Tidy and Happy Your guide to a clutter-free, happy life

by Antonia Beattie and Rosemary Stevens

Discover how to declutter, triumph over mess and welcome positive energy into your home. This handy guide offers simple techniques to get cupboards in order, wrangle kids’ rooms, remove paper clutter, and more. Explore why we hold on to things we no longer need and find freedom in tidying up.

Genres: Nonfiction

Hardcover

Published January 1, 2021

Reviews

[Ashlyn Young · Rating 2 out of 5]

I guess this has some useful tips and tricks in it but overall this book can be summarized by: feng shui. Not a ton of helpful tips, the bathroom and kitchen are summarized on the second to last page and it’s only 3/4 page of text. Wouldn’t recommend. I’m on goodreads because I’m an avid reader. This book mentioned decluttering books, I won’t be doing that but I will be donating this book to the library, it doesn’t need permanent residence on my shelves.

[Lindsay · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rated low due to false advertising. Cover is very “millenial” style and back cover synopsis says “learn easy-to-follow tips and hacks” to declutter and keep space tidy. What this book actually is is Feng Shui 101. (Neither easy to follow, nor hacks.) Literally the first 50 pages are all about feng shui, how it works, and why it’s the only method you should use (first couple of pages take shots at both the Home Edit and Konmari methods and claim feng shui is superior.) If the true subject interests you, great, but I wouldn’t say this is a good start for a blindsided reader. Hi, I’m an average Westerner who doesn’t have tracer paper sitting around to map out my entire floor plan to then align it on a compass to figure out which directions my doorways face and where things should go. In fact I’m pretty sure my particular floor plan would be a feng shui nightmare as my “front” door is on the side of the house.

Again, perhaps it was my distaste at being bait-and-switched, but the way this book suggests approaching clutter seems backward. The authors insist that you should address directions, “poison arrows”/bad influences (described as unfortunately sharp angles, or telephone poles outside a window) and the flow of energy BEFORE addressing any clutter. These should be counteracted by chimes and/or crystals before addressing the clutter. Look, I self-identify as a crystal-carrying weirdo, I’ve got sunstone in my pocket right now; but I truly don’t think setting a carnelian stone on top of my depression piles is going to solve the problem. (And then what? After eventually addressing the clutter, do I leave the crystal or bell there indefinitely? Just sat on the floor, where my clutter collects, so the poison arrow can’t cause the same problem??)
Lastly, and this feels like something the editors should have addressed, the authors use “uncluttering” throughout the entire book instead of the more colloquial “decluttering” and it just throws off the pace of reading throughout.

Honestly, if you want to learn about feng shui, I wouldn’t start here. There are better resources.

[Brookie Boo · Rating 2 out of 5]

Gave some great tips for declutterring and organizing, like keeping a journal on it and asking the four questions of keeping an item…
-Am I going to use this item?
-What is this item for?
-Is this item a ‘want’ or a ‘need’?
-Will I be seriously inconvenienced if I throw this item away?
HOWEVER! As stated in other reviews this book talks a lot about positive energy and feng shui which I personally don’t believe in, I liked a lot of the tips but really wish they would just make a book about feng shui for those interested in it instead of talking so much about it in an organizing book that I’m reading because of organizing, not feng shui.

[Valleri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Along the lines of the Home Edit and Marie Kondo's questioning of whether items "spark joy," this book also includes elements of Feng Shui and practical advice on how to keep the decluttering momentum going long after the books and TV shows are over. It's a quick read full of tips and tricks to help you organize your life and stay organized!

[casey cays · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the take on this book. It touched on practices the home edit and the kon Marie method doesn’t. I really enjoyed all the information about feng shui. However, I took a star off because there were several times they also spoke about finances, but unrelated to decluttering. It felt very out of place and was distracting. I would have liked it better if they had skipped that part of the book.

[Andrea Grace · Rating 2 out of 5]

Overall it was a straight forward encouragement to declutter, but all the solutions were based on Feng shui philosophies for solutions. I honestly just learned more about Feng shui more so than learn anything new about decluttering.

[Tayler Morrell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short, sweet and simple. Introduces the idea of feng shui and Marie Kondo to organizing. It said is disparaged “tidiness” that came with a price tag like the Home Edition, but then it said to go out and buy things to organize. But it did give some to-do lists and step-by-steps.

[courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

A straight forward, no useless information source for organising your space. Super easy to go back and reference. Will be implementing the practices in this book!

[Alea · Rating 3 out of 5]

All about feng shui and how uncluttering your spaces can help improve other areas of your life! Some helpful tips I will apply around my house!

[Erica · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ugh. What a waste. I didn't need to fend sheng my house, I need tips on de-clutter which this book had none that helped. Waste of my five dollars.

[Lynn · Rating 1 out of 5]

Weird & confusing. Very little was beneficial.

[Beth · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too much talk about Feng shui, candles, incense, ringing bells to get rid of negative energy, etc.