A happy birthday to me =) Closet cleansing coming up!
I spent the day... at work, till the late afternoon when I headed over to DMV to renew my license, which expired this year on my birthday. Luckily didn't have to wait too long there.
Then, husband made me a delicious dinner and dessert at home (I have a limited diet and don't eat out much) and we watched Forgetting Sarah Marshall, one of our like top three movies. We went to the Turtle Bay Resort when we were in Hawaii and have been wanting to watch it again!
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| Raw vegan strawberry "shortcake"--made with cashews, macadamias, coconut oil, agave... mmm! |
I always like wearing something bright and cheerful and cute on my birthday! I painted my nails for this one, too.
The real festivities are this Saturday, hanging out with some friends and making another special meal.
Aside from that, I have big goals this weekend. Despite the fact that I've gone through it a lot recently, my closet is just TOO full and I think I'm finally ready to be one of those people who can count the number of shirts, pants, jeans, etc. that they own. I've been a clothes horse since high school and keep accumulating! And, of course, wear 20% of my clothes 80% of the time, probably, as they say. I think I want to do it a little differently this time: instead of pulling out stuff I don't want, I want to go through and pick out the items that I DO want, as if I were packing for a trip. Then, the rest of it... I don't know if I can bear to part with it all yet, so I may put it in boxes and store it for a while. See if I miss it!
I'm tired of causing avalanches whenever I put away jeans or pajamas, and I want a new dresser. Until I have the closet of my dreams, I long for the simplicity of a normal person's closet. These next pictures are quite embarrassing...
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| Seriously, NIGHTMARES... |
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| Gotta get rid of the sweater box. |
The last time I cleaned out my closet, I had to make a day of it. I took ALL OF MY CLOTHES out of the closet, dressers, laundry baskets, storage bins - EVERYWHERE. I went through and got rid of something like $500 worth of clothes. (Pretty sure that's what Goodwill banked of my donation.) As for everything else, I put it away. I turned the "as-needed storage" shelf in my closet into a "sweater" shelf and, by getting rid of so much, gained back a ton of room in my dressers and closet.
ReplyDeleteI just moved, and my tastes have changed, so I might be due for another big closet purge.
i got nada. my closet looks horrible. stepping over things and everything... lol but I must say that AWESOME people had birthdays this week {mine was on tuesday}!! so.. HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY!! :) hope you enjoyed the crap out of it! ;)
ReplyDeleteI would sort by item. Pull out ALL sweaters so you can see all of them. Then decide how many you think would be reasonable to keep and only keep that many. Repeat with t-shirts, jeans, pants, dresses, skirts, ect... Good luck!
ReplyDeleteHappy belated birthday. Both my husband and son had their birthdays this week too. My closet looks quite a lot like yours, I only have just over a door´s width of space, and although I have donated a lot of clothes, I still have plenty I don´t use. My dream would be to have a huge walk in closet...
ReplyDeleteMy aunt gave me great advice once. Put items you are unsure about in a box, SEAL IT, and write the date on the seal. If, after one year, you didn't open the box, it shows you don't need the items in it for any season and GET RID OF IT STILL SEALED. Be strong. ;)
ReplyDeleteI'm sure lots of your readers would be happy to buy some clothes off of you, your style is just too good to go straight in the bin! I'd rather shop in your closet than in a mall any day of the week. If you wanted, the proceeds could go to charity (or the new mortgage :p)
ReplyDeleteI did the same thing to my closet about six months ago. I ended up doing it Tim Gunn Style - I went through and took EVERYTHING out of my closet. Then I sorted it into keep, toss, donate piles. The keepers all had to be in good condition, something I wear often, and flatering. The toss pile was anything that shouldn't be worn - holes etc., and the donate pile was clothes that don't fit properly or I don't like but were still in good condition those went to goodwill. Honestly, I cut out about 90% of the items in my closet, which made it so much easier to see what I was missing and or make new. It's also made it easier, since that initial purging, to be more criticle of whats hanging in my closet, and if I saved soemthing or bought something that I ended up not wanting, or that I thought fit but didn't really, it's been a lot easier to let go of those. The result is that I now have a closet of clothes that I do love and wear often, and it's been a lot easier to shop for new because I know if it'll "fit" into what I already own well or not.
ReplyDeleteI've been feeling the same about my closet too! I'm having a serious closet purge this weekend, and found the tips here useful: http://kendieveryday.blogspot.com/p/working-closet.html
ReplyDeletegood luck with it!
