Categories
Lifestyle

Time to Tame that Tangled Jewelry!

Anyone have that one drawer, you know the drawer I am talking about.  When you open it a huge gasp followed by aggressively shutting the drawer to then slowly open it again to see if anything changes, which it hasn’t so you close the drawer again and run off to brunch.  More specifically the “jewelry” junk drawer.

It is a mix of earrings who have lost their partners, necklaces that are so tangled they look like Medusa’s hair, and then you have the abundance of neon colored 80’s looking bangles that you sweaaaaaar you are going to wear to the next 80’s themed party you are going to be invited to…and when will that happen?

The way that I try and keep all of my jewels organized is that I like to keep them in a place that I can readily have at hand every piece of jewelry I own and it can nice and neatly fit on a bathroom counter. No need to sift through 3 randomn drawers, a medicine cabinet, or in a nightstand drawer to find that perfect accessory to match your outfit for the night.  So I have picked for you guys my top 3 recommendations for jewelry organizers that are super functional and stylish! Click the photo to shop each of them!

  1. Target- Loft by Umbra Avante Jewlery Box $48.00

2. The Container Store- White Supersize Stackers Premium Stackable Jewelry Box

3. Bed, Bath, & Beyond- Mele & Co. Wooden Jewelry Box $70.00

Mele & Co. Wooden Jewelry Box in White

Categories
Lifestyle

Organizing Hack for your Purses!

I remember the houses of certain friends and family that always had that one room where you couldn’t touch anything. The overwhelming temptation of wanting to run in the room, jump on the couch with my shoes on, roll around obnoxiously, and touch literally everything was sometimes overwhelming as an 8 year old. Let me remind you that growing up we definitely did not have that kind of room.  We used each and every corner of our house!

Alas, I feel as though this upbringing has brought me now to the place of the current state of my closet.  No shoes in shoe boxes, no clothing in garment bags, no protective cases for purses…nope…none. I literally am able to touch each and every piece of clothing, shoes, or accessory that I own.  The reason why I prefer this in my closet and for my own clients is that when you are able to see all or a large majority of what you own the more likely you will wear it more often. When pieces are tucked away it feels like when I used to play hide and seek with my older sisters as a child. I would hide and they would “seek” me, but in reality they would go watch MTV while I sat in waiting. Also, who am I kidding we didn’t have MTV or cable for that matter, it was more like America’s Funniest Home Videos.

Now time to chat about my little organizational hack for purses and clutches. Let’s start with dusting off those cloth protective covers for your bags that are piled up in plastic storage boxes out of reach and bring them into the world.  Second, for those of you that own those hanging shoe racks pay attention!  You know the ones I am talking about.  They are box like, hang from the rod of your closet, holds…shoes. Well, depending on the closet space I find this type of storage a bit inefficient since shoes will most likely become piled on top of each other all disheveled like or it becomes the new storage for old sports tees you have not worn in years.  So let’s turn this into something useful!

Start with the style of the clutch or purse.  Casual at the top down to dressy at the bottom.  Typically you are not heading to the Ritz every night, unless you are and then you go girl! For those casual purses they are easy to reach and at eye level. Then organize by size from smallest to largest. The grand finale…stand them up right next to one another! I have pictured below one of my most recent closet clean out sessions with a client where we put this hack into action.  This will keep the condition of the purse to last longer, you can see them better, and it saves space!

Thank you for tuning in friends, now get to organizing!

Categories
Lifestyle

Welcome to the wonderful world of overpacking!

When getting organized it is not only important to give your closet love and care, but also even when you are packing for a trip! Anyone else pack their whole closet when just going for a long weekend? My favorite meme I saw recently was something along the lines of oh, I haven’t worn this top in years I guess I will bring it along with 50 other tops for a one night stay.  It had me cracking up, but then the record screech came on and I was like wait, that is me for real!

So I know that when packing for trips you may be short on time, packing up your kids things too, and the list goes on!  I wanted to share with you my top 3 packing tips going into a long weekend to not only make sure you are bringing only what you need, but also to save money so you are not buying duplicates of pieces you already have in your closet! Here we go:

  1. Jot it Down– I know this can be hard with a busy week, but it is so important! I have gotten into the habit of jotting down a quick day to day itinerary of what my plans are for each day.  This gives you a bit of a visual for starting to think about for what activities with what outfit you may need.
  2. Piles on Piles– After I jot this list I make sure I don’t lose it! Then it is time to hit that closet.  I lay out outfits day by day in piles.  Literally from head to toe what I would be wearing for daytime activities such as hiking or swimming to night time with dresses, accessories, and shoes. After the day to day pile I will also have a pile that is my multiple wear pile, which are typically transitional pieces such as shorts, casual tanks, etc.
  3. Roll Out, Roll Out– There are so many ways to pack your luggage and so much advice out there! I am not telling you guys anything knew, but what has worked best for me is rolling my clothes and lining them up next to one another, it definitely saves space and surprisingly doesn’t wrinkle my clothes as bad.

Here is also a round up of dresses that are easy to pack and are so versatile when traveling for any occasion from birthdays, bachelorette parties, brunches, weddings, or just a good ol weekend getaway!

Photo Cred: Just Janeeka 

Photo Cred: In11Views Photography

Photo Cred: Lisa Kays Photography

Create my Look:

Main Image - Lauren Ralph Lauren Floral Print Bateau Neck Jersey Sheath Dress (Plus Size)  

Categories
Fashion

Parting ways with your pairs of shoes

“These boots are made for walkin and that’s just what they’ll do, maybe one day these boots are gonna walk all over you…well, lately I feel like maybe these boots have been walking a little too much, meaning I have a tendency to wear my shoes to the ground!” That would be my remix to this classic song, can anyone else relate?!

When doing a closet clean out for my size biz, Take 2 Styling, the one piece in many of my clients wardrobes that I see consistently having the most of is shoes! I can totally understand why since a majority of our shoes are seasonal and get put away in a container and up to the attic it goes to be forgotten about. Also, we all know too well the pretty Kate Spade boxes we keep and store our special occasion shoes that we forget about and then we go out and buy a new pair, which eventually gets added to this pile. Before we know it our shoe collection feels like Mount Shoeamanjaro.

During closet cleanouts with my clients this is one of the first parts that I start with.  I have my clients bring every single shoe that they own into their bedroom and lay them on the floor.  I mean EVERY SHOE from the ones you garden with to the ones you can’t wear anymore because they are sky high stilettos!

So my inner cheerleader is going to bust out…READY? OK!

Give me an S-Save the pairs you have worn in the past year. Can’t remember the last time you wore                                       them? It may be time to part ways.

Give me an H-Holes or other damages such as to the heel or scuff marks should be donated

Give me an O– Only keep the pairs that do not hurt or give you those painful blisters

Give me an E– Every time you purchase a pair of shoes you should donate or consign a pair

What does that spell?! BURRITO…just kidding, clearly I have dinner on my mind…it spells SHOE! Following this little cheer as just a cheat sheet for how to part ways with those pairs and to get organized, spring is here people!