Re-wearables

I was asked a couple times now what to do with re-wearables.  If you have worn it only for a few hours, and want to wear it again, how does it get stored?  It doesn't seem quite right to hang it back with the clean clothes, but if we don't hang it, it won't be wearable, just wrinkled.  I didn't have pictures, so I found a couple websites that have different tools you could use.  The laundry valet is something you could install in your walk in closet.  (The ones that Organized Spaces has are great in the laundry room because you can hang your clothes while they dry, and it folds flat so it isn't in the way when not in use.) http://www.kaboodle.com/  Type laundry valet in the search.  This next link is a full blown commercial with sound.  If you use a gadet like this, you could hang it in the front of your closet, or back of your door, and the clothes will store in minimal space.  It is designed to hold just a few hangers, and would be nice to separate a few things out.  It would also be good for someone with work uniforms, or to hang the drycleaning until it gets dropped off.  http://getthewonderhanger.com/ 

Re-think the coat closet

Sometimes coat closets are just filled with seldom used items, and coats from other seasons.  It seems like a lot of families use the garage to enter the house, or a side door.  To get the make the most of your house, why not think of  a space you would really love to have, and convert your coat closet?  When you have guests, you can put their coats on the bed. A garage system like this one, (ok, this one is ultra-fabulous, just use this as an idea for coat storage in the garage) would be more convenient for those who enter via the garage.  Under the bed is another place you could store out of season coats if you store them carefully.  On to multiple really cool ways to use your coat closet.  Not long ago, I went to a home where the coat closet was just around the corner from the kitchen.  Wow!  she had converted that coat closet into a really nice pantry full of pull out shelves.  It was filled with food on one side, and small appliances like crock pots and blenders on the other side, along with specialty cooking equipment.  It was a great use of space, since her interest is cooking.  A scrap booking center/wrapping center is another great idea.  How many of us wish for something like that, but have no room?   I will have to draw up a sketch and post it for this one.  You could store rolls all across the back wall.  Have a shelf that doubles as a work center, or even deeper desk top.  Slat walls like the ones in this picture, only to hold containers is another option.  Another idea is for the armchair wine collector.  Since the coat closet is at the front door, you could make it a focal point.  Paint the inside a Merlot color, and even install a glass door, so  you can see inside.  Maybe I can draw that one, too.  A home office is another use for a coat closet.  It could have a place to sit, or just serve as a stand up desk with files below.   Why not plan your house just for you and your interests? 

"To organize your closet, is to see what you have"

I know a very organized woman.  She has her home organized with all the things some of us dream of, like a craft and sewing room that is also a laundry room with an easy to access fold down ironing board, and special drawers just for her grand kids,  just to name a few features. I could fill pages with all the great ways she has her home organized.  When I asked her for her for her best tip in organizing her closet, she said clear containers so I can see what I have. That is the key to organizing.  In my previous post 

 I talked about sorting your clothes by color, and by type.  That is one way to be able to see what you have.  Taking out all the clothes that no longer serve you, leaving enough room to see what you have on the hangers is another way to see what you have.  The baskets pictured here are a good way to see what you have.  I think shallower baskets with clothes folded and stored on end left to right would be a good way to store t-shirts and sweats.  You would be able to see what you have through the front, and when you open the basket, you can access it from the top without removing other items to get to them.  Another tip to see what you have is for your shoes.  It seems like you are a shoe person, or you're not.  I'm a shoe person.  My favorite system was when I paid my daughter a little fee, and she took pictures of all my shoes and printed them out in color (on plain paper, color saver mode) and taped them to all my shoe boxes.  I loved that because I could keep them in their boxes, and be able to see the shoes at the same time.  I read another tip that I tried with my boots because I had too many for the shelf.  Take the shoes out of the box, store them on the shelf with one of each pair facing the wall.  You gain room on the shelf, and you can see the front of the shoe and the height of the heel at the same time.  That is a great tip for someone who feels they don't have time to put shoes back in the boxes after each wearing.  It is much faster to put them on the shelf.  I put the lids under the box for my frequently worn shoes so I can easily put them away.  The scarf and belt holder I showed in a previous post is another example of  "see what you have".  We get much more use out of things when we can find them, and remember we have them.

4 essential items for your closet.

1. Lint Roller-Always have one handy for removing pet hair or dryer fuzz.
2. Folding Stool-Easy to store in the corner, handy for reaching the top shelf.
3. Battery Powered Light-If you don't have a light, these are inexpensive and easy to install.

