I hope all of you had a beautiful holiday season. Ending 2016 with peace, acceptance, and lightheartedness :)
Here's to welcoming 2017 with wide open arms and a soft heart. I am certainly ready, I hope you are too!
With a new year in place and the removal of the Christmas decorations, I always get the urge to get rid of things that I don't really need or use around the house... including items in my closet. Many people get this urge in the spring, but for me, it just feels right to do it at the start of a new year. New year, new beginnings :)
So with that, I would love to share with you my tips on having a well organized closet. Leaving you with that same feeling you get when you have picked up some brand new clothes, except this time, it's the clothes you already have!
Step 1: DE CLUTTER
Go through each item in your closet one by one, and ask yourself, "Have I worn this in the last year?" If you answered no, put it in a "donation" pile. If you answered yes, but have only worn it once in the year, put it in a "maybe" pile. If you answered with a confident yes, then place it in the "keeper" pile. You have now created 3 piles. Your closet will look a little disorganized at first, but I promise you by the end, you won't want to leave it!
Step 2: HANGERS
Invest in some thin pretty hangers. Not the ones you get from the dry cleaners!!!
https://www.homesense.ca/en has some great ones and they are reasonably priced. When you hang your clothes with all of the same hangers, facing all in the same direction, it is attractive to the eye and you are more drawn to pick the item up. Just think of when you're shopping in a well kept beautiful store, I for one, want to buy everything just because it's displayed so beautifully. Think of your closet like a display!
Step 3: MERCHANDISING
I use the word merchandising because that's how I organize my closet. Working at the Original Mills Brothers at a young age, and leaving at a much older age, I was taught some pretty good things that have just stuck with me. Merchandising a clothing department was one of them. The next step is to take your "keeper" pile and group your clothing. Put all your pants together, skirts, blouses, jackets etc. and colour code them. What I mean by colour code is, as you hang your pants together, hang them from lightest to darkest all going in the same direction. This goes the same for all of your other groupings. You will be able to see each piece of clothing much clearer than if it was mixed in with other styles and colours. It will even make you want to wear a shirt that you didn't really wear all that much, just because it looks better the way it is displayed.
Many people like to hang their clothing by outfit. This does work for some, but for me, I think it really restricts you in trying to put other pieces together and creating more than one outfit.
Step 4: FOLDING
Not all clothing should be hung. Especially delicate sweaters, such as knits, cashmere, and wool. Hanging them will stretch out the neck and leave hanger pulls on the shoulders. These items should be colour coded as well, and folded all the same way. T-shirts, shorts, and gym wear should also be folded. Really, anything that you think doesn't need to be displayed, should be folded.
Now, let's go back to your "maybe" pile. If you haven't worn it in the last 6 months, move it to the "donation" pile. If you still have an attachment to it, keep it, and check back in 6 months. If you still haven't worn it, then I think you know what to do! :)
And finally...
Once a week, you should try and do an up keep in your closet to try and keep it intact. Meaning, putting your hangers all in the same direction, grouping your clothes if they've been misplaced. That sort of thing.
When things are organized and visually appealing to the eye, you will be more gravitated to wearing each and every item that is in your closet. I promise you. No money will be wasted, again!
I hope this has helped you and motivated you to "re open" your closet. You will love going shopping in there again! And adding a few more pieces wouldn't hurt either :)
If you or someone you know needs any help with this, this is one of my specialty's! Check out my services on my website. I would love to open your closet with you!!
Stella
