A tidying craze inspired by Japanese organizing consultant Marie Kondo has sparked joy for several Edmonton charities, which have seen an increase in donations this month.
Kondo鈥檚 popular new Netflix series called 鈥淭idying Up with Marie Kondo鈥� has encouraged audiences to declutter their lives by removing items in their homes that don鈥檛 bring them joy anymore. The best-selling author also advocates using a five-step system of organization called the 鈥淜onMari Method,鈥� which includes culling objects in a home by category instead of by room.
鈥淲hat I love about it is that it changes the mindset from thinking about what we need to get rid of in our lives to what we should be keeping,鈥� Ivanka Siolkowsky, , told CTV鈥檚 Your Morning on Friday.
Siolkowsky said part of the KonMari Method involves organizing clothes first, then books and paper, then miscellaneous stuff, and finally, sentimental items.
鈥淚f you started with sentimental, you鈥檇 hit a wall right away and you鈥檇 be stuck,鈥� she explained.
David Lopez said he watched the Netflix show and tried the KonMari technique in his own home.
鈥淚t feels great. I feel lighter, our space feels fresher,鈥� he told CTV Edmonton. 鈥淭he items that we kept actually do bring us joy every day.鈥�
In addition to the perks he鈥檚 experiencing at home, Lopez said his business is also benefiting from the tidying up trend.
Lopez is the general manager of Find, that supplies people leaving homelessness with free furniture. He said donations have been up by 20 per cent this month and he suspects it may have something to do with the popularity of Kondo鈥檚 series.
Across the city, the executive director for another charity said they鈥檙e also seeing more donations this year. Lori McConnell, from , which provides clothing for job interviews to low-income women, said she鈥檚 noticed more interest in donations lately.
鈥淲hat we鈥檙e assuming, and again you never really know with donations, but we鈥檙e assuming people are starting to take a look at their belongings and deciding whether or not they believe they can live without it,鈥� McConnell said.
Doug Roxburgh, the marketing co-ordinator at , estimated that donations have been up about 2.5 per cent this month. Although he can鈥檛 be sure if Kondo is responsible for the increase, Roxburgh encouraged people to follow her lead.
鈥淒oes that item give your life a spark anymore? Because if it doesn't, maybe it has the chance to give someone else's life a spark,鈥� he said.
Professional organizer Katie Hudson, who has read Kondo鈥檚 books, said she鈥檚 happy to see the excitement surrounding tidying up. She said she encourages all of her clients in Edmonton to donate their unwanted items to local charities.
鈥淥ne of the barriers to getting rid of stuff is feeling like you're wasteful or feeling guilt that you bought it and you shouldn't have accumulated it,鈥� Hudson said. 鈥淚 think if you can pass it on or you can find a use for it, it really justifies you getting rid of it.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 really nice to know that you can give your stuff sort of a second life.鈥�
