Spring Cleaning

The disorganization of my closet has been looming over my head for months now.  Every time I enter it to pick out the day's ensemble, I cringe...and putting away the clean laundry has become a quick-stuff-it-in-and-shut-the-door event.  So I decided if Oprah could do it, so could I, coupled with the fact that the donation people were going to be on my block the next day for pick ups...I had no excuse.

 I have a long skinny walk-in closet.  This is the mess I see when I open the door.  The rest of the closet goes to the left.

My sweater stacks were tumbling off  the shelf, and what you can't see is that behind them is a gaping hole in the drywall where my husband fixed the plumbing in the bathroom on the other side of the wall, but never covered the hole.  So every time I took out a sweater, I had to shake out drywall dust from it!

You can see how narrow my closet is and when I get crazy with the shoes, there's no where to walk.

Step 1:  Take it all out - there really is no other way.  I mounded it on my bed and began to sort thru.  I used the rule of thumb - if I haven't worn it in a year (Oprah says 2 years), then out it goes.  And I made an executive decision that I'm not hanging onto anything hoping I'll someday fit back into it...if I lose enough weight to fit back into it, I deserve something new!

I organized my cubbies by item and stacked by color.  The top cubbie is jeans, the next is camis, the next is tanks, the next is t-shirts and the bottom is sleeveless summer tops.  I organized the hanging stuff by color - all wooden hangers because I think they look nice and they don't leave those crazy shoulder nipples on my tops!

The sweater piles are the best!  I covered the hole with a piece of foamcore board.  Someday my husband may actually cover it the way it should be, but I'm not waiting for him today!  I'm on a roll!  So at least I won't have drywall dust on my stuff anymore!  I sorted my sweaters by color.  I noticed I have a lot of purple & green...good to know the next time I go shopping!

Clean floor!  Jackets and skirts hung by color.  The back corner shelves are things I rarely wear; sweatshirts, old clothes for painting or out of season clothing.  That big white box on the left is my wedding dress...why I keep it, I have no idea.  I have 2 grown boys so no one is gonna ever wear it again.  The little suitcase next to it is my Barbies...never getting rid of those!  No way!  I may have a granddaughter some day, afterall!

The piles of stuff to donate!  Success!

And look what I found on the floor underneath my hanging stuff with shoes piled on it!  The ruby and diamond necklace my husband gave me one Valentine's Day.  I must have dropped it sometime - so who knows what you'll find on YOUR closet floor!

I can't tell you enough how energizing it feels to get that closet organized and how happy it makes me every time I open the door!.  It's like a new beginning...

I think I'll go shopping now!

Here's hoping you have a productive and blessed day!
~Mary