Minimalism: Preparing to Sort

First thing I did was do all my loads of laundry and make sure all clothing was in my bedroom (aside from my jackets in the entry closet).  I put on a collared button down knit dress and even accessorized with jewelry as KonMari mentions “dressing up” for the occasion of sending off your items.  She discourages the use of sweats or similar clothing that you would normally wear to clean house. I then mixed myself some aromatherapy to enhance the process called “Clear The Clutter” which I got from a friend’s aromatherapy book:

I modified the above since I did not have Lime (omitted), Cinnamon or Douglas Fir.

12 drops of Lemongrass, which is the most powerful cleansing oil.  It completely wipes out low vibrations of “holding on to things.”  Lemongrass shows you that your self-worth is not connected to the items you own , and empowers you to let go.
3 drops of Lemon, which provides the necessary focus to stay the course and commit to eliminating excess.
1 drop Cassia (a close relation to Cinnamon which gives you confidence, reminding you can do it, one item at a time) is a warming uplifting oil.
1 drop Arborvitae, which reminds you to trust the journey, as it may be an emotional process of letting go.  It provides feelings of strength and security through the change.
3 Siberian Fir (substituted since I didn’t have Douglas Fir), calming the emotions, soothing anxious feels and providing a grounding effect.  Since deciding and getting rid of items can be stressful, I used Siberian Fir to help reduce that stress.

I applied the oil as directed.  Be sure to dilute the oil as Cassia/Cinnamon is considered a hot oil and can ‘burn’ the skin when applied topically.  I put a couple drops of Doterra’s Purify essential oil in the diffuser, because I figured I am, in a sense, trying to purify my closet and drawers.

I then said a prayer asking for the wisdom to recognize the items that truly bring me joy and those that do not that I need to let go.   I prayed that this would be the first step of many to eliminate the things in my life, both physical as well as mental/emotional and spiritual, which have been holding me back and making me feel negative so that I may make room for all the good that is meant to come into my life.  I ended the prayer hopeful I would have the endurance to finish what I started – to keep going until I truly minimized my belongings.

Lastly, I made my bed where I planned to pile the first category of tops (minus jackets) on.  I know KonMari states to dump ALL your clothes on the floor, but 1) I don’t have the floor space, which is why I need to use my bed and 2) there is no way all of my clothes would fit on my bed either so I have to do subcategory by subcategory.

One final note, it is recommended NOT to have any other distractions as you proceed with the process, meaning no tv or music on in the background. This is probably the toughest thing for me as every time I’ve attempted to do get rid of things (prior to reading KonMari), I always had background noise.  I know having the tv on is bad distraction cuz I will stop to watch, but music has always felt like an enabler to productivity for me.

Officially ready to start the sorting process!