10.11.2011

Closet rotation

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I've had a few requests for how I rotate my closet. Basically, I have so many clothes, and an average size closet, so I rotate seasonally to ensure everything "gets a turn". So here's how I do it. There is little method to the madness.
First, ALL clothes and accessories come out of the closet. All my cotton sundresses and petticoats on the bed. Shoes and purses in the living room.

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The coats and jackets are piled on the couch, having been stored at my grandmothers. Also unpacked sweaters and skirts from a huge cedar chest we have, all contents covering the floor, my house is a mess!

Kitty enjoyed it very much of course. Can you spot him?
 
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Vacuum out all the dust and kitty fuzz (so much kitty fuzz!)
 
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And start with the shoes. Boots! Yay! I had just realized that this vintage shoe rack expands. It was a very
exciting moment.
 
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For placing clothes back in the closet it goes as follows: Pick items I know WILL be worn, and that are easy to wear. For example, this dress got worn a lot last autumn, so it goes in the closet first. Then I put in items I want to wear, but may not be everyday things, like this dress.
 
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I don't have a dresser for knits, so I fold them and put them in this hat storage box. Anything knit (or crochet) should be folded, NEVER on a hanger. If you hang them for a long period of time, they'll get those
weird hanger bumps in the shoulders.
 
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And a moth sachet goes in with the knits. These smell pretty good, nothing like musty mothballs.
 
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My one exception for hanging knits is for my mustard sweater. I hang it on a padded hanger at the front of
my coat rack, since I wear it nearly everyday it's best to have easy access to it.
 
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All summer items are packed away. I organize them by tops, bottoms, and dresses, in bins under my bed, suitcases around the house (great decor and storage!), and the cedar chest mentioned earlier. I have one bin under my bed, right across from my closet that have some fall-ish items in there that wouldn't fit in the closet,
just in case I want to wear them, but don't want to dig through everything else.

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And 2.5 hours later, finished fall closet with dresses, blouses, skirts, sweataers, purses, and shoes...
 
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And another rack holding coats and jackets (and my colorful gloves in the back).

As you can see in the closet photo, not everything is confined to the racks. I never close the closet doors, so robes, belts, and little furry foxes go on them. No space left unused!

 "I see your closet, but where's your bedroom?"
 -My comedian 8 year old nephew.

44 comments:

faith said...

Your clothing collection is incredible. Truly. I am in awe.

art deco dame said...

Jealous,table for one!

Sarah said...

Mmm... closet porn...
Not only was it a delight to fawn over all your lovely pieces, but this was an extremely informative and useful post! Thankyou for letting us into your closet. I shall continue failing to organise my own room, while simultaneously staring, dreamily, at yours!
p.s. lol at kitty! It took me quite a while to find him! xoxo

two squirrels said...

Oh be still my beating heart! What a treat to see all your treasure's ready to have there day again. Sleep tight pretty summer things. I have to do this same process each season too, I have just unpacked the summer honey's from there sleep. Happiness to you V

Katherine said...

Just the inspiration I needed to clear out my closet! Thanks for the closet porn, hehe. It's always a nice to have a peak.

x
Katherine

cara said...

ha, didn't even see the kitty at first. so cute.

esme and the laneway said...

This is AWESOME! :D

Unknown said...

Closet porn! I am truly in awe of your collection, such beautiful clothes! xx

Juliannie said...

What a lovely inspiring post! I must get right at sorting out my summerclothes and put the warm cosy knits back, because it´s chilly and dark now, brrr.

Anonymous said...

oh my you are so very organised I have to share my wardrobe ( I'm british) with my husband so we half each space is minimal its so annoying all summer clothes get put in a bin liner and popped in the loft .
Lovely photos I always enjoy a peak at other peoples homes
xx fee

Sarah said...

Wonderful!!!
Love this, al lot!!
Thank you for sharing!

Emily Barker said...

Wow that's what I call organised and inspiring. Shall have to follow suit. Enjoy the fall!

alittlevintagestory said...

Lovely inspiration. I can't wait to unpack my summer clothes from their winter hibernation and re-organise my closet too! xx Fran

northwest is best said...

Wow, you have a lot of clothes! Do you sometimes forget about things that you own?

catatan.si.hijau said...

hmm it's cool.. :) thats my dream closet... :)


http://lovesimplegreen.blogspot.com/

Unknown said...

love!! great closet!! I did mine last weekend...such a huge job....but so much happier. Nothing like an organized closet:)

Unknown said...

I love your wardrobe. I am having a bit of a problem with liking the clothes that i have at the moment. Need to go on a little shopping trip I think. My favourite vintage clothing store has closed down now, so it is a bit sad.

Georgie
xx

http://styleprincessdiaries.blogspot.com

Jul said...

I'm so envious of all your dresses!
I also need to need to rotate my closet...
Life is a romantic poem
My first giveaway

Martha said...

