Thursday, May 9, 2013

Fashion/Life....Closet Function and Organization!

I don't know about you, but I don't have a "dream closet". 
My closet serves a purpose of function.
I work 5 days out of the week,
each day I have to wear an "outfit".
I also am a procrastinator by nature
and
never plan out my outfits ahead of time.
I go to my closet and have pull something together 
in the 5 min that I have allotted myself.
I have a two person closet ( I only get 1/2 of) and so there is no such thing as "pretty"
it is packed from ceiling to floor.
So every square inch MUST serve its purpose.

After trying many different layouts with my hanging clothes
I think I finally have a system that works for me
and my busy life.

I do a donation clean out every 3 months
 ( I work in retail and am always replacing pieces).
I think we all have those pieces that we just can't bare to part with.
Remember...dress your body now.
If it doesn't fit you now PROPERLY
then just donate it.


Any pieces that you still are unsure about put back into your closet with the hanger backwards.
If you end up wearing that piece then it goes back in the closet with the hanger normal.
Then when you go back for another donation clean out 
and 
you see backwards hangers,
you know you haven't worn that item and its time to donate.
I do keep a few basic pieces (they fit well and look nice) that I never wear
 because you never knowwhen you will need them.
 I have 2 pairs of dress slacks,
3 basic dresses, and 2 dressy formal tops.
If I'm ever in a pinch now
 I don't have to rush out and buy for that last moment event.

I know my Mom is cringing because I am about to use her closet as an example.
The reason why I don't feel bad is because I know she is not alone.
Closets are hard to keep organized and hard to find a working system.



Above is my Mom's closet before I got my hands on it.
There was no "system".
There was nothing convenient about it.
 I know just by looking at it
that she doubled her time putting outfits together.

My Mom is a professional
 and
 needs to look that way 5 days out of the week.
Her professional wear is more "dominate",
 so therefore is the majority of her wardrobe.


Here is the system I created for her...
Bottom left: all of her bottoms (pants and skirts).
Top Left: All of her tops,
 and
Right: Layering pieces (sweaters, blazers, vests) and dresses.

Now its super easy...
pick a bottom, top, and then a layering piece.
 Shoes and Jewelry are organized on the shelving not pictured.

Tops are organized with career tops being most easy to access. It goes in sleeve length instead of color. After career is organized then I started her casual tops, also in sleeve length.

Shoes..... I have a lot of them.
 I have a door organizer and put the pairs
 I wear the least on the top and work my way down to the bottom.
The shoes I wear the most are in the middle for easy grabbing.


Jewelry also needs to be easy to grab:

A  bulletin board works great for me.
All my necklaces are lined up so I can see everything.
Earrings are in a drawer system according to metal color. 

REMEMBER,
 your closet system needs to be functional for your life style.
If you wear casual clothes everyday then modify it for your needs.

Happy organizing and spring cleaning!

3 comments:

Lori said...

My reorganized closet is doing well and I'm keeping it clean!

Sonia said...

Great job! Love the bulletin board idea...my jewelry box is not large enough or as functional as the board!
Great ideas!
Sonia

Shirley said...

What great ideas. My shoes are out of control. Door shoe rack is next on my list..
A fun idea for organizing bracelets is to use a paper towel holder. It cleaned up my jewelry area nicely...