Spring cleaning a la Marie Kondo
After these confined months, your house (or apartment) surely needs a big spring cleaning. And who better than Marie Kondo, the famous Japanese expert, to help us clear the air? So, to forget the confinement or to fill up with lightness before the summer, we present you the famous KonMari method.
Time is for tidying up
More than a simple spring cleaning, Marie Kondo invites us to rethink our lives and to (re)find joy. Definitely. Before you embark on the KonMari adventure, start by clearing your calendar and giving yourself some time (especially if you live in a big house or have been accumulating objects and other souvenirs since kindergarten). Her first tip? Put everything away at once, as quickly as possible.
Step Two: The Art of Joy
Marie's book is called, Ranger : l'étincelle du bonheur. You can't make this up. The idea behind the KonMari method? To keep only what inspires joy, what provokes that little spark of happiness she talks about so well. Spring cleaning is much more than sorting and tidying your house. It's about taking the time to think about what you own and keeping what will make you happy for many years to come.
In the right order
Marie Kondo's third piece of advice is to sort by categories (clothes, books, etc.) and not room by room. Indeed, you probably have books lying around in several rooms, not to mention the socks lost in the bathroom or living room (we're not judging anyone). By grouping all the elements of the same category in the same place, you will become aware of the magnitude of the task and will be able to move on to the tidying up stage more easily.
Clothes
Marie Kondo says it's best to start with your clothes. Empty your closets, drawers and suitcases under your bed and pile them all in one place to create a visual shock. Do I really need 14 black sweaters or eight pairs of sneakers? Once you've sorted your clothes, it's time to put them away: Marie Kondo advises rolling up all your clothes to save space. And if they don't bring us joy, throw them away! Well, no: we give away, we recycle, we're careful. But we don't keep them.
Books and paper
Then move on to books before focusing on paper. Be careful, it can get complicated. Obviously, start by sorting out the papers you need (hello, tax notices) and the rest, and end with the most sentimental ones. So yes, we've all kept the invitation cards to the 12 weddings of summer 2012 or the copy that got us an 18 in philosophy, but don't forget to ask yourself if it really makes you happy. If you only think about it with each new move, it might be time to get rid of it.
Komono
Komono means "miscellaneous" in Japanese. That is, everything else. As always, Marie has good advice and offers a list of sub-categories to help you cope with the mass of things to put away. And as for the rest, we regroup, ask ourselves the right question and sort. Here is his list of categories, but you can obviously adapt it to your own taste:
- CDs and DVDs (yes, yes, they still exist)
- skin care products
- makeup
- accessories
- valuables (passport, credit card, etc.)
- household appliances (cameras, electrical cords, etc.)
- household supplies (medicine, detergents, etc.)
- kitchen utensils and food
- other
The final word
That's it, KonMari's spring cleaning is over. Congratulations! Your house is ready for summer... and so are you.
But if just reading this article has exhausted you, no need to stress. Sometimes (and especially right now), we just don't have the courage to spend a weekend cleaning. If that's the case, why not start with one room? Check out our article comparing the two most popular ways to tidy up your room. Because it's still the most important room, right?
