Blog: Life Management TIME TO FACE THAT CHAOTIC STORAGE CLOSET
Do you have one of those closets where everybody's everything is stored? It's probably near an entry way, and everything from outdoor wear to bats and balls to an assortment of screwdrivers finds it way into this closet, right? So, it is really possible to get this closet organize? Yes it is!
It's probably chaotic because so many people use it for handy storage of so many things. Your first goal is to teach everyone how to use this space. Together you'll decide which things really belong in this closet. If there's a better place for the screwdrivers, make sure everyone knows where that place is, and teach them to return all tools to their proper place.
Next, encourage all family members, especially the children to put away his coat, hat, scarf, and gloves. Make it so easy to put things away that each person can't help but do it. Hang sturdy hooks, one for each person, on the back of the closet door. These are for scarves and hats. Put the hooks high for adults, lower for younger children. Assign each person a specific hook. If your closet door doesn't lend itself to hooks, put up a rack on the wall near the door. For mittens, string a clothes line with clothes pins along the back of the closet door. You might write each child's name on the clothes pin so he knows where to put his mittens.
You'll probably want to hang adult coats on the closet rods. Put hooks inside the closet adjusted to the height of your children for their coats. For guests coats, use a coat rack, either the old fashioned kind or a handsome wall rack. It's more convenient that squeezing more coats into the closet. Keep boots and overshoes in a nice box or basket by the entrance or inside the closet.
If your closet is still too crowded, select each person's most frequently worn coats, and assign the rest to another storage space.
Judy Warmington, Woman Time Management (owner) -- Busy wife, mother of three adult/married children, grandmother of 10 (5 boys and 5 girls!), former high school teacher (M.A. from W.M.U.), Speaker, Author, Radio Personality, and Trainer of Professional Organizers.
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