my thoughts on kondo and sf closets
january, 2019i have been obsessed with marie kondo's book since it came out in 2014. it sparked my first major closet rehaul when i got rid of about 50% of my clothing and possessions. since then, i've spent a lot of time analyzing the konmari method and applying many of them to my own home.
but there were always some things that just didn't resonate with me. it's almost as if the application to an sf closet just isn't quite right. japanese homes and furniture are really quite different, significantly smaller and more thoughtfully built.
now that her show is out, i've started watching and i love seeing her apply her methods to the american home. (keeping no more than 30 books?!? ummmm NO WAY!) i thought it would be perfect time to talk about some of her ideas that i think work well but some that just aren't relative to the very unique closet arrangements that we often have in san francisco victorian homes.
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do you roll your tshirts? this i do think is an amazing way to organize them!
1. your clothes should spark joy! i think that this is probably the most important lesson that i learned from reading marie kondo’s book. i found myself with a mountain of clothing that i simply didn’t wear and didn’t even like. when i went through my closet piece by piece, evaluating it through the lense of my personal style today, i found so many things that simply had to go. anything that didn’t fit or that i had a negative association to had to move on. don’t worry... i won’t make you create a huge pile of clothing on your bed. we’ll do it more systematically, dependant on your closet space. the important part is that by letting go of all the clutter, i could actually see what i loved and i was inspired to wear more of what i owned. the edit is an aspirational process. it’s about today moving forward. it’s not about the past and being stuck there. i think that this is something that the book talks about quite eloquently.
2. all your pants, skirts and separates should be hanging! this is a pretty big departure from what the konmari method recommends but i think it’s very important! the edit isn’t simply about organization. it’s about ease in creating outfits and developing your personal style. i’ve walked into a lot of closets that have taken the folding method and applied it to categories that just don’t make sense. by hanging all of your separates, you will be able to create outfits. it’s no secret that we simply don’t wear things that are tucked away and out of site in drawers. by hanging our pants, trousers, skirts... they’re in our vision and we’re more likely to wear them. plus, i’ve noticed that a lot of sf closet’s have shelves... i’m not sure that rolling clothes on shelves works but i do have an alternate method that i think works a lot better and i will show you.
3. all of your closet should be hung by category! this is perhaps the most important organization rule and something that the book strongly suggests. when you hang everything in groups, it becomes a lot easier to create outfits. i think that i generally wake up knowing whether it’s a dress day, a pant day, a skirt day or if i feel like wearing jeans. so making that decision first will simplify the next steps. items are organized by category and next by color. this allows you to easily select items that you know will go with whatever separate you’re wearing... this includes fancier tanks, short sleeve blouses, long sleeve blouses, lighter cardigans and sweaters, and jackets. the konmari method states that things should be hung left to right... heaviest to lightest. i think that the flow of the clothing is dependent on the closet and the way it faces you. we will make that determination based on how you get dressed and what works best for your space. i will merchandise your closet so that you can see everything that’s in it and most importantly, what’s behind it.
![]()
one of my fav old racks at mira mira. not hung by category here, but i’ll expertly
merchandise your closet so that you can get dressed with ease and also maintain it!
4. everything in your closet should have a permanent home. it’s just like your kitchen. whenever i use a pot, pan, glass, or measuring cup, it returns right back to its home. this is so i (or anyone else, for that matter) can find it. think how you feel when you walk into a boutique that is perfectly merchandised and it should be the same thing with your closet. if you get in the habit of returning items to their home, you’ll never be looking for them. it’s also the easiest way to keep your closet organized in a way that simplifies getting dressed and makes you feel inspired. i think that this is perhaps THE most important lesson that i’ve learned and something that i try to stress in all of the closets that i’ve worked in. and it works. it’s such a good feeling to go back to my client’s closets and see how many of them are still organized in the same way we did together during our session. it’s because this method is a game changer!
5. i believe in the vacation box! the konmari method has a lot of thoughts around storing items, in particular clothing. i agree that having a seasonal wardrobe swap doesn’t seem to make sense in our climate. we never know when it’ll be a beautiful summer day in february. if you have to do this, it probably means you just have too many clothes and we can work on that together! however, there are items in our closet that we simply wear only on vacation. you know which ones i’m talking about! these items should come out of your closet, where they’re taking space and be stored in a clear box with a lid in a place that you can get to. the size is dependent on your own storage space. i’m not sure about you... but i probably go on a tropical beach vacation 1 (maybe 2!) times a year. also, i don’t believe that these clothes lose the love and joy within them. i have items that i’ve worn on every beach vacation for perhaps the last 20 years (that old tshirt with all the holes!) and it still makes me happy and reminds me of the ocean breeze everytime i wear it.
what do you think?
email me at theedit@miramirasf.com to share your thoughts and sign up for the edit
but there were always some things that just didn't resonate with me. it's almost as if the application to an sf closet just isn't quite right. japanese homes and furniture are really quite different, significantly smaller and more thoughtfully built.
now that her show is out, i've started watching and i love seeing her apply her methods to the american home. (keeping no more than 30 books?!? ummmm NO WAY!) i thought it would be perfect time to talk about some of her ideas that i think work well but some that just aren't relative to the very unique closet arrangements that we often have in san francisco victorian homes.
do you roll your tshirts? this i do think is an amazing way to organize them!
