DIY Tips: The Tao of Spring Closet Organizing [My Guest Blog on Diggerslist.com!]

DIY Tips: The Tao of Spring Closet Organizing

April 12, 2012

This might sound crazy, some stuff in our closets can be “crumpled” in a pile and STILL be considered “organized.” What?! Did this Professional home and office organizer say that I can let some of my wardrobe be “crumpled”?

Stay with me here.

We’ve heard of the Tao of Pooh or even the original Tao of…ergh…Tao.  Tao is just a Chinese word that means “path,” “way” or simply the underlying principles of the universe.  For our purposes, how can we become “one” with the most simplest ways to use our closets now that spring has sprung?  When it comes to using our storage spaces, how can we harness the fundamental principles of the Tao of Spring Closet Organizing, letting them work for us in the most effortless ways possible?

We’re not talking about over committing to “perfection.”  Let’s set up our Spring closets to flow with our lives, rather than force our lives to fit with it. Here are some basic “Tao” or ways to simplify your spring closet organizing.

Continued here at the full blog post at diggerslist.com!

White cardboard file boxes now turned into decorative storeage you'd be proud to display. Source: makeit-loveit.com

Organizing Essential #2: Slim Velvet No-Slip Hangers

EVERYone wishes they have more closet space.  Any closet overhaul must include an upgrade to the best hangers of the moment.  Screw that magazine that told you that getting perfectly uniform cedar hangers was essential for having a grown-up closet.  Those things are expensive, bulky and not very practical.

It is ALL about flocked or "velvet" slim hangers.  There are a bunch of companies making them now, originally popularized by those ubiquitous infomercials from Joy Mangano ("Huggable Hangers").  You can get them for a great price and they are excellent for making the most of your precious hanger space.

Oh! And while you're at it, feel free to use this neat-o checklist of Essentials Items for a Woman's Closet to help you pare down what you need to keep or toss.  This list is ESPECIALLY helpful for those who like to maintain rather preppy, wardrobe staples as the foundation of your closet.

Thin No Slip Velvet Suit Hangers, Black, Set of 50
Source: best value on Amazon.com (Costco had a great deal on these recently)
Price: $29.90
Awesome Sauce Factor: Takes up less real estate on your closet bar and never lets your strappies, silkies and boatnecks from falling to the floor.  And at 60 cents a piece from Amazon, it's a great value for the closet upgrade.

Do you agree that these hangers are the bees-knees?  If not, what do YOU recommend as the BEST hangers around? Leave a comment below! I'd love to hear from you!

PROJECT PORTFOLIO: Be the Donald Trump of Your Kitchen! Counter Tops as Valuable Real Estate

Not everyone is blessed with forty linear feet of clutter-free counter space (Oh. In my dreams...in my sweet, sweet dreams).

For the rest of us, we need to make the best of our valuable kitchen counter top real estate.

When you think about it, viewing our kitchen counters as "expensive real estate" is actually a great way to think about how to best use our counter tops!

Let's imagine: If you own valuable property on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills or a storefront on Park Avenue, you wouldn't just use that space for storing your random crap that you don't use, would you? Would you treat that Rodeo Drive storefront like it's just some storage garage you rent? Probably not.  

You would choose only the best things that will be the most useful, or add the most to your life (or your bottom line).

To use real estate "talk," let's think of it this way: What is the "highest and best use" for our kitchen counter tops (Say, if you are a busy family with three kids)?

• Space to prep kids and mommy and daddy's lunches? Check!
• Place to store washcloths, daily vitamins and baby food to feed and wipe down little grubby faces? Check!
• Counter space to spread out my chopping boards and prep food? Check!
• Appliances and coffee maker close to where we store our food, beverages and glasses? Check!

Anything else? Well, they are not as important "uses" of the kitchen, so they do NOT get any of the valuable counter top real estate.  Simple as that.

From Project Portfolio

Have you ever thought of the rooms in your home as "real estate"?  What are the highest and best uses for YOUR counter tops and the needs of you and YOUR family? Please leave a comment below!  I'd love to hear from you!

