Being organized is something I am and have always been passionate about, since as far back as my memory takes me.
I am your stereotypical anal organizer. When I was a little girl and all my siblings would be out running the neighborhood, I’d be inside organizing shoes or sorting something or other. Yes, I'm a freak. Home office stores have always been a place of refuge for me. I can’t quite explain it, but they give me that warm fuzzy feeling inside like a dog with a new bone or a food junkie in a new restaurant.
But then life happens. We become wives to messy husbands. Breed slobs for children. And then go about the business of mothering... We get something edible on the table for the hungry heathens. We become taxi drivers, shuffling children between activities. We match socks. We wipe tears. We live amidst chaos and dream of simplicity and order.
Long gone are the days of interests and passions. And sanity.
But when your coat closet becomes the fictional closet in all the movies- the one that jumps out at you upon opening, the dishes can wait. The children can scream. All hell can break loose. It's time to reclaim order.
And although I feel strongly that all homes should have mudrooms, particularly those that survive 4 seasons, we do not possess this feature in our home, much to my dismay. Our temporary home has become more of a permanent thing due to extenuating circumstances. We are trying to make due with the space we have- which was most definitely designed by a flawed man.
Tiny closets. No mudroom. What's a girl to do?
A new home? Unfortunately it's just not in the cards at the moment. So, I will resort to coveting my sisters' and plan B.
Plan B: Get hubs to fix the hanging coat rack in the closet for the 4th and hopefully last time so we can get the mound of clothes off the floor and open the closet door. Then make children purge. And in this instance, I mean clothing that is not worn.
I declare that my home will be a home free of hoarders. Having a home of order requires purging on a regular basis by all parties. It doesn't work well if you have one family member that just can't seem to let go of that one piece of paper or article of clothing for sentimental reasons. Yes, I'm a cold, heartless woman. Multiply that one thing times the number of whatever else it is they MUST have and then by the age they are and AHHHH.... it accumulates at an alarming rate.
This is one area where I won't budge. And I started the brainwashing when the kids were just wee little things. They have always been an active part of purging. As toddlers I would make up chants or tunes to make the process fun. And although it is not always easy, our home does not allow for excess of anything. Plus have you seen that Hoarders show yet? If not, you should. Nothing like a swift dose of repulsive indescribable disgustingness to get your butt on the purging bandwagon.
So, back to the chore at hand. Our closet. 4 people. 4 seasons. 4 pair of snowpants. 4 pair of boots. And entirely way too much of everything else. Busting at the seams.
So, I did what needed to be done. I called a family purge party to order. Hubs installed another hanging device. And remarkably enough, we were able to downsize by one entire large garbage bag.
The jackets are hung. Winter gear is under control. And I can once again shut the door.
Small containers with names for each person's favorite gloves and hats. (Labels removed for internet safty reasons.) Extra baskets on top for the extra winter gear. Boots in place. Coats and jackets have a home. Nothing mind blowing or beautiful. Basic. Functional. We still need to downsize coats, but for now...
Check.
Now I'm off to the next project on my ever growing list of organizing needs- my closet.
This is how much I got done on Friday.
All of that junk (from 1st photo) came out of that tiny closet! Can you believe it? We don't even have space in our home to alternate seasons. That white basket (from 3rd and 4th photo) holds all of the shoes I am parting with. It's true. And I emptied 2 baskets and one large garbage bag from that space. It was promptly dumped at goodwill. Plus one bag of garbage. Now I still have my skirts, dresses, drawers of hats and belts, and hub's clothes.
And yes, that tiny space is for the both of us. You can feel free to take pity on me any time now. Luckily I know a thing or two about utilizing space to the max. But geesh. It sure takes the fun out of shopping. Sigh.
I also am in desperate need of some jewelry organizing ideas. Preferably ones that hang. Hubs engineered some contraption that just isn't cutting it. He says I need to downsize. There are some things that need to be purged. But my necklaces? Um, I beg to differ. More on that later.
That's all I've got for now.
Other posts you may have missed...
Organizing Tips: Girl's Room
Organizing Tips: Home Office
Organizing Tips: Christmas