How much stuff do we really need in our lives? I know sometimes when I walk into my house, I wonder where it all came from. I can often immediately note multiple things that I just don’t need. In fact, in a recent survey from Bella Ella Boutique, most people said they had only used about half of what was in their closet within the last 6 months. Over 40% of women and around 50% of men said they’ve used less than a third of their closet. With spring finally here, it’s a good time to clean out and declutter your home.

Marie Kondo has become one of the most prominent experts on decluttering. Her KonMari method focuses on keeping items that bring you joy and parting with the ones that do not. Her book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, has become a national best seller, creating legions of devoted fans. She focuses on different item categories in the home such as clothing, documents, pictures, etc. When you start purging items, she recommends doing it by this category system as opposed to a by system because things tend to be scattered about.

When it comes time to decide what to discard, you aren’t trying to just get rid of as many things as possible. Instead, you’re looking to hold onto the items that make you happy. So when you pick up an item, ask yourself, “does this spark joy?” That may be subjective, but the more you do it the more it will make sense. For reorganizing, Kondo believes that it should be just as easy to put something away as it is to find it later.

Another key part to her tidying up is the KonMari Folding Method. She says she believes that clothes should be thanked for ‘their service’ and that means folding them properly. For most of us, that probably means folding in a very different way than we are used to. She folds clothes like shirts, sweaters, socks, and underwear so that they ‘stand up’ in the drawer. It can be a little confusing, so some people have created helpful visual guides on the process.

Some may find Kondo’s methods to be harsh. Others may question whether or not it would work in America. Personally, while I may not be able to do a full tidying up like Kondo suggests, I definitely agree that a decluttered home is a better home. It can be stressful when things pile up and they don’t have a place. Trying out some of Kondo’s methods can only help.