What is the KonMari Method?
Many people live in cluttered homes which end up complicating their life as well. It’s not that they don’t know how to declutter your room but the process itself is very complicated.
Well, if you could focus on the things in your home that give you joy, then everything else would fall into place. Marie Kondo has developed a method that makes this easy and simple, so you can get rid of clutter fast without having to sort through every item in your house one by one. It’s called the KonMari Method because she says we should only keep items that spark joy.
Here’s everything you need to know about the KonMari method.
What is the Konmari Method?
KonMari, also known as KonMarie or Marie Kondo, is a tidying expert in Japan. She has written several bestselling books on the process she uses to transform individuals and families. Created by Marie Kondo, professional home organizer and author of the bestselling book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, the Konmari method emphasizes removing clutter from your home and surrounding yourself with things that spark joy.
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In other words, the konmari method is a simple but effective tidying method that ensures you’ll never relapse to clutter again. It uses unique selection criteria by choosing what sparks joy. Through this tidying process, you can reset your life and spend the rest of your life surrounded by the people and things you love most.
After the release of the Netflix TV show Tidying Up with Marie Kondo in 2019, many people globally have been using Marie Kondo’s tips to declutter their homes and stay organized.
How Does the KonMari Method Work?
KonMari has six basic rules that can help you declutter, get organized and create a home filled with items that make you happy. Here’s how the KonMari method rules work:
Commit Yourself to Tidy Up
The KonMari method is not a quick fix for a messy room. Instead, it’s a chance to reset your entire life, but only if you commit to following its principles. The first rule of tidying is setting your intention to seriously tidy up and resolving to put in the time and effort required.
When approaching your tidying festival with a clear vision and a can-do attitude, you’ll find the energy and motivation you need to tidy all your belongings in one go. The effort will be worth it in the end, and you’ll not only experience the joy of living with objects that you love, but you’ll also be on the path of establishing your ideal lifestyle.
Marie Kondo’s theory is the more you can get rid of, the easier it will be to tidy up and remain organized. So, don’t get discouraged if the process takes longer than a day.
Imagine Your Ideal Lifestyle
Before you start, imagine your ideal lifestyle and identify the objects that make it a reality. If this is your first time tidying up, you might not be able to picture what your perfect life looks like. But it’s never too late to change and improve after all.
Marie Kondo’s tidying process isn’t about decluttering your house or making it look neat on the spur of the moment for visitors. It’s all about tidying up in a way that will spark joy in your life and change it forever.
Consider what kind of a house you want to live in and how you want to live in it. Make sure you describe your ideal lifestyle. You can draw and sketch out what it looks like if you like. You can also describe in a notebook or cut out photos from magazines.
When you imagine your ideal lifestyle, you’re clarifying why you want to tidy and envision your best life. The tidying process represents a turning point, so make sure you consider the ideal lifestyle you inspire.
Finish Discarding First
Once you know what your ideal lifestyle is, you’ll be able to decide which items have value in your home and fill a purpose for that lifestyle. Considering each item and sorting them to keep and discard piles allows you to create more space for the organization and storage solutions that come later in the Konmari method.
Discarding items is not the point of the Konmari method, but it’s important because it provides the opportunity to determine the items that will help you live your life as you envision it as well as those items that no longer fit into your lifestyle. After you’ve discarded, you can turn your full energy and attention to what sparks joy.
Sort by Category, Not Location
The Konmari method advises sorting by category rather than the room. This allows you to work on one type of item at a time and ensures that each category is treated with equal importance. In other words, you’ll have a hard time getting motivated to finish if all of your clothes are in one room and the books are in another.
If you’re cleaning your home room by room, you’re most likely rearranging items and tossing out only a few things since it doesn’t feel like a ton of clutter for that room. Tidy by categories such as clothes, books, papers, miscellaneous items and sentimental items.
This way, you’ll be on the right track to success. If you find yourself doing this, try to give each category its own dedicated space and do your best not to keep related items together. The Konmari method prefers that you spread out categories throughout your entire home.
