So for those of you that don't know, I'm temporarily living at my parents' house where I grew up. I will be getting a house this year but until then I've been living out of storage for nearly 2 years now. That didn't stop me from applying the KonMari method to EVERYTHING I own in storage in the basement.
The problem is that what I was doing now is anytime I got a new item, say a mug, I would just shove it in the "kitchen" boxes in the basement. Overtime I accrued plenty of things I didn't need or that I already had duplicates of. So I tackled everything in one weekend. I unpacked everything, and purged items that didn't bring me joy.
Books & DVDs: I didn't have too many of those to begin with because a couple years back when I decided to really embrace minimalism, I downsized my collection. Also, I noticed that it was pure hell trying to move houses with so many books. So all of the books I own fit in one tiny box, and all of the DVDs I own (including full seasons of my favorite shows on DVD) fit into a second box. That's it! Isn't that impressive?
Holiday Stuff: I downsized to have only 2 bins of holiday items which includes ornaments for my tree. I also have one bin for gift bags, tissue paper, bows, etc. There were some really ugly decorations that I got rid of and I honestly have no idea why I held onto them for so long. I noticed that most of us are trained to keep things because last time we went through them we kept them. Literally, I was so used to just putting things back away into a box or bin, that I didn't notice before if they brought me joy. But this time I questioned EVERYTHING. There were plenty of things that I noticed I had kept simply because every time I moved or purged things, I liked to do the same thing with each item. I just got into the habit or packing, storing, and keeping things.
Sentimental Items: This category was last, as Marie Kondo recommends because not only do you find things from this category along the way but it's also the most difficult. It took me an entire day and 2 purges to get through all this. My school papers and photos all fit in one bin now. I went through all of my school artwork and papers twice because the first time I kept things for silly reasons. Then I got a binder and page protectors and I put much of it in the binder. I also tore out pages of magazines that I had saved for special personal reasons and I put those in sheet protectors. When I went through my photos I got rid of any duplicates that I didn't feel I needed to keep and I also got rid of any of those pointless photos that I took of a tree that made no sense. It wasn't as hard as I thought.
I also have a second bin just for mementos from my past. My American Girl Doll (Molly) and her different outfits, 2 snow globes from my mom, some Chihuahua stuffed animals and figurines, and a vanity set that belonged to my Grandma. These things bring me joy. I keep them in plastic bins for now because I know they will be safe. Eventually when I have my own place, I may find a neat way to display them, especially the snow globes and vanity set.
I still have to go through lots of my old stuffed animals but I will do that soon enough. Honestly, I thought this process would be harder than it was. Some of the items I had kept all these years did nothing for me. They really did not bring me joy.
I had some random bins in my room that had odds and ends or things that I frequently use like a lotion bottle, my extra business cards, a bag of chips, etc. I decided to do away with it all. Instead, the lotion goes with the other lotions, the chips went to the kitchen, and my extra business cards went into my desk drawer. Honestly, it won't kill me to have to take a few more steps to get something I need. In fact, I could use the calorie burn of moving around more.
I had SO many boxes of things. In the end I was able to downsize out of 10 boxes. In fact, everything I have fits in plastic tubs.
And that's the junk pile of stuff that I discarded/donated/gave away. It wasn't as hard as I thought because like I said before, I had purged much of my stuff a couple years back. Still, there was tons of stuff to go through.
I literally know every single thing I own now and it is a great feeling. Doing this whole process has helped me so much. I no longer wonder if I have something or if I should buy something at the store. I actually KNOW now.
Next week I'll talk about the benefits of the KonMari Method.
