Did you use the Marie Kondo method? Did it stick?

[Anonymous]

My DH does it still, with all his clothes. Well, with all his clothes he's not left on the floor / in the laundry basket etc etc etc

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:She (Kondo) even abandoned it, after having a baby. (And making tons in the book I am sure.)

Pretty funny!

(Perfection is an illusion people)

She has 3 kids and a more “relaxed” approach to life now, it seems.

[Anonymous]

You mean do I spring clean and donate stuff? Yes.. yes I do. Only dummies fell for her schtick and parted with their money while she recycled the free wisdom of our grandparents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You mean do I spring clean and donate stuff? Yes.. yes I do. Only dummies fell for her schtick and parted with their money while she recycled the free wisdom of our grandparents.

Nothing like the wisdom of my grandparents!

[Anonymous]

I adopted some ideas from her. I didn't Maria Kondo my whole house, but it helped me do many rounds of donating items that I was afraid to get rid of. I have a lot of "gifts" that we didn't want that came with strings we didn't ask for and it was a joy to think "this never brought me joy...goodbye" and to know it might bring joy to someone else.

I had gifts that did have good memories even though they took up space (heavy crystal bowl) and I never "used them." The ideas from Kondo helped me remember the lovely givers fondly, but part with the gift that was taking up space and would just add weight to another move. I no longer felt disloyal to someone I cared about because the item could bring someone else joy and it was just a thing. That is not the same as snubbing a friend or family member.

We have actually set a lot of boundaries with gifts gently for the sake of not contributing to environmental issues and adding to this cycle of sorting and donating and stuff possibly ending up in the trash. We no longer do gift exchanges with adults which while at first seen as rude, everyone admits now they much prefer it. We also set limits on the kid stuff and make holidays about beautiful memories, not stuff. It took a few years, but everyone seems on board and now it's like "what were thinking having piles of stuff to put away at the end of a holiday." It's much more pleasant to remember good conversations and food, kids playing outside and funny stories.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Now that it's been a while since the Konmari trend started, I'm curious, did it work for you? Did it stick?

I only got started a few years ago and then had to take in a relative and didn't have the time or space to make big piles as easily. I could see the potential though, and I'm tempted to try again.

The way she folds clothes stuck - mostly because I don't have room for tshirts etc. any other way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You mean do I spring clean and donate stuff? Yes.. yes I do. Only dummies fell for her schtick and parted with their money while she recycled the free wisdom of our grandparents.

Parted with what money? You can google and learn her methods for free, which is what I did. I don't actually know anyone who bought her book.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:She (Kondo) even abandoned it, after having a baby. (And making tons in the book I am sure.)

Pretty funny!

(Perfection is an illusion people)

I never thought she was trying to make people have perfect homes. Rather, I took her method as a way to make sure the things that surround me are things that are truly meaningful to me.

I agree. I think she said that if you really love all your stuff, keep it. But most people don't really love all their stuff as much as they like space and freedom.

My stumbling block is economic security. There was never enough money growing up to buy new clothes that fit and we had to keep whatever we had (sewing up holes, ignoring stains) because there wasn't likely to be more. I think her book talked about letting go of that worry and trust the process, but it's hard.

+2. The best thing about KonMarie is that it helped me to save SO MUCH MONEY by not buying things I don't need or love.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You mean do I spring clean and donate stuff? Yes.. yes I do. Only dummies fell for her schtick and parted with their money while she recycled the free wisdom of our grandparents.

Envy is never a good look. It cost nothing for people to watch her show.

[Anonymous]

I still use her concepts of Spark joy and letting go. Life changing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I adopted some ideas from her. I didn't Maria Kondo my whole house, but it helped me do many rounds of donating items that I was afraid to get rid of. I have a lot of "gifts" that we didn't want that came with strings we didn't ask for and it was a joy to think "this never brought me joy...goodbye" and to know it might bring joy to someone else.

I had gifts that did have good memories even though they took up space (heavy crystal bowl) and I never "used them." The ideas from Kondo helped me remember the lovely givers fondly, but part with the gift that was taking up space and would just add weight to another move. I no longer felt disloyal to someone I cared about because the item could bring someone else joy and it was just a thing. That is not the same as snubbing a friend or family member.

We have actually set a lot of boundaries with gifts gently for the sake of not contributing to environmental issues and adding to this cycle of sorting and donating and stuff possibly ending up in the trash. We no longer do gift exchanges with adults which while at first seen as rude, everyone admits now they much prefer it. We also set limits on the kid stuff and make holidays about beautiful memories, not stuff. It took a few years, but everyone seems on board and now it's like "what were thinking having piles of stuff to put away at the end of a holiday." It's much more pleasant to remember good conversations and food, kids playing outside and funny stories.

I love this! I guess it's the right time of year to have that conversation with the extended family to avoid buying so much for Christmas.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is SO hard with kids. Even she admitted it after having her second or third. I have 3, and their stuff is just everywhere even though we all tidy up and do big weekly cleanups. I do a closet edit every year, usually twice.

My biggest issue for my personal stuff is I have to go to a lot of events for my job so I have a rotation of dresses and outfits that I keep because I wear them every few years for something. I’m trying to cull that further by doing more rent the runway and borrowing from friends but I’m keeping the staples.

And I have a hard time throwing out samples of skincare and makeup, since they can be so handy for trips or days where I need to carry things for touch ups.

I have a small bin just for these types of items. When it is full, I know I have to go through it and throw out whatever is expired.

Expiration dates are very helpful in getting me to finally purge cosmetics and food. I tell myself that I deserve fresh products and toss the expired.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I adopted some ideas from her. I didn't Maria Kondo my whole house, but it helped me do many rounds of donating items that I was afraid to get rid of. I have a lot of "gifts" that we didn't want that came with strings we didn't ask for and it was a joy to think "this never brought me joy...goodbye" and to know it might bring joy to someone else.

I had gifts that did have good memories even though they took up space (heavy crystal bowl) and I never "used them." The ideas from Kondo helped me remember the lovely givers fondly, but part with the gift that was taking up space and would just add weight to another move. I no longer felt disloyal to someone I cared about because the item could bring someone else joy and it was just a thing. That is not the same as snubbing a friend or family member.

We have actually set a lot of boundaries with gifts gently for the sake of not contributing to environmental issues and adding to this cycle of sorting and donating and stuff possibly ending up in the trash. We no longer do gift exchanges with adults which while at first seen as rude, everyone admits now they much prefer it. We also set limits on the kid stuff and make holidays about beautiful memories, not stuff. It took a few years, but everyone seems on board and now it's like "what were thinking having piles of stuff to put away at the end of a holiday." It's much more pleasant to remember good conversations and food, kids playing outside and funny stories.

I love this! I guess it's the right time of year to have that conversation with the extended family to avoid buying so much for Christmas.

We did the same and all the women in the family appreciated the change except the matriarch.

[Anonymous]

Yes! But - I am a teacher and in the summer I "re-Kondo" which is more like refolding my clothes, going through kitchen cabinets, fixing things that have gotten messy. It's not nearly the effort of the first time.

[Anonymous]

I still fold, and her method helped me tremendously with releasing stuff.

However, I always stall out at paper, when I follow her method.