Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. That means if you buy through my link, I may receive compensation at no extra cost to you. For more information, see my disclosure page here.

A while ago, I posted about trying to tidy up my house. (Read about it here.) I have been re-reading The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo and attempting to apply it to my life. So I think it is time for an update.

Overall, I feel like it is going really well. But decluttering is a slow process. Kondo recommends doing it all at once, but I just can’t do that. Not only do I work full-time and have a daughter and a house to care for, I also spend a lot of time working on my blog. When the weekend comes, I feel like we can either have a fun weekend or a productive one. And most of the time, I will pick a fun one. But I was finally able to be productive and start in on the second chapter of the book: Finish Discarding First.

See that giant, stuffed full bag of clothing? I donated that. Plus 3 other boxes of stuff! (And P.S. to anyone who might not know, keep a list of things you donate and you can write them off on your taxes.)

So there are a few things with the KonMari method that I’ve talked about not agreeing with. One of those is the idea of going through things all at once and in a specific order. I see the wisdom in starting with things you have less of an emotional challenge with, but when I clean, I need to clean specific areas. And right now, I need to clean up my bedroom.

One of the things I really enjoyed about Chapter 2 is that on page 36, Kondo says that “before you start, visualize your destination.” I am a really big fan of visualization because I feel like when you know where you are going, you are motivated to get there. So I tried to think about what I want my house to be like. Obviously, an Instagram-worthy house would be amazing. But I don’t even need that. I want a house that is cozy, but not cluttered. I want somewhere that I feel comfortable having Mac explore, but also looks nice if we have guests over. It may be a bit difficult to combine those things, but I am slowly working towards it.

Does It Spark Joy?

My favorite part of this book and what has been the most helpful is asking myself if each of my belongings sparks joy. I want things in my life that spark joy and if I use that as my criterion, I am able to identify if there is a different emotion involved with an object.

We all have things we keep out of guilt because it was a gift or because we spent a lot of money on it and didn’t use it often enough. Maybe we keep it out of sadness or grief. No matter what, there are objects that just drag us down when we see them. I don’t feel happy when I see a gift I’ve kept out of guilt. It makes me feel miserable. Why would I want to keep that around?

So what have I gotten rid of so far? Baking sheets, woks, a keurig that doesn’t work, t-shirts from high school activities, dresses I’ve worn once and never again, pants that don’t fit right, and a bunch of empty, never used notebooks were among the items I sent to the thrift store on Sunday. Believe me, there was plenty more than that!

And I feel better. I feel lighter and so happy with my progress so far! Despite some of my worries, I do not regret donating any of it.

So here is my closet afterwards. This is 90% of the clothes I own. I love to look at my closet and see possibilities, not overwhelming choices.

I’m so glad I found The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. When I read about asking myself if my belongings spark joy, I feel like a switch flipped inside of my mind and I was finally able to do some real decluttering. After this weekend’s success, I am so motivated to keep going! I have some amazing before and after pictures of my bedroom that I will be posting next week.

P.S. if you want to read about another book that has been inspiring me to declutter, read this post: The More of Less: Review of a Great Minimalist Book

So, have any of you read The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo? What did you think? Let me know!

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. That means if you buy through my link, I may receive compensation at no extra cost to you. For more information, see my disclosure page here.