Has anyone tried the Kon-mari program? Any comments?

[hitenney]

Hi there - I have lurked here (mostly just on the Grocery Challenge) for a while, and used to be part of the MSN boards doing couponing with the Grocery Challenge. The last few years I've haven't had much chance to post or read, but things seem to be settling down some. Anyway, I just decided I would take a big jump and start a topic on the Kon-Mari organization program, and I hoped if any of you had experience using that decluttering program, if you'd please comment. I'm just reading the book now, and my hoarder's heart clutches a little at the idea of throwing so much stuff away (even though I know I need to). She insists that no one misses the stuff they've tossed, but of course she would say that, right?  I did mention to the Decluttering thread that I'd appreciate their comments - they seem to have a great group, but I didn't want to hijack their thread just to learn about Kon-mari.

I'd appreciate your feedback - tried it? any regrets? tried another program that you think is the greatest?  Thanks for reading.  Aloha  

[Malarky]

I haven't tried any particular method, but we have a thread dedicated to the subject: 2017 Declutter and Organization Thread.

Each participant is working on decluttering in their own way and provide insight and support for the others.

And welcome back.      

[Malarky]

I see you already found it.  

[whoisjohngalt]

All I know is that if I lived alone, I wouldn't need any method bc I wouldn't have any crap.

It's a good thing I kind of like my family....

[Malarky]

I would still have crap.  But it would be exclusively MY crap.

[hitenney]

Well, I'm definitely not the only guilty party at my house, but I also seem to be the keeper of stuff from earlier generations in my family - and that's hard to let go of, also.  Maybe I should stop watching Antiques Roadshow. 

[msventoux]

I read the book but didn't do much about it. I think some of it didn't really resonate due to cultural or translation issues. And she seemed like the type of person that would annoy the crap out of me in real life. 😁

The "spark joy" thing made sense to me though, to an extent. I was holding onto stuff because it was given to me or I paid good money for it, but never used the things or they annoyed me. I had already done my major purge before reading the book, but reading it gave just enough justification that I could let go of the types of things I mentioned.

It's refreshing to go to my closet and only have things that fit well, look nice or are really comfortable. Similarly for cooking items and household goods; I now only have items that I like and function well for me and how I use them. I gave up the pretense that I would ever fit into that pair of pants, wear those types of shoes, read those books, cook gourmet meals frequently where I would use xyz gadget, etc.

[hitenney]

May 3, 2017 21:13:56 GMT -5 msventoux said:

I read the book but didn't do much about it. I think some of it didn't really resonate due to cultural or translation issues. And she seemed like the type of person that would annoy the crap out of me in real life. 😁

The "spark joy" thing made sense to me though, to an extent. I was holding onto stuff because it was given to me or I paid good money for it, but never used the things or they annoyed me. I had already done my major purge before reading the book, but reading it gave just enough justification that I could let go of the types of things I mentioned.

It's refreshing to go to my closet and only have things that fit well, look nice or are really comfortable. Similarly for cooking items and household goods; I now only have items that I like and function well for me and how I use them. I gave up the pretense that I would ever fit into that pair of pants, wear those types of shoes, read those books, cook gourmet meals frequently where I would use xyz gadget, etc.

The stuff that cost good money definitely gives me a spark - but it's not joyful! I feel like I should make an effort to make money off of it, even though my garage sales have never done well.  It is crazy to go to my stuffed closet, and feel like I have nothing to wear.  On another note - yesterday I saw a lady that was featured on the TV show "Hoarders" in my office bldg. lobby!  And she was pulling one of those rolling carts! That should give me inspiration.

[hitenney]

May 3, 2017 19:28:08 GMT -5 Malarky said:

I haven't tried any particular method, but we have a thread dedicated to the subject: 2017 Declutter and Organization Thread.

Each participant is working on decluttering in their own way and provide insight and support for the others.

And welcome back.      

Thank you for the welcome back!

[Lizard Queen]

Hi!  I really liked that book.  It helped inspire me to really get rid of stuff instead of trying to rearrange it better.  I got through my tops (1 of 2 planned go-throughs for clothes), and have been at a standstill since.  My mom had a fall, and needed extra help for some months.   My DH is doing badly with pain issues now, just to complicate home-life even more.

