KonMari Method Part 3: Clothing and Komono (Miscellaneous Items)

In an earlier post, I discussed decluttering my clothes and shoes using the KonMari Method. That went well. My clothing items have more room in my closet; everything in there is something that I want to wear and that I feel good wearing. There were so many items that I wore but felt uncomfortable in or thought made me look frumpy. Now I love my entire wardrobe.

This time, I tackled the last component of the clothing category; my jewelry. 

Jewelry: 

It was easier to do this group because a lot of my jewelry never got worn. Over the years, I had accumulated a lot of cheap jewelry; nothing has been more than $12 for a pair of earrings. 

As you can see above, I didn't have one dedicated jewelry box; instead, I had things in multiple opaque containers. I rotated and wore a small selection of my earrings because they were convenient to get to instead of searching for other options. My goal is to wear my favorites more often.

When it came to discarding items, the first things to go were the three lone earrings (seen at the top middle above) since I never found their mates, then any pairs that were missing stones or pieces, and then any gifted ones that were never my style. Why keep things you don't wear?

The next step was the items that I appreciated but never wore, like bracelets. I love the idea (and mine were lovely), but if they're not the ones that slip on, no deal. I have no patience for tricky clasps.

Donations to Goodwill

Note that there are bar hair clips in the donation box; my hair has been too short for those since 2002.

I will probably paint the base at some point.

I ended up with ten pairs of earrings that I love and most of my necklaces. I have all my necklaces displayed hanging on my bulletin boards. I bought an earring display rack online, so now I can see all my choices every day and make a point of putting them back right after wearing them.

Komomo (Miscellaneous Items)

These last two groups technically belong to Komono, the KonMari miscellaneous category, but they were right there while working on my closet, and I couldn't wait!

Marie defines Komono as "small articles, accessories, small tools, spare parts." Things such as spare batteries, novelty keychains, conference lanyards, leftover medicines, that stuff that seems to stay around even after it has served its purpose. Things in this category include such varied sub-categories as Accessories, Cosmetics, Toiletries, CDs, DVDs, Electrical Equipment and Appliances, Valuables, Household Equipment, Kitchen Goods, and Others.

Eyeglasses:

As part of my apparent "keep ALL The Things forever" collection, I have all my unused and broken eyeglasses since 2002, including those missing lenses or a temple arm. Oh, why, Lisa, why? 

I found that I can drop off the working pairs for recycling at any Walmart Vision Center, but they will not take the broken ones.

Cosmetics:

Another quick and easy category to complete was cosmetics. I threw away any old makeup and the slow-moving and dried-out nail polishes. I rounded up my empty MAC lipsticks, hoping for enough to take advantage of their free lipstick recycling program, but I need to have six. 

I had stored my cosmetics in one tiny overstuffed zippered pouch and several clear Ziploc bags for years, and it was messy and unorganized. I now have my makeup contained in this new organizer I bought from Target.

Toiletries:

 

It turns out that I also had a problem with "self-care" items. I had masses of Shout wipes, throat lozenges, Q-tips, opened makeup sponge packages, shampoo samples from magazines, and "just-in-case" medicines such as nasal allergy spray, gas pain medication, and prescription pain relief. As usual, I stored everything in multiple containers in several locations.

Expired products and medications

Because so many things were separated and boxed away, I never used them. For example, the dried-out Shout pen and wipes and the expired medications; I found things five years and more past expiration!

I moved most of these to the bathroom cabinet where they belong and the rest to a clear storage container that I can easily access.

Final Observations: 

If I can't see something, I will forget that I have it. That was true in a crowded closet when I had more than one item stacked on a hanger. It was also true with shoes or jewelry stored in covered boxes or containers.

Therefore, my storage strategy for everything in. the future will involve less packaging, increased visibility, and easy accessibility for all my declutter categories.