I’m sure by now most of you have seen or heard of the Netflix series Tidying Up with Marie Kondo. If not, do yourself a favor and watch it. After the first episode my husband and I were ready to sell all of our belongings and live like gypsies.
Just so that you know a little bit more about me, clutter and mess give me anxiety. I cannot focus on anything else or spend quality time with my kids if the environment around me is not in order. Once my house is in order I feel a sense of calm and accomplishment, so this show was right up my alley.
So, if you haven’t borrowed someone’s Netflix password yet to watch it then allow me to teach you how to “Marie Kondo” your house when you’re a mom.
Step 1: Purge Your Clothes
Marie, this sweet little Japanese woman who loves mess (so although sweet, also somewhat crazy), breaks down de-cluttering your house into categories starting with clothes. To start the process you must pull ALL of your clothes out of all drawers and closets and place them into one pile. Then, you pick up one piece of clothing at a time and ask yourself whether or not it brings you joy. If not, you thank it (for keeping you warm, making you look good at that wedding, etc.) and gently place it in a giveaway pile. This should be really easy for us moms, right? Because basically all we get to keep after going through this process is our yoga pants and a high school t-shirt. Done.
Step 2: Purge The Toys
Okay so she doesn’t actually have a category for toys, but I’m making one up because #momlife. Here is how you can go about getting rid of child toys. First, compile all of the toys into one area and pull them out one by one and ask yourself: how many times have I stepped on or tripped on this toy? If more than once then throw them in a donate pile.
I get rid of toys pretty frequently. If my kids have not played with something in a long time, but I always find it on the ground because they dumped the bin it was in then I get rid of it. My mom (hi mom!) probably thinks that I deprive my kids of a childhood because we are so anti-too many toys. Our philosophy is that too many toys deprives our children of imagination and other important lessons like appreciation and gratitude.
Here is our play area/ toy section in our living room, and this still leaves them with plenty to do.
They do also have a play kitchen in our basement so that they have something to do while I work out!
Step 3: Choose Storage Methods
She also shows you different storage methods which also happen to save you money. Don’t have a container to store bags or other items in? Improvise and use a shoe box or other type of box. This is how I stored our scarves in our hallway closet without having to spend money on a plastic storage bin!
Step 4: Organize Other Categories
Marie covers other categories such as books and miscellaneous items, but unfortunately I watch more Bravo TV than I read, so I don’t have that many books to get rid of. Miscellaneous items would be things like your junk drawers, trinkets, photos and other memorabilia and should be sorted and stored by like items. So for us moms what we would do is take all of the pictures of us pre-baby and sort them in the trash…because no one’s got time to look like a 22 year old anymore.
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Getting Rid of the Clutter
This is how I like to think of clutter in my house. If I had to move, would I only have the things in my house I would want to take with me? If the answer is no, then it’s time to start tackling your house room by room and ask yourself if the belongings you have in those rooms would be worth bringing with you.
So, I hope by reading this you’re ready to take on Marie Kondo’s Tidying Up method and purge your house of the things that no longer bring you joy. But just remember, your yoga pants have never let you down and they are a staple in every mom’s wardrobe!
Tell me, have you watched these episodes?!
Suzanne says
This is a good read! It can be difficult with Children to pair everything down. We *try* to have relatives gift experiences instead of material items, and it slowly they are catching on.
Vanessa says
Thanks for sharing! After deciding to stay home, my wardrobe become so much simpler! It can be hard to cut ties with old clothes since they represent a different lifestyle than mine now, but so freeing to not drag them around!
Cindy says
Love, love how you broke it down. I felt the same after episode one Too! Lol
Eliza says
I particularly like the idea behind purging toys. Only too often parents keep half-broken toys and they clutter the space. Love the look of your children’s play area!
megan beaver says
What wonderful tips. we have been purging toys. We also use construction tubing for shoe and clothing storage its a real game changer. Finding a creative storage method can really make more space.
Melissa says
Great list! I have to break projects down into small chunks of time.
Amanda says
This is a great and realistic guide to decluttering when you have kids. I know my room could use a little marie kondo love! thanks!
Jennifer says
We purge our oldest son’s toys a lot lol. He gets so sad but we tell him it is to benefit another familu who cant afford toys.
Annie says
Oh you are speaking my language when you use Marie Kondo as a verb! I am on the neverending quest to get tidy once and for all. I somehow found the motivation to move all the junk from the center of the garage to one side yesterday, so I guess that’s a win 😉
Kbahgat says
Haha that’s too funny. Well, at least one side of the garage is tidy now!