This is what happened when we tried Marie Kondo's new gadget

Marie Kondo x Stolp

Sleep experts say you should stop fiddling with your smartphone three hours before bed.

However, I’ll sometimes still be looking at daft dog videos on TikTok until I turn off the light.

This sort of compulsive behaviour is one of the reasons why decluttering expert Marie Kondo has collaborated with digital wellness solutions company Stolp. The result is a case that’s basically a Faraday cage for your phone.

It resembles a classy-looking butter dish, is available in cream and brown, and is designed to “inspire unplugging rituals”. Stick your blower inside, and you can be free of notifications, vibrations and pinging for as long as you want. (True, you could just switch your phone off, but that wouldn’t be a ritual to set you back £72).

If you plug it in, this device also doubles as a charging port, and it can fit up to six phones, so you can force the whole family offline should you choose.

Day One: At 8pm, I put my phone in the case. Then take it out again. I better let everyone know that I won’t be responding. I text them. Put it back in the Stolp case. Wait. I better check that they haven’t replied. And so it goes, until I shut it permanently at about 9pm.

Day Two: 8pm and the phone goes in its cage. God, nights are long and boring without it. I need a good book. I buy a copy of The Bee Sting by Paul Murray. I motor through. I’ve been neglecting my reading.

Day Three: I’ve had a relapse. The phone goes into its designer coffin at 10pm.

Day Four: Back to the book. I wonder why it’s bad for you to look at your phone before bed, but reading is okay? The way the world works is strange. Anyway, sleep comes quicker when my brain isn’t being over-stimulated by silly dances and dogs in costumes.

Day Five: Nobody has been texting me past 8pm. I think they’ve got the message. I’ve told them to ring the landline if there’s an emergency, but then I wonder if we still have a landline? I get up to phone it and check. Yep, we do.

Day Six: I’m getting into the swing of things, but 8pm seems a bit early to put my phone away, so I’m going for 9pm. Also, I’ve already finished The Bee Sting and the next book on my pile isn’t grabbing me. I guess I’ll stare at the wall until lights-out. I get up and watch the telly for a bit instead.

Day Seven: I wake up early, and pull my phone out of the case, so I can excitedly check my notifications and binge on early morning social media. It takes a while to break a bad habit, and I think mine is going to stick around for longer than a week. Marie Kondo says you should only keep things that bring you joy, and I’m not sure the Stolp case does that quite yet. I will persevere, just let me have one more dog video.

www.stolp.com