Shoes, Glorious Shoes!

What's a girl (or guy) to do when her shoe collection has outgrown the floor of the closet?

Like always, it depends on what size space you're working within, as well as how large a collection needs to be stored. With many of these ideas, also pay attention to shoe size. Some solutions won't hold many large sized shoes, while others will. Also, keep in mind how many differently shaped shoes, like tall boots, might need a place to live.

On the floor: The most popular shoe solution is to keep them on the floor, sometimes just on the floor in a row. The next step is to add another layer, like with shoe shelves from Target:
Cubbies, from The Container Store, also work: 


Storing shoes that aren't often worn under the bed or another piece of furniture can work in bins or protective bags.

And, if you've got small floor space, but room to move vertically, think about a shoe wheel, shoe tree or shoe cabinet. These are some of the neatest products out there, but require a specific amount of space. (I'd like to add that the Rakku products, like the shoe wheel, seem amazing, though I've not met one in person).


On the door: There are a variety of on-the-door shoe storage items. All of these are available at The Container Store:




Hanging: Last, but not least, you can explore hanging options, assuming floor and door space are less-than-ideal options. There's the canvas bag to hang in the closet, like this one from Target:

Another that hangs a bit softer, from Organize.com:



And, lastly one, specifically for flip-flops! From Organize-It:
So, keep those shoes where they belong, whether on the floor, the wall or the door. And, as always, only keep shoes that fit and you actually wear!

Let's Talk Earrings

I was asked recently to tackle the task of properly organizing earrings. There are a few things for us to consider, for even this seemingly small item.
  1. How many pairs are there to store?
  2. Are they dangley or studs?
  3. Do you want them hidden away or out in plain sight?
Answers:
  1. Gather all your earrings into one spot...look near the sink, the coffee table, your purse..where ever they may be hiding. Match up the pairs. If there are singles leftover, what is the likelihood of finding the match? If it's not likely (hint: it probably isn't), then toss or donate the loose earring. Count how many pairs are left.
  2. Now, categorize your earrings - studs, dangley pairs, rhinestones, hoops, however it makes sense for how you wear your jewelry. 
  3. If there are some that you wear only for special occasions, those may be better tucked away with formal gowns, while the everyday pairs are visible on the dresser top. How often do you wear earrings? How many do you wear at a time (one hole or three in your ear?)? How often do you change them? For example, my sister has three holes in each ear. But, she never changes the studs in the second and third holes.
Now to the actual putting them away. Some hidden away ideas include
 For earrings that will stay visible, try any of the variety of counter top storage:
 

 : A jewelry stand from Target

A folding screen from The Container Store 
And, a box just for earrings from Bed, Bath & Beyond: Acrylic Earring Keeper

Or, make your own -

From ribbon, like on etsy:

From an old frame and screen, like Restored Style created:  earring-holder

Or, really from any piece of thin cloth that can be hung and/or made taught enough for earrings to poke through. Be aware, that if earrings have backs to them, like with studs, use an organizer where both sides can easily be reached.


Personally, I like keeping my earrings in a jewelry box. It's put away and just the right size for all my jewelry. But, with the clear lid, I can quickly glance inside to view the things I wear most often.

Purses!!!

A lot of my clients struggle when it comes to storing their purses. It's hard to make odd-shaped, floppy things fold, stand or file properly. And, don't mention labeling!! How does one go about labeling a purse? Or, where to put it back or find it when you want to use it?

Just a bit ago, I was helping one such client navigate her way through a great walk-in closet with plenty of square footage. The problem was that she had a great collection of designer purses she wanted to access easily. Because they were nice pieces, she also wanted to keep them stored in the protector bags that came with them. That doesn't make for easy organization. Our stipulations were:
  • Keep them stored in protective bags
  • Easily be able to identify where each bag is and where to put it back
  • All bags, except small clutches, should be stored upright to prevent crushing and squishing
We had our work cut out for us!

First thing's first: we bagged all the purses into their protective coverings. The bags that could easily stand on their own, were "filed" on the closet shelves. To help the softer bags stand tall, we implemented shelf dividers like these. The dividers also helped to prevent smaller bags from slipping underneath larger ones, only to be forgotten about. On one shelf, that had lots of height above it, we used a stackable shelf to make another row of purses above.

After that, it was just a matter of labeling the fronts of the shelves to read a brief description of the purse above. Covered bags: check. Easy identification from labels: check. Nothing squished: check. Take a look:

Site design by Ryan G. Wilson Amy Trager, © 2006-2015