While we could use an entire room, our closet is more like the size of a pantry. If anyone can help us get organized, it's Peter Walsh, expert organizer (and frequent Oprah guest)...
My closet isn’t that big, but I love everything in it. How can I make more room without getting rid of anything?
A fundamental rule in getting organized is to accept that you only have the space you have. You must respect the physical limits that your closet places on you and pare down your clothing. For me, it’s very straightforward. You should only have three types of clothing in your closet: things that fit you now, things that you love, and things that make you feel great or that you get complimented on wearing. Everything else should go!
You should especially get rid of ‘wish’ clothes; those items that you hope one day to fit into again. ‘Wish’ clothes exist for one reason – to mock you! Open your closet space by discarding all those things that you don’t wear or haven’t worn in a long time. You wear 20% of your clothing 80% of the time. If you don’t believe me, today when you go home turn everything that is on a clothes hanger in your closet back to front. For the next six months, every time you wear an article of clothing, return that item to the closet with the hanger facing the correct way. At the end of six months, whatever is still hanging back to front, you should consider discarding.
If you could recommend one organization product, what would it be?
One great tool in getting organized is the trash bag! Before you run screaming for this suggestion, hear me out. Often, clutter is overwhelming and you don’t know where to start. If that’s you – or if you just want to get on top of the clutter in your home – you and everyone in your home should consider doing the Trash Bag Tango for just 10 minutes a day.
Here’s how it works: Set aside 10 minutes and have everyone in your home grab two trash bags. You wander around your home filling the first trash bag with garbage – old newspapers, soiled clothing, discarded food containers – anything that belongs in the trash. In the other, you put things that you no longer need or use or want – these are items for donation to charity or for a yard sale (if you’re ambitious!). If two of you do this for just 10 minutes a day, in one week you’ll have 14 bags of trash and 14 bags of items for donation – that’s pretty impressive. This is the reason that the humble trash bag is right at the top of my list of ‘organization products'!
Peter Walsh is a noted international organization expert, New York Times best-selling author, TV personality, and radio host who characterizes himself as part-contractor and part-therapist. Walsh is currently a regular on The Oprah Winfrey Show where he coaches viewers to “de-clutter their homes, their heads, and their lives so that they can live in a better space.”
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