#lifechangingmagic

I think I’ve mentioned on this blog that I recently moved in with my boyfriend. Before moving I was horrified by the amount of “lady stuff” I owned- clothes, purses, makeup, skincare, haircare- most of which was cheaply made stuff I had bought to test out and then never used or worn again. Like most ladies I also had a large portion of my wardrobe full of clothes that would probably fit me if I lost a certain amount of weight or worked for a very specific occasion or with very specific adjustments (”Oh I could wear that if I found the right belt, which I don’t own”, etc). I was completely anxious about bringing too much stuff for one person into a bedroom where two people were meant to live. 

I’d heard a lot about the Konmarie method of cleaning, and this specific book from Marie Kondo- a Japanese organizing specialist. I eventually found a free version of the audiobook and spent 6 hours listening to it while I tried to go through everything I owned. 

A lot of the book was unhelpful (pages and pages dedicated to Marie’s own childhood obsession with organization) or obvious (throw out things you don’t use), but there were a few key things I took away that actually did make a huge difference in how I cleaned and organized. 

1. Do the entire sorting process in one day, as quickly as possible. Marie suggests that you go through everything you own, touching it and asking yourself if it “sparks joy”. I found it difficult to answer that for everything so I used several versions of it, such as would I be sad if I didn’t own this anymore, or am I ever going to use this again (for makeup). But the main thing that worked for me was biting the bullet and doing EVERYTHING in one sitting. After I was done, I never wanted to go through my stuff again- which is the point. 

2. Imagine the kind of life you want to have, not just what you want to see in it. One poignant part of the book for me was Marie’s description of a female client she had who wanted her room to be “more feminine”. This client had the room of a hoarder, not the calming minimalist space she envisioned- so Marie asked her to really think about what she meant by feminine and why she wanted things that way. Finding out why you want things is difficult but makes you more focused and more motivated to arrange things to your specifications. For example I know that I like the aesthetic of having my lipsticks on display, but when I thought about it I realized it’s because I use things more when I can easily see them. 

3. It’s about what YOU want. There’s an entire section of the book devoted to making sure there are no mothers around when you’re doing your sorting and throwing away, and Marie is constantly mentioning how she wanted her home growing up to look a certain way that her family was not into. When you’re going through your things, think about what you actually like and want, rather than letting anyone influence you. A friend or partner might convince you to save a dress they like but that you know you don’t wear.