KonMari Method™: How to Navigate the Sentimental Category with Ease!

Coming full circle on our KonMari Journey, the fifth and final category of the method is called Sentimental. Why is this category last? The very personal stuff in your home is the hardest to consider. What do you do with all your sentimental items like mother’s day cards, trophies, yearbooks, artwork, all those boxes of collectables you’ve compiled throughout your life?

Often times, discarding sentimental items feels like letting go of the precious memories they are associated with. However, in actuality, a truly fond memory or feeling will never disappear from your heart even after you’ve discarded items associated with them.

It is important to note that in this category, we are not asking you discard ALL of your sentimental items, but honestly consider each one of them and establish which actually Spark Joy in your life. An easy example would be Mother’s Day cards, or birthday cards. Discarding them does not replace the loving memories you have of these days, in fact the life cycle of any card is complete when it has been read by the recipient.

As you start to gather all your items for the Sentimental Joy Check, here’s a handy list of subcategories to make sure you consider them all: Cards, Letters, Journals, Awards, Artwork, Photos, heirloom jewelry, wedding gifts etc.

In my experience, this is the category where my clients get creative. Instead of discarding completely, let’s think about the ways you can keep the items you love without compromising the tidiness of your home.

One of my clients had many pieces of artwork from both her child’s schools (Art In Action). As an alternative to discarding the artwork she created a new method or storing where she cut a circular piece from each and framed them all together into one piece of artwork per child. Creative and stunning,  right? Now, without feeling guilt for discarding her children’s artwork, they worked together to create something that saves space and sparks joy.

Here are some of my tips for finding a way to incorporate your most beloved sentimental objects into your everyday life so that you can enjoy them and honor them:  

Find a secondary everyday use for specialty items that gives you the opportunity to enjoy and see them all the time!

I encourage my clients to use their fine crystal items for everyday use, i.e. Waterford sandwich tray for a tray in the bathroom to contain the soap, and a small vase for flowers. Another favorite is using an Champagne cooler to display a lovely plant on the table.

See how lovely this table is? Featured are various Waterford wedding gifts; the wine holder becomes a candle holder; the larger champagne cooler becomes a vase; the small one holds candies.

Taking care of the Sentimental items that we choose to keep with confidence is most important.  To prevent your precious items from being damaged, I encourage you to use archival boxes and papers to pack them in a manner where cannot be damaged.

By find alternative uses for our items we cherish, it gives them a new purpose. When our objects fulfill a purpose in our home, we are less likely to discard of them. By adopting this KonMari principle during the sentimental category, you will be able to keep more of the items you cherish without feeling guilty for discarding them.