IN these days of political polarisation, the concept of ‘hard’ versus ‘soft’ has extended to our everyday lives. For example, there are now two schools of decluttering: the ‘hard’ method preached by Marie Kondo in her Netflix series and the ‘soft’ version of Debora Robertson in her new book, Declutter.
I’ve studied both methods and, although I’m impressed by Miss Kondo’s perfect white teeth and cardigan, her sparkling smile, her special way of folding pants and her mantra that you have to ‘thank’ items before throwing them out, I’ve come down on the side of the soft declutter.
Like the best diets, where you aim only to lose 1lb a month, but really ‘keep it off’, the Robertson method suggests that 20 minutes a day is enough: a single shelf or drawer. This is the ‘short bursts’ method and it works.
Her advice galvanised me and I’ve spent blissful hours getting rid of things, a shelf a day that won’t be missed by anyone, ever. As with the parable of the loaves and fishes, it’s astonishing how many basketfuls (or bin-liners-ful) emerge.
Then, there’s the embarrassing task of dumping them at the nearest charity shop. Apparently, the decluttering craze means that charity shops are being overwhelmed. I’m impressed by how grateful they seem when you leave your bags under the counter and run. At the very moment you experience that exhilarating lightness, they’re coping with musty old jumpers and the radio that’s lost its cable.
Denne historien er fra March 06, 2019-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra March 06, 2019-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Happiness in small things
Putting life into perspective and forces of nature in farming
Colour vision
In an eye-baffling arrangement of geometric shapes, a sinister-looking clown and a little girl, Test Card F is one of television’s most enduring images, says Rob Crossan
'Without fever there is no creation'
Three of the top 10 operas performed worldwide are by the emotionally volatile Italian composer Giacomo Puccini, who died a century ago. Henrietta Bredin explains how his colourful life influenced his melodramatic plot lines
The colour revolution
Toxic, dull or fast-fading pigments had long made it tricky for artists to paint verdant scenes, but the 19th century ushered in a viridescent explosion of waterlili
Bullace for you
The distinction between plums, damsons and bullaces is sweetly subtle, boiling down to flavour and aesthetics, but don’t eat the stones, warns John Wright
Lights, camera, action!
Three remarkable country houses, two of which have links to the film industry, the other the setting for a top-class croquet tournament, are anything but ordinary
I was on fire for you, where did you go?
In Iceland, a land with no monks or monkeys, our correspondent attempts to master the art of fishing light’ for Salmo salar, by stroking the creases and dimples of the Midfjardara river like the features of a loved one
Bravery bevond belief
A teenager on his gap year who saved a boy and his father from being savaged by a crocodile is one of a host of heroic acts celebrated in a book to mark the 250th anniversary of the Royal Humane Society, says its author Rupert Uloth
Let's get to the bottom of this
Discovering a well on your property can be viewed as a blessing or a curse, but all's well that ends well, says Deborah Nicholls-Lee, as she examines the benefits of a personal water supply
Sing on, sweet bird
An essential component of our emotional relationship with the landscape, the mellifluous song of a thrush shapes the very foundation of human happiness, notes Mark Cocker, as he takes a closer look at this diverse family of birds