I’ve done it! Well, just about.
My home feels fresh and A LOT less cluttered. The clutter that remains does not result in me feeling like burning the place down and starting from scratch. That, in my book, is some major progress. Yay me, and my new bff,Β Marie Kondo.
I discovered something new, though. This thing is the thing that finally tipped the scales in the right direction and had a huge impact on my current feeling towards my dwelling.
My husband let me choose some second hand/antique furniture for our cottage as my birthday present. I found two fabulous Art Deco bedside tables to replace our existing ones (which were devoid of any personality or style) and also found a gorgeous Art Deco cabinet.
I think it’s obvious I like Art Deco.

The cabinet is the hero of the story. It has such great storage inside that I managed to fill it with stuff stored in three small unmatched pieces of furniture (that I hated but put up with due to needing somewhere to put stuff) and could then get rid of them. \(“o)/ <——That’s me jumping for JOY.
All of a sudden our living room feels so much better (if you can mentally remove all the toys and pretend they don’t exist). It never occurred to me that our furniture was part of the problem.
By having one large cabinet as opposed to three smaller bits of (unmatched) furniture our space is remarkably less cluttered.
Important lesson learnt. It’s not just about storage but also how it is structured.
Illustration by me.
We have a saying here: Ain’t that the F*#$@ng truth!
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I absolutely adore your illustrations!
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That makes me one happy wannabe illustrator π
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Hahahaha! It totally is π
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Loved your cats on the Doodlewash blog so thought I would visit. So glad I did, am enjoying your posts on “stuff” and your illustrations, very light and oh so spot on. Particularly this post and your previous ones on the Marie Kondo method, so amusing and so encouraging. I just finished reading her book and am making plans for a 6 month battle with my own clutter, nice to see others have also taken the plunge and live to tell about it. Thank you for sharing your art and life observations. Peace.
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Thanks! π “Doodlewash” is such a lovely blog.
I’m happy you enjoy my random ramblings. My blog is all over the place and I’m glad that isn’t to its detriment π
Good luck with your clutter battle. I have full confidence you will succeed. I have THAT much faith in Marie Kondo’s method. I love her sweet writing too. I think her human element adds to the success of her book.
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Thanks for the encouragement on the clutter battle…I am going to be determined! And I think your “random ramblings” are great and makes your blog ‘real’. Isn’t life like that? One day it is shoes and another day it is the lurking crochet blanket, waiting to be finished…these all speak to me for if it is not one thing it is another. Cheers!
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That’s just it. If it isn’t one thing it’s another. There’s always another π
At least it gives me lots to write about even if my brain feels like it has 7000 tabs open at once π
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Well done!! And where is the knitting?? I wanted to tell you I gave away about 8 massive of stuff, about a million coat hangers, and binned heaps too. Feels awesome! I am not finished yet either… Well done on the decluttering; I also love Kondo, she is my hero. Her words came to me frequently: ‘do I love this?’ ‘does this bring me joy?’ Really helped me to make decisions. She needs to write another book!
Take care and well done on the clear, now lets see our lives magically unfold!! Xx
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Thanks Anita! Don’t ask about the knitting. It still has not progressed further and the week is almost up. Dammit.
I’m so glad your move has gone so well and you’ve cleared out so much stuff. Marie Kondo’s mantra is so black and white that decisions are made easy.
Ooh! I’d love another book from her. I’m currently re-reading her book’cause its so enjoyable (for us tidy-crazy lunatics π ).
xxx
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π I lent my copy out and my friend also loves her. I have to tackle decluttering books nexts! Arghh!! Maybe I will blog about it that might keep me motivated… π
Yes loving my new pad, change feels so good, just what I needed! Amazing! Xx
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Yes! Blog about it. Putting it out there really helped me stick to the plan π
xx
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Nominated you for this π
https://candelescent.wordpress.com/2015/08/20/a-bit-of-recognition-hey/
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Aw! That’s so sweet of you :*
Thank you!
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