Another change of season will soon be upon us, and you know what that means. It’s time to clean out the closets. Unless your closet is large enough to hold all your clothes, chances are you have to do a bit of reorganizing every time the weather changes. Even if you don’t change with the seasons, you may be in a situation where you haven’t cleaned your closets for a while and they’re starting to get a bit cluttered. Perhaps some of these cleaning and organizing tips will help.
If you want to clean your closets thoroughly and efficiently, the first rule is to completely empty them. If you have one of those cavernous walk-in closets about the size of a small bedroom, this may take some time, but you won’t regret it when you’re done. Don’t just throw everything in a huge lump on the bed either; the idea here is to be organized. Instead, everything is going to go into a separate pile. For items you know you’ll never wear again, create a “donate” pile. These items can go to a charity, thrift store, or even be sold in a yard sale. Your next pile should be items to “throw away.” In fact, rather than a pile, just use a large, heavy trash bag instead. Toss items that are damaged or stained and can never be used again straight into your trash bag. Your third pile, of course, has items you will be keeping. These are clothes and accessories you’re sure you’re going to wear again. If you’re feeling truly ambitious, you can group your clothing into like items. For instance, skirts go into one pile, while blouses go into another. You might also want to group the garments by category as well. For instance, separate formal dresses from those you’d wear to the office.
Once your closet is cleared of clothes, belts, shoes and other items, it’s time to start dusting. Make sure to get into all the corners. This is where dust bunnies and cobwebs hang out. For the best results, use the hose attachment on your vacuum cleaner to clean the closet as well as its shelves and floors. Once the inside of the closet is clean, you might want to place cedar blocks or sachets filled with potpourri in different areas to keep it smelling fresh and to neutralize any musty odors.
Do you have a lot of shoes and handbags? If so, you may want to consider adding more shelves to your closet. If these aren’t necessary, it’s time to put everything back in. Start with the shoes, if they’re not on shelves or a shoe bag hanging on the door, the best place for them is on the closet floor. Group like colors and styles together to make them easier to find. Shoes worn on a regular basis should be put towards the front of the closet, while shoes used only once or twice a year should be placed along the back wall. Consider the seasons as well. If it’s winter, you’ll want boots and heavy shoes in the front. If it’s summer, sandals should be brought to the front while boots get placed in the back.
When you’re ready to hang your clothes, consider the time of year. If you won’t be storing away those out-of-season items, hang those clothes in the back of your closet. How you organize your closet after that depends on what’s easiest for you. You can try grouping all like items together. Skirts in one section, slacks in another and button-down blouses in still another section. If you’d like to eliminate frantically looking around for all the different components of your outfit, you can try grouping different items into ensembles or outfits. This way, everything is exactly where you need it, and having your entire outfit in one spot will save time.
Formal wear and dressy dresses should be placed in the back of the closet since these garments might be worn only once a year or less. If you work in an office, place business suits and sports wear front and center since these are items you’ll be wearing on a daily basis. Once your clothes are put away, place all scarves, ties and belts either on hangers or special hooks attached to the closet walls and doors specifically for this purpose. If you wear a certain belt or scarf with a particular item of clothing or ensemble, you may want to drape it on the same hanger as that outfit.
You can apply the above closet cleaning tips to just about any closet in your home. When organizing, be sure to empty out the entire closet first. Always separate into piles those items you intend to keep, donate, throw away or sell. Items used the most should be placed on shelves or the easiest-to-access area. Things not often used should be placed on the upper shelves or in the back of the closet. If there are items used mostly by kids, you’ll probably want to place them on lower shelves.
It’s easy for closets to become disorganized. It’s a little more work to organize them. Once you clean out your closet, however, and get rid of all the items making it a cluttered mess, it will be much easier to find what you’re looking for. That in itself should be enough incentive to continue keeping it organized.
