organizing

I shop for clothes twice a year. I’ve got a repeating event on my calendar every Febraury 7 and August 7 to clean out and organize my closet and figure out what I want and need for the upcoming season.

The big new clothing months are March and September. It’s easy to tell that because the fashion magazines are the fattest those months. Used clothing and end of season sales aren’t much of an option for me at my size (8 or 10 extra tall, 36″ inseam minimum and my arms are ridiculously long too). Tall sized long sleeve tops tend to be particularly hard to find and go particularly fast so I need to be ready to snap up the ones I like. I can wear regular sizes for short sleeved or sleeveless items but since those are easier to find I already have enough and I’m not focusing on shopping for them anymore.

So a month early I start getting ready. Here’s my routine to prepare my list:

1. Get all of your clothes into ready to wear condition. Everything that you are not wearing at this moment should be washed and put away. If you need to dry clean or repair anything now is the time to do it.
2. If your closet is not currently organized, it’s time to get started. Making It Lovely’s closet was my inspiration.
3. Weed out anything you haven’t worn in a year or more. For shelved items, I always put the most recently cleaned (and thus most recently worn) items away on top. Hung items get put away on left. This way I know that any items on the bottom or on the right of their groups are the items I wore longest ago.
4. Start making a list of anything you need (remember to include items for upcoming special occasions, undergarments, pajamas, socks, outerwear).
5. Start looking through catalogs, fashion magazines (visit your library to save a few bucks), and online. Tear out, wishlist, or bookmark anything you like now for future reference. Don’t look at catalogs or fashion magazines the rest of the year or you’ll be tempted to shop then too.

I’ve just finished steps one and two so I’ll share a few pictures of my organized closet with you.

Overview of the Whole Closet

Left side with sweaters on the shelf, dressy tops, short and long sleeve work shirts, blazers, skirts, suits, and dresses.

Right side with purses on the top shelf, followed by jewelry and accessories, casual shirts, pajamas, pants, shorts, capris, jeans, and shoes. Belts and tall boots at the far end.

I’m working on steps three, four, and five now. My list of needs so far includes wet weather appropriate shoes for work and sweaters since I wore out several of my favorites over the past year. When September rolls around, I’ll be ready to shop. Check back then and I’ll give you a rundown of my shopping process along with tips to stay on budget and maximize your wardrobe with that budget.

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