We hear about Spring Cleaning but, a new year always inspires me to go to my closet and clean up. In preparation for Christmas, I keep a lot of the gifts hidden in the closet so, with all that extra stuff stashed in there the order of the closet goes out the window! It gets messy!
I have a very typical walk-in closet that I share with my husband. I get two-thirds of it. I thought about converting our exercise room into a huge closet for me but, I've seen some overwhelming closets and I've decided the best way to control the collection is to limit the space. My closet is full but, it is orderly. I go through it several times a year and purge items that are tired, out of date, or I've not worn for one reason or another. I do switch out clothing seasonally and keep the off season items in our guest room closet. I love beautiful clothes!
Last Spring I started buying shoe cubbies for my shoes at The Container Store. The price adds up if you have very many shoes that need to be housed, and I do. So, I've been buying four at a time, every so often, as a treat to myself. This morning when I started cleaning up my closet, I started by pulling my shoes from each cubby and dusting the inside of the cubbies and the shoes. As I went through my shoes, I looked them over. I saw a sticker that I hadn't removed from the bottom of one of my heels. It sure can look tacky to have a polished outfit and then stickers visible on the bottom of shoes. I removed the sticker.
Next, I went through my tops and re-organized them by color and sleeve length. I pulled any hangers that were not uniform and replaced them with the space saving thin felt covered black hangers.
Below my tops I hang my skirts. I have a shelve for my denim but, I hang three of my cropped denim at the front of the skirt section. It makes them easy to find. I keep them in my closet all year round because they're great in the summer with sandals or sneakers but, they're even better in Fall and Winter with high heel booties.
At the front of my dress section I keep my designer clothing. I hang them together, some in garment bags to protect them.
My favorite section of my closet is the back wall where I have about thirty outfits pre-assembled and hanging together ready to go. I can tell which ones I've already worn this season because I put them to the left side of the rack and I turn the hangers backwards once I've worn that outfit. This section has saved me time. I've found outfits that I've worn several times because I just felt so good in them AND, I've found an outfit or two that when I put it on, I didn't like at all so I put the items back in their individual sections (tops, pants, etc.). By the end of March, I'll be able to tell what items I didn't wear and will have to decide whether they're worth me keeping or if I should donate them.
So, If you are cleaning up your closet. Here are a few suggestions to help you get started.
organize your tops by color and sleeve length. This is helpful to see what you have repeats of and what you are lacking for choices. And, it is pleasing to the eye to see them organized together.
Keep hangers uniform. When the hangers are all the same size and color, you see the clothing options, not the hangers.
Dust shelves and storage containers.
Vacuum the floor for freshness. Keeping items up off the floor gives the closet a lighter feeling.
Pull items that you find yourself avoiding and donate them.
And...If you just don't know where to start or want some expert help, reach out to me and I can help you.
Happy New Year!!
Twin Cities Wardrobe Consultant Kathy Banta