The bestselling Marie Kondo book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, has a lot of fans and detractors. I decided to read it after several people,whose opinions and values I shared, had recommended it, Many of her practical suggestions include organizing like-things together, storing things for optimal access and viewing, and letting go of extraneous things; all which resonated with me. Sometimes her suggestions were outside my normal scope of organizing activity; e.g., in one section, she instructs you to roll your socks in pairs and to thank them for their service in taking care of your feet. As one article I read about the book noted, if millions of Americans have read it, and even a fairly small percentage follow her edicts, then we have thousands of people in America talking to their socks.
My take-away on the book was the way she makes you think about organizing, which trumps any misgivings I have about speaking with my garments or household items. While I first thought some of her methods were a little extreme, or too sentimental (or inaccessible, as far as time commitments goes), I eventually found that I began looking at spaces and re-organizing them without over-thinking it after reading her book. It feels more organic now. Thus far, the changes have been ‘sticking’ so I feel like the book is as much about the mindset as it is about the practical advice. I manage organizing with minor incursions through cabinets, drawers and closets instead of the wholesale practice she recommends. It works for me, as waiting until I had time to do a major sweep through all the cabinets or all the closets would be like waiting for Godot.
The before and after of my pantry; I am no longer embarrassed if the door is left open-
…Before…
…After
Then, I moved onto bigger game. A client’s heavily used laundry room in a co-housing space for 5 adults had fallen into disrepair and was choked with clutter. I was able to offload many bags of trash, and organize other items into the laundry room so shared items are easily found; this opened up space in other parts of the apartment for much needed storage.
Before..
After…
Best of luck in your organizing endeavors! Tell your socks I said hello.
Celebrity designer Jonathan Adler recently teamed up with Wisconsin-based home appliance brand, Kohler, to introduce a new line of colorful sinks for the kitchen and bathroom. The collection, which made its debut at the 2012 International Contemporary Furniture Fair, explores the question of the impact color can have amidst the white, ‘sterile’ space that traditionally defines a bathroom and kitchen.
