To Everything a Place: Week 3 – Kids’ Closet

This has been bugging me for a looooong time now.  Every time I’d walk into their room, I’d cringe opening the closet doors!  Maybe this will help you understand why:

Outgrown clothes piled on the floor.  Their stash of “treasures” thrown haphazardly here and there.  Toys stuffed in whatever available spot they could find.  A hamper with a lid that never stays on.  A shoe organizer that is really only half full of shoes and shoes that are outgrown or worn once a week!  A crazy closet, to say the least!  One that needed some TLC before the boys get any older and I realize they haven’t learned how to keep a closet clean!  That’s a scary thought when I think of any future wives that could be in the picture someday!  Eek!

I worked on taking most everything out and sorting through it, purging broken, unloved toys and just grouping like things with like things!  That in itself was a job!  Here’s what I was able to get done this week:

The details:

1.  A weekly organizer for clothes.  They love it and so do I!  I help them choose and fold outfits for the school week and then we put them in the appropriate slots.  This has eliminated one step in the nightly bedtime routine!  Bonus!

2.  Fabric bins for the top shelf (ClosetMaid brand from Target) for less frequently used things such as Leapster components, swimming clothes, sweatshirts/sweatpants, audio books, etc.  I plan to label these with tags.

3.  Clothes organized by colored hangers.  Their school and church clothes are hanging on the top closet rod on blue hangers.  Their play clothes are on the bottom closet rod on white hangers.  I will put their shirts on hangers down in the laundry room while folding laundry and they will be responsible for taking them to their room and hanging them in the appropriate places.  A few less trips up the stairs for me!  Another bonus!

4.  Old jeans on a shelf for weekends and visits to the grandparents’ farm.  Their school jeans are folded in their dresser across the room, but this may change as they do still have room on the lower closet shelf!  I’m just a bit hesitant to do so as I am envisioning the two getting mixed eventually if stored in the same area.

5.  Step stool for reaching those fabric bins so little monkeys don’t feel they have to climb anymore.

6.  Future:  Bookshelves installed by DH inside the closet to the left.  They have a good collection of books, some of which I have designated for donation.  Other things could be stored there temporarily also such as outgrown or seasonal clothes.

I still need to put the outgrown clothes into plastic storage totes and sort through a couple small collections of miscellaneous little items I found buried in the original mess, but I feel like I don’t have to close my eyes and hold my breath when I open the closet doors anymore!  I’m sure guests will appreciate it too since this is currently our guest room!