Minimalist closet, step 1.

I've been thinking a lot about decluttering, chucking, minimizing, whatever term you call it for a while. It seems like the newest trend is the 333 or wearing only 33 pieces of clothing, shoes and jewelry for 30 days, or the capsule wardrobe (similar). Outside of the closet many people are ditching big homes for tiny ones. Everywhere you turn there is a story about decluttering your life. I purchased a book by Marie Kondo, "The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up." I only read the introduction so far so fingers crossed it gives me some good tips. Last night I also watched the movie, "Minimalism: A Documentary," and it finally put me over the edge. I'm tired of accumulating "things."

The culmination of above led me to try to clean out my closet. Over time I have learned that I have to do things in steps or phases. I can't get from A-Z in one step. I work on A-K first and that gives me time to reflect on how I feel after that step and then continue to Z. I have included 2 videos below which show you the before and after of step 1. Am i finished? Definitely not. Now that I have managed to clear one closet, i want my remaining closet to look more tidy. My intention is to read Marie Kondo's book and see if that gives me any new insight as to how to mode forward.

How did I manage to let go of so much? Well something that Marie mentions already in the introduction of her book is that everything you own should bring you joy. So i looked at every single article of clothing (or shoes) in my closet and asked myself if it brought me joy. If there was any hesitation then I let it go. For instance, "I love this dress but its slightly tight. Maybe i'll save it until I tone my hips and thighs more." NO. not an excuse. let it go. How about this one: "This shirt is the only one I have for this sports team and you never know when I will go to another game or need to support them in X championship." Seriously? I had a Seminole shirt, Knights shirt, Phillies, Flyers and Bucs shirt. All for the same reason. Guess what? I chose to keep the ones that I was most passionate about. SO i chucked the Phillies and Flyers.

This was a pretty easy project to do on a Sunday morning. I would encourage you to try this as well. Not sold on the idea? Try reading the book above or watching the Minimalist movie. You may find some inspiration in those.

#minimalist #tidyingup #weekendactivity #organization