Express Checkout Experiment: My Summer Closet

Well, the weekend came and went and I had too much holiday fun with friends. Not "too much" as in I'm sorry about it, but "too much" as in, yeah, plans went out the window.

But I am now catching up with something I planned to do last week: post pictures of my closets.

This is the closet I am using for my summer clothes. More than 20 pieces, yes, but bear with me. From left to right, we have:

1. Linen blouses in peach, pink, avocado, lime, and turquoise (all the same exact style)
2. Blue cotton blouses (two striped and one solid light blue)
3. White cotton blouses and tunics (two blouses and about six tunics)
4. Cotton jackets (in white and beige)
5. Cardigans (in red and black)
6. Linen jacket, black
7. Dresses, one black and one black/white dots
8. Linen pants (black, tobbaco, and black crop)
9. Jeans (about 4 pair)
10. Skirts (solid blue and rust, patterned lime, red, brown, lime/turquoise, and black/white)

Multiples. With one white purse, one orange tote, and one straw tote as summer bags; one pair brown sandals, one pair black sandals (exactly the same), one pair high-heeled black sandals, one pair red peep toe heels, and one pair black ballerines.

This is my summer wardrobe from the beginning of May through the middle of September--which includes two full months of teaching. In the summer, usually I am also teaching one month and researching in Paris for another... so these carry me through. The versatility comes from the mixing of colors between blouses and skirts (and pants), putting the patterns on the bottom. It is a packable, wearable set of clothes, which solves for me one of the huge style issues I have struggled with for years: what to wear when the temperatures stay above 90 every day and look fresh, cool, and stylish.

Notice: no shorts, no bare arms, no strapless or sleeveless items. Easy to dress up with a cardigan or scarf, and jewelry, but works for meeting students, as well. Note too the space, the color sweep... this is a great, functional closet that makes me feel great. I also gave away a lot of things that weren't right in this mix... or that I never wore, or that didn't fit, or that were too worn.

The last two summers thanks to the return of "lady fashions" I have picked up two skirts each season. Last summer I bought the two solid color skirts -- steel blue and rust -- in Oxford on sale. This summer, again on sale, I bought the lime and brown patterned skirts from Coldwater Creek. All of them are cotton and can be thrown in the washing machine and yes, they need ironing but in the New Apartment, that isn't a problem with space... yay!

Rust, not red, and the spot is on my lens

Badly needs ironing, but the trim is so cute!

My favorite skirt this summer

These pictures, however, are where the problem still lies...


Bad closet, left side



Bad closet, right side

This is where my winter wardrobe and the rest of the stuff I haven't decluttered lives. A smaller two-sided closet, one side with a double rod, again organized by color (although black takes up the entire top rod!), and the other with a single rod, wher my dresses and longer clothes hang. Can't get a  good picture, because of the narrowness of the door and inner space. But I've put the shoeboxes with shoes in regular winter rotation above on the right, while you can see the pile of shoe boxes carrying shoes I don't wear any more... but can't get rid of in the center. Ahhhh!

Come cooler months (late October, maybe), I'll switch out the summer wear to this closet and move the regular winter stuff into the big closet. I hope that will have the same results of clarifying and winnowing out the stuff I don't need. I actually keep both doors open so I cannot hide this stuff.

Which is the first step to admitting I need to fix it, right?