I finally tackled cleaning out my closet. Ivan, his brother and Ethan went to a local professional soccer game last night (they were playing against a Mexican team!), and I stayed home with Asher. He had swim practice (carpool- so I didn’t have to drive), so I decided to seize the moment of an empty house.
My closet is probably #1 on the list of “Things I Don’t Like About my House”.
I like (LOVE) many, many things about my house. But it’s an older house, and sprawling master suites with ginormous walk in closets weren’t really “a thing” back then. (Or maybe they were, for higher price points. I don’t know. But I feel like this is a more recent development.)
This is basically what I have to work with:
(The cleared out space is all mine. Plus the floor, plus the basket which was overflowing with shoes and sandals.) The messy bottom two shelves are Ivan’s….
Anyway, this is not a lot of space. I have a decent amount of drawer space in dressers, which helps. But it’s not awesome.
I decided to just pull it ALL out. My clothes were just a mess. (Things double hung, everything out of order, etc.)
I am not sure how everything in Photo B fit inside Photo A, but, it did.
Here are my tips (haha…I’m not actually qualified to give out closet organizing tips) for living with a smaller closet:
1- SEASON rotate.
Living in Wisconsin, this is definitely something I think many people do. In summer, pull out the big heavy cardigans, sweaters, etc. They get stored in bins in the basement until fall. Then in the fall, I yank out the shorts, tanks and sandals to make room for the winter stuff.
2. Store dress clothes elsewhere. (Works for me since I don’t dress up daily…).
I rarely wear my dresses or other dressy clothes, so I have these hanging in a closet in the basement (and a few items hiding in the back of Ethan’s closet. 13 year old boys don’t need a full closet of hanging space.) Dressy shoes are also in a bin downstairs. It’s a mild inconvenience to have to go to another room to get these items, but I just don’t wear them that often.
3. Under the bed box!
I use an under the bed box to store items that I want access to, but don’t need often. (Example- Swim team shirts. I only wear these to swim meets maybe 1-2x/ month, if that, so I don’t really need them taking up prime real estate every day.)
4. Weed clothes out
This one is more of wishful thinking, for me. I am terrible about weeding out clothes. I am indecisive by nature, and constantly play the “Well, what if someday I NEED this random grey sweater that I never actually wear….” game.
I also have a bazillion pair of jeans, even though I wear like, 2 of them. I have way too many items in there that I don’t love– and they definitely don’t “spark joy” as Marie Kondo says, but they fit, are in good shape, and are functional. And might be cute/ desirable in the right moments. These are the things I have the hardest time parting with. 😩 I’m hopeless.
5. Don’t shop too much! Be choosy about what goes IN the closet.
I’m not a big shopper at all. I really don’t enjoy shopping. (I like having new things, but I don’t like actually doing the shopping….so I generally just…. don’t. If beautiful new items (that fit me perfectly) could somehow just magically appear in my closet, that’d be fantastic.)
I bet like 80%+ of the things in my closet are at least several years old, if not WAY older. Most things I have have held up well over time- even basic items like my Loft or Eddie Bauer tank tops.
That being said, I would like to update/ upgrade some items. Not because I don’t have things to wear, technically, but I’m just getting really sick of some things! I’m hoping to make sure to remove old items when I bring in new ones.
(Ex. When I finally buy myself the Lululemon leggings I want to try, I will (hopefully) remove one of my old pairs!)
Here’s how it ended up:
I have a mild obsession, apparently, with items that either zip or have a hood. 🙂 There are WAY too many workout gear/hoodie sweatshirts in there, but this is a category that I’m actually itching to upgrade!! I live in these in the winter (and even in the summer air conditioning, really) and I’m just sick of so many of mine. I left them, for now, though.
And in other news…..the BUCKS are NBA Champs!!! Woo!!! This was exciting!
