Confessional: I am an Organization Freak

True story: in a reference letter that my high school Business Studies teacher wrote for my college application, she put: “I have never met anyone as freakishly organized as Anna.” That statement tormented me for a while as I tried to work out whether this was a compliment or not. She was known for writing pretty encouraging college reference letters, so I had to hope that even if it wasn’t meant as a personal compliment, it would help my application. But still…I can’t deny it. I like things to be organized, and I am a bit anal about it at times. I think I’m still on this side of being OCD…but ask me in a few years, maybe it’ll keep getting worse :).

Either way, we’re moving next weekend (YAY!) to a place with a water view and…drum roll please…a larger closet for me! I get a larger bedroom too, but I am most excited about the closet. It’s about 50% longer than the one I currently have, and deeper too. And at the moment, my current closet is all half-length (you know, there are two rails over each other so there’s no place for full-length coats or dresses to hang). My new closet has a section for full-length items to hang, then two shorter sections and then shelves – all built in. Yay!Still, the organization does not stop there. I want to do away with having to have dressers and chests of drawers cluttering up my bedroom and keep all clothing items in the closet, as much as possible anyway. So my closet organization planning went into overdrive, as did my credit card, as I hit up Bed, Bath & Beyond. Below are the damages (all amounts in Canadian $ but they are all available on Bed, Bath & Beyond’s US site too).

Purchase #1:

Real Simple Slimline hangers. $29.99 for a box of 50.

These were a great purchase – they’re textured so they’re non-slip, and they’re thin so they take up far less space in the closet. Plus, you can purchase clips for them to make them into skirt hangers and they have hooks so you can cascade hang the hangers or hang belts/ties etc from the hooks. I love the colour of the ones I bought too – I got them in the sea-green/blue colour you can see in the picture above.

Purchase #2:

Shoes Under shoe storage organizer, $9.99.

This holds up to 12 pairs of shoes (Bed, Bath & Beyond’s Real Simple line has one that holds more if you need it). It will store flip flops and sandals when fall/winter forbid me from wearing open-toed shoes, and closed-toe shoes in summer. You can see what you’ve got through the top so just pull it out from under your bed and grab what you need. I store my evening shoes year-round, and just pull the pumps from it when I need them. It keeps them in good condition that way!

Purchase #3:

Walnut belt spinner (also could be used for ties or scarves), $6.99.

I’m not going to argue against anything that spins. How handy is that?

Purchase #4:

Real Simple purse organizer. $19.99.

I love that this has straps to hold purses in and little shelves for them to hang on. What this means is they are clearly displayed so you can see what you have and clutches or bags without straps can also be stored without risk of them falling onto the floor. There are only four shelves on each side but you can double up as there is lots of space on each shelf.

Purchase #5:

Crystal Clear Vinyl 37-pocket Hanging Jewellery Organizer. $9.99.

I am using this just for earrings as I have a lot of big earrings, but technically the last two rows give you larger pouches – the second to bottom row gives you two medium-sized pouches that I suppose you could use for bracelets, and the last row is just one long pouch that they probably want you to use for necklaces, but I have these long feather earrings and it holds them perfectly!

Purchase #6:

This one is from IKEA. Komplement multi-use hanger, $9.99.

Holds my scarves perfectly! Lots of holes, so if you have tonnes of scarves it will fit all of them, but I like to spread out my scarves, so if you don’t have lots you can use it more sparsely and see all of your scarves clearly.

Still on my wishlist:

This hook rack from Etsy ($26.00). It’s been on my Pinterest for a while (if you’re on Pinterest follow me! Pinterest.com/AnnaWootton). It’s pretty, so I want to install it on the side of my closet and hang my necklaces and bracelets from it. I love the magnetic area which makes it multi-purpose.

This three-tier revolving shoe rack from Bed, Bath & Beyond ($14.99). It will go on the floor in my closet, next to the shelves, for the shoes that ARE in season. I just don’t want to buy it until I’ve moved in and accurately measured the new closet.

What do you think?

Let me know what your organizational secrets are! And I promise, a photo of my newly organized closet will come as soon as I’ve moved in and unpacked!