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‘Consumerism’: Viral TikTok about home organization sparks debate

TikTok is full of these viral ‘re-containering’ videos where people organize their home using plastic containers.

Photo of Gavia Baker-Whitelaw

Gavia Baker-Whitelaw

hand placing bags into box labeled 'gallon' (l) man on couch (c) pouring chili flakes into container (r)

Has tidyness culture gone too far?

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In the middle of the Venn diagram between lifehack content and lifestyle advisors like Marie Kondo and The Home Edit, there’s a corner of TikTok dedicated to organizing your home. Containers are obviously a big part of this, and it can be super satisfying to watch people stock their neatly-arranged houses with dozens of plastic boxes.

But last week, a challenger arrived. Racking up 9.3 million views in one week, TikToker @ohthatskreed went viral with a simple question: Are all those boxes actually necessary?

Duetting a popular TikTok of someone organizing household items like cereal and sandwich bags, he pointed out that all this stuff already has its own box. “My question is, when does this become an obsession?” he wondered. “They come with packaging that does the purpose that this is doing!”

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https://www.tiktok.com/@ohthatskreed/video/7072470984854375723

Naturally, this provoked some divided opinions. “The re-containering trend for things that are not visible all day stresses me out so much,” one commenter wrote. “Consumerism.”

Others chimed in to agree, saying the plastic container trend was for people who were rich and/or had too much time on their hands.

However, the original organization TikTok from @kandicebreinholt had plenty of defenders. Some argued that it’s more practical to keep dry goods like cereals in an airtight container, while others pointed out that uniform plastic boxes are just nicer to look at.

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“People are allowed to have an aesthetic,” one commenter wrote. “it’s not a crime.”

“This commentary is giving me No Bedframe,” another joked, referencing the memes about single guys living in unfurnished apartments with just a mattress on the floor.

Like the minor controversy over Marie Kondo’s Netflix show in 2019, some people are clearly sick of seeing these elaborate home organization videos pop up on TikTok. But in the end, no one’s actually forcing you to follow this advice. You can be as messy as you want!

The Daily Dot has reached out to @ohthatskreed via TikTok comment.

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The Daily Dot