Konmari: CDs and DVDs

The next category of my KonMari sorting is the one called Komono, which includes everything left in the house except sentimental items. This is probably where I’ll spend the most time, since there’s a lot of miscellaneous stuff here. CDs and DVDs are the first subcategory. It wasn’t such a big task, not like the behemoth Read More…

Konmari: Papers

The second part of the ‘Books and Papers’ category is of course papers. That includes paper files, and any other paper stuff around the house. I thought this would be brief and breezy, but it turned into days of crushing agony. Read on. Files I tacked our household files on a Sunday afternoon. After implementing Read More…

Konmari: Books, Part 2

I finished yesterday’s post undecided about my academic books. Today, it’s time to tell how I dealtwith them. The problem, for me, with my academic books, is that they embody every type of value that Kondo describes: functional (I can use them), informational (they contain knowledge), emotional (I’m sentimental about them), and rarity (they are Read More…

Konmari: Books, Part 1

The next Konmari category includes books and papers. I started with books. Per the method, I pulled them off the shelves, and laid them out on the floor/table to go through one at a time. I followed Kondo’s four recommended divisions, but added a couple of my own to break things into logical groups: Books for Read More…

Konmari: Clothing Part 2 (What I Learned)

Yesterday I wrote about how I sorted out my clothing using the KonMari method, but today I want to share some thoughts on that process and what I learned from it. One thing I learned was about how much energy I usually expend justifying and rationalising my decisions. I’ve decluttered many times before, and I Read More…

Konmari: Clothes, Part 1 (How It Went)

The first stage of the KonMari process is clothing, which also includes shoes, bags and jewellery. Over two days, I completed this whole category. Today, I’ll share how this process went; and tomorrow, I’ll share a few things I learned. Kondo recommends starting with clothes because it’s an easier category with which to learn the process. I was Read More…

Starting the KonMari Method

I’ve decided: I’m going to work through Marie Kondo’s book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. This is a long time in coming. I read the book first more than a year ago and have since returned to it over and over. Of all the books on decluttering and organising I’ve read (which are many), it Read More…

Useful Sewing

Clothing is still my favourite thing to sew, because nothing represents a better interaction of beauty, use, and challenge. However, lately I’ve been enjoying a break from clothing and have been sewing some useful items. Aside from being quicker to make, they require less perfection! The first thing I made was some bunting for Edith’s and Read More…

Memorabilia and Emotional Energy

After a recent move, my mom unearthed more boxes of my stuff in her house. When I started going through them, I kept saying UGH, UGH, AHHHH! Perhaps this is an obvious sign that I should just get rid of the stuff, if just looking at it produces visceral disgust. But I, being myself, dutifully started Read More…