It’s no secret that women are fascinated by the closets of other women.  I know I am! I enjoy seeing how other women organize their wardrobes, you just never know what tips you can discover!  In honor of Spring Cleaning I’m sharing organizing tips straight from my own closet.

2 Essential Rules to Organizing your Closet:

Learn to Edit: Become a Curator of your Closet

Most women stand around inside a jam-packed closet declaring they have nothing to wear.

What they really mean is they have nothing they like wearing.

If you don’t like the clothes in your closet or you haven’t worn it in awhile, why are you keeping it?

Donate, Consign, giveaway or throw out the clothes that are taking up space in your closet.

Even if you reduce your closet by 50% at least it will be easier to see the remaining 50% of your clothing that you actually wear and you’ll have the space to start rebuilding your wardrobe, wisely.

 Maximize the space you have

When I worked as a Professional Organizer the hardest thing I had to teach my clients was that it wasn’t that their closets  (or homes) were too small, it was that they had too many things for their closet.

Learning how to use your closet space wisely is important, however it’s not as important as being realistic about the actual space you have to work with.

Try not to think of this as a negative. Sometimes being forced to choose helps us with the first rule, which is to edit our wardrobe to what we actually wear.

Tips for Organizing Shoes

Shoes. I have an obsession with shoes.  I also have large feet so it’s not easy to find shoes in my size, which makes me buy shoes as I find them instead of based on what I may need, like a black ballet flat.

Looking at my shoes I also realize that there is a part of me that must think I Walk the Red Carpet for a living. I have way too many pairs of sparkly pretty heels for a homeschool Mom of 5.  I think I could wear these heels while teaching Mechanical Engineering, right?

Okay, enough joking.  Organizing your closet is serious business.

Here is the first rule:  Don’t line up your shoes in a straight line. Instead, flip one pair backwards and you’ll fit more on the shelf (or the floor).

Keep the Left shoe facing forward and flip the right shoe, then slide it back a little.   This works well with both heels and flats.

Here’s a tip for organizing sandals:  Put them inside each other.

If it bothers you that the sole of one shoe is touching where your feet are, you can flip it so one pair is upside down. I don’t do it that way because this looks prettier to me.

 How to Organize your Handbags

Well, I guess my handbag obsession is now out of the bag (pun intended).

A friend once encouraged me to organize my closet in a fun and attractive way.  She said it would make getting dressed each morning (instead of just throwing on the closest pair of sweat pants) much more enjoyable.

At first I thought it was silly, but I have to admit that it works.

I now try to display my accessories much like they do in stores. It gives me the feeling of shopping—only I’m shopping my own closet!  This also encourages me to be creative and come up with new wardrobe combinations.  Neat and pretty is always inspiring, isn’t it?

Don’t feel you need to have a large collection in order to create a  display.  Remember, a collection is just more than one.  Display what you have.

To help handbags keep their shape I stuff them. You can use shoe bags, tissue paper or butcher block paper.  I also use Acrylic Shelf Dividers (which can also be used for organizing clothing).

Resources: Acrylic Shelf Dividers

How to Organize your Jewelry

There are two ways to organize your jewelry: Display it or Store it.

My favorite way to organize and store costume jewelry is to simply put it in Stackable fabric boxes which can they be stacked and stored in a closet, on a shelf or in a drawer.

Displaying favorite pieces, trendy pieces or new pieces is also fun.  I have a small island inside my closet where my laundry and dry cleaning bins are stored.  However a dresser or vanity table is also a great place to lay out fun pieces and encourage the art of enjoying and wearing what you own.

Resources:  Tiered Jewelry organizers, stackable jewelry trays.

Basic Closet Organizing Tips

Have matching hangers.  Whatever kind you can afford, just make sure they match.

Not only does it make a difference aesthetically,  but good hangers protect your clothes from damage.

Changing hanger styles to one uniform style is generally done over time.  The easiest way to do this is to choose a type of hanger in your price range and then, either weekly or monthly, replace the  (assorted) old hangers in your closet with the new style.  If you are choosing a style that is on sale, make sure it isn’t on sale because it is being discontinued.  Otherwise, you may not be able to replace your hangers over time before they sell out.  Good hangers are a worthwhile investment because you can truly own them for a lifetime.

Invest wisely.

