Friday, April 24, 2015

Marie Kondo's 'The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up' (2014): Round One

Marie Kondo's The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing translated by Cathy Hirano (Berkeley: Ten Speed Press, 2014) / Jinsei Ga Tokimeku Katazuke No Maho (Tokyo: Sunmark Publishing, Inc., 2011).  

This book isn't about incremental tweaking, one small space at a time.  No way. Bet your bottom dollar -- the revolution is at hand! 

Tidy by category, not location, and all in one go.

After making a great mound on the floor, tidy all of your clothes. Arrange your closets by hanging clothes from heavy on the left to light on the right, aiming high like an archer. Pile all your books together in a pyre. Handle them -- all of them. Keep only those that spark joy. Do this with all of your papers, all of your 小物 (komono: little objects, miscellany) -- pile stuff high and work with your bare hands. Yes!  

Truly an exciting and energetic book interspersed with occasional, pithy humor.

So I'm off to the races, already having completed a couple of pilot projects using the tidy "KonMari method." Will report back on methods and results in the near future. For me, it's highly effective.  Works ideally for all spaces great and small!

Today's Rune: Harvest.

1 comment:

Barbara Bruederlin said...

I am looking forward to hearing how the KomMari experiment works out! I am a huge fan of getting rid of crap, but never thought to change my approach before. I might just have to try it.