The Magic of Tidying Up in the Bathroom with the KonMari Method

The magic of tidying up continues in our house! 

I have been tackling the Komono list. Mari Kondo explains that komono is "a Japanese term that the dictionary defines variously as small articles, miscellaneous items, accessories, gadgets or small tools, parts, or attachments". 

The first item on the list were DVDs/CDs which went very fast. I personally don't own many DVDs but my husband and children do, so I put in a bin what had not been watched since we moved in our house almost 3 years ago. They will go through this selection when we get ready for our garage sale. 

Skin care products and make up were the next two items on the komono list. I decided to take care of most of the bathroom. 

In our bathroom, each family member has a drawer. My drawer was very quick at tidying. I hardly use any skin care products or make up. I used the KonMari method and got rid of anything I didn't love. 

My makeup fits in one small glass jar, the one with the makeup brush in the photo below. 

I moved on to the family's medicine drawer after that. This is the only spot we keep medicine in. We don't keep a lot of medicine and there aren't any prescription medicines. This is the fullest it is because of cold season! 

I cleaned out any expired medicine and tidied the area by using an organizer box I had available from another cabinet. Getting rid of the bulky first aid box, which was almost empty, freed more space. 

I didn't tidy the drawers that belong to my family. I am choosing to only tidy my own spaces and family-shared spaces. I think this is respectful and if any of my family members want some help with tidying their own spaces, I am available. 

The last area in the bathroom was the cupboard under the sink. This is a shared space and a storage area for extra products. 

An interesting point in the tidying book is to keep all shampoos, conditioners, and soaps out of the shower area. 

Mari Kondo explains in her book that to keep all the shampoos and other bottles in the shower area makes it a bother when you clean the bath. She writes: "Kept on the floor in the shower or on the edge of the bath, they become slimy. To avoid this, some people use a wire basket as a container, but from my own experience, this makes things even worse." 

She goes on to explain that the constant fluctuation in temperatures could affect the quality of the products. She advises to keep all shampoos, shower gels, and conditioners in the cupboard, grab only what you need. Once finished, dry whatever you used in the shower and put it back in the cupboard. 

This is not realistic for my family but I am following the advice for my personal shampoo and enjoying the process. 

The biggest impact was getting rid of boxes from small appliances like hair dryer! I am not sure why we had kept those in the past. There were expired sunscreen and other lotions that no one used. Some items were out of sight in plastic white boxes which meant we did not see them or use them! 

I re-organized what was left so everything can be seen and located quickly. 

Once I finished, I had a bag full of garbage and a nice pile of paper and cardboard boxes to recycle. 

If you would like to read more about the magic of tidying up: 

The Magic of Tidying Up ~ The KonMari Method

Continuing the Magic of Tidying Up ~ Books & More with the KonMari Method

More Magic of Tidying Up ~ Papers