Follow the Right Order of Tidy
This is probably the most important aspect of Konmari. You want to tidy up in the correct order to meet your tidying needs by starting with what’s most necessary first.
The right order for this method includes clothes, books, papers (all documents and manuals), miscellaneous items like small electronics and accessories, and mementoes.
sk Yourself if it Sparks Joy
Deciding if something sparks joy is the criteria for keeping and discarding items when decluttering. In the Konmari method, your feelings are the standard for decision making, especially knowing what sparks joy. To determine this when tidying, you need to pick up each object at a time and ask yourself quietly if it does spark joy.
Pay attention to how your body responds. Joy is personal, so that everyone will experience it differently. By selecting only those things that inspire joy, you can precisely identify what you love and what you need.
How to Use The Konmari Method at Home
Clothes
The first category you need to tackle for a tidy house is clothing. While you might be used to cleaning out clothes in your closet and then your drawers, the Konmari method suggests gathering clothes and accessories from all over your home, including your bedroom closets, coat closets, drawers and under the bed and put them all in one pile.
This will allow you how much you have and help you realize how much you don’t wear. If an item sparks joy, keep it and if not, give it to gratitude and donate your clothing. You can then learn how to iron the clothes remaining ones correctly and arrange them the right way.
Books
After clothes, the next category on the Konmari method checklist books, gather every book in your home and put them in a pile to decide which ones spark joy and which ones don’t. If your ideal lifestyle means that your space is filled with books, keep them.
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Papers
Every paper in your home, including documents, letters, bills and receipts, should be sorted using the Konmari method. Keep only what you need or use daily, plus one copy of everything else.
Miscellaneous Items
Any other items that don’t fit into the above categories should be put in a pile to determine what sparks joy and what doesn’t. Sort through everything carefully. Create groups like electronics, beauty supplies, home decor, canned goods and writing utensils.
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It might be tempting to go room by room for an extensive category; make sure you gather items from all over your home and put them in one pile. That way, you’ll be able to store similar items together to easily find them and not have anything to spread out.
Sentimental Items
Sentimental items hold deep meaning and can be tough to part with. If you’ve ever seen the episode of ‘Hoarders’ where the woman won’t get rid of her deceased mother’s old suitcase, this method isn’t for you.
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Keep only those sentimental objects that truly bring you joy and store them in a designated area. That way, you’ll have them but won’t be reminded of them at every turn.
How to Store Items that Spark Joy
After deciding what to keep in your home, good storage solutions will help you keep everything organized. Here are some of the best Konmari organization and storage tips:
Try Konmari Folding
The Konmari folding method is perfect for organizing your clothes. Marie Kondo didn’t only create her method of decluttering and organizing, but she has also shared a unique folding technique for clothes and linens. The Konmari method of folding helps keep drawers, baskets and bins neat and tidy.
Use Boxes in Drawers
Don’t toss them out if you have gift boxes, shoe boxes, and jewelry boxes. These are great DIY home storage solutions for keeping small things like jewelry, beauty supplies, phone chargers and other miscellaneous things organized in drawers and cabinets.
Store Papers in File Organizers
The paper file organizer is perfect for storing mails, bills and other papers. It protects your documents from getting lost in the clutter of the drawer.
Invest in Wicker Baskets
Wicker baskets are great for keeping your cupboard free from clutter. Use them to store foodstuffs, dry fruits, snacks and other kitchen essentials.
FAQs on What is the KonMari Method
Is the Konmari method effective?
The Konmari method is a highly efficient and effective organizing strategy that has helped many people declutter their homes. The beauty of this method is that it doesn’t follow any specific order in tidying up – you can start from anywhere and go on to the next activity.
What are the benefits of the Konmari method?
The Konmari method advises people to get rid of useless, unnecessary belongings. If applied correctly, this will help you find more relaxation and peace in your life. It also teaches you not to keep hold of things that do not bring joy into your life.
Final Thought on What is the Konmari Method
Do you have items that spark joy that you can’t fit in your home? Well, get organized with these temporary storage solutions with extra space storage to keep items that fit your ideal lifestyle, even if you don’t have room for them now.
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