4. Shoe Care Kit-Stop by the shoe care isle at your favorite discount store.  Polish, scuff cover, gel inserts (love), heel taps, shoe laces, and more. 

"If you haven't worn it in a year...blah blah blah"

We probably have all heard that when you are cleaning out your closet "If you haven't worn it in a year, then get rid of it" or some variation on that advice.  Even the neatest, most organized house keeper will still have an over full closet with many items that haven't been worn for at least a year. I think we need some variation on that advice. We don't follow it anyhow!  After you have the first 5 steps done (see my first post), and the clothes are organized, take another day to go through the clothes that you haven't worn in a year.  Try things on and make sure they fit and look good on you.  If they pass that test, then try to make some outfits using these items that you don't wear.  I came up with a bunch of cute outfits by doing this with my seldom worn clothes.  I keep getting compliments at work on my cute "new" outfits.  One reason we don't wear things, but can't give them up, is because they are nice, and we like them.  We get in a pattern of grabbing what is easy, instead of taking time to mix and match.  It takes a few hours of quiet time with you and your clothes to sort through them and find ways to wear them.  I found some things in my closet that didn't go with anything else, or I needed a belt for it, or a button on it.  I made a shopping list for the things I needed.  I needed a belt, a black skirt, a white blouse, textured hose, and new boots.  (Well, maybe not the boots) 

Sometimes we have all these great individual items of clothing, but we can't think of how to put them together.  Then it's back to what is easy, and our great clothes sit there in the closet for another year.  

I have a trick I use to put my outfits together.  I cut out pictures of  outfits I like that contain things that look like what I have in my closet.  I use the Nordstrom catalogs that come in the mail.  You would be surprised how many things you already have that they might show, even if they are showing it as a new item. How did they layer it, what kind of belt, wide or skinny, flat shoes, boots, jewelry, how is it put together?  I save up the catalogs, and then cut out the pictures when I'm watching HGTV.    I put mine on a poster, or  it could be in a spiral notebook.

Kid's Closet

This kids closet has some really good ideas.  The hanging area can be changed to a double hanging area as the child grows.  Using plenty of shelves enables items to be easily seen.  Clothes hidden at the bottom of a drawer can be out grown before they get much wear when they are out of sight, and out of mind.  Keeping the shelves close together is also a good idea.  It is much easier to access clothes when the stacks are shorter.  The drawers hold small items like socks.  The thing I would change about this closet, is that I would remove the doors and store them.  It is really a pretty closet, and having the doors out of the way would make it more convenient.  I would use the hamper instead of storing toys in it.  Shelves can hold special toys until the child gets older and has more wardrobe to store.

Scarves

This scarf rack takes very little space. The same idea can be used for belts. I like the way this one slides out, so you can see all of your scarves or belts at one time. If you have too many, you could install multiple racks. The important thing about this type of system is to have enough room to pull the rack in and out. No squishing all the clothes together on the closet rod.

Getting it all together for real people

I think we all have ideas about how we would like to have things organized, but we are all limited by time and storage space. We get things organized, and then life happens and we fall out of our routine, and things get messy in the closet and cabinets again. With our busy lives, it might be easier to get organized if we break the steps down in to what we can manage within our schedule.

This post is my step by step beginner organizing list for your clothes closet. You can do all the steps in one day, one step a day, or one step a week.
1. Do a quick once over, and remove any items that don't belong in your closet, or that you have been meaning to give away. Put the give aways right into a bag, and put it in your car if you can, so it can be dropped off.
2. Arrange all of your clothes by color.
3. Arrange all of the separates withing each color, by type, starting with the lighter clothes like tank tops. All the black tank tops, black short sleeves, black long sleeves, black sweaters, and so on. You will really be able to see what you have, and what you need.
4. Put the dresses together by color.
5. REVIEW WHAT YOU HAVE. If there are things you don't look good in, take them out to give away. If there are things that aren't comfortable, or out of style, take them out to give away. REDUCE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE! This step is really important. It will make room in your closet so you can find the things that do look good on you! If you only own things you look good in, you will always look good! Get rid of your worst house work and cleaning clothes and replace it with something that is comfortable but not nice enough for your regular wardrobe. You'll look a little nicer! There is a fun book called "Closet Control" The author talks about "demoting" your clothes.