Final Phase of My Marie Kondo Decluttering

In May 2015, I did my first round of decluttering using the Marie Kondo method as outlined in her book, the life-changing magic of tidying up. I posted a couple of blogs about the process here and here. I enjoyed the structure of decluttering clothes, books, and papers that Marie Kondo talks about, but, then so many items fell into the category of miscellaneous items, that it felt like we went from almost too much structure to very little. So, my first round of doing the Marie Kondo method kind of fizzled out to be honest. Here are some key findings during the last steps of that declutter.

I got rid of three old set of contact lenses as I realized I was only saving them due to fear of losing one or not being able to afford a replacement. In reality, I would not be able to wear a really old pair as it wouldn’t give me good enough correction. And, in 40 years of wearing contacts I’ve only lost two and that was when I was a kid and happened to be outdoors. So, I kept my newest pair of contacts and one replacement pair. One of my rules is “I’m not getting rid of anything until I’m ready.” So it’s good to pause and get the lesson in why we hang onto items we no longer need or use.

One area Marie Kondo’s book doesn’t cover is our cars, likely due to our cultural differences. To me this is an important area to clean up early on. You want to feel good when you travel in your car. You want it to support you by having items you need, but not having clutter, and you want to be able to offer someone a ride without being embarrassed or needing to clear out an area for them.

Travel items had lots to sort through.

My travel items have taken some time to hone down. I think I don’t travel enough to have a clear idea what I might need and use, so I tend to hold onto items “just in case.” I have since reduced this pile to about half.

I then went on a trip to Austin and by the time I came home, the fuzzy Marie Kondo categories that remained did not hold my attention. So basically that round of decluttering came to a halt.

The second time I did a Marie Kondo declutter, I switched to going room by room after doing her initial three categories and to me, that went much better. I appreciated knowing all areas had been decluttered over a several week process. I did bedrooms, office, bathrooms, laundry room, kitchen, living room and garage.

What are your two biggest categories of things?  Mine was bathroom and kitchen items.

I lead an annual declutter group and in December 2015 we did a one-week declutter kickstart that is available to you. I also manage a private Facebook group where we share and support one another with this annual process.