upright in your drawers. And pour your heart into it, Ms. Kondo urges: Thank your stuff, it’s been working hard for you.

CocoLion

(website)

Veteran

I'm definitely going to check it out! Thanks for sharing your experience IK.

Janet

(website)

Veteran

I'm intrigued, too. My home is an ongoing editing project. Thanks for the recommendation.

catgirl

Veteran

Will check it out! We could use some cleansing!

gryffin

Veteran

IK - I've been in the process of cleaning (pantry, basement etc). Just ordered the book. I'll let you know what I think. Thanks for the tip - having "enough" and not too much is my goal!! Many thanks!

Caro in Oz

Veteran

I downloaded it on your recommendation too, thank you

The big ah-ha I had was that although I'm really good at letting go of things that don't work I tend to hang on to things I love; even though I'm no longer using them. In some weird way the holding the clothes & thanking them for having been so useful enabled me to let them go with no regrets. So worth the money imo too.

rachylou

Veteran

Oh, definitely intriguing. Six-sigma applied to the home...

Susie

Veteran

I had downloaded it when you posted that article and read it this past weekend. (I'm a sucker for things about organizing, minimizing, etc). It is certainly a different approach and quite intriquing! I did manage to clean out some drawers in my kitchen and threw a bunch of stuff away from 2 bathrooms.

Zibbets

Veteran

It sounds very helpful and positive. Thanks for the rec!

amiable

Veteran

I've been intending to get it - thanks for the nudge!

gradfashionista

(website)

Veteran

I picked it up after reading your first post and read it a few days afterward.
There is a lot of overlap between some of the things discussed in Kondo's book, and the themes addressed on this site and in the book, "The Joy of Less." Because Kondo's message can be summarized in one sentence, her advice is more memorable, and probably more actionable as a result. That said, I found it harder to implement for my non-clothing items that I rarely use, but do have a unique purpose.

Jaime

(website)

Veteran

I read it after the NYTimes article and also found it incredibly inspiring. I tackled paperwork first (I am a picker and chooser when it comes to systems and rules), and believe me it sparked plenty of joy when I tossed years of old credit card bills and instruction manuals!
Highly second IK's recommendation!

Theodora

Downloaded to my ipad! Now it remains to be seen if I can implement any organization in to my chaotic home. I am so "organizationally challenged", it's not even funny. Surprisingly,the only place that I know how to organize, and I maintain with OCD-like perfection is my closet, drawers and shelves. So what does that say about me? Meanwhile, I never seem to know what the heck to do with everything else in the house, even in the kitchen. I am constantly picking items up and then am struck with an idiotic blankness. Uhh, where should this go? Uhhhh. Oh well, I'll just dump it over there then, until I can figure it out....

Thanks!

carolbee

Veteran

Thanks IK, downloaded it yesterday, finished reading it today, and have already discarded and reorganised my knicker and sock drawers. Found a pile of black knickers I totally had forgottern about! And I've considered myself a minimalist at heart for somtime. My friends are always ribbing me about what I'm giving away, they ain't seen nothing yet.

Astrid

Veteran

I bought it a while ago, I think it's the same one. It's called "Magic Cleaning" in the German version. I definitely enjoyed reading it and implemented a bit of it when I sorted my flat half a year ago. I think I should probably revisit it.

viva

Veteran

I'm very excited to look into this, and I think it could be a great gift for a couple of friends. Thanks for the recommendation! I remember reading the NYTimes article as well, but like so many interesting things it had already flitted out of my brain. I really appreciate the reminder.

Classically Casual

Veteran

After reading everyone's comments, I tackled my sock drawer, and it was fun!
I enjoyed thanking many old socks and sending them on. After all, we had many adventures together. The newly orderly drawer certainly gives pleasure, but maybe not all out joy yet. Baby steps, I think.j

jackiec

Veteran

IK - thanks again for the recommendation! I finished reading my copy two days ago and LOVED it. I've already consolidated 2 drawers of knitwear into one, with room to spare! We moved just over a year ago, and I did some major purging then. I've also been purging as the year has gone along. So, I'm a bit ahead of the curve with respect to the book, but I have some bad hoarding habits in my junk drawers (and bathrooms) and this has really helped. Some people may find parts of the book corny, but I absolutely loved it. Two thumbs up for sure. Thanks again!!!

ironkurtin

Veteran

Jackie I'm STILL loving the book! She does say it takes 6 months to do it properly, so I'm in the midst.

I also got it for my mother. Hope she's not offended!

dashielle (Ann)

(website)

Veteran

Thanks for the recommendation IK, I am so happy when I get things in a state of organization, though I tend to get more joy from arranging my clothes closet! If my mother were still alive, I would hand deliver a copy to her...which would probably end up under a pile of something

Beth Ann

Veteran

I'll be reading this over the holiday weekend. Creative types aren't know for managing stuff well, and I need all the inspiration I can get!

My great-aunt Lucille used to say, when parting with an old piece of clothing or appliance, "It don't owe me a thing." She meant, in her own way, that the object had served her well and could be let go without any thought of waste.