Conquer Your Closet

Clothing is a tricky area to tackle. We might have bought it on sale. It holds memories of a past life. It holds hope that we will, one day, squeeze back into it. And more often than not, rather than dealing with it, we simply add to it, and neglect to stick to our self imposed “one in, one out” policy – a fantastic organizing technique, by the way.

So, I decided to bite the bullet. I needed to put my money where my mouth is when it comes to my clothing, and I’ve done just that. I didn’t believe that I had that much clothing. I have half of a walk in closet, and one 3 drawer dresser. How much could I possibly possess? Well, they say a picture is worth a thousand words…

Let me preface this whole experience by saying that I fully intended to organize my closet in the new year. I am a Brownie leader (Girl Guides for girls in grade 2 and 3), and I was making a Christmas tree craft with the girls in December, which required 6 wire hangers each. We have 20 Brownies in our unit this year, so that would mean that I needed 6 x 20 = 120 hangers. Someone had generously donated some hangers already, and I figured I was set. However, when I went to count them (the night before my meeting) I realized that I only had 70 hangers. Where in the world was I going to find another 50 hangers in 24 hours? I phoned a friend, but she wasn’t home, so I started going through our closets. “We don’t have wire hangers,” I thought. “We have a couple, but we mostly use plastic hangers.” Lo and behold, I had 50 in no time.

First, for the curious minds out there, here is the craft:

All you need to make this are 6 wire hangers, electrical tape, garland (long and full) and Christmas lights. Just wrap it around, and you’re good to go. A very cute, petite, tree.

Now, back to my closet dilemma. I had removed all of my wire hangers (I highly recommend doing this – wire hangers will stretch your clothes, and can rust), but now I had to put that clothing somewhere. Let me show you what my closet looked like one I had removed most of those hangers:

As you can see, most of my clothing is still here. You will also note that I was using those “handy” space saver hangers. Personally, I found that they took too much time trying to maneuver them, and they allowed you to be able to hang far too much clothing than most closet rods can handle. If you need additional space in your closet, go through your clothes before you purchase these devices. Next, what my closet looked like with no clothes on my hangers:

A little disorganized, no? In order to hang the “space saving hanger” up, you have to shove your clothes to one side, and I found the process too tedious. My next step was to purchase one type of hanger. I opted for the plastic hangers with the notched out top (to hold tank tops, etc.) – $6.99 for 20. I know that the wooden hangers are best, but I find that they take up far too much space. I’ve also read a blog where the person swore by the velvet hangers (they easily hold your clothes up, and are good for your clothing), but I’m not a fan of them aesthetically. But, to each their own. Here is my closet today:

I ended up parting with (donating) 31 items of clothing. I enjoy going into my closet now, as I don’t feel guilty about not wearing items I’m not in love with/don’t look good on me/I’m not sure whether they still fit or not – I tried on anything I wasn’t sure of before it went back in the closet. My pile of donateables:

Another tip is to flip all your hangers around, and when you wear it, turn the hanger back the right way. After 6 months, if the hanger is still reversed, donate it. If you haven’t worn it in 6 months, you probably won’t miss it.

One blogger put it this way: she was holding onto old clothes that “would never fit and if they did, I shouldn’t be wearing them” – readytochangenow

I was amazed at how good it felt to let go of clothing that was holding me back. If it doesn’t fit, you don’t love it, or you “shouldn’t be wearing it”, then let it go. Even if you did squeeze back into that high school outfit, would you really be proud to wear it in public again?

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