A novel take on de-cluttering
Always on the hunt for new ideas, lifestyle trends and ways to live our lives well, we came across an intriguing book by a Scandi author. In the style of Maria Kondo’s bestseller ‘The Life Changing Magic of Tidying‘, Swedish-born Margareta Magnusson is the 80-something whose book was launched in the UK earlier this year. Entitled ‘The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning‘ it hardly sounds like light reading, but on closer inspection it’s more of a life re-affirming book than a death-focused one (honest!). What’s more it offers an intriguing perspective on how to live life better with less clutter.
Her basic premise for the book revolves around the Swedish process ‘dostadning’, which translates as death cleaning (bear with us!). This involves looking at your possessions and pondering what will happen to them after you die. Magnusson insists this is a process that can be done at any life stage, and can assist a re-evaluation of clutter.
Futon Company says: Though the subject matter won’t appeal to everyone, this is a novel and intriguing approach to prioritising the objects that are important to you in life. For us, the life-enhancing ‘clutter’ in our homes is not clutter at all, but furniture and accessories that enhance our quality of life, freeing up space and providing comfort.