You say potato. I say po-tah-toe. You call it excessive. I call it organized. We can agree to disagree, right? Or maybe I can convince you that we don’t need to disagree at all.
See, I’ve been laughed at by many a friend who has seen my closet. They weren’t chuckles of disbelief at a chaotic mess hardly contained by a bulging door. Quite the opposite in fact. I think people nervously chuckled and thought, “Holy cow! Is she this anal about other things?” (The answer to that is no by the way.)
Hear me out. You should arrange the clothes in your closet by color. Yes, Roy G. Biv style. Just in case your elementary school teacher didn’t introduce you to good ol’ Roy, that means red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. Obviously we’re missing white, brown, and black. But why would anyone go to the lengths of arranging their closet by color?
It makes picking out clothes faster, which shaves a little time off the morning routine. My mornings can always use a little extra time, so any shortcuts are a welcome addition. I usually have an idea of what color I want to wear, and I only have a small closet section to browse rather than the whole thing. I never have to ransack my closet looking for my favorite purple top because if it’s clean, I know exactly where to find it. Your closet will also look like a pretty rainbow, so there’s that.
I also recommend taking your closet organization a step further. Separate your clothes by season or likeness if you don’t have one set packed away in storage at any given time. Put short sleeves together and long sleeves together. Put dresses, skirts, and suits together. Put layering tanks together. Arrange each of these sections by color. It won’t take long to get used to your new layout, and I think you’ll love how quickly you can navigate the system and find what you’re looking for.
Just like you winterize your home and car to get ready for the changing seasons, you should evaluate and organize your closet in the coming weeks. Call it autumn cleaning if you will. Take the opportunity to pull everything from your closet, shake it all out, and clean the dusty corners. Set aside the articles you won’t wear again, and find somewhere local to donate them if they’re in good condition. Make sections of alike clothing and arrange them by color as you put everything back into your newly organized closet.
Is there anything missing from your closet, like warm layering staples you’re guaranteed to need? If you have a list of wardrobe items you’ll eventually need this winter (warm leggings for me), you can take your time price shopping or keep a look out for sales. Starting early will hopefully mean you’ll not be forced into buying full price sweaters in an overly crowded department store when the first snowfall catches everyone off guard. Instead, you’ll stay in with a hot beverage and bask in the light of your color coded closet.
What do you think: great idea or obsessive compulsive? Do you color code anything?
Photo courtesy of VARNISHdesign.
