January is usually a time of year where I deep clean, organize, and purge. I think the chaos of the holidays, with the footprint of the Christmas tree and addition of extra furniture in our smaller spaces, stresses me out. I always start the new year with an urge to clear the clutter and downsize the stuff.
I had seen Marie Kondo on the Today Show long ago but never adopted her method of tidying and folding. Now that she has a new Netflix series and book, and the world seems to be taking notice of her organizational skills, the KonMari Method has entered our home. My daughter started watching the show with my son's girlfriend and I am noticing big results. Both have completely tidied up their clothes and closets, removed bags of items for donation, and allowed the peace of less clutter to wash over them. This has also trickled into general cleaning as well and I have never seen my son's room look so tidy! The bed is made, the carpet gets vacuumed more often and I noticed the bathroom towels on the shelves are neatly rolled into a lovely display! How could I not applaud these changes!?!?!
Of course, I realized I had some tidying of my own to do and began with a simple start: the t-shirt drawer. Pulling everything out of a space is the first step. Each item in the resulting pile needs to be picked up, assessed, (thanked) and sorted. Those that make the cut get folded into stand-up thirds and placed upright back in the drawer (or on the shelf, in a basket, etc.). It felt great to get rid of some ratty workout shirts and really decide which pieces 'spark joy'. If something no longer serves its purpose or really doesn't enhance my life, out it goes. After t-shirts came socks, the linen closet, the laundry room, the storage closet..........
Even husband got on board (as each person should be responsible for their own belongings) and we spent a family-together weekend afternoon doing this exercise. It was fun...and it feels so rewarding afterwards. I am slowly working my way around the house and am pleased with the results so far. Things that weren't working (vacuum, dog food, and large winter jackets in the same small closet, for example) are being evaluated and a solution implemented. It takes time but it is worth it. Whether or not the system is sustained in the long term has yet to be determined but I've had a couple laundry days where t-shirts and socks have been put away in the same organized way. At the very least, we have a great starting point of tidiness...AND...now hubby puts away his own laundry!!!
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