Netflix’s Tidying Up with Marie Kondo wasn’t what I was expecting.
Prior to the Clean Queen’s streaming debut, I had absolutely no idea who she was or why she was famous. As such, I pressed play assuming that Tidying Up would be another run-of-the-mill home-makeover series.
I was wrong.
Turns out Kondo’s idea of a quick fixer-upper has as much to do with decluttering one’s lifestyle as it does with sprucing up a home’s appearance. “Sparking joy” isn’t just a step-by-step process of tidying up—it’s a philosophy, and one that we believe can be applied to our cars, too.
With that in mind, below are 10 things you can do to spark joy inside your vehicle:
1) Get rid of old receipts.
Don’t make a habit out of stuffing receipts in random holders and compartments. If you don’t need a receipt, throw it away as soon as you exit your vehicle. A growing pile of useless paper is an ugly sight.
2) Contain loose change.
Designate just one compartment for coins you might have after paying for parking or toll. If your car doesn’t have one, use a small cup or box and place it in the center console. You’d be surprised at how easily loose change can end up underneath your car seat.
3) Remove unnecessary car accessories.
Have a smartphone mount you barely use? Get rid of it. The same goes for any chargers, cables, or other accessories that just end up wasting precious cabin real estate.
4) Remove old car stickers.
It might be a hassle, but that growing patch of
5) Get a thorough detailing job.
Make sure to detail your interior, engine bay, and paint. Your car deserves to be pampered every once and a while. Also, keep a microfiber towel handy inside your vehicle for any small specks or imperfections you want to get rid of in a jiffy. Nothing sparks joy like a clean ride.
6) Organize your glove box.
The glove compartment is usually where you keep your car’s most important paperwork—registration, manuals, etc. It would be wise to keep these documents in a solid folder or binder to avoid losing them.
7) Put your tools inside a toolbox.
Toolboxes are an effective and inexpensive means of making sure you know where a tool is when you need it. Few things are more embarrassing than flagging down a motorist for aid—only to realize you don’t have a pair of jumper cables on you.
8) Clear your dash of clutter.
That dancing plant is amusing, we know, but you can probably do without it. The same goes for the waving gold cat and the stuffed toys blocking your view of the rear window.
9) Use your compartments.
Bottles go in the bottle holders, coins in the coin holder, and gadgets in the center console. That’s not too hard to remember, is it?
10) Keep your garage clean, too.
Ah, the garage, the last stop for junk before it’s taken out to the dumpster—or the last stop, in general. If you can keep your car organized, you can keep its surroundings in order, too. You’d be surprised at how much space you can free up inside your garage by reorganizing its contents or simply decluttering it.
