Marie Kondo's Home Truths - the tidying guru reveals her home secrets
Marie Kondo gets up close and personal about her home revealing what is on her bedside table and her home addiction
Expert organiser, Marie Kondo, lives in California with her husband Takumi Kawahara, and their three children.
What’s your favourite time of the day at home?
After I drop off the kids at school, I focus my energy to get all my housework done. This is my favorite time to tidy because it kick-starts my workday and gets me going. I wash the dishes from breakfast and tidy up the kitchen a bit, then do laundry. Then I change out the water for all the single-stem flower vases – I love looking at beautiful flowers – they spark so much joy!
Where’s your happy place at home?
The breakfast nook by the kitchen. I get lots of great natural light from the window and it has a great view into our yard. My family often gravitate towards the kitchen, so it’s a great spot in the house to be in.
What's on your bedside table?
To help me relax before going to bed, I have crystals, flowers on my bedside table, as well as a small notebook and pen. Crystals and flowers help me recharge my energy after a long day. I also love seeing them first thing in the morning. I recommend having a small but carefully selected, joy-sparking items in a power spot in your bedroom so you can wake up feeling refreshed every morning.
What's your home addiction?
I have lots of things I love and cherish, but I would have to say scented candles. I like having things with a pleasant scent to cheer me up, get me going or help me relax. My husband is a scent connoisseur and he likes to change up his aroma diffuser throughout the day, depending on if he needs to focus or just enjoy a good book.
Read Marie Kondo's bestselling guides to organising your home life...
What chore do love doing?
My favourite chore, as you might guess, would be folding clothes! My mother taught me that chores are something fun and bring joy and happiness to our family. I love doing all types of chores, but I don’t like it when I don’t have enough time to do them. Right now, with my baby son, it’s been quite tough to get to all of them when I want to, so I turn some chores into a game. My girls and I fold clothes together, it’s like doing origami for them.
What do you do if you have time at home on your own?
Thinking about creative storage solutions! I am a box collector and every time I see a cute box or a sturdy box, big and small, I use my imagination to think of all the items I could store in the box. What’s great about boxes are that the lids turn into trays, so you get double the storage space and they are great to use as a drawer divider.
What do you miss most about your home when you’re away?
My donabe (clay pot) that I use every day to cook rice. The first thing I do to prepare breakfast is to cook rice in this special Japanese clay pot, which stirs up a sense of longing and nostalgia for me. I really miss this ritual when I’m away from home.
Quick fire with Marie Kondo
1. Shoes - On or off? Off
2. Eat - table or on laps? Table
3. Lighting - bright or moody? Moodily lit
4. Quick shower or long bath? Long bath
5. Room decor - Colourful or neutral? Neutral
Get the Ideal Home Newsletter
Sign up to our newsletter for style and decor inspiration, house makeovers, project advice and more.
Rebecca Knight has been the Deputy Editor on the Ideal Home Website since 2022. She graduated with a Masters degree in magazine journalism from City, University of London in 2018, before starting her journalism career as a staff writer on women's weekly magazines. She fell into the world of homes and interiors after joining the Ideal Home website team in 2019 as a Digital Writer. In 2020 she moved into position of Homes News Editor working across Homes & Gardens, LivingEtc, Real Homes, Gardeningetc and Ideal Home covering everything from the latest viral cleaning hack to the next big interior trend.
-
6 dirty things professional cleaners notice first in a kitchen — and how you can tackle them in a hurry
Use these tips for a pristine kitchen
By Emma Rinaldi
-
I tried the 5 most common ways to get pet hair out of carpet – here's which ones worked and which ones aren't worth it
I put different tools to the test against my fluffy cocker spaniel
By Lauren Bradbury
-
I've set up a temporary kitchen during our renovation — with these 3 key appliances
Who needs an oven anyway?
By Jenny McFarlane
-
Melissa Hemsley shares her home truths about her Sunday Cook Off and must-have kitchen products
Chef and cookery writer Melissa Hemsley gets up close and personal with her home truths
By Ginevra Benedetti
-
Sara Cox shares her home truths about her GSD weekends to the pet peeve she can't stand
Sara Cox gets up close and personal with her home
By Andrea Childs
-
Shirley Ballas Home Truths - her favourite Matalan pjs and where she's spending Christmas day
The Strictly Come Dancing judge reveals her festive Home Truths, from her decorating style to what she hopes to find in her stocking this year
By Gemma Calvert
-
Home Truths with Emeli Sandé - and why she's always on Christmas Day dishwashing duty
Singer songwriter Emeli Sandé reveals how she spends Christmas each year and why tradition is so important to her
By Ginevra Benedetti
-
Pinterest UK's Head of Home reveals what the most popular Christmas trends this year will be
Pinterest UK’s Head of Home Matt Siberry shares the top three festive trends that people are ‘pinning’ the most
By Matt Siberry
-
Home Truths with Emma Bunton - the Spice Girl reveals her love for cleaning
We speak to self-confessed clean freak Emma Bunton and find out what part of her home she loves to clean every day!
By Ginevra Benedetti
-
Home Truths with Joan Collins - find out why she never misses home...
Dame Joan Collins tells us all about her home life and why she loves instant coffee and eighties music...
By Ginevra Benedetti
-
Home Truths with Helen Skelton (and what bad habit she can't quit)
The presenter and Strictly alumni Helen Skelton loves nothing more than a relaxing long soak in the bath
By Rebecca Knight