About Tidymalism

Hello, I’m Jenna 🐝

A recovering maximalist on a downsizing journey

I launched Tidymalism in February 2021 as a way to document a 30-day declutter project. Coming out of a leadership position at the time, I was feeling mentally drained and physical clutter was weighing me down.

I knew I wanted to make a change, and Konmari’ing my home seemed like a good start.

Tidymalism’s Evolution

Originally just short snippets, my decluttering blog soon grew into more. A place to share ideas and best practices around household management. A place to explore a space in between minimalism and maximalism – with less dogmatism and more focus on living intentionally, mindfully, simply.

And, of course, a place to discuss some clear-cut organising and decluttering tips to live more lightly. With less stuff to clean and take care of, and more free time.

As I continued writing and readership picked up, I began questioning not only my own spending habits of the past and why I had accumulated a closet full of garments and accessories I never wear, but also a larger issue now looming in a future no longer so very distant:

The Turning Point

You see, somewhere in between leaving corporate America and sorting out my closet in Europe, I had, to my own shock, become middle-aged.

When I crossed that magic line of age 50 and then had a ridiculous accident, well, the prospect of my own death one day became tangible for the first time in my life.

It was a eureka moment: I suddenly understood what the whole “midlife crisis” thing was about. You really do wake up one day and realise that your clock is literally ticking. That the dreadfully worn-out cliché of life being short is… so true.

And then you start questioning everything.

Life and Work Today

I’m still asking questions. This is the mid-life marker. On the one hand, I’d compare it to a second puberty. To that tumultuous time when you lost your bearings, nothing much was making sense, and you were trying to figure out which path to take – all whilst your hormones were raging.

But on the other hand, it’s an exciting phase of life. Because with mid-age comes a greater sense of laissez-faire and self-confidence. Every new day is a new chance. A wonder even.

It takes a heck of a lot more to upset me now than even just a few years ago.

So here I still am.

I live in a modest penthouse I bought myself years ago, and have a personal preference for modern-minimal interior design.

After having had many very differently coloured flats and furnishing styles throughout the past thirty-odd years of living alone, I find white walls and a curated selection of knick-knacks in my current home to be comforting.

Despite being frequently surrounded by Gen-Zs, working on Tidymalism has shifted a good deal of my curiosity to the living situations of those older than I. It’s become clear that I want to strategically downsize in preparation for retirement and old age.

When I’m not busy organising and decluttering, I’m a freelance principal consultant in the field of language operations, focused on localisation and internationalisation for startups and small and medium-sized businesses.

A pioneer of remote work since 1997, I built and led the first remote-only department and largest internal organisation for my previous employer, one of the world’s most popular social networks.

I regularly have free capacities open up for new clients, new projects, and new connections. If you would like to explore something with me, please reach out via my Contact Page or DM me on Twitter or on LinkedIn. I’d love to hear from you.

About Tidymalism‘s Perspective

Because I live alone, I am partial to the solo-household perspective, which is rather under-represented in the realm of home organisation blogs.

That said, I always have other living situations in my mind’s eye when writing.

Whether you are single, married, have kids, live with flatmates or with your partner; rent, own, or still live at home: you’ll find a lot of useful takeaways in my articles.

You might like to check out my popular posts on how to start a low-buy year, why Swedish death cleaning is so beneficial, or how to declutter art supplies that have piled up over the years.

As seen on…

Subscribe to the Newsletter

At the end of every month, I send out a digest which contains a shortlist of Tidymalism’s latest updates, plus some serendipitous bonus content. It’s a fun read! I also include one featured product and a curated selection of things I’ve read, watched or listened to that I think you’ll like, too.

I keep the Tidymalism newsletter compact and enjoyable so that you can look forward to finding it in your inbox each month. Subscribe to the Minimal Monthly right here. I never send spam and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Thanks for stopping by my corner of the interwebs. And for joining me on this journey to more simplicity at home and in life!

Jenna 🐝