Group items in your closet by category: Shoes, Blouses, T-shirts, Cardigans, Sweaters, pants, shorts, skirts etc.

Generally, after you’ve grouped your wardrobe by category you can then organize each category even more by grouping into subcategories.  A popular way to do this is to simply arrange the clothing by color, from lightest to darkest.

As you can see from my closet, I don’t do this.  I prefer to arrange my clothing in subcategories of style.  My blouses are grouped by sleeve length, my pants by leg cut, etc.  I group my dresses in subcategories of: casual, dressy daytime, evening, corporate, cocktail and gowns.   Don’t feel you need to do this.

Always your clothes in the way that makes the most sense to you and is the easiest to maintain.

Remember the out of sight, out of mind rule.  You want to be able to see what you have.  Hang the clothes you wear most often and store other clothing (particularly those sweat pants or gym clothes you keep grabbing when you aren’t working out) in drawers.

How to maximize Drawer Space

Instead of stacking your clothes on top of each other, arrange them in the drawer (as shown below) so that you can easily see everything you have at first glance.  This also maximizes space as you will be able to hold more clothing in each drawer.  Try it, you’ll see!

The picture above shows my collection of heavier shawls/scarves but this system also works well with t-shirts, tank-tops, and gym clothes (as shown below).

In the interest of full-disclosure I’ll admit that I have to edit my t-shirt drawer some more.

I often get asked if the t-shirts come out wrinkled when you store them this way.  The answer is no.

When you properly fold the clothes (and don’t cram too many in) the t-shirts come out beautifully. Try it!

I hope you enjoyed the tour of my closet and learned a couple tips and tricks you can apply to your own closet.  Do you have any organizing tips to share with me? Please do so in the comments.

I’m working on reorganizing my home office/classroom today.  Tropical Storms apparently send me into nesting mode. 

When I worked as a professional organizer I didn’t have children. So I was clueless (just clueless) about creating simple organization systems that can be created somewhat quickly and maintained easily.  I shudder when I think how often I reorganized already organized spaces in our home because I was bored.  

What I would give to have that kind of time on my hands these days!  Needless to say I’ve learned a few more things since I’ve become a Mom of 5.

4 Quick Organizing Tips

Don’t buy storage containers before you know what you intend to put in it and where it will go.  So often people say, “I’m going to get organized” and run off to the store and buy a bunch of containers, baskets and bins before they’ve even sorted, purged and categorized their belongings.  Yes, it’s somewhat of a downer to stop mid organizing and dash off with your detailed list of what you actually need—but its more efficient in the long run. Trust me.
If it is going to be in view make sure it’s pretty but still accessible.  

Store things by frequency of use. You don’t want to put something you use daily in a closed basket on the top of a shelf for example. Likewise, don’t give up your prime storage real estate for something you rarely use.

Think
outside of the box when it comes to organizing and using containers.
You don’t always have to use something the way it was marketed to be
used.
The Container Store’s 4 Tiered Jewelry box is my new office supply desk caddy.

Join me on Tuesday for my Home Office/School Room reveal.  I’ll have some more organizing tips for you on the Trophy Mom Facebook page too. 

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In some households the laundry room is mom’s personal office. In other households its the pit of depression. Hopefully these ideas will inspire you to create a room that is both functional and enjoyable for you.

Remember, inspiration is just a launching point. The goal is not to recreate the rooms pictured below, but to find elements that appeal to you and incorporate the ideas you like best using your own space and resources.

working laundry rooms aren’t the prettiest but we’re keeping it real!

This first laundry room is all about form & function. When your room is not large enough for a traditional center island you may want to consider a peninsula island—one that comes off the wall. The washer and dryers are installed on the other side of the peninsula allowing for a high countertop to be placed above for folding. Hint: If you budget or room constraints coupled with large amounts of laundry to do consider getting 1 washer and 2 dryers to make laundry day go a little faster. The built-in baskets allow for easy sorting and the storage cabinets to the left can house cleaning supplies, toilet paper and other household essentials. When designing your laundry room don’t forget about your hand washables, ironing board and drying racks. This laundry room can hold it all!

