Have you ever bought a piece of clothing that you already have because you forgot you already have it?  I hate to admit it, but I am guilty.  I’m a visual person and a huge believer in “out of sight, out of mind.”  I have never been good at long distance relationships and I’m no good at remembering the clothes I have tucked away in drawers and other obscure places.  I need to see my clothes, to know what I have.  Unfortunately I do not have the luxury of a closet that looks like this to display all my precious belongings.

In fact, I don’t even have a real closet.  I have a makeshift closet, but I love it all the same because I can see everything.

Whether you have a celebrity sized closet or makeshift closet here are 3 Easy Steps to keeping it organized with all your items in sight:

1) Get rid of old clothes.  Whether they are old and worn out or old and never been worn, it’s time to make room for new.  It may not be easy but it is key to a more organized closet.  Think of all the new items you can fill that empty rack space with! If you want to make money off old clothes, take a look at my last post!

2) Call for help.  Call me.  Organizing your own closet can seem like a daunting task, so call for help.  Someone with fresh eyes  can look at all your clothes objectively and has no problem telling you what to keep and what to get rid of.  A custom 600 square foot closet is not something most of us can afford but the services to have your closet whipped into shape is something you can afford.  Check out my price list page.

3) Organize.  If you can’t see it, you will not wear it.  Here are some helpful tips to organizing your closet affectively:

Slim velvet hangers.  They save you space, do not easily allow clothes to slide off.  They also help clothes hold shape.

Never  leave clothes in plastic garment bags, like the ones from the dry cleaners.  Those bags have chemicals that could cause damage to your clothes.

Dresses should be hung by color.

Jeans should be hung by the hem and organized light to dark or by cut.

Pants/skirts/shorts should be hung by clips, with the sides folded in order to keep hanger from marking the garment.

Blouses and tops should be hung.  T-shirts can be folded.

Sweaters should be hung unless they are heavy, in which you would want to store them in either a cedar chest or in a container with cedar blocks.

Shoes should be on display, at least the cute ones!  Keep flip flops, tennis shoes, and outdoor type shoes in lesser seen places.  A good way to organize shoes is by color and style.

Bags, scarves, belts and hats can take up a lot of room, so be resourceful in how you store these.  I like scarves hanging, I just make sure to change them out according to the season.  Bags, like shoes, need to be on display.  You want your bags to keep their shape and you want to see your options of what bag to wear with what outfit.  Bags can be displayed hanging or on a shelf.  Belts can be rolled up and placed neatly in a drawer, or they can hang.  There are several types of belt hangers.  Find the best way for your closet.  Hats can be stored in hat boxes with a photo of the hat taped to the outside, or hats can be stored on a shelf.  Again, like with shoes and bags, you don’t want a hat to loose it’s shape.

If you need personal help with any of this I am happy to oblige!  Check out my price list page and also keep in mind I do gift certificates!!

Happy spring cleaning!