KonMari

I'm going through all my possessions using the KonMari method. It's taken the internet like a plague and I read it for the first time last December. The whole time I was reading it I keep thinking this is so quaint, this is so Japanese, however I like quaint and Japanese so there we go.

My favorite part is to do it all at once in a big push. To make the home you want now with what you have and to not dither over it endlessly. As someone with an obsessive nature and a short attention span this is my kind of philosophy.

The other part that I was doubtful about but turned out to be true, is the sentiment that you already have everything you need to have the place of your dreams. I was doubtful since I aspire to have nice things but my apartment was full of crap, champagne taste on a beer budget and all that.

Last December I did over my whole apartment keeping just the things (as best I could. It was really really hard) that sparked a joyful response. Once most of the things I didn't like were gone I realized that I did have nice things but they had been hidden from sight by all the drek. It was so satisfying to be left with a beautiful apartment.

Now it's time to do it again. I hope it will be easier this time since gone are all the things I was keeping because I thought I should. However, I wasn't able to get rid of everything because of the Just-in-case. As a renter the biggest is "it doesn't work now but I'll keep it just in case it works in the next place," so no more of that.

Even so, my natural inclination is keep everything forever and what I'm striving for this time through is keeping what works right now along with a few things to represent the past. Not every single thing.

The book gives an order to work and starts with the clothes as being the easiest emotionally. I've already sorted and folded all my clothes getting rid of anything that didn't fit, was stained, or just didn't please me anymore. The only thing worthy of pictures is the knitwear since it's a bit monumental.    

Fifteen years worth of knitted accessories.

I have five coats ranging from a light jacket down to one suitable for hours outside in an arctic blast

I laid them out on the floor and matched up accessories that look good with each

There wasn't any thoughts about how many was the right number or if I was keeping too many or too few.

It was just finding and keeping the ones that I would feel good wearing together.

The remaining tote of ones that don’t match that are never worn to be gifted this Christmas.

The photos of the pile that is so worn out they were thrown away and the one of the pile to frog and reknit the yarns are too blurry to post, but they were substantial.