Simplify your life: Your closet

2015 is almost here and I would like to start the new year a little differently. In the past two months I felt rushed, pressured, overwhelmed and dissatisfied by my everyday life. It was a paradox feeling, I was being overwhelmed by events and activities, yet empty and unhappy. I realized I need to change something and I decided to simplify my life. I believe with a clean and organized home comes a clean and organized life and to simplify my home, simplify my closet, my meal and financial planning and my free time I will feel more content and happy with my life. So I started with the most logical place, my closet. And let me tell you I already feel much better.

I separated my clothes into two categories, hanging and folded. Hanging clothes are all cardigans, pants, blouses and dresses. Folded are all tank tops, sweaters, scarves and jeans. I have four shelves in my walk in closet, so I organized my clothes by the way I will put them on in the morning. Tank tops on top, sweaters in the middle and pants on the bottom. In the morning, I will simply pick a blouse, sweater, necklace and pants and voila! Easy-peasy outfit. I generally don't wear skirts and dresses much as I bike to work so I put them to the end of the closet not to distract me in the morning. I used to have them with my other clothes in the front and let me tell you, they were very distracting! 

I am a very visual person and love to organize things by color. Blouses are my go-to basics so they deserve to hang at the very front of my closet. I organized them by color so it's easier to see what I have and what should I wear. 

Here is how my closet looks like after simplifying it. Winter clothes are in the front, with blouses, sweaters and pants, while summer clothes rest in the back. I am not tempted to grab a summer dress and "make it work" with dark tights and boots, I am not distracted by the bright summer colors that would feel out of place in the end of December, and my closet looks less cluttered and more organized. When spring comes I will simply swap sides!

Last but not least, here is my jewelry. I use two organizers, an actual jewelry tree for my necklaces and a wine rack for my bracelets. They are nested on my very top shelf even though those are the accessories I pick the last... but if they were at the bottom, my cat would have a feast on my baubles! 

Here are some tips on how to simplify your closet: 

TIP 1: Separate your clothes into two piles, for folding and for hanging. Chances are, you are more likely to wear something that is not wrinkled and creased, so simplify your life with this easy first step.

TIP 2: Evaluate what you wear on everyday basis and what is for special occasions only. Move the items you wear a lot to the front of the closet and whatever you don't wear as much (sweaters in Florida, shorts in Anchorage) to the back of your closet so they won't distract you when making a decision what to wear.  

TIP 3: Divide your wardrobe into two sections, weather appropriate and not weather appropriate. Stick the not weather appropriate items in the back, again, to simplify your choice in the morning, and swap when the seasons change. 

TIP 4: Organize your clothes by color. Not only it makes it easier to pick from in the morning, it also lets you know what color you prefer and what color is lacking in your closet. 

What are your tips on organizing your closet? Let me know in comments below!