What happens to a junk drawer, 29 water bottles, and innumerable pieces of mismatched Tupperware when you 'Marie Kondo' your kitchen? We're here to tell you.

Dave and I decided - after our successful bedroom reorganization - to attempt to conquer the kitchen clutter, Marie Kondo style. If you're not familiar with Marie Kondo, she's a Japanese organizing and decluttering expert. Her philosophy centers around the idea that every item in your home should "spark joy."

Here are her basic rules:

  1. Commit yourself to tidying up.
  2. Imagine your ideal lifestyle.
  3. Finish discarding first. Before getting rid of items, sincerely thank each item for serving its purpose. (I know this one seems weird, but it feels oddly satisfying.)
  4. Tidy by category, not location.
  5. Follow the right order.
  6. Ask yourself it it sparks joy.

Her categories are:

  1. Clothes
  2. Books (*all my books spark joy - so NO)
  3. Papers
  4. Komono (a.k.a. Miscellaneous Items)
  5. Sentimental Items

So yeah, we went a little out of order, but we decided to conquer the things that would have the greatest impact in our life - the kitchen is a room we use every day - and opening the various drawers to see order would feel so great. (I still get a little thrill stepping into our closet and seeing it so organized.)

We started with the junk drawer. It turns out, there was not much in there that sparked joy, except for the $500 in random gift cards that were in there too. (Too bad that Toys R Us one wasn't any good anymore.)

BEFORE:

Credit: Dave Coombs/TSM
Credit: Dave Coombs/TSM
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AFTER:

Credit: Dave Coombs/TSM
Credit: Dave Coombs/TSM
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From there we moved on to the bane of my existence, the Tupperware drawer. Unloading the dishwasher took way longer than it needed to because of the Tetris game we had to play to put everything away.

BEFORE:

Credit: Dave Coombs/TSM
Credit: Dave Coombs/TSM
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AFTER:

Credit: Dave Coombs/TSM
Credit: Dave Coombs/TSM
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After that, we decided to go after the two (yes, TWO) drawers we had dedicated to water bottles and to-go coffee mugs (even though we use the same on every day)

BEFORE:

Credit: Dave Coombs/TSM
Credit: Dave Coombs/TSM
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Credit: Dave Coombs/TSM
Credit: Dave Coombs/TSM
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AFTER:

Credit: Dave Coombs/TSM
Credit: Dave Coombs/TSM
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Credit: Dave Coombs/TSM
Credit: Dave Coombs/TSM
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Afterwards, we even had an empty drawer that we could use for small appliances that get regularly used.

Getting rid of the kitchen clutter felt like a load off our shoulders - which sounds crazy because it's JUST TUPPERWARE people. Now, opening those drawers puts a smile on my face every day.

If you decide to try it, let me know (and send pictures) to beth@lite987.com

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