I'm in the same boat in I feel like I need to get some money back for some of the stuff via garage sales.  The adult stuff doesn't tend to sell that well, however.  I don't know, sometimes I really just want to toss/donate the huge pile I have in the basement instead of bothering with a garage sale.  I have small kids, and their stuff sells fairly well, so I will still have sales for them, but DH is in no condition to help with the sales.  So...standstill. 

I did go through lots of papers while at my DM's--purging and filing them.  Didn't really go by KM fully there, which would be get rid of it unless you absolutely must keep it. Reading her book did help me pare back on what I even want to keep, though.

[Sam_2.0]

I feel like I get the same effect from watching a few episodes of Hoarders But seriously, watching that show and listening to the counselors talk about emotional attachments to items is really good for me to get motivated to start purging. And right now I am in super nesting mode, so purging out crap is a lot of fun to do I just can't touch DH's stuff, so his mountains of junk drive me crazy.

[wvugurl26]

If I threw out everything that didn't bring joy, I'd have no clothes for work! I think it's about finding balance and realizing you can keep something for reference or because I need to dress a certain way for work and that's okay. And I totally stole that line from startsmart.

[raeoflyte]

Haven't read the book, but have read about the method and I think I kind of use it.  

We went to dinner at my SIL's house last night and I just love her home.  It's pretty, comfortable, not cluttered and just feels good to be inside it, and that is what I want for my house.  Which means a lot of stuff can still be thrown out.  

[Deleted]

Throwing out things that don't bring me joy would get rid of 80% of my clutter.  Of course, my kids would be PISSED since most of it is theirs. 

[steph08]

I read the book last summer and it did help clean out several garbage bags of stuff that we never used or wore. 

Every once in a while, I'll wish I had a specific shirt, but otherwise, it's been good.

And the way she folds stuff has been very helpful for me folding all my DH's shirts to fit in his dresser! 

I need to do some more purging this summer! 

[raeoflyte]

There is one tapestry that I gave away that I miss.  Not sure why that stands out since I wouldn't hang it up anywhere now, but I do think about that from time to time.  I can't think of anything else right now that I miss, but I'm sure there are some.  

Dh has a really hard time getting rid of stuff.  I just keep packing his stuff in to his little corners tighter and tighter.  

Huge, huge win for me in the last couple months both kids have been bringing out 1 or 2 things that they want to donate when cleaning their rooms.  Anything ds is willing to part with I practically want to cry for happiness over because that has been such a struggle over the last few years.  

[Waffle]

I've watch several Youtube videos about decluttering lately - the ones that have been most inspiring to me were by "organizedclutterbug" and Andrew Mellen.  Good luck to everyone trying to declutter.

ETA - I watched a few Kon-Mari decluttering videos last year - I didn't care for the method.   But that's just me.

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

May 4, 2017 11:55:09 GMT -5 wvugurl26 said:

If I threw out everything that didn't bring joy, I'd have no clothes for work! I think it's about finding balance and realizing you can keep something for reference or because I need to dress a certain way for work and that's okay. And I totally stole that line from startsmart.

I'd have no underwear or bras.  Which would make DH happy.

For the kitchen I go with Alton Brown's criteria "Is it a uni-tasker? it is something I will use at least once a month?  Is it in working order?"   

For my clothes I like to use the method I got from Inside Out Style Blog: 1. Does it fit? 2. Is it outdated?  3 Is it in good condition?   4. Does it serve a purpose? 5. Do I own more than one of this item and do I really need that many? 6. When is the last time I wore this?

If I find myself holding onto something I make myself wear it/use it.   A lot the time that makes me realize why it wasn't hidden away to begin with and I purge it. 

I wish I could get DH to purge, he is a borderline hoarder.  He gets on my case all the time about the closet and I need less clothes because "he only wears three shirts and gets along fine".   Yet I'd say about 60% of our closet is stuff full of HIS clothes.  He insists they are "mowing shirts" or "shirts he'll wear when he loses weight".   I've never seen him wear any of the stuff he keeps for "mowing" and he has been saying he'd lose weight for 13 years now.  I told him we can go buy new clothes at Kmart for pete's sake.  No need to hang onto almost 20 year old clothing.

I won't even get into what our basement looks like because he can't bring himself to throw out anything.  

