5 Tidiness Tips We Can Learn From Marie Kondo That Will Freshen Your Home in a Flash

Marie Kondo is a organizing expert who has developed a radical new technique for decluttering our homes. She has written two books on the subject — The Lifechanging Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing: An Illustrated Master Class on the Art of Organizing and Tidying Up ($9.69, Amazon) and Spark Joy ($11.70, Amazon)— both of which have taken the world by storm.

While we highly recommend reading both of her inspiring books — which will inspire a weekend-cleaning session unlike ever before — we have summarized her most practical techniques for getting results right now. Check out the tidying tips below.

1. Tidy all at once.

Set aside at least two days to completely overhaul your home. If you tidy little by little, you will be tempted to shift the remaining clutter into those clean areas and chaos will quickly resume. By tidying everything at once, you will be forced to break any messy habits to uphold the cleanliness of your entire home.

2. Tidy by category, not by location.

Sort through all your books at once, even if you have a bookcase in every room. The same applies for clothes, paperwork, and so forth. This forces you to consider possessions as part of a collection, so you can determine what is worth keeping and what you should throw out.

3. Put effort into folding clothes.

It might seem like a tiresome chore, but putting more effort into folding clothes can reap long-term rewards. Watch the video tutorial below and learn Marie Kondo’s technique. 

Basically, any item of clothing (including underwear) should end up as a compact rectangle. You then stack these little soldiers in neat rows, enabling you to identify individual items of clothing at a glance and pull them out without disrupting everything else.

4. Create a state of chaos.

Do not be afraid to make a big mess before you tidy up again; consider it part of the “healing” process. Pull out absolutely everything you need to tidy and dump it on the floor creating a state of chaos. Sort through each and every item, placing them in either a keep or toss pile. Make sure you actually discard the toss pile before you start rearranging the keep pile — you do not want to be tempted to hold onto anything you originally decided to trash.

5. Discard sentimental objects.

We have all be gifted something that we hate, but feel obliged to keep it due to sentimental value. It is time to readjust that type of thinking. These items have already served their purpose as a symbol of a fulfilling relationship. Keep hold of that warm gooey feeling but sensitively offload the unwanted gift.

This article was originally written by Alexandra Fishburn. For more, check out our sister site, Homes to Love.

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