marie & me: a messy girl's experience with spark joy

I have always been a messy person. Leaving clothes in piles on the floor is like second nature to me. And for a long time, this never bothered me. I was happy to have incredibly disorganised drawers and  closets and to wallow in my floordrobe.

But then something inside me changed, and I could no longer live such a messy life. I craved organisation and a more minimal approach to "stuff". I was tired of having drawers overflowing with stuff I didn't need. I just wanted to be able to find my passport, you know? So I picked up Spark Joy, the illustrated (and generally prettier) version of the best-selling The Life Changing Magic of Tidying.

Marie Kondo's approach is based around the theory of whether your possessions "spark joy" for you. If they don't spark joy, then you don't need them and should discard or donate them. I want to point out that I am incredibly grateful that I am fortunate enough to have more stuff than I need. Not everyone's life is so comfortable and I acknowledge that. As a result, I tried to donate everything I no longer needed that was fit for human use. I tried to throw out as little as possible to reduce waste and to pay it forward. The pictures in this post show some of the things I have picked up on my travels that made the cut and definitely spark joy.

After about a month of using the Kon-Mari method, which advises tidying by category rather than by room, I can honestly say it's made a huge difference. Her clothes folding method alone has freed up an enormous amount of space! And it's so much easier to clean the house once the big job of tidying is done.

She also points out that tidying your house allows you to think about tidying other aspects of your life. What else in your life doesn't spark joy? What does spark joy? Thinking through those questions really helps to prioritise where you should focus your time and emotional energy.

Have you guys read any of Marie Kondo's books? Did you find them to be helpful? What are your tips for keeping on top of a messy house? Sound off in the comments below.