[empress of self-improvement]

I read the books and have sorta, kinda, maybe tried to do some of it. The only thing I really need, and brings me joy, is my 32 yo old teddy bear. The rest is just meh. I'm trying to tell a 50 yo teenager that we really don't need to keep empty Transformer boxes (1 large bin and a bag). They really aren't going to sell for jackshit. The figures are spread around the house. If you think they are worth anything then friggin' sell them now. Don't leave it for me to deal with.

[whoisjohngalt]

I am reading "Living well, spending less" and just finished a chapter about how hard it is to get rid of "nice" stuff.

I wouldn't know bc I don't really have any "nice" stuff, but my IL's got my oldest a toy ride-on car that was $150. It looked beautiful but was very impractical - very very hard to ride. So, it's been mostly unused for the last 5 yrs. And yes, my husband is having a hard time selling it for $10 bc it WAS expensive and it does look nice.

Moral of the story - if you decide to become a hoarder - buy cheap crap

[Lizard Queen]

Kondo explains that you can consider something that is utilitarian, but makes your life easier, as bringing you Joy. The object is to keep your favorite go-to work outfits, or bras/underwear, not to get rid of all of them completely if you need them to function. And if you hate all of them, maybe you really should look for replacements that you don't hate. Life is too short to be uncomfortable/miserable in your skin most of the time.

[raeoflyte]

May 4, 2017 15:32:11 GMT -5 NomoreDramaQ1015 said:

May 4, 2017 11:55:09 GMT -5 wvugurl26 said:

If I threw out everything that didn't bring joy, I'd have no clothes for work! I think it's about finding balance and realizing you can keep something for reference or because I need to dress a certain way for work and that's okay. And I totally stole that line from startsmart.

I'd have no underwear or bras.  Which would make DH happy.

For the kitchen I go with Alton Brown's criteria "Is it a uni-tasker? it is something I will use at least once a month?  Is it in working order?"   

For my clothes I like to use the method I got from Inside Out Style Blog: 1. Does it fit? 2. Is it outdated?  3 Is it in good condition?   4. Does it serve a purpose? 5. Do I own more than one of this item and do I really need that many? 6. When is the last time I wore this?

If I find myself holding onto something I make myself wear it/use it.   A lot the time that makes me realize why it wasn't hidden away to begin with and I purge it. 

I wish I could get DH to purge, he is a borderline hoarder.  He gets on my case all the time about the closet and I need less clothes because "he only wears three shirts and gets along fine".   Yet I'd say about 60% of our closet is stuff full of HIS clothes.  He insists they are "mowing shirts" or "shirts he'll wear when he loses weight".   I've never seen him wear any of the stuff he keeps for "mowing" and he has been saying he'd lose weight for 13 years now.  I told him we can go buy new clothes at Kmart for pete's sake.  No need to hang onto almost 20 year old clothing.

I won't even get into what our basement looks like because he can't bring himself to throw out anything.  

Dh used to take up 90% of our small 1940's bedroom closet, while I had a professional job and he wears scrubs.  One day I put all of the hangers in the closet backwards.  I left it like that for 3 months.  Then I separated out the seasonal and dress clothes, and put everything else that hadn't been turned around in a bin at the foot of the bed--still easy access for anything needed.  I left that there for at least 3 months, but probably more like 6-7.  Then I moved the box downstairs and wrote the date on it--01/2007.  Dh finally went through that box before we moved in June of 2013 at which point he got rid of a lot of it, although certainly not all even though he had proof it hadn't been needed or missed for 6 years.  

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

i started collecting anything that landed o the floor and putting it in a bag.  I left it there for three months and he never once went thru it.  I sent it to the Salvation Army and he never noticed.  I need to start doing that with stuff on his hangers too.

[WholeLottaNothin]

ooh that's a good idea

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

I three out EIGHT pairs of "mowing shoes" that way.  Anytime he saw me picking them up to throw away he'd start screeching that he needed those and why did I want him to ruin his "good shoes" and therefore have to spend money on another pair.

I said fine I'll put them in a bag and we'll see how many pairs come out of the bag.   Not a single pair ever got removed from t he bag and used.   I threw that bag in the trash because those shoes weren't in any condition to donate.

You know what the stupid thing is about it all?  He will hoard shoes because they are "still good" and he might wear them someday but he doesn't take care of expensive stuff like lawn mowers or cars.

Throw out a 5 year old pair of shoes held together by duct tape and apparently we're wasting money!  But it's not wasting money when your car engine blows up in a scene worthy of an action movie because you could not be bothered to pay someone to look at your car when the temperature gauge was so far into the red the arrow nearly snapped off.

