Going to the closet in the morning only to find clothing that is too small, too short, or in the wrong season does not help in using time wisely. Instead of getting my daughter dressed, I am taking time to sort through her clothes searching for something in the right season that will fit.
After finally recovering the last clean suitable outfit, I get her dressed and sent down to breakfast. When I arrive downstairs, I find that spilled milk soaked her top and bottom, and I am back to finding another outfit. Been there? I have more than once. Staying a step ahead of my children’s growths spurts is an ongoing battle, but a great use of my time.
Though I cannot control their growth spurts, I can plan to change their clothing at least twice a year. I prefer spring and fall before the heat and cold arrive. With fall upon us, I am in the process of organizing my children’s clothing. Last week, I shared STEP ONE of my 5-step process. Today, I will take you along as I purge my youngest daughter’s clothes.
STEP TWO: Purge
In my daughter’s nursery, her clothes are housed in the closet and dresser. There are also items in the coat closet, diaper bag, and car. In switching out her clothing, I began with the largest supply found in her closet.
Closet
As I checked each label for the size, I took out any 12-18 month clothing and most of the summer items. As I went item by item, I folded the clothing and set them in piles by size and type (winter or summer).
If I never dressed my daughter in an item of clothing, then I placed it in a donation pile. I would rather someone use the item than to save it for the off chance that I might use it someday.
After purging one rack and placing those items in piles, I went to the next. When the closet was complete, I moved to the dresser.
Dresser
In checking these labels, I kept her 18 month bottoms since my daughter has just outgrown her 12-month pants. As I pulled out items too small for her, I rearranged the piles of clothing in the drawers to allow more room for larger sizes.
Each out-grown item was folded and added to the correct sized clothing pile. Going drawer by drawer, I quickly purged the entire dresser. Then I searched the rest of the house for her clothes.
Coat Closet
In the coat closet, I purged the winter hats, mittens, and coats. These items were added to the appropriate piles in her room.
Diaper Bag
Since I keep a change of clothing in her diaper bag, I needed to take out the smaller size and replace it with a larger size when I get to STEP FOUR. For now, I just removed the smaller sized items.
Car
The last place I checked for her clothing was in the car. My children have a tendency to get dirty, so I keep a spare set of clothing in the car. These items were now too small for my daughter, so I added those items to the piles in her room.
Whew! With lots of clothing piles waiting to be packed away in STEP THREE, I am left with a bare closet and a semi-empty dresser. Though my process is still underway, the progress is moving forward. In using time wisely, I will soon have the correct sized clothing in place making the morning routine less eventful. Happy organizing!
Question: Do you consign your clothing or give it away? Please add your answer to the comments.