One of the things that most families deal with as the nice weather arrives is the switchover from winter clothing to spring and summer clothing. Make a plan now so this transition is as easy as possible.
At the end of the season it is time to go through clothing with the plan to donate anything that no longer fits or that family members haven’t been wearing. Get a donation bag handy and be ruthless.
The way I handle seasonal clothing is to pack off-season items into under the bed bins and get it out of the prime real estate of my closets when it isn’t in use. I label the ends of the bins so I can quickly spot whose is whose when I look under the bed. There are certain things that will stay out all year round, but pack away anything you can so you aren’t rooting by it to get to the things you regularly use.
Instead of labelling a bin Donna’s winter clothes, I label it Donna’s off-season clothes. This is working smarter not harder! The label is always accurate and I don’t need to change it each season.
Remember now is the time to get a few bags of donations packed up and delivered to your Thrift Shop!
Keeping up on changing seasons and sizing with young children can almost be a full-time job! Labelling bins accurately when you pack things away is half the battle. Through the years Rhonda used the strategy to project ahead on items as to when she predicted her girls would wear them. Instead of just labelling the bin Selena’s winter clothes, she would label it Selena winter 2014 or 2015 etc. This way it was pre-sorted and she could easily access things at the proper time and didn’t miss out on using things when they fit.
A great idea for labelling large bins of children’s clothing is to attach a page protector on the end. It is easy to slide new labels in to replace old ones when contents change.
The entryway closet is something to think about at this time of year. My closet is very tiny so I have a plan to give it a new layout at the season change.
In spring and summer I need more room for shoes, sandals and flip flops and less room for hanging bulky coats. I use a 12 inch wide velcro cubby hanger on my bar so that I have lots of room in it to store footwear. This cuts down on my hanging space, but that works for our family because coats for this season are light weight and don’t take up as much room.
In the winter I allowed the full space of my hanging rod for coats and I have a boot tray in the bottom and an extra shelf insert on the upper level. This makes best use of the space there for a few pairs of shoes but mostly for bins of gloves, hats and scarves for each member of the family.
I have a bin labelled Off Season that I keep in my basement. In the winter I have sun hats, sandals, sunscreen, bug spray etc. in it. In the summer I have winter hats, gloves, scarves and boots in it. Again, note that by labelling it Off Season I never have to change the label and it is always accurate.
Be sure to check out our Heart of the Matter Pinterest Boards for lots of great ideas for closets, entryways and organizing with kids.
While we are talking closets at the change of seasons, this the perfect time to think about a quick & easy tip that will give you some real insight into what items in your closet you really wear on a regular basis.
Today, go to your closet and switch all your hangers so that your clothing items are hanging backwards on the bar.
Then as you wear each item and return it to its hanger, switch the hanger and hang it the proper way.
At the end of the season you’ll know that anything that is still hanging backwards you didn’t wear. It can be very revealing!
The stat is that we wear 20% of our clothes 80% of the time. I think we all know its true. We all have our favourites…..the most comfortable…..the things we look the best in.
I gave this a try a few years ago in the spring. I made sure that when I got my summer clothes out that everything I hung up (backwards) were things that fit me and that I liked. It was amazing at the end of the season how many things were still hanging backwards. Things I liked, but just didn’t wear at all that season.
As women, it is easy to look in our closet (or closets) and say ‘’‘yes – I wear all that stuff”. Try this backwards on the bar test. You might be surprised at the results.
Men, you aren’t off the hook for this one. In our business we see lots of closets and know that men can have quite a collection of clothing too. Switch your hangers around too and at the end of the season, if there are still things that are hanging backwards, maybe you’ll decide to get together a bag to pass along as donations.
Another area that needs to be DEFROSTED in the Spring is the garage or shed.
Family members will soon be wanting to access bicycles and skipping ropes so the seasonal switch needs to happen!
Make this a family project! Determine a set time that you will spend in the garage or shed and decide on what you want to accomplish. Assign each person to their task and set the timer. Everyone commits to working hard and fast and you will be amazed at what you can accomplish. Think about jobs such as:
- moving the snow blower & snow shovels away from the door and into the back corner. If you don’t already have a spot to hang the shovels this would be a perfect time to do that.
- being sure that the winter toys are tucked back into their proper bin or are stored on the upper shelves again for the summer.
- scanning the space to see if there are items that should go into the garbage or donation bag.
- bringing the bikes from their winter storage spot to a spot that is close to the door and easily accessible.
- sweeping the floor
Be sure to check out our Heart of the Matter Pinterest Boards for lots of great garage and storage organizing ideas
Feeling overwhelmed at the thought of tackling these projects on your own? Heart of the Matter can help! We have BIG SAVINGS on our package pricing THIS WEEK ONLY! Check it out! SAVINGS OF UP TO 25% OFF OUR PACKAGES!! We would love to be your success partner as you DEFROST this Spring and meet your organizing goals!
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
When the world says “give up”, Hope whispers “try it one more time”!