You Know, Let Sleeping Dogs Lie

It was a weekend of more clothes discarding with the KonMari Method!  Step one was tops/shirts.  Now that I'm a few days into the new slimmed down shirt selection, I can say I'm really happy with it.  I love being able to see all the colors, and have everything in one spot.  Although they may not stay there.  It's pretty clear that while the office closet is a lovely little closet with good lighting, I do NOT like having my clothes outside of my bedroom.  The first night of having everything in there made that pretty clear.  I was ready to go to bed and went to get my pajamas.  Oh, yeah.  They're in the other room.  Oh, wait.  My husband already put the dog to bed --- in the office.  And the door is closed.  And, you know:  let sleeping dogs lie.  Next morning, I get out of the shower and go into my room to get dressed.  Arrrr.  They're not in there.  Cover back up with the towel, troop into the next room, which has lots of windows with the curtains open, etc.  Anyway.  You get the picture.  It's more work having my clothes there.  If only that closet could be in my room.  But then I would have to share it, and it would immediately shrink.  So, maybe not such a good idea!

Next up for sorting:  bottoms.  So out came all the pants, shorts and skirts.  This was surprisingly harder.  I used to wear a lot of patterned, spotlight skirts.  The kind that you start building your outfit with.  But now I'm more inclined to wear basic, simple silhouette, building block skirts.  But some of these really don't spark joy.  But they are very useful and I wear them.  They stayed.  KonMari would not approve. But do I keep a look-out for a similar one that does spark joy?  I'm not sure.  Anyway, my skirts are on skirt hangers (two to a hanger) and pants are on the top shelf of the closet.

Dresses were pretty easy because I don't have that many.  There are some that I really love, but don't wear as often as I'd like.  So I'll try to put those into the rotation more often.

I also did socks, underwear, tights, nylons, slips, swimwear, belts, shoes, scarves, purses, coats and pajamas.  I'll save you from pictures of each.  But, I love socks!  So we'll use those for demonstration. Since I was little I've folded my socks in half and put them in the drawer standing on edge.  So KonMari's method is not too much different.  But it did take up less space to do it her way.

Sock drawer - before

Sock drawer - after

Tights and nylons are stored now in her rolling method, stored on end in shoeboxes.  This does work pretty slick.  It's also great to be able to see them all at once.  I've always had mine in a bin or basket of some kind and have had to dig for the ones I want.

Her recommendation for storing purses and bags is interesting.  Store them nested, one inside the other.  This helps them to keep their shape and takes up less space.  Keep the handles of the inner ones sticking out so you can see them, and don't nest more than three together total.

In keeping with doing all the "cloth" type things first, next up will be bath towels, sheets/pillowcases, kitchen linen, blankets, and table linens.  I guess I forgot to include hats, gloves, winter scarves, and other accessories like watches and brooches in my last session.  Maybe that would stretch to barrettes and other hair items too.

I also finished up KonMari's book.  For those of you reading it, I thought the last chapter had some very good things in it.  Some philosophy things that I thought would do well at the beginning of the book.  So if you're reading it - skip to the last chapter.  ;)


As I hear other people talk about what they liked from the book, it's obvious that we're going to pick up on different things.  Perhaps we "hear" what we know pertains to us?  Here are some highlights that I thought were worth passing on.  If you read the book, you may have other things that speak to you.

-it's good to start discarding easy things first and leaving the hardest for last so you can hone your decision-making skills.  In KonMari's experience, this starts with clothes, because they are so easy to obtain and often are fairly low cost.  But if that seems like a hard place to start for you, find what seems easiest.  Do NOT start with sentimental things such as pictures or letters!  Just the practice of decision making with your possessions has the potential of giving you confidence to make decisions is other aspects of your life.

-remember to gather ALL of the items in a category when you start discarding. Sort by category, not by location, space or area.

-don't store your off season clothes in plastic bins with lids.  These are the hardest type of storage units to use effectively.  Once in place, something is bound to be placed on top of it, and pulling it out and opening it seems like too much extra work.  Keep all your clothes together, keeping the in-season clothes in the "prime" space of your closet.

-storage experts are just hoarders

-downgrading street wear to "loungewear" is taboo.

-when placing your clothing items in their storage spot, sort them dark to light, left to right.


KonMari addresses living with others who may not be interested in downsizing.  She goes into a little bit of depth about why we should not clean other people's stuff and that our desire to clean their things is likely representative of our dissatisfaction with our own stuff.  One thing she says is that to quietly work away at disposing of your own excess is actually the best way of dealing with a family that doesn't tidy.  Your tidying will set off a chain reaction.  I had to chuckle when I reread this passage because a couple days after I had started my discarding mission, my husband comes up with an experiment he would like to try.  It's all about reducing the amount of dishes we have to wash.  (Have I ever told you that washing dishes is my least favorite task?  Yes. Yes, I think I have.)  He proposed that we each have one plate, one bowl, one cup, etc.  If you use it, you wash it before you need to use it next.  Bingo!  Much reduced dirty dishes.  I'm absolutely on board, much to his surprise!  (This kids are strongly resisting, however.)  Is this a chain reaction from my discarding?  I'm not sure, but it's a pretty interesting coincidence.  If you believe in coincidences...

One thing that I love about KonMari's method of downsizing compared to other "methods" is that she is encouraging people to RESPECT their possessions in a way that most of have never thought of.  In our hyper-consumerist society, this sort of thought is so scarce.  But it's worth encouraging, for so many reasons.  Here are a few bullets points about respecting our possessions:

-when you are discarding an item, THANK the item for fulfilling it's purpose and being of use to you.

-our belongings work really hard for us, carrying out their respective roles each day to support our lives.  Give them thanks for this and a happy place to be stored while not in use.  When you treat your belongings well, they will respond in kind.  Stuffing things in dark corners doesn't show them any respect and they aren't being useful.

-everything you own WANTS to be useful to you!

-remember to pay respect to your dwelling too.  Your dwelling cherishes its inhabitants!  It's always there, waiting for you to return and standing ready to shelter and protect.  Your dwelling doesn't judge you for who you are or what you do in the privacy of it's walls.  Is there anything more generous or welcoming?  (Besides your dog...)  Tidying is our opportunity to express our appreciation to our home for all it does for us.



Yes, this all seems a little fou-fou and coo-coo.  But it's about shifting your attitude about your things.  Do you think any of us could come to harm by a little more gratitude and appreciation in our lives?  No, I think not!!  Surprisingly, the small act of showing gratitude to things we are discarding and thanking the things we currently use, can have a big affect.  When I did this for just half a day, I noticed a clear change of mental outlook.  I was just glad.  For so much.  And then I went to say grace for my lunch.  And there was a whole different level of gratitude.  If thankfulness for earthly possessions has such a positive effect, how much more can a little gratitude to God do??  It's His work that creates such a change in us through the act of giving thanks.  And isn't it a wonderful work!