Using the KonMari Method Before Your Move
The Five KonMari Categories on a Moving Timeline
The KonMari method sorts by category, not room: clothing, books, papers, komono (miscellaneous), and sentimental items. For a move, start six weeks out with clothing — gather every piece from every closet and dresser, hold each one, and ask if it sparks joy. If not, it goes to the donate or sell pile.
Weeks four and five: tackle books and papers. Montreal movers will tell you that books are the heaviest boxes per cubic foot. Letting go of books you'll never reread can literally lighten your moving load. For papers, digitize what matters (tax records, leases), shred the rest, and recycle at your curbside blue bin.
Tackling Komono and Sentimental Items
Komono is the catch-all category — kitchen gadgets, bathroom products, tools, hobby supplies, electronics, and everything in that hall closet you haven't opened in two years. Sub-sort by type: kitchen komono one day, bathroom the next. This is where most people discover they own four can openers and six half-used bottles of shampoo.
Save sentimental items for last. By the time you reach this category, you've built the decision-making muscle. Keep a small box of truly meaningful items — photos, letters, heirlooms — and let go of things you're keeping out of guilt rather than genuine attachment. One memory box is worth more than a storage unit full of "maybe someday" items.
Where to Send Your KonMari Rejects in Montreal
Clothing in good condition goes to Renaissance locations across Montreal, Le Chaînon in the Plateau for women's items, or the Salvation Army on Notre-Dame. Books can be donated to Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec (BAnQ) book sales, or to the Mile End community library on rue Saint-Viateur.
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For komono items still in working order — kitchen appliances, electronics, tools — list them on Facebook Marketplace or the Buy Nothing Montréal groups organized by neighborhood. What doesn't sell or get claimed within a week can go to the nearest éco-centre for responsible recycling. The goal is an empty apartment and a fresh start at your new address.
