What’s missing from Marie Kondo’s ‘Tidying Up’

It’s so wonderful that minimising, decluttering and needing less stuff is capturing the mainstream attention.

But before Kon Mari’ing your drawers and your life, pretty please think about these two really important things.

1. Where is everyone’s decluttered stuff going - and what should you do with your joy-less things?

Have you heard in the media that op shops/ thrift stores across the world have been “overrun with donations” following the release of Marie Kondo’s Netflix series, Tidying Up?

I think it’s amazing that one TV show can have such an impact, and to be honest I am glad people are choosing to donate goods that no longer “spark joy” rather than just turfing them straight into their bin, destined to sit in a landfill.

Donating to op shops is just one way to declutter ethically - but in a hierarchy it definitely shouldn’t be at the top.

Em Ehlers of Eco With Em summed it up nicely:

"If you donate to these shops you must also BUY from these shops. Or, devote yourself to the secondhand market. If you keep buying the crap then the stores will keep being filled with the crap." 

The first obvious solution to me is to think of all the cash you could make by selling your gear to people who actually want it, right now.

No, really. That appliance that’s been sitting in the cupboard for months? The old bike you don't ride? That handbag that never sees the light? People all over the internet (and your neighbourhood) will want it, trust me.

I moved recently and before doing so listed a bunch of things on Facebook's Marketplace offshoot - with amazing results. List it and they will come! And then bank it and earn some interest and go on a beach holiday. 😉

The two best things about selling:

1. Your stuff is going directly to someone who wants it, rather than languishing away in the storeroom of an over-crowded op shop, waiting for some shop floor space; and 
2. Did I mention you make money doing this?

GO TAKE SOME PHOTOS AND LIST YO’ STUFF.

Joy, sparked.

Other ways to sustainably declutter, before donating to op shops:

• Would someone in your family, a neighbour, a friend use it?
• Could a girlfriend wear it?
• If it’s something specific, see where else you could donate it for re-use. For example, I just took some old prescription glasses to an optometrist to be donated to the Lions Club’s program which sends spectacles to people in need.
• Art and craft gear - call your local kindergarten or childcare centre to see if they’d like the supplies. I did this and it absolutely made my day, they were so grateful!
• For textiles, could they be used for cleaning, art, to hold up a plant, to make into a dog toy, to weave into a mat…
• Donate old blankets and towels to an animal shelter
• Donate tools and materials to a local Men’s Shed or similar

Before giving anything and everything to your local charity store or groups above, ask if they are taking donations, and if there’s anything in particular they need.

And before dumping things in the garbage, check out resources like Planet Ark's Recycling Near You for businesses and organisations who recycle the hard-to-recycle stuff like mattresses, batteries, light globes, even plastic loyalty cards. 

If we want to donate to op shops, we need to shop at them too! Only donate quality items that can actually be used.

2. Change your mindset and you’ll never need to declutter again.

The elephant in the room for me when I watched Tidying Up was our addiction to accumulating stuff. We waste our money on things we don’t use, then drown in things we need to spend more money on to store and maintain.

How did we get here?!

Let’s focus on the future now and pledge to not replace the things we’ve just decluttered! Ask yourself:

• Do I already have something that could do the job?
• Could I borrow or hire it instead? 
• Could I ‘shop my wardrobe’, pairing different pieces together instead of buying whole new outfits?
• Could I make it myself?

And if you do choose to buy something, particularly brand new, remember that you always vote with your wallet. By shopping your values and supporting brands you want to thrive, you are helping them to grow. The same goes with boycotting businesses whose values you don't support.

Have you decluttered recently? What did you do with your excess stuff?

-  Ash 

Header image by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash