When I wrote about my inventory list here, I could not have known that this would become one of the most popular posts on here. Besides the comments, I also received a number of emails from friends about it. One of them was inspired enough to start counting her own things – and she claims she owns even more T-shirts than I do…
Anyway, since that post was so successful, I thought I would share one more of my organising tricks. Have a look at the photo below. It shows the hop half of my closet. Notice anything?
Yes, I mean no, this is not all of my clothing, just the things I am wearing at the moment on a daily basis when I go out. There are a few dresses that are too long for this closet which are stored elsewhere, as are my jackets and my black suit. Socks and underwear are stored in drawers at the bottom of this closet, and my winter clothes are tucked away completely right now. So, this is not what I mean.
Look again – notice the colours? Yes, the contents of my closet is sorted by colour, black on one side, white on the other, the other colours in between; shirts to the left, pants to the right, and the T-shirts below are similarly organised. The same holds for my socks and lacy underwear (nope, no pics here ;-)) and even my jewelry. In case you are wondering, it’s not a sign of OCD (I hope), and it is not a requirement of living in Japan either; in fact, I have been doing this for years.
The reason is that in the mornings, at the time when I get dressed, I run on autopilot. And the last thing I want to do in this state is go hunting all over my closet for my favourite *insert colour* T-shirt. The way things are sorted by colour means: If it is not on its pile, it is in the laundry somewhere, so I have to wear something else. This simple organising trick makes my morning routine very simple, stress-free, and autopilot-able.
A side benefit is that you see what you own. And if you have 15 red T-shirts already, it is not quite so easy anymore to buy number 16. Mostly, that is. Why don’t you try it out – maybe on a small part of your closet only? Just pants for example, or just T-shirts. The sorting can be maintained easily, once it has been established; and even the first sorting does not take that much time, promised! As long as you don’t have as many T-shirts as me or my friend, that is…