Washingtonian Names Ten Top Stylists in DC

The March issue of Washingtonian features ten of the best personal stylists in DC, including yours truly! Other great articles include office organization tips from Kacy Paide, a professional organizer who has been featured in my blog, and a fashion spread on spring's big trend, Flower Power. Read through my profile in the article below, and be sure to check out this month's issue (page 190) for additional closet organization tips. 

The Container Store Did Not Pay Me For This One

Meurice Garment Care asked me to answer some customer questions for a blog post this week. One of the questions, how to deal with the challenge of a NYC sized closet (small!), was so much fun to answer, I decided to share it with my blog readers as well. As a bonus, my dear readers get an extra tip and pictures! And lots of links to items you can buy at The Container Store!

The original question, from Mary Lynn Halland, is this: How should NYers with small closets (isn't that all of us?) organize their clothes. It's hard to figure out what to wear when you can't see everything at a glance. Bingo! Mary has found the root of the problem and I'm here with 6 tips to help you solve your space challenges.

Tip #1. Make more space with skinny hangers. And no, I don't mean the kind from the corner dry cleaner! Flocked velvet hangers, such as the Huggable Hanger line, protect the shape of your clothes and use MUCH less space than wooden, metal or plastic hangers.

Huggable Hangers

Tip #2. Double your hanging space for $9.99! Everyone to whom I've shown this simple, inexpensive fix, is amazed at the impact it has on their storage space.

Double Hang Closet Rod

Tip #3. Only the clothes you are currently wearing should be hanging in your closet. Put off-season clothes in beautiful fabric bins which you can stack vertically on the top shelf of your closet or another out of the way place. Black tie clothes you wear once a year should also find a new home. Sandals can go in underbed boxes, replaced by boots in the summer.

Baroque Fabric Bins

Tip #4. Repurpose furniture. I believe that out-of-sight equals out-of-mind. Why not stack sweaters and tee shirts on an open bookshelf, instead of away in a dresser?

Verona Four Shelf Bookcase from World Market

Tip #5. Throw away your shoe boxes! The original boxes, that is. Replace them with clear shoe drawers. This allows you to stack many more pairs on the top or bottom of your closet while making them truly accessible.

Clear Shoe Drawers

Tip #6. Put like with like. This may sound elementary to those of you who are naturally organized, but most people don't naturally take this step. You want pants with pants, skirts with skirts, and short sleeve tees with the other short sleeve tees, not the long sleeve or sleeveless ones! How would you know whether or not you needed a fresh white button down shirt if they are scattered around the closet? You wouldn't! Therefore you would buy a new one when they went on sale each season. This sounds like a smart strategy until you gather them all together in one place and realize your have many, many more than you would ever need. Shall we see if said shirt buyer can identify himself ?????

To Keep or Not to Keep

Last week I gave you 5 strategies to use when buying clothes while you are not at your usual size. This week I am telling you what to do with all of the clothes that don't currently fit.

1. EDIT, EDIT, EDIT. If an item of clothing is dated, worn, or in the wrong color now, you can bet you won't want to wear it in two years when you are done losing your baby weight. Only save the REALLY good stuff.

2. TRY ON EVERYTHING IN YOUR CLOSET. Yes, I mean everything. The other day I was freaking out that I had NOTHING to wear to a weekend of wedding events in June. Then I actually tried on the dresses hanging in my closet. Lo and behold, I actually had enough in there that fit to get me through the weekend. Ka-ching! Money and time saved shopping for new outfits.

3. WHERE TO PUT IT ALL. Your closet is not the place for size 4 skinny jeans if you are currently a size 8. Those clothes go in a labeled, organized, clear bin somewhere you don't have to look at them. Your closet is the place for a few of your favorite size 6 pieces that you will use to gauge if you are back in that size. I put my usual go-to wedding outfits, my prized collection of Alberta Ferretti dresses, hanging together in the corner of my closet, to remind me how much I want to get back into them!

4. ADDRESS YOUR LIFESTYLE. Are you now a stay-at-home or work-at-home Mom? Then you probably won't need all of the suits you wore for your life as a banker when you were 25. Miniskirts and tops you wore to the bar where you met your husband 10 years ago should also go, even if they still fit.

5. BE GENEROUS. A great reason to edit ruthlessly is to give to others. Hang onto those suits for another 5 years and they might be too dated for someone else to wear. Donate them now and a woman in need can wear them to a job interview.

One final word of advice: Don't be afraid of empty space in your closet. The less you have, the more  you will wear. Trust me.

The Elfa Closet System by Container Store

Do You Control Your Closet or Does Your Closet Control You?

Has your dream closet been within reach all along? Could there be a $10 solution to what seems like a million dollar problem? You are not as limited by your space as you think you are.

It is amazing to me how many people give up on their wardrobe due to perceived limits in their physical space. What is it that Oprah says?  "It was all in your control the whole time." Exactly!

I recently conducted a Closet Makeover for a woman with a typical NYC closet: tall and narrow, without enough hanging space. Being forced to fold most of her clothing (never a good idea!) meant that she had to sift through piles every morning when trying to get dressed for work. A woman with two children under the age of 5 is never going to have neat, folded piles on open shelves. This is why I avoid them at all costs except for easily identifiable items such as bulky sweaters or jeans.

Most New Yorkers without enough closet space think they’ll have to invest an extra million in a new apartment before they can enjoy a closet that works for them. Au contraire! The solution to this closet conundrum? The previous owner of the apartment had actually installed an Elfa system from the Container Store (25% off until Sept 4^th!) in my client's bedroom closet.  Our solution was removing some shelves, adjusting the placement of others, and installing a new hanging bar in the closet.  10 minutes and $10 later, et voilà! My client 's dream closet had been within her reach all along.

The client did commit to some major wardrobe editing.  Who doesn’t need to edit after two children and a career and country change? The results were a functional closet filled only with clothes that fit and flattered her, a targeted shopping list to complete her wardrobe, and an understanding of how to dress her “new” body type.  Most importantly, she found her dream closet!