PROJECT PORTFOLIO: Simple Bedroom Makeover - from CLUTTER to CLARITY

What happens when you need to move out the personal possessions for a physically disabled roommate and prepare your home for a new roommate to come in, all at the same time?

Chaos.

So ORGANIZED. By Jenny helped this IT professional to get some order in her otherwise disheveled bedroom. We taught her some basic principles around knowing when to keep items, and where to place things you use the most often for daily living.  Here are the results.

From Project Portfolio

She still has a nice mound of "To Sort" but now she has a closet that works for her everyday needs.  Believe it or not, she was actually getting her wardrobe from a couple piles in the middle of that madness on her bedroom floor.

This is what we did:

1. Clear out all the junk stuffed into the closet and onto the floor so we can assess what's useful.
2. Talk through her daily activities for getting ready for work, relaxing and coming home to rest.  Where are the things she needs to do these activities? Let's place them within reach in designated "zones" or "homes."
3. What is the clothing that she is ACTUALLY wearing on a daily basis?  Great! Let's put THOSE items back into the closet with plenty of room to spare!
4. Create space in the closet for 

• Laundry baskets,
• Daily wardrobe,
• Smaller essentials like underthings like socks and underwear in the drawer units,
• Workout supplies,
• An extra bed and linens for when mom comes over once a week and
• A space above the drawer units for your purse and backpack (you'll know exactly where it is for when you run out the door).

 Then let's put the shoes you actually wear in a shelving unit by the door, with some of your daily vitamins, medicine and hair products at eye level above the shoes.

That's it!  Your daily routine, simplified and clarified.

What do you think about the "after" closet? Do you have some "empty" or "white" space around YOUR clothing?

Before & After: A Screenwriter's TV / Media Room [Project Portfolio]

INTERIOR. MAN CAVE
The spare bedroom looks like it has been hit with a Blockbuster Video tornado. The SCREENWRITER is sitting on the sofa.


SCREENWRITER
This is too much.  I've got to get a handle on all these old VHS and DVDs.  How will I ever get inspired in this space so I can write more screenplays?!


(2 months later)
ORGANIZED. BY JENNY enters.


ORGANIZED. BY JENNY
Well lookee here!  Some sorting, purging and some great storage furniture later, you've got your Man Cave/media room back!


SCREENWRITER
Thank goodness! Not a moment too soon.  I don't know HOW much time I've spent on just looking for my limited collector's edition of Scarface.


ORGANIZED. BY JENNY and SCREENWRITER high five.

From Project Portfolio

[Jenny's Crib] From Dark-Hole-of-Storage-Room-Doom to Organized Closet [Before and After]

I have a confession. I moved into my two-bedroom condo over two years ago and I STILL hadn't finished unpacking. I still had six big boxes of random things covered with construction dust stuffed in the dark hole of see-no-evil storage room doom second bedroom. I just shut the door and lived my life.

After two years of letting my things hibernate and two bathroom and a full kitchen remodel later, I was finally ready to use my space for exactly their intended purpose.

From Project Portfolio

Step 1: Clear out the 2nd bedroom fake storage room of doom and make it an ACTUAL bedroom.
Step 2: Sort, Purge, and Categorize all my homeless stuff while my mom helps deep clean the bedroom. (Thanks, mom!)
Step 3: Crush extra boxes and kick out the donations and trash!
Step 4: Set up my real storage closet to do its job!
Step 5: Enjoy the new storage closet almost every day to live an awesome life!



I wish I had photos of my sad 2nd bedroom when it was the storage room of doom, but no. I probably did not have the strength to stomach the shame.  Thankfully, I managed to squeeze six big boxes and more of random unorganized stuff, neatly and reasonably into my spacious storage closet.

This storage closet is centrally located by the living room and dining room.  It's the perfect spot to keep all the things I need for my entertaining, hobbies, outdoor activities, cleaning supplies and household projects.

From Project Portfolio

Scroll down for photo of my summer 2011 "storage closet reveal"!

Where are the random places around your house that you've turned into storage? Where are the nooks and crannies that have taken on your random things? Storing tupperware in the oven?  Clothes on the treadmill? Toys in the never-used tub? Please comment and let us know!

