Living the Simple Life {Part 1}: Closets!

Let’s face it; we live in a super fast-paced world. Everywhere you look there’s something begging us to buy bigger, better, faster, MORE! Our society thrives on busyness and having the “latest and greatest” at all costs. When comparing our generation to our parents’ we notice that:

* We spends more time shuffling our children to and from activities than our parents ever did. {Most of my after-school and weekend activities consisted of 3 words: “Go play outside!”},
* We buy all the latest gadgets and gizmos “because they’re cool” & they promise to make life easier {I don’t know about you, but my BlueTooth headset drives me bonkers!},
* And unlike our parents–or even our grandparents–we suffer from more headaches and exhaustion than ever before! {Excedrin, anyone?}
So with spring arriving in just a few weeks, I thought this would be the perfect time to launch my latest article series about Living the Simple Life. {Insert sigh of relief here} I’ll discuss ways we can all de-clutter our lives and homes, and start enjoying the simple joys of everyday living! 🙂 Sound good?

Let’s begin by discussing the necessary evil known as….organizing those dreaded closets! {Insert horror movie music here}

Now you may be wondering, “What does my closet have to do with anything?” Well, simply put (no pun intended) having a well organized closet–along with an organized home–really goes a long way toward making you feel more relaxed and peaceful. You’ll not only have less clutter (and less to clean!), but if you sell your unwanted items you’ll have a little extra cash in your pocket, too! {Which makes everyone feel good! 🙂 }

Basic Closet Organization

Begin by sorting your clothing by season.

Plastic or Rubbermaid storage bins are perfect for storing winter items and can be neatly stacked in your garage until you need them again.

Use skirt hangers for skirts/slacks. These make a great space-saving solution AND spare you from ironing, too!

Organize belts, small accessories and shoes in drawers or hanging racks. You could even place shoes in an under-the-bed storage bin for a quick fix.

Toss out everything you haven’t worn in 2 years. It doesn’t matter how good of a sale it was at the time, if you haven’t worn it anywhere even once {or if it–ahem! No longer fits}, then it’s just hanging out collecting dust. Who needs that? {Please note: This does not apply to such nostalgic items like…oh, say, your wedding dress! ;)}

Sort your “Toss It” pile by the following groups:
1) To throw away {socks, jeans with gaping holes–1975 polyester disco shirts–go here}
2) To give away {Think: church families, charitable organizations}
3) *To sell {cha-ching!}

Stand back and admire all your hard work! {Ahh….!}

Next week, I’ll discuss selling your unwanted items and using yard sales, consignment shops and eBay to your advantage! 😉

So, how do YOU simplify your life? What changes would you like to make in this area? Last but not least, are your closets neat ‘n tidy? If so, post a pic on your blog and share it! 🙂

About Karrie

Food is my love language. But so is saving money. So I like to combine the two a lot and make thrifty make ahead and freeze meals to save time. Because life is busy, and freezer meals can come to the rescue for all of us. And yes, they actually CAN taste good. Read more...