1. your clothes should spark joy! i think that this is probably the most important lesson that i learned from reading marie kondo’s book. i found myself with a mountain of clothing that i simply didn’t wear and didn’t even like. when i went through my closet piece by piece, evaluating it through the lense of my personal style today, i found so many things that simply had to go. anything that didn’t fit or that i had a negative association to had to move on. don’t worry... i won’t make you create a huge pile of clothing on your bed. we’ll do it more systematically, dependant on your closet space. the important part is that by letting go of all the clutter, i could actually see what i loved and i was inspired to wear more of what i owned. the edit is an aspirational process. it’s about today moving forward. it’s not about the past and being stuck there. i think that this is something that the book talks about quite eloquently.
2. all your pants, skirts and separates should be hanging! this is a pretty big departure from what the konmari method recommends but i think it’s very important! the edit isn’t simply about organization. it’s about ease in creating outfits and developing your personal style. i’ve walked into a lot of closets that have taken the folding method and applied it to categories that just don’t make sense. by hanging all of your separates, you will be able to create outfits. it’s no secret that we simply don’t wear things that are tucked away and out of site in drawers. by hanging our pants, trousers, skirts... they’re in our vision and we’re more likely to wear them. plus, i’ve noticed that a lot of sf closet’s have shelves... i’m not sure that rolling clothes on shelves works but i do have an alternate method that i think works a lot better and i will show you.
3. all of your closet should be hung by category! this is perhaps the most important organization rule and something that the book strongly suggests. when you hang everything in groups, it becomes a lot easier to create outfits. i think that i generally wake up knowing whether it’s a dress day, a pant day, a skirt day or if i feel like wearing jeans. so making that decision first will simplify the next steps. items are organized by category and next by color. this allows you to easily select items that you know will go with whatever separate you’re wearing... this includes fancier tanks, short sleeve blouses, long sleeve blouses, lighter cardigans and sweaters, and jackets. the konmari method states that things should be hung left to right... heaviest to lightest. i think that the flow of the clothing is dependent on the closet and the way it faces you. we will make that determination based on how you get dressed and what works best for your space. i will merchandise your closet so that you can see everything that’s in it and most importantly, what’s behind it.
one of my fav old racks at mira mira. not hung by category here, but i’ll expertly
merchandise your closet so that you can get dressed with ease and also maintain it!
4. everything in your closet should have a permanent home. it’s just like your kitchen. whenever i use a pot, pan, glass, or measuring cup, it returns right back to its home. this is so i (or anyone else, for that matter) can find it. think how you feel when you walk into a boutique that is perfectly merchandised and it should be the same thing with your closet. if you get in the habit of returning items to their home, you’ll never be looking for them. it’s also the easiest way to keep your closet organized in a way that simplifies getting dressed and makes you feel inspired. i think that this is perhaps THE most important lesson that i’ve learned and something that i try to stress in all of the closets that i’ve worked in. and it works. it’s such a good feeling to go back to my client’s closets and see how many of them are still organized in the same way we did together during our session. it’s because this method is a game changer!
5. i believe in the vacation box! the konmari method has a lot of thoughts around storing items, in particular clothing. i agree that having a seasonal wardrobe swap doesn’t seem to make sense in our climate. we never know when it’ll be a beautiful summer day in february. if you have to do this, it probably means you just have too many clothes and we can work on that together! however, there are items in our closet that we simply wear only on vacation. you know which ones i’m talking about! these items should come out of your closet, where they’re taking space and be stored in a clear box with a lid in a place that you can get to. the size is dependent on your own storage space. i’m not sure about you... but i probably go on a tropical beach vacation 1 (maybe 2!) times a year. also, i don’t believe that these clothes lose the love and joy within them. i have items that i’ve worn on every beach vacation for perhaps the last 20 years (that old tshirt with all the holes!) and it still makes me happy and reminds me of the ocean breeze everytime i wear it.
what do you think?
email me at theedit@miramirasf.com to share your thoughts and sign up for the edit