Posted March 1, 2024
If you live in an apartment, you understand first-hand how important it is to keep your belongings organized and how quickly your space can go from super organized to super messy! Having a consistent method of tidying your home can help alleviate stress, increase productivity, help you save money and give you more time to enjoy the things you love.
In this blog (originally published in 2021), we will be sharing the top five tips from Tidy by Emily, Saskatchewan’s first KonMari consultant, for decluttering your apartment. Let’s go!
Set an Intention
The most important tip for decluttering is to keep an intention in mind before and during your tidy. Remember the person who you’re tidying for (you!), and think about how great it will make you feel afterwards!
Sort by Category
It’s important to start decluttering by category instead of by location. This will let you see how many items of each category you have, which will help the decluttering process.
The KonMari method encourages us to start the decluttering process with our clothes, moving on to books and paper and ending with Komono (sentimental items).
When you are beginning to sort through your belongings in each category, pay close attention to how each item makes you physically feel. Emily explained this process by telling us if you are holding an item that brings an uplifting, joy-like feeling, keep it! If the item you’re holding gives you a sinking feeling, you can thank it for what it has done for you, and either dispose of it or donate it.
Folding your clothes, the KonMari Way
The KonMari method involves a special way of folding clothes that lets you see all your clothing options in one place – forget digging around in your dresser and making more of a mess! This folding technique allows the items to take up as little space as possible, and when they are stood up vertically in a drawer, you can see everything you need. This technique works for every clothing item, from small socks to larger sweaters. In case you missed it in our Decluttering Workshop, here is a great video on the KonMari folding technique: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjkmqbJTLBM
Organizing your Closet
So, you’ve decluttered and organized your dresser, now let’s move on to the closet! During our Decluttering Workshop, Emily explained there is a reason some clothes belong in the closet and others in drawer/dresser space, and it all depends on the material of the item. Clothes that are lighter and crease easily are best to hang up, and you can arrange these items by colour and by weight of the fabric.
Organizing Small Items
When it comes to organizing smaller items like office supplies, spices, makeup and more, small organizational bins are a must. These bins come in many shapes and sizes and can be purchased at your local dollar store, home décor store and online! These bins let you compartmentalize and organize your items and prevent them from sliding around in drawers or getting lost in the back of a cupboard.
During our Decluttering Session, Emily used these bins to organize spices and other cooking items. These bins are especially great as they prevent spices from being spilled in the cupboard.
We hope you found Emily’s tips helpful! Follow her on Instagram @TidyByEmily or visit her website at tidybyemily.com if you’d like to see more tips on how to tidy using the KonMari method.