One of "Konmari's" central ideas is to only keep the items that spark joy. I said this in a tongue-and-cheek way to John when I started reading the book. It sparked his curiosity, so he also read the book. She recommends that you start by decluttering your closet, and John donated many extra clothing items.
While Alex was a day camp during his spring break, I found the time to tackle my clothes. I have been decluttering my closet as we've moved, but this was my easiest session. The ideas in the book really helped me let go of items that no longer fit, items that are worn out, and items that just did not spark joy. My side of the closet is pictured below (for now my swimsuit is hanging.) I also have 3 drawers in our dresser. I currently like all of the clothes in my closet, which was not the case in the past. My shoes are on a hanging divider and my bags are nested in the bottom of the closet.
A lesson from The Minimalists also helped me purge my closet. They write about how many items that we own can be replaced for under $20 and in less that 20 minutes. I confirmed this with a pair of jeans. I donated a pair of jeans last fall before we moved because they were too small. After changing my eating habits this winter, I bet they would finally fit again. I was able to find a similar pair of Levi's jeans in a lighter color at Goodwill for $8. Now I don't regret giving away my smaller jeans, and I donated my jeans that are too big. There are also online sources for used, name-brand clothes such as thredUp and Twice. My first order is on it's way from thredUp with a shirt for me and shorts for Alex.
I am going slightly out of order from Marie's recommendation in the book, but I wanted to declutter my craft supplies this week. I was able to sell some stamp sets online, recycle some scraps, and start my donation pile. Here are items ready to ship out to new homes. My pattern paper and card stock stash are finally contained.
It has been both a productive and relaxing week. How is your spring going?
3 comments:
It does look like it has been productive there. I have that book and I have cleaned out closets - but in my case, the two were not linked!
Sam and I got this book. I have read it. He has not, since he is in the middle of finals. Even though Sam and I are hoarders, I am gonna give it a go.
It is definitely a process! I still have a long way to go and plan to check out the book again from our library. It has a long request list, so it must be popular.
Post a Comment