OO: Tips & Tricks: Cleaning The Master Closet, Part 1

Cleaning the closet is one of my favorite activities! I am serious. I know that sounds insane. Getting rid of clothes and making things look nice and tidy makes me sooo happy! Especially when the things I am getting rid of are Scotts' and the items are things like a ridiculous beige, suade shirt that looks like it was worn by pilgrims. He insists that this should be his Thanksgiving shirt. I insist that he has lost his mind.

I told you here that I love to put hooks all over the place for easy storage. Well, guess what... I love to add shelves wherever I can even more. And that is exactly what I did in our closet. Should we play, "spot the shelves Laura added?" Soon, I'm going to let you give the game a whirl.

Generally, this closet stays pretty organized. Whenever we have visitors I throw all of the random things floating around the house in here and close the door. Sometimes it doesn't get back to its beautiful self for a week or two. So, here is the closet during one of its less attractive moments.

Here are the before photos:

Since there is too much clutter to properly play "spot the shelves Laura added" I am just going to give away the answer. And, the answer is... 10 shelves! I also added 6 rows of hooks and a bar for clothes. 

Here are the after photos:

Toward the end of the post I have side by side comparisons because I am a major nerd!

I know it still looks pretty cluttered. But, my intention was to optimize the storage space rather than make it look spacious.

In the photo below, you can see that group of 4 long shelves straight ahead? That was a weekend project of mine. It is great for tshirts. It would be perfect for shoes or bags too. I love that it isn't hidden behind doors and takes no time at all to grab a tshirt. I also love walking into the closet and seeing all those tidy, little rows. Makes me very happy.

Here are some before and after shots next to each other for comparison's sake. 

I painted the closet that funky turquoise color because I wanted it to make me happy when I walked in. Sometimes, putting together an outfit can be overwhelming. At least, with a color like that I am happy and overwhelmed! I added the art because there was an empty wall and I like to have art wherever I can and also because I hid my jewelry behind it (and wrote about it here).

I will be back tomorrow with tips on how to clean closets!