Marie Kondo has sure set a fire under a lot of people with her “spark joy” attitude about organizing our homes by tidying up. I’ve got to say, I have really loved the effect it has had on our family and drawers!
I just want to tell you about a little something that happened in my living room the other night as I was trying to teach my thirteen year old son how to fold like Marie Kondo. My son was very reluctant because he “doesn’t care” what his drawers look like. They are just underwear and shorts, for goodness sake. His dad was sitting across the room watching TV and noticed the apprehension in the air. It was then that my hubby stepped in with a little helpful guidance.
I’ll share my panties drawer first because I will share my husband’s undies later. I won’t ask anyone to do something I am not prepared to do myself. Opening this drawer really does spark joy for me. I love me some Victoria’s Secret undies!
My work clothes. (PJs and Loungewear) Hey, I work from home and we have a relaxed dress code.
My jeans and capris. I know, I never stuck my jeans in drawers before Marie Kondo, but it works! Love it. Can see everything and no hunting.
Dad’s Opinion Matters
He said to our son, “Michael, I know that the folding bit is not your thing and it wasn’t important to me when Mom started sorting and folding my socks and underwear. I thought it was a waste of time, but you know what? It sure did save me a lot of time this morning as I got dressed for work. I was able to find socks, underwear and a t-shirt without sorting through the drawers looking for matching ones. It made getting ready so much easier.”
Dad’s underwear and t-shirts. Yep, he will probably kill me for posting this picture! We gotta be real, right?
Dad’s sock drawer. Note the extra space. The socks that go there are in the laundry, but have a place for when they are ready to go back in the drawer making it so easy to put away.
His shorts and swim trunks are nice and tidy standing in file-like fashion, not stacked.
The tidy method is not just about clothes. I use Marie Kondo’s tips for organizing our silverware drawer. I actually got rid of a few items that didn’t spark joy or just never used. I love our wide drawers and use a few different organizers.
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I used a couple of disposable cookie trays to corral similarly sized utensils and paired the long handled items in the front of the drawer for easy access. Placing easy liner 
in the drawer keeps items from sliding around and adds a cuteness factor.
Use What Works
Michael has a hard time finding something to wear that matches in his drawers and often wears mismatched socks. So, the little example that his dad gave hit home for him. Michael does not like to waste time getting dressed because it uses up time he could be playing Minecraft! He gave in and sat down for his folding lesson. It was fun for me because I got to pass on a life lesson I had just learned. Folding laundry can be very rewarding and it can “spark joy.” Teddy even used those words as he continued to talk with Michael in telling him that it just made him happy to open his drawer to nicely organized clothing.
Dishtowels and bar mops line up easily in a drawer for quick access. I use the flour sack
variety so they can be bleached regularly. I spill a lot of coffee.
Too Much Of A Good Thing Can Be A Burden
So the folks on the Netflix show have problems with stuff. The main problem they have is they are just too blessed! Does that make sense to anyone, but me? Well, they probably would not call it blessed because the burden of their stuff is killing their relationships with kids and spouses. If you have ever tried to keep a small place clean that has too much stuff in it, you get the idea. Basically, the series shows how having too much of anything can kill your joy, especially when you can’t find something you want or need, in all the clutter!
I have work to do! Like any good Southern mom, I save all my plastic bowls. I use them for all kinds of things, but some of these will end up in the recycle bin.
Differing Views
Marie and I differ on who we should thank for our blessings. She tells her clients to thank each item they no longer need for the service it provided. She “greets” the houses before she starts to organize and asks the houses for help in the process. Well, that sounds a little off base to me. Being a Christian, I thank God for my blessings because everything good comes from Him. Marie’s greeting of the house really looks like she is praying. Of course, I am good with praying. 🙂
Another area where we differ is I don’t want to mess up my house so I can clean it up! Our home is not too cluttered anyway. I know this because my adult daughter asked me on a recent visit, “How is it that your house is so much more organized now than when we were kids?” My answer was, “I don’t have two little kids!” 🙂 However, the truth is I decided a few years back to only buy things that I have a place for and most of my furniture must have some sort of storage value.
My Method
That said, instead of dragging out all my clothes from every closet and drawer, I just take each drawer one at a time. Since they were pretty much the same items in each drawer, it was mostly discarding items that did not “spark joy”. In reality, most of my keepers were ones that I hope to fit into this summer, following my hoped for weight loss! Hey, I’m not too far off. 🙂 Of my hubby’s stuff, he gave me the okay to discard underwear that the waistband had lost it’s elasticity, socks with holes, some white tube socks he hadn’t worn since 1990’s and a few odds and ends. Michael, has outgrown a lot of his discards and he got rid of holey socks too! It’s a start.
