Design Stories columnist Hanna-Katariina Mononen has something to say to Marie Kondo, who has given up the KonMari Method used for tidying homes.
THE KONMARI METHOD developed by Japanese professional organizer Marie Kondo, also known as a tidying guru, has been making people across the world fold their underwear and find objects that spark joy since 2010. However, to everyone’s surprise, in early 2023, Marie Kondo announced that she had stopped tidying at home.
As it so happens, the very same week that the mother of the KonMari Method was announced to have ceased using the method, I found her immensely popular book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying, among the books removed from circulation in the library. Of course, it felt like a funny and appropriate coincidence that the library staff had chosen to apply the method to the book that exact week. What was also funny, is that when the guru herself renounced the method over a decade after the publication of the book, I picked the volume up for the first time. Better late and so on.
I have still never actually read the book, but despite my superficial knowledge of the method, I’ve always considered KonMari Kondo as kind of a kindred spirit. The items in the table of contents make me nod in agreement: Designate a Place for Each Thing, Learning that You Can Do Without, Don’t Scatter Storage Spaces and, of course, the absolute classic: Does It Spark Joy? Of course, it’s everyone’s own business how seriously they take it, but my overall opinion of the KonMari Method is positive. I even feel that I’ve always been living by its main principles one way or another, which may just be the reason why I hadn’t bought the book earlier: I was already practicing what she was preaching.
“My overall opinion of the KonMari Method is positive. I even feel that I’ve always been living by its main principles one way or another.”
Now, however, Kondo has said that she has stopped using her method due to her changed life situation and revealed that her home is currently actually quite messy. But Marie, can you hear me? I feel that you’ve somehow misunderstood your own method. I’ve never really thought that the KonMari was about keeping the home tidy at all times – or that it was even really about tidying, for that matter.
In addition to keeping things tidy, Kondo’s philosophy focuses on assessing the items in your home by category and weighing the significance of each item. All kinds of objects holding a sentimental value or otherwise considered worth keeping keep accumulating in the nooks and crannies of our homes, and they may not even have any purpose, just the ability to create unwanted “noise” in our environment. These are the things that tend to turn against us.
Thorough review of the objects surrounding us – and subsequently minimizing the amount of unnecessary stuff and bad vibes – helps make the home a safe setting for situations and times that challenge our ability to control our life. When the home is organized well, it can withstand a little clutter.
My recommendation: Yrjö Kukkapuro – Magic Room
EMMA, The Espoo Museum of Modern Art, showcases the work of Finnish artist professor and interior architect Yrjö Kukkapuro. The recently opened exhibition Yrjö Kukkapuro – Magic Room has a clever way of combining Kukkapuro’s design and modern art. The method of displaying the works, inspired by installation art, is developed by Kukkapuro and used to display industrial design in a manner influenced by installation and conceptual art. The exhibition will be open until 28 January 2024.
The author, Hanna-Katariina Mononen, reflects on the issues of a beautiful and sustainable life in her monthly column for Design Stories. She thinks that just like in life, in the home, the most beautiful parts are unplanned – and often relatively ordinary as well.
Text and image: Hanna-Katariina Mononen