Love the tip on the pleasant-smelling moth control. I googled it to find where I could buy some and found this warning so I just wanted to FYI it to you!:

"Notice: California has determined that a chemical contained in this product causes cancer based on tests performed on laboratory animals.

In light of the warning above, we recommend not using this product in your bedroom or any room frequently occupied. Or even better, put it in an airtight container. See below for natural replacement."

Reagan said...

Oh I absolutely love this post. I wish that I could rotate my closet (especially since I just moved into a house with a smaller closet then previous) but its so hard to decide what to put away when you live in Southern California. Last week we had record rain and this week we have record heat for this time of year. And this is a constant occurrence throughout the year. I do have a question for you about your clothes that you pack away...do you throw anything into the boxes to keep them "fresh"? I always fear that they'll smell dusty if I put them away in anything but cedar.

needle and nest said...

I love your nephew's comment - it cracked me up. :) Your closet system (and contents) is incredible!

Fifties Darling said...

Gorgeous!!!! Glad to see you also have a pretty fox :)

Anonymous said...

Is there any room for your husband's stuff??? I have a similar situation at my house. My stuff takes up the entire closet and he get a corner of the top shelf lol.

Mabel
Mabel Time

Ms.Tips said...

man, you're good. can you come over and organize my closet?

Gabrielle Clayvon said...

Where do you buy your Moth Sachettes? I have been looking for an alternative to smelly moth balls since Fall started, but haven't had any luck.

Thanks,
Gabrielle

Emma Litton said...

How great! This is so helpful as I will soon by moving into an apartment with my man and he's already worried about where all my clothes are going to go. I will totally be taking tips from this!

xo,
Em

Mary's Daydream said...

Serious, serious wardrobe envy.

Benny Rey said...

You're closet looks beautiful. I'm curious though, if you never close the doors how do you keep your clothing from getting sun damaged? I know you live in the grey PNW but so do I and I still have things getting bleached out by the in direct sunlight in my room.

Benny Rey said...

Grumble. I meant your.

Solanah said...

Martha, thanks for the warning, I didn't know! Luckily I keep the sachets in an enclosed space, so I'm not really concerned, but when those run out I want to get those little cedar balls. Those also smell so good!

Northwest is best, I do! It's like shopping every season :p

Mabel (love your name btw!) Sam has the coat closet. Some people say happy marriages have separate bathrooms, I say separate closets!

Regan, I don't really have a way, as the containers are airtight. But if I were to do anything, I would probably tuck a dryer sheet in the box, or maybe some dried bits of lavender ;)

xoxo
Solanah

amanda löwenberg said...

Lovely wardrobe!

Lady Lux Vintage said...

I'm seriously drooling over here! You've inspired me to get my closet looking a little better than it does :)

Malayka said...

Wow amazing! It's so interesting to see how other collectors sort their clothes and treasures. My partner and I both collect way too much, although he is ten times worse than I am and I'm fairly certain is closet is going to burst one of these days!

Louzee said...

Nice! I am jealous as well. Solanah must do an outfit post everyday! HAha to your nephew's comment. He will grow up to be a fine man, indeed.

Hep~Kitten said...

Your closet is amazing!!

Julie said...

I love peeking at other people's closets! My closet is tiny; we live in a 1920s bungalow and they didn't really need closets back then! Suppose I should invest in a wardrobe dresser.

Solanah said...

Benny Rey, our curtains are always closed, so no worries there :)

Kerry said...

This is great Solanah - I'm moving house in two days so absolutely EVERYTHING will be packed up into a zillion boxes.

It will be a good chance to really assess what I could put away during the warmer months (southern hemispherian here), such as my big heavy coats.

I've been too nervous to pack things away previously, but when you describe it like shopping it is pretty tempting!

Anonymous said...

Oooh so many clothes and I'm in awe of the amount of jackets and coats you have! I do the same, but am far less organised and my routine also (sadly) usually includes trying things on to see whether they match or still fit right!

The Witchery Vintage said...

I absolutely agree with separate closets lead to a happy life! I love how Kitty (mine too) love to jump in clothes, it's like their supervisory duty! Wait till you see my new shop/closet (14 x 14 room) and of course painted pink!

Plus Size Vintage said...

must admit to a touch of jealousy. But what on earth is a carpet beetle! never heard of such a thing. should I be worried?

Anonymous said...

You do everything so beautifully, I love it!

Unknown said...

I heart your closet and all items in it. Do you ever do 'shop my closet' posts because I would love to buy like one of everything you own haha!

http://heyladylove.blogspot.com

Casey Maura said...

I simply cannot wait to move now, after reading this post! :D I had forgotten how much I do enjoy swapping out summer for fall clothes (the best I've been able to do here in FL is add sweaters into the mix and take out all the sleeveless tops around December...). Now just to figure out how to fit everything in our new place, which has smaller closets... lol. I love the separate closet idea; I might have to work on my husband about that (although it's a bit hard since he has as many clothes as I do with all his uniforms! ;)... Or invest in a couple racks to hang things on! lol.