I am officially back from my 9-day blogging break and very excited to share what I’ve been up to. I finally finished reading The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo which is a quirky yet inspirational book. The author has developed her own method for decluttering spaces and claims that “a dramatic reorganization of the home” is life transforming. I pride myself on being an extremely organized person, but when I can barely close my drawers and have taken over most of Brian’s portion of the closet, something clearly needs to be done. So, on one of the gloomiest days, I decided to tackle the task of sorting through my wardrobe using the Konmari method and the results are pretty shocking.

The Konmari method is quite simple; put everything in a pile, then hold each item and ask yourself if it brings you joy, immediately discard what no longer fits your lifestyle, and organize your space. This should all be done in one attempt, so you’ll need to dedicate a solid day for this type of tidying.

I created a peaceful environment for myself by lighting a candle and putting on some (Christmas) music, then got to work. I emptied all of my drawers onto the bed and took every article of clothing off it’s hanger. The mountain of clothes I was left with was completely overwhelming. One person absolutely does not need this much stuff. (Especially when I rotate between the same 5-6 outfits.)

I spent several hours asking myself the same question time and time again, “does this bring me any joy?” Understanding if an item brought me joy was an almost immediate feeling, though some things were a bit more difficult to determine because of sentimental value. In those times I thought back to the book when Marie said “No matter how wonderful things used to be, we cannot live in the past. The joy and excitement we feel here and now are more important.”

After going through my entire wardrobe, every pair of shoes, and all my accessories, I have seven large 20-gallon trash bags to donate. I additionally have two bags of items that need to be thrown away. That is a total of NINE bags of items that have been sitting in my room, not bringing any joy into my life. My mind has officially been blown.

As I packed up my “to-go” items, I bid them farewell with a thank-you for once bringing me happiness. It can be so easy to feel guilty for everything you are getting rid of, but it’s important to recognize that these items once brought you joy and are now part of your past. Some items were only meant to bring your happiness at the time you purchased them and that’s okay. Let go of these items because somebody else will appreciate them much more.

As you can see, the items that I am left with have been neatly organized within my dedicated space. By following Marie Kondo’s folding methods, there is more than enough room for my apparel. I can easily close all of my drawers and fit the hanging items on my side of the closet. I am so happy to have tidied my wardrobe during this festive time of year so that I can donate to good will. While I strongly believe in giving back to the community throughout the entire year, I know these items will make many people feel very loved and joyous as the holidays approach. Overall, the tidying method I learned from Marie Kondo’s book not only helped rid my life of unnecessary items, but it was also unexpectedly rewarding.

How are you going to give back to your community this holiday season?