[Sam_2.0]

I wish I could afford to have a stylist put together a nice capsule wardrobe for me. That is one place where I struggle the most. I don't have a lot but I still feel like it could be better organized, and I could have some nicer outfits as well. DH dresses well but he also has WAY too many clothes. He has 2 dressers and 2/3rds of our closet, to my 1 dresser and 1/3rd of the closet. Technically I have non-maternity stuff in the guest room now but that doesn't count since the maternity stuff is leaving soon!

[bean29]

May 5, 2017 13:45:33 GMT -5 raeoflyte said:

May 4, 2017 15:32:11 GMT -5 NomoreDramaQ1015 said:

I'd have no underwear or bras.  Which would make DH happy.

For the kitchen I go with Alton Brown's criteria "Is it a uni-tasker? it is something I will use at least once a month?  Is it in working order?"   

For my clothes I like to use the method I got from Inside Out Style Blog: 1. Does it fit? 2. Is it outdated?  3 Is it in good condition?   4. Does it serve a purpose? 5. Do I own more than one of this item and do I really need that many? 6. When is the last time I wore this?

If I find myself holding onto something I make myself wear it/use it.   A lot the time that makes me realize why it wasn't hidden away to begin with and I purge it. 

I wish I could get DH to purge, he is a borderline hoarder.  He gets on my case all the time about the closet and I need less clothes because "he only wears three shirts and gets along fine".   Yet I'd say about 60% of our closet is stuff full of HIS clothes.  He insists they are "mowing shirts" or "shirts he'll wear when he loses weight".   I've never seen him wear any of the stuff he keeps for "mowing" and he has been saying he'd lose weight for 13 years now.  I told him we can go buy new clothes at Kmart for pete's sake.  No need to hang onto almost 20 year old clothing.

I won't even get into what our basement looks like because he can't bring himself to throw out anything.  

Dh used to take up 90% of our small 1940's bedroom closet, while I had a professional job and he wears scrubs.  One day I put all of the hangers in the closet backwards.  I left it like that for 3 months.  Then I separated out the seasonal and dress clothes, and put everything else that hadn't been turned around in a bin at the foot of the bed--still easy access for anything needed.  I left that there for at least 3 months, but probably more like 6-7.  Then I moved the box downstairs and wrote the date on it--01/2007.  Dh finally went through that box before we moved in June of 2013 at which point he got rid of a lot of it, although certainly not all even though he had proof it hadn't been needed or missed for 6 years.  

My husband moved a bunch of stuff out of the closet and left it sit out in our room, telling me he was going to go through it and decide what to keep.  It then got tossed in the closet in a spot where I keep my own stuff, and I can't find my stuff I want b/c his pile of Sh!t, (ie. brand new dress pants he has mostly never worn) is on top of it. I think I will move it to the basement with a date on it.  There are very few places to stuff crap that we don't use in our basement though-ours is finished living space that is mostly decluttered.  The areas in my house that are out of control are DH's workroom, my office and the closet in the guest bedroom, and the Master Bedroom.  I hate having hangers turned backwards in the closet b/c then the hangers don't slide - but maybe I should do this to DH's clothes.  I have an inordinate amount of clothing, almost all of it fits.  I have a few pairs of pants that I consider slightly too tight, but I am dieting now to fit back into last summer's clothing.

[Sam_2.0]

I need to try the hanger trick on DH. But he knows about the backwards thing, so something more sly. Hmmm.......

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

insideoutstyleblog.com/

I can't afford a stylist either then I came across this blog and it's been really insightful.   I really like that her definition of a  capsule wardrobe is broad because I am a clothes horse.  I will never be happy owning  a handful of clothes and that's it no matter how many outfits I can create.

 HOWEVER I can still use the capsule wardrobe model to make sure I don't end up with orphans in my closet.  I try to keep in line with being able to create 3-4 outfits.  If I can't think of anything I own that it would go with it goes back on the rack.  The only uni-taskers in my wardrobe are my undergarments.

[raeoflyte]

May 5, 2017 14:23:01 GMT -5 Sam_2.0 said:

I need to try the hanger trick on DH. But he knows about the backwards thing, so something more sly. Hmmm.......

New hangers for laundry that is being put away?