Hats, gloves and coats, Oh My!

Home Chic Home

Prior to going to pick out our Christmas tree and decorate for the holidays. My husband and I decided it was time to purge our home of some substantial clutter. We began with the basement, moved up to the main floor and ended with the upstairs. Santa will be bringing gifts again this year and we wanted to make sure we had room for them. In the end, we donated three SUV fulls to Goodwill and could not park my vehicle in the garage for a week until garbage day rolled around. I consider myself a well organized person without much in the way of clutter, but this exercise might say otherwise. 

However, the mess that started it all was one that nearly sent my Type-A personality into a tailspin. That mess, was all the winter gear that has come out of hiding once again. Our house, unlike our last one, does not have a coat closet. Honestly, what architect designs a house without a first floor closet? Interestingly, this is one of the first things I noticed before buying this house but I figured I could manage. Well, after three winters of tripping over boots, hats and coats, I had had enough. This was the year I was going to find a solution.

So after much debate, it was decided that we would purchase a storage closet to corral all that gear. In the end I had to compromise on its location. I wanted to place it in our family room where we come into our house from the garage however, there currently sits a bookcase filled with my husband's treasured books. He would not budge on moving them to another location so, I gave in. I would rather give up my preferred location in exchange for gaining some sanity back into my life.

Before you could barely open the door due to all the coats and backpacks hanging behind it (see above). Not to mention trying not to trip over all the boots and shoes lining the floor.

Home Chic Home

This is the area near the front door that the new cabinet will sit. The old one just was not able to handle all the hats and mittens that went into it.

Home Chic Home

Here is the after. Ahh, now there is breathing room behind the door. I can actually find the kids backpacks as they head out the door. Coats are not falling to the floor as I try to hang them up or get them down.

Home Chic Home

Boots and shoes are de-cluttered and nicely arranged.

Home Chic Home

Most importantly, the new cabinet is large enough to hold the overflow of coats and snowpants, as well as, shoes, hats and mittens. Each household member has their own bin for hats and gloves so there is no more hunting in the morning for hats or mittens. The drawer at the bottom is the perfect spot for the kids accessories and there is even room for a few pair of shoes.

Home Chic Home

Home Chic Home

Home Chic Home

I cannot tell you how this makes my Type-A personality sing. De-cluttering and being organized not only helps find things faster as we are headed out the door but, brings an overall sense of calm to life's craziness. For me, walking into a clean and uncluttered home after a busy day just brings a sense of calm to my life.

What about you? What clutter headaches do you have? Let me know by commenting below. Maybe you will find me blogging a solution for it soon.