From Project Portfolio

From Project Portfolio

[How To Organize] The Kitchen: Simple Hardware, Big Impact

Getting organized does NOT require tons of gear and fuss.  It can be as simple as a little visit to the hardware store.  This photo from one of my daily-diet websites, Apartment Therapy, is a perfect example of that. Can you identify the two simple hardware organizing solutions?

A Little Hook for a Space-Saving Banana Hanger! Two Thin Rails for Organized Pot/Pan Lids!
(Source:  Kristina, Canada via ApartmentTherapy.com)

Okay. Time's up.

1. Banana Holder! A little hook goes a long way. Just a little screw in hook and voila! A space-saving way to keep you bananas bruise-free!

2. Pots and Pan Lid Holder!  Probably one of the most AWKWARD kitchen items to organize, pots and pan lids finally have a home against the wall with the help of two simple rails.

What do you think? Do you have other awesomely simple hardware solutions for big organizing impact?

[How To Organize] Closets: 5 Tips from an Organized Kid [Inspiration]

Kids need organized closets, too!  This is a great example from one of my "obsession" websites, "House of Turquoise." This kid's closet uses GREAT organizing ideas that the grownups can use too! Check out these tips below.

Tip #1: Who Says Closets Need Doors?

If you are hurting for some bedroom real estate, take off the doors!  Other replace them with a finely tailored curtain.  The curtain rod can be hidden behind the closet opening or featured above the frame out front.  This kid's closet replaces the doors with a subtle yet colorful garland up top, almost like a window valance. 

Tip #2: Open Closet or Not? Keep It Beautiful.

Whether you keep your closet open or not, why not make it as beautiful as a featured display shelf in your living room?  

Take a cue from this organized kid closet, curate some of your open shelves for things you love up top and fun things you'd use at eye and hand level.  Get handsome containers like these gorgeous fabric-lined wicker baskets. Why not paint your closet walls! It's always a beautiful and inexpensive way to transform a space.

Tip #3: Keep Stuff OFF The Floors

It's clear kids in this room will enjoy the additional play space, but that's a great cue for grownup closets.  

Take a tip from supermarket shelf strategist who stock items they want to sell at eye level.  Grownups are not as likely to look down or up on a regular basis so keep your everyday and most used items on shelves and hanging rods at your chest and eye-levels.  

Stuff that gets on the closet floors tend to STAY on closet floors. They also have this strange way of attracting other STUFF. If you must, fill that space with a great inexpensive and simple drawer or cubbie unit if you'd like more storage space.

Tip #4: Go Vertical!

Most closets have ample dead space above the highest closet shelf.  Add another one! 

Even if it requires a quick trip to your local hardware store, simple shelving wood and brackets are so inexpensive for the added real estate you get by going upwards.  Get some handy baskets that breathe and put away your out of season clothing towards the top of your closets.

Tip #5: Shop Your Own Closet!

Give hanging clothes breathing room. Edit! Edit! Purge! Purge! Achieving that "boutique" look may be tough for most grownups, but it doesn't mean we can't afford to spend some time to "shop our closet."

Choose only the things that you would buy for yourself NOW.  That's a great strategy for editing your closet for a nice purge.  This creates a "quality over quantity" closet that will be more likely to be used.

[How To Organize] The Kids Room: sticky notes as kid's room drawer labels

from the "why didn't *I* think of that" files: organized. by jenny spied some of these cute semi-temporary ideas for labelling the contents of the dressers of the little ones...cute sticky notes!

with just a nice decorative pad of notes in the designer color of your choice, and some clean penmanship, you TOO can have your children's dresser drawers EXTREMELY clear about what should REALLY go in there.

"no sweetie, the socks need to go where the socks are."

I love it. Maybe a little too informal or "dorm roomie" for your average mature adult, but for the kid's room...genius! Saves time, money AND teaches organization skills.

see the overall effect here.

[How To Organize] steal these ideas!

here are just a few snazzy examples from my silverlake home project that you can try in YOUR home! why not? it's not like there's some kind of patent on all this sheer brilliance! let's face it, i stole these ideas from someone else...like...using undersofa storage, or consolidating all your entertaining gearl into one place so party central is ready to happen at anytime! so click in and check it out.