KonMari: Clothing

When I look at the big picture of the stuff in our home alongside the end result that I'm striving for, I get overwhelmed. Compared to some homes I have been in, it's really not that bad but even so, I am ready for the end result NOW.  But... everything did not walk in on its own over night. I am the one who brought most of the stuff in over the years (David is pretty minimal by nature) and it's not all going to take care of itself.  I made the mess and now that my life's desires have changed, I have to take the time to clean it up.  Many sources say that the best place to start in a shared space is with your own personal belongings.  Once I get me taken care of I'll move onto the kids and then I'll help David do his belongings if he so chooses.  At this point he is interested but doesn't exactly have any free time.  This book and method for purging are giving me a decluttering curriculum of sorts and a place to start. I printed out a handy checklist that I found on Pinterest and got my first category taken care of. 

{get it here!}

My plan of action for this challenge is to do my weekly maintanence cleaning during the day on Wednesdays, make my pile and sort on Thursdays, then put everything I choose to keep back on Fridays. This week was already thrown off a little since playgroup was moved to Friday and I decided to go but I didn't have plans for today it all ended up working out. 

Now let's clean out my closet!

The first step is to take EVERYTHING out and put it in a pile.  The next step is to step back and become overwhelmed by the sheer volume of your belongings in any given category.

When it's all hanging in a closet and folded into drawers it doesn't seem like so much.  Put it all into a pile in the middle of your living room and you can gain perspective pretty quickly!  This Marie Kondu is a genius...  Then you hold each and every item in your hands and feel whether or not it brings you joy or inspires you in some way.  If the answer is yes, it goes in the keep pile.  If it doesn't, it goes in the discard pile.

My keep pile is on right.  I got rid of OVER HALF of my clothing.

The sorting was pretty easy overall. I did what the book suggests and held each item. I went with my first feeling and tried not to think or rationalize any past that as far as the no pile was concerned. I was a little strict about items that I kept.  There were a few tricky items where my initial reaction was to keep them because I still liked them very much but then I asked myself questions like, have I worn it in the past year?  If no, why?

The peasant top on the left wrinkles really easily and always needs to be ironed.
Mama ain't got time for that so I never wore it.
The two tops on the right required strapless bras.
I am not a fan of strapless bras. They are so uncomfortable to me so again, never wore them.

I did also ask why they sparked joy even though I never wore them and really it was their detailing.  I really love crochet and embroidered details.  I already knew this but it confirmed it even more.

I like when I see belted outfits on Pinterest but they just don't fit well with my body type.
I never felt comfortable or confident in these belts so out they go.

This is the dress I wore to our luau themed rehearsal dinner.
It technically does fit into my capsule wardrobe "rules" but again, strapless.
I am pretty sure I haven't worn it since the year we got married...
I have photos of me wearing it and that is good enough for me now.
On to someone else and hopefully it will bring spark joy for them!

I am in an awkward phase of life at the moment. I have been either pregnant/postpartum or nursing for the past 4 years. This does make purging clothes a bit complicated. I did keep some items that sparked joy but don't currently fit. Instead of putting them back into my closet, though, they are going into their own box up on the shelf. If they don't fit by Logan's first birthday I'm donating the box. Being able to walk to my closet and see only possibilities rather than reminders of not being a certain size or reminders past seasons of my life that have already been lived feels good. Clothing is replaceable (which is why it is the first category of your belongings that Marie Kondu recommends starting with). If for some reason I regret getting rid of something, chances are that I'd be able to go out and find an equivalent that may fit my current body/life style even better. So if there was any uncertainty, to the no pile it went. 

And now for the before and after photos:

Hanging tems are hung heaviest to lightest. 

I did not take a before photo of inside these bins but I used the KonMari folding method and they are looking really nice now. 

I am still working towards building a 333 capsule wardrobe and not everything that I kept fits into my "rules" for that but I plan to invest in nice pieces which will take time. In the meantime I just followed the KonMari rules and kept anything that sparked joy and made me feel good.

Category #1 is complete and I am excited to tackle the next!  

~Sarah

Flashback!  Here's what we were up to one year ago today: "Me"

Two years ago today: "Little Man"

And three years ago today: "Field Trip"

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