The Laundry/Craft roomis a somewhat new and popular idea for those who have a little extra space but need to get more out of it. Since this laundry room is larger it houses two stackable washer/dryers but also utilizes the peninsula island concept. The island is counter height and acts as a craft table with the cabinets to the left housing craft supplies and gift wrap supplies. You can place your gift wrap in the drawers for easy access. A small tv mounted on the wall makes the time spent doing laundry go faster.

Here are other examples of creative dual purpose laundry rooms.

By creating a dual purpose room you take advantage of every inch of space in your home, plus you have the added benefit of doing something happy, fun, or at least distracting while you are getting your laundry done. I know of many moms who scrapbook while they do their laundry in the evening. I like using my laundry room as a gift wrap center as well. If you like the idea of a dual purpose laundry room, you won’t want to miss HGTV’s laundry room/personal office.

For those who like no fuss consider placing a stackable washer/dryer in your closet! Though I couldn’t find a photo of one online, this is another popular idea and it will sure cut down on hauling the laundry to and from the laundry room!

Another creative dual purpose space to place laundry rooms is in a closet in the kitchen. You can use your kitchen counter tops for folding laundry if need be after the counters are cleaned and the dishes are put away. This is great if you are short on space but have a kitchen island!

Original Source

What does your ideal laundry room look like?

Today’s Modern Mom is on the move.  When she’s not driving carpool or chauffeuring her brood around town to various extra curricular activities, she is running errands. This is why the BEST organizing system for a modern mom is a mobile one.

What are the options?

For moms on the move there are two options: DIGITAL and PAPER.  

While there are pros and cons to both systems it really comes down to personal preference and commitment.  Whichever option you choose, you should commit  to trying it for at least 90 days before deciding if it works for you or not.


Digital Options


Here are some of my favorite Apps for keeping your to do/Project lists:

Reminders
With Reminders you can create and organize lists by deadline, priority or custom made project lists.  It’s a very simple and easy to use built-in app which also works with icloud, ical, Outlook, and Siri.


Do it  Tomorrow 
Allows you to keep ONE running list. Anything you don’t get to rolls over to tomorrow.  Probably  not the best app for a procrastinator, or maybe it is?

Things 
Things offers a few more bells and whistles than the apps listed above, but is still simple to use.  Things allows you to sort your lists by: Today, Next, Scheduled, Someday, and Projects. There is also an inbox where you can collect and store those “to do’s” that you aren’t yet sure where you want to put them. Things also keeps a logbook of when you complete tasks, which can come in handy.  If you cannot remember where you put something there is also a search function.


Homeroutine
Homeroutine takes the typical to do list and combines it with your household routines (which we will cover later in the series).  Although the app is incredibly customizable the core principal is that you create Morning, Afternoon, Evening, Weekly, and Monthly tasks.  There is also a tab for “To Do”  (divided by Today, this week and later) where you can keep your to do lists right alongside your routine lists (those things you do every day). The app then allows you to check off your items as you go. Each day, week or month it “refreshes” the regularly scheduled tasks you have.  If you love the Fly Lady cleaning schedule that is already preloaded on the app (you can alter as you wish).  With registration you will also receive FREE sync and online editing option. The app can also be password protected if you wish.




Classic Paper Option:
 A pocket sized (or slightly larger) 3-ring tabbed binder is my favorite paper option because it can easily fit in a purse or tote bag. 

I suggest creating tabs for:


Calls 
Keep a running list of everyone you need to call (with their number) and why. When you find yourself sitting around you can flip to your call page and knock out the calls.


Errands
Keep a running list of errands. You’ll save time and gas money if you run all your errands at once.  I write the name of the place (Costco, for example) with a running list of what I need to buy there.  Then when I’m out and about and find myself near a store I need to visit, I have my list already with me.


To Do
Running list of all your to do items

Projects
Separate out long term projects and create individual action items to help accomplish the goal.

Which format to use?

 If you’ve had problems with organization in the past I would suggest that you pick ONE format and give it a try for 90 days.  Yes, 90 days.  It takes 21 to form a habit but  90 days to give a system a fair try.


If you are generally known as an organized individual who is looking for ways to improve or switch to the digital format then I would say you could probably handle keeping your lists in 2 formats without problem. You may even find that you keep certain lists in one format and others in another. That’s fine too. 

Remember, you want a system that WORKS for you and is EASY to use.


Now, get to work creating those lists!