My spring-clearing starts well before spring has sprung. Once the Christmas decorations are down, my thoughts turn to the annual de-clutter. Come the 1st January, I’m raring to go and keen to banish the clutter I’ve accumulated over the last year. To be fair, I’m a natural de-clutterer and space-clearer – I think I’ve always been that way, even as a child. By the time I was 10, I had a collection of greetings cards, lovingly-organised by year and celebration in their own special drawer. I also had a passion for re-arranging the furniture – these things start young! This love of space and clarity has stayed with me, through all my days as a flat-sharer and home-owner. It’s more than the just the tidy aesthetic, having space for everything and being able to find things. It goes far deeper, it’s the effect of all these things and how they impact on my state of mind. Some people seem to be able to function amongst a sea of clutter, but I’m not one of them. Having a calm, organised base, allows me to function so much better and frees my mind so that I can concentrate on more important things like work, family and sometimes fun!

So, you can imagine my delight, earlier this year, when I was approached by Mimi Bogelund, to help edit her new website The Organised Home & Life. I worked with Mimi when she was MD of the French fashion brand, Captain Tortue and coincidentally, we both worked for The Body Shop in previous incarnations. Mimi was starting a new career as a Professional Organiser using The KonMarie Method^TM. This revolutionary method is a system created by the influential Japanese organising consultant, Marie Kondo, who explains that in her native Japan, tidiness is a way of everyday living. It’s a gentle yet transformational process with the power to change lives, far beyond being just a useful guide to de-cluttering. A fundamental part of the method is about clearing away things that are no longer relevant and choosing to keep things that ‘spark joy’. You can read more about this here.

While I consider myself a bit of a seasoned pro at keeping the clutter to a minimum, there’s still a lot to be learnt from the KonMarie Method^TM. It’s a ‘once and for all tidy’ for one thing and deals with the overall task by breaking it down into achievable categories. Mimi is passionate and enthusiastic about helping clients to achieve their goals and I see the onset of many people reaping the benefits of an organised home & life.