When my closet is organized, I am at peace.
This was something I had to do before I started stuyding for my pattern grading final. Please enjoy my insanity!
One side (the longer side) is devoted to dresses. I categorized them into casual and formal. Casual dresses include jersey knits, then lightweight cottons. They are ordered ascending by sleeve style and then by color from light to dark within the sleeve category. All of them are on white plastic hangers. Two trenchcoats and one pair of dress pants separate them from the formal dresses, which are on clear plastic hangers. These dresses ascend from strapless/short to long with sleeves, in fabrics such as polyester, satin and a sweater knit with sequins. They are ordered by color within their categories of dress type. Fininshing off the dress category is my brown bridesmaid dress from Lindsey’s wedding, which I am very determined to shorten and wear again!
Above this rack there is a shelf, in which jeans are stacked, ascending by color from white to black. Next to the jeans are the shorts, in the same order, followed by skirts in the following stack. The final stack is thick sweatshirts, which I find myself wearing if I’m just lounging around, so they don’t really need to be on hangers.
Below this rack is where I store a crate full of grocery tote backs and my rolls of fabric and paper. One of the tubes of my fabric rolls broke in half on the inside, so it sadly hangs over unless it can be held back by the others.
The other side (shorter side) includes casual separates, knits and dressy separates. Casual separates are grouped by layering tank tops which cannot be worn on their own, and layering shirts (button downs) that must be paired with one of the layering tank tops. Next comes regular jersey knit tank tops, t-shirts, long-sleeve shirts and hooded sweatshirts, ascending by color from light to dark, with patterns mixed in to the appropriate color. In dressy separates, the hangers are clear plastic (casual are white plastic) and start off with the “strapless bra” flimsy tops section. These are shirts that can be layered under sweaters or jackets, which follow in this category. Sweaters are organized by sleeve length and color. A cropped plaid jacket, black capelet and a black blazer are followed by my two winter coats, which bring up the rear.
Above this rack is a shelf which holds all of the oversized textbooks that don’t fit on my IKEA bookshelf. They are organized by height, from tallest to shortest, and notebooks are grouped with smaller books in magazine files. As soon as I can buy a few more tupperware boxes, I will also store fabric scraps and 1st/2nd quarter projects up here. Buying an IKEA stepstool was the best $9 I’ve spent this year, as it has opened up so much more storage space!
Below this rack is another bar so short that my t-shirts drag on the floor, so I have stacked up the excessive collection of magazines accumulated by my former roommate. They are grouped by season, fall/winter months and spring/summer months, so that if I need to cut out a picture of swimsuits, I’m not wasting my time digging through November and December issues. I also have a tupperware box of purses and another of craft supplies, as well as my towels and other linens stored in an old plastic comforter bag.
Shoes are organized in a shelving unit with five 2’x2’ square cubbyholes. Wedges are in box 1, followed by flip flops and flat sandals in box 2, black high heel pumps and stilettos in box 3, running shoes and old work shoes in box 4 and boots/sneakers in box 5. At the top of the shelving unit, hats are well-contained within a wide-brim hat.
Other than that I have a full-length mirror and the family calendar that my dad makes every year. I hope that some of these ideas can help you organize your closet and please, if you had considered it, don’t rob me!