Daily Gratitude:
I am grateful for a fun Bucks win! I’ve lived in Wisconsin all my life, and this is the first time the Bucks have really done anything too noteworthy. 🙂
GRATEFUL KAE 
I wish we could clothes rotate here, but England tends to be grey grey grey all year along (current Amber alert heat wave excluded!!) 😉
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My sister in Ireland just mentioned they are having some super high temps too!! Enjoy!! 🙂
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I’m literally in the garden enjoying the sun as I type this! 🙂
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I’m a minimalist but I do the seasonal switch. My middle just totally shifted after 40 (!) so until I get back to a normal exercise routine when school starts, I got rid of all my jeans and am doing the elastic shorts and paperbag shorts thing lol. I may never be the same but I’ve got two kids to show for it!
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Jeans are kind of evil. I think the reason I have so many is because a few years ago, I went on this “quest” to find jeans that actually fit and were comfortable. I ended up buying some, thinking they were okay, and then after wearing them a while, deciding I didn’t actually like them after all. Repeat, repeat, repeat. UGH. So now I have 800 pairs of jeans that are just okay.
(I’m exaggerating, a little…). Elastic shorts sound 1000x more comfy any way, so I think you’re on to something. 🙂
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Cleaning out a closet is so satisfying! We have a walk-in closet since our 1925 home was significantly renovated in 2008! But it’s pretty small and not the best space? But it works for us. I packed a ton of things away during pregnancy and have been slowly bringing them back out. I love a good purge, though, so if I don’t wear something or don’t like how it looks/fits (which begs the question of why I ever bought it?) I donate it or toss it if the condition isn’t great. I’m going to be very choosy about what I bring back when I unpack my pre-kids clothing, though. I will be back in the office 3 days/week starting in january so I need some work clothes, but there are things I know I will never wear – like my business suits. I HATE them and can get away with a nice work dress instead.
I also want to upgrade some of my workout clothes, specifically my running shorts. The ones I have are from like 2005 and they have seems in the inner thighs so I chafe so badly when I wear them! Probably didn’t in my skinnier days, but I don’t know that I will ever get those thighs back. 😉 So I plan to find some new ones, probably at Target as I have heard good things about their workout clothes from my neighbor!
Another thing I want to do when I’m done breastfeeding/back to my usual size, is hire a wardrobe consultant. My friend did this and I got to go along for the shopping trip. It’s basically what SHU did, but in person. So someone comes over and looks at everything you have and tells you how to combine things/what is missing/etc. And then she takes you shopping and pulls things at different stores ahead of time so it’s a FAST process. Which is what I need because I, too, hate shopping! It is a bit of an investment, but I do work in an industry where looks/being presentable matters. And I feel better about myself when I look nice/feel good about my outfits. So that’s something I will do in 2022 probably? My husband is NOT excited about this because it is an investment, but I tend to buy timeless/classic pieces so it’s something that will pay off for many years!
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I need some new running shorts too! The couple pair I have I remembering wearing while marathon training…which I ran in I think 2012? Some of mine seem to have, uh, shrunk a little too. lol.
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Ha, same here. 😉 I ran in them this morning and have accepted that I need new ones. I do not have the body of the girl who trained for a marathon in 2006, pre-kids. 😉 And likely never will – which is fine! So I am going to target today when I get downtime to get some new ones. I think I’ve earned them. And you have, too! 🙂
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I would definitely splurge on Lululemon leggings! I am super minimal with my wardrobe, but love all of mine. Some of my leggings are 6+ years old, heavily worn, and still wear beautifully!
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Great job organizing it, it looks very organized at the end. And great tips! Fortunately I live in one season country and very easy to choose to give away. I think I go through my closet twice a year to find things to give to my helper. It is easier when I know someone will appreciate it more than me.
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Totally agree with the closet-flipping. Key to maintaining your sanity in weather that varies as much as ours does! Also, I have even more hooded / zip up tops, I think, than you. And definitely more post-COVID.
I am impressed with your “after” picture. How do you plan to keep it organized? The one-in-one-out approach you mention?
I am trying to get rid of what doesn’t work but still (STILL) keep some things because I’ve had them forever, etc. I need to cull my jeans and my sweaters though. Thanks for the reminder! 🙂
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