Definitely start by pulling EVERYTHING out. Toss/Goodwill everything that you KNOW you won't wear again, or that you know is worn out. And toss everything that requires you to lose/gain 10lbs. Now go through and get rid of anything that you have too many off (no one needs 8 pairs of jeans, but if you wear the same kinds of clothes to work every day, make sure you have enough work clothes). Be ruthless. Organise accessories and shoes too. And try to limit your wardrobe to mostly clothes that broadly go with each other, so if necessary you can grab a skirt and a top from anywhere in your wardrobe and they will match (or at least mis-match tastefully).
ReplyDeletehappy birthday! as for the closet, sure, I've looked back at things I've given away over the years with some regret, but generally speaking, I keep my closet pretty slim and feel okay about it. I have a handful of "just in case" basics that I never really wear (suit jacket, super fancy dress, funeral item) and then I keep the rest to what I'll really want to wear everyday. I think the age old thought is true: if you haven't worn it in a year, think long and hard as to why you need to keep it. and no, just because you made it doesn't automatically mean it stays :)
ReplyDeleteHappy birthday!
ReplyDeleteBefore moving here to Portland from Austin, I had to do a ruthless cull of my closet. I've kept it up and cull at least twice a year. With the exception of my wedding dress and a good interview/wedding/funeral suit, if I haven't worn it in the last year, it gets donated. My husband and I have a 1950's sized closet, so we don't have a lot of space. We have a set number of matching white plastic hangers that limits our clothing: if we run out of hangers, it's time to cull again. Our guest room/coat closets have different color hangers, to prevent "cheating." This system ensures that I look at what I own and evaluate it from time to time: do I love it? does it make me look great? etc.
Look into "Huggable Hangers" by Joy Mangano! They are super slim, firm, stylish & slip resistant! I absolutely love mine and will never go back to regular hangers. I had all wooden hangers before I discovered her hangers and I had no space in my closet whatsoever! Her hangers honestly cut my hanging space down at least 60%! They can be a bit pricey but keep a look out for one of her appearances on HSN, she often does great event prices and free shipping. I can't say enough good things about them!
ReplyDeleteI agree with the comment about the Joy Mangano hangers! When they arrive at your door, you really want to get into that closet and purge and organize.
ReplyDeleteHappy belated birthday!!!
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad I'm not the only one with this problem! I recently went through and gave my sister a bunch of my stuff but STILL have too much. I'm so lucky (in a way...sorta) that at the moment, my fiance and I are packing our whole house to put it away in storage - that's right, everything! We are moving into my parents spare bedroom for 6 months while we save up the last of our money to buy our own place. That means that I have VERY limited wardrobe space. So, I'm having to box away the majority of my weardobe and shoes, and try to only pull out pieces to take that I will wear in the next 6 months. So in a way, I'm doing exactly what you are planning! The difference is, mine will be in storage and slightly less accessable.
As I was packing things away the other day, I came to the realisation that when I finally get around to unpacking it in our new place, I'm probably not going to want half of it. I'm hoping that this forced separation will make me realise that I don't need half the pieces I am holding on to, and will help me clear it out! I have to say though, the hardest thing to decide a limited amount to take of was my shoes...oh how I will miss them!!
Good luck with your wardrobe cleanout!!!
You all are so supportive! Glad to know I'm not the only one with too much of a good thing.
ReplyDeleteIt's a little scary but I will do my best this weekend! Thanks for the tips and links.
I'm also inspired by the 30 pieces/30 outfits concept just as a reminder that you can look cute in the same pieces over and over again! http://kendieveryday.blogspot.com/p/30-for-30-remixes.html
Hi Suzannah, I did a closet organization post this summer here:
ReplyDeletehttp://satinbirddesigns.blogspot.com/2011/07/closet-organization-purse-storage-and.html
Lots of pics are included.
I highly recommend the flocked, slim hangars such as Huggable Hangars or something similar. The key to keeping it neat and happy is routine maintenance.
The days when hubby and I shared a small closet was tough, but neatness made it bearable. Good luck!
Oh, I should have added this when I commented above...
ReplyDeleteI worked with Jason Segel (from Forgetting Sarah Marshal) this last spring on a film called the Five Year Engagement. I thought you'd like to know he is truly a really nice guy, was funny and has a seriously goofy laugh that if he accidentally uses on camera the director makes him redo the scene with a fake laugh that is not so geeky. Gotta love that guy! :)
amazing post, great blog
ReplyDeletecome follow the first ever fashion blog from a Guys POV, let He know what you think
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@Kim...
ReplyDeleteOH. MY. GOD. That is amazing!!!! My husband and I are huge Jason Segel fans. LOVE him! You must have an amazing job!
Gorgeous! Organization is the key to everything!
ReplyDeleteI've been feeling the same about my closet too!
ReplyDelete