Have you ever started decluttering and felt overwhelmed with all the stuff? Well, I was. I did not know where to start; should I start with my clothes, my books, the drawer under my bed containing my craft supplies or should I start with my other shelves.
I started doing research on the internet and found a bunch of decluttering techniques. One of the methods I discovered was the KonMari method. The strategy of this method is to declutter by category and not location. The categories include: clothes, books, papers, miscellaneous items and sentimental items. Another method I found was the four box method. This method is to sort the clutter into four boxes. The four boxes are: put away, give away, throw away, and undecided. Other methods I found not that useful were: the Minimalist Game which is to get rid of an amount of items depending on the day of the month, the Packing Party which is to put everything in boxes and only take out items you need to use and get rid of the items you don’t use, the last method is the closet hanger method which is only used for clothes.
But which one is the right one for me?
I decided to try a combination of the KonMari method and the Four Box Method.
First I made a plan for what areas of my room to declutter and in what order. The KonMari method is to declutter by category and not location. First were my clothes. I took everything out of my closet and put this on my bed. Then I used the Four Box method which is to use four boxes, however I made four piles; one for clothes to keep, one to give away, one to throw away and one undecided. In the end I got rid of 50% of my clothes.
Next were my books. I kept the books I liked and which gave me good memories (for example my yearbooks from school).
Afterwards I did my papers. I got rid of scrap paper and only kept the important school notes.
Then I went through my miscellaneous items. This was the most difficult part because I did not want to get rid of the craft materials I could still use. For this I used four bags and made the same categories. I thought about how each item made me feel and asked myself if it sparked joy. My problem with this was that I could not decide whether to keep it or not so I put too many items in the undecided bag. I ended up going through everything again and again. So I recommend not using the undecided category because it is better to choose directly whether you want to keep it or not.
Lastly I went through my sentimental items. I did not have a lot of sentimental items so I kept all of it including cards, souvenirs and shirts.
Finally I got rid of the clutter. The stuff in the bag I wanted to keep, I put back to where it came from and I am going to organise this later. The bag to give away, I donated to the secondhand store. The bag with trash I sorted into paper and plastic to recycle it. The other trash I unfortunately had to throw away. The bag with undecided things I went through again.
While decluttering I thought it was a waste to get rid of the stuff which I could still use. On the other hand, I now think I could get rid of more stuff. Now that I am starting to become a minimalist I should not buy more stuff and consume less.
I hope my decluttering process helps you get started.
What decluttering techniques would you use?
Tell me in the comments!
Sources
Ongaro, Anthony. “6 Popular Minimalist Decluttering Methods.” Break the Twitch, 6 May 2020, http://www.breakthetwitch.com/decluttering-methods/.
Garrity, Amanda. “Does the KonMari Method Really Spark Joy? We Found the Answer.” Good Housekeeping, 23 Oct. 2019, http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/home/organizing/a25846191/what-is-the-konmari-method/.
Teen Minimalist Journey 