On the 11th day of Christmas....

4/1/2015

I took down the tree.

There is always confusion about when the twelfth day of Christmas is exactly, but someone pointed out it is when you have received your twelve drummers drumming (this one's for you Swiss Rose) from your true love - and you could hardly miss the racket - so that makes it the 5th. ie tomorrow.

But tomorrow I have a gallery owner coming to look at paintings, so I'm doing it today.

The house always looks very bare after taking the decorations down, and I always notice that it needs decorating. I say this every year, but don't decorate it. I disguise it with flowers instead! Wonderful tulips, daffodills, hyacinths move me forward....

How do you feel when the decorations get taken down and talk is of cold and cough cures, summer holidays, slimming diets, getting fit and broken resolutions?

It's a funny time of year.

How about I do a Marie Kondo post each week? Say Fridays?

24 Comments

julia

4/1/2015 08:52:30 am

i know what you mean freda....i have taken down the kitchen decorations, and the kitchen does look bare...so i did a "freda"...fixed it with flowers....maybe that is the true answer!...fix it all with flowers and candles...:-)
and yes! do give us a weekly "marie kondo" update...it will be so interesting to hear from you and everyone else...and also you will keep us on task too...

Freda

5/1/2015 01:52:30 am

You can get away with a lot if you have flowers and candles I find!

Cathy

4/1/2015 09:17:53 am

I'll miss the lights most of all. I put off taking down the tree for that very reason. (It's down, but I miss the lights)

Freda

5/1/2015 01:53:38 am

I've just been in a friends house where she has battery powered lights in a big glass vase - lovely yet not Christmassy....

Alison

4/1/2015 11:05:24 am

That's a great idea to do a post every couple of weeks inspired by Marie Kondo's approach to creating order at home. I would love to hear how you have adopted it and what everyone else has to say as well.

It is indeed sad to see the decorations come down. I have a star-shaped wreath on my front door and it cheers me when I come home to see the colour there. Alas, I'm going to bring it down tomorrow. Will have to think of another way to jazz things up!

Freda

5/1/2015 01:54:28 am

Thinking up other ways is the thing, isn't it!

elaine link

4/1/2015 04:14:21 pm

I miss my twinkly twigs! Now everything has been wrapped carefully and deposited below stairs till next year. Spring, summer and autumn getaways have been booked. Losing a few pounds is definitely on the agenda and more de-cluttering. A resolution to read all the books I have already before buying any more. Whilst on our recent break I visited a Book Fair and bought six Virago classics for £5. We'll see how long it is before I break that one.

Freda

5/1/2015 01:55:40 am

Lots to look forward to in 2015 by the sound of it Elaine.

Grace

4/1/2015 04:38:12 pm

The only decorations I miss are the lights on the kitchen dresser. I sometimes think I should leave them but then they'd be part of the everyday and I guess that would take away the joy.
Yes to a Marie Kondo post.

Freda

5/1/2015 01:57:10 am

Can you have lights which are not too Christmassy? Or candles? We need our lights in winter, don't we.

Swissrose link

4/1/2015 04:45:04 pm

Oooh, too cool - how did you know we love "tattoos" (there are now several events throughout Switzerland each year, they are so popular!)?! This is a troupe from the City of Basle - see the flags they're swinging - and they are brilliant!! I was going to muse whether the Swiss like the drums because of their natural reticence but then the "free drumming" started lol ;) Did you know that the Basle carnival is famed for its pipes and drums? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzHswwPGgP8
We took our tree down yesterday; it gave us so much pleasure this year. But I left a starlit felt rug and star and added a couple of polar bears to my vase of tulips, so now I feel we've arrived in January, even though our snow has now gone… a clean start :)

Freda

5/1/2015 01:59:06 am

I was so pleased to quickly find 12 drummers drumming!

Swissrose link

4/1/2015 04:46:22 pm

Oh, and yes please to Marie Kondo posts - any other commenters taking a leaf out of that book??

Freda

5/1/2015 01:59:40 am

It looks as if a few of us are....

Penny L

4/1/2015 06:09:17 pm

Today is the day for taking it all down.i quite like the feeling of space that's left, because my house is rather full, hence the reading of Marie Kondo. So far I've done the clothes in my wardrobe, but I re-read the beginning of the book again last night and realised I haven't tackled the coat cupboard or all my out of season clothing, or the bag of tights............so back to the first category. I think I'm a bit scared of having to tackle the books which is the next category. Still,love the idea of deciding what I want to keep rather than what I want to get rid of- a good subtle change of emphasis. So yes please to the weekly posts! Penny L

Freda

5/1/2015 02:01:13 am

Sounds as if you are off to a great start Penny. Some of the ideas in the book are quite subtle and that's why I'd like to explore it further..

Gail

4/1/2015 10:48:20 pm

I love glitter, which except for Christmas time , would look tacky in decor. So Dec1st I switch on my "lush, bright, sparkly" eyes.In Jan., when I take it all down, I put on my "clean, spare" eyes. By playing this simple mind game with my very simple head, I am equally pleased with all decor.

Freda

5/1/2015 02:02:17 am

I think they call this 'reframing' - what a great strategy Gail!

cath

5/1/2015 12:53:58 am

A weekly Marie Kondo post would be really interesting, to complement that I've ordered my own copy of the book this morning!

Freda

5/1/2015 02:02:57 am

I think you will like it Cath.

Sarah link

6/1/2015 05:23:03 am

We always take the decorations down on New Years Eve.I always enjoy everything looking more empty again, and will always have bulbs or branches to remind me of spring. Sarah x

Freda

6/1/2015 07:12:39 am

I have daffodils just now which smell like spring! Joy!

Karen T.

6/1/2015 02:29:35 pm

I don't put up many Christmas decorations (a beautiful tree, lots of candles, an evergreen wreath on the door, the crèche), so taking them down doesn't leave a huge blank. I'll leave all the candles out at least till the end of January, though.

I've cleaned out my kitchen cupboards and refrigerator as we are removing gluten and most processed foods from out diet, so I guess that qualifies as a "fresh start."

I've been using Marie Kondo's book since the fall, and am finally ready to tackle the sentimental items (final category). So some walks down memory lane and a bit of paring to the truly "joy giving" items.

Freda

7/1/2015 02:36:14 am

Well done with the Marie Kondo book! How does it FEEL? Maybe you will join in on Friday's post?

On the 11th day of Christmas....

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