1. REMOVE EVERYTHING FROM THE CLOSET
This step can take some time but just think what surprises and maybe hidden treasures you will find. Remove EVERYTHING. This serves two purposes.
1. You will be able to see exactly what kind of space you have to work with.
2. You will be astonished and maybe embarrassed by your pile of stuff sitting on your floor, bed, couch, cat and you will want to organize it neatly.
2. SEPERATE THE ITEMS YOU REMOVED
• Divide everything into containers (boxes or heavy plastic bags)
• Get rid of everything in the containers but keep the container
• Label your containers as outlined below.
Keep Container: The rule is if you haven't worn an article of clothing at least
twice in the last year it should not be included. If you are hording clothes waiting
for that weight to come off- simply put- stop, that's how you got into this mess to
begin with. Keep only clothes one size either way of your current size. When you
become svelte again you can buy up to date clothes.
Throw Away Container: Are you in the trap as you are going through this process that your Keep Container is overflowing while the others are literally empty. Look at each article to see if it is ripped, stained, or broken. If it is 100% unsalvageable it goes directly into the Throw Away Bin; "Do not pass Go, do not collect $200.00". However, do not throw away just because it's ugly – those items will go into your Donate Bin.
Donate Container: "One man's junk is another man's treasure". Give as many things as you can to charity. You will be helping someone else, it will make you feel good and you may get a tax deduction.
Now get rid of everything but the keep container. As soon as you finish sorting your stuff, immediately get the Throw Away and Donate containers off your property. Load 'em up and move'em out. They have a way of finding themselves back into your closet. So once everything is in its container…
1. Take large trash bags and put your Throw Away Container items into
them. Walk outside and put them in the garbage. Halleluiah you got rid of some stuff.
2. Load up your car with the Donate Containers and take them to the appropriate locations.
3. Go home and take a shower. You probably smell bad after lugging all those old clothes around.
3. DIVIDE REMAINING ITEMS
You now have considerably fewer clothes than you did when you started. If you don't then the laws of physics apparently do not apply to your closet. Now begin sorting. This is the fun part (if there is a fun part to closet organizing). Divide into three categories:
The Season Category, The Type Category, The "What on earth is This?" Category
The Season Category:
First sort into three categories: Summer, Winter, Spring/Autumn
Winter clothes will include heavy coats, summer things like swimsuits.
If you have room take out-of-season clothes and put them in clear containers or garment bags and store in a different part of the house until it is time to switch them out by season. If you don't, put the off season clothes to the back of the closet rod.
The Type Category:
Arrange all blouses together by long sleeve, short sleeve. You can sort by color if you want. Place all skirts together, separate by length, hang dresses all together, all suits together, sport coats, slacks and dressy pants. You can sort by arranging professional clothes together including any outfits you might wear on an office casual day. This will make getting dressed so easy you can push your snooze button one extra time in the morning. Separate your special occasion outfits and hang together. By now you have gotten rid of your junior prom dress so it should be pretty easy to manage. Casual clothes are left to organize. These include your weekend wear things only your cat should see you in.
The "What on earth is This?" Category:
Now you have all your clothes in your closet and are left with a pile of odds and ends. We'll call these items accessories. They are a mixture of shoes, belts, scarves, suspenders, and ties. Hang the ties from a rack made for ties and the belts either from a hanger or a special rack for belts. Scarves can be folded in a drawer or hung up using a scarf organizer.
4. USE CLOSET ORGANIZERS
There are three main types of organizers that can fit any closet, no matter its size: shelves, specialty clothes hangers and shoe racks.
1. Shelves: The major purpose is to provide you with a place to put all the things that would otherwise go on the floor. There are pre-assembled stackable shelves in a variety of sizes and bend to fit the dimensions of your closet. However, installed shelves tend to be able to hold more weight. They can be found at most home improvement stores.
2. Specialty Clothes Hangers: Please get rid of all the bent-out-of-shape metal hangers lurking in your closet. Wooden hangers space clothes further apart so clothes don't have the tendency to get wrinkled. Look for collapsible, multi-tiered hangers, which save space by allowing you to hang multiple garments on the same hanger.
3. Shoe Racks: Invest in a sturdy shoe rack, which come in all shapes and sizes. If room is a factor you can use a hanging shoe rack that either hangs from the back of the door or on the clothes rod inside the closet.
There, your closet should be wonderfully organized. And when you are ready to
go shopping remember the rule of thumb is---one in one out.
Marilyn Bohn's Bio
Marilyn is a creative organizer who has been organizing for over 20 years. She is a member of the National Association of Professional Organizers and is working towards becoming a Certified Professional Organizer. Professionally she has been organizing homes and offices for over two years. She holds a bachelors degree in Social Work. She has reared five daughters and currently lives in Utah.
Go to her website http://www.marilynbohn.com where you can find free organizing tips, interesting blogs and more helpful articles on organizing.
About the author:
Marilyn is a creative organizer who has been organizing for over 20 years. She is a member of the National Association of Professional Organizers.She holds a bachelors degree in Social Work. She has reared five daughters and currently lives in Utah.
Go to her website http://www.marilynbohn.com where you can find free organizing tips and interesting blogs and helpful articles on organizing.
Article Source: http://www.Free-Articles-Zone.com
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