In part one of this article, you learned about the important actions that you need to take before starting the tidying process. In this post, you will learn the entire konmari process for the five main categories in the konmari process.
Keep reading to learn the steps in the konmari process that will help transform your home.
Clothes
All of the clothing items need to be in one place before you start, ideally on your floor or on the bed. If you start this process with clothes not all together (not including clothes that need to be washed), these clothes must automatically be discarded.
NO EXCEPTIONS!
Make sure to do a sweep of the entire house before you begin to sort the clothes. You also need to ensure that you have the right environment for tidying as well. Kondo states that its best to tidy in a quiet environment. No music playing. Start at the beginning of the day as well. Handle each item individually and see if it sparks joy. If it does keep it, if not discard it.
Marie Kondo also has a YouTube channel that features additional tips about storing and folding clothing.
Books
Similar to the clothes decluttering step, you again gather all your books together on the floor and put them in one place. Then touch each individual book and see if it sparks joy. Does it make you smile? Does it give you positive memories?
Paper
The basic konmari belief about decluttering paper is to throw it all away. You are only permitted to keep papers if it falls into the following three categories: currently in use, needed for a limited period of time, or must be kept indefinitely.
As far as the storage of papers, papers should be kept in one file not spread across the house. She also recommends storage papers vertically. The papers that need attention can be placed into a box.
Kimono (miscellaneous)
These are the 10 subcategories for sorting komono:
- CDS/DVDS
- Skin care products
- Makeup
- Accessories
- Valuables (passports, credit cards, etc.)
- Electrical equipment and appliances (digital cameras, electric cords, anything that seems vaguely “electric”)
- Household equipment (stationery and writing materials, sewing kits, etc.)
- Household supplies (expendables like medicine, detergents, tissues, etc.)
- Kitchen goods/food supplies (spatulas, pots, blenders, etc.)
- Other (spare change, figurines, etc.)
Touch each individual items and see if it sparks joy.
Check the quality of the products. Is anything broken? There is no value in keeping broken products around. Do you have multiples of items in certain categories? If, for example, you have multiple blenders this could be an indicator that one of the blenders that you have isn’t sparking joy for you.
Be honest with your self about which items are sparking joy for you.
Sentimental
In case you haven’t figured it out already, the main step for the sentimental process is the same: touching each individual item and seeing if it sparks joy.
Some other tips for organizing sentimental items are to be sure that find a proper home for the sentimental items and to organize sentimental photos by event or year.
The Positive Effects of Tidying
Now you’ve done all of the five main konmari categories for decluttering. But you may be wondering, what is the benefit of doing all of this work? Well, Marie Kondo notes the benefits of tidying as the following:
- Less cluttered house
- Better decision making skills.
- Clearer vision of what you desire in your life.
- Improved mood.
- Happier, joyful life by only being surrounded by the things that you love
- Improved health. Clearer skin. Slimmer body.
So what now? Enjoy the work and progress that you’ve done after completing the work. It takes commitment, awareness, and discipline to be able to complete the goals of tidying up your home.
Tell me below, have you completed the konmari process for your home? How did you like the process?