Since my kids head back to school this week on Wednesday & Thursday, I thought I would write a little series on my take on organizing for back to school in your home.
So please…come organize with me! It won’t be too painful…I promise!
So please…come organize with me! It won’t be too painful…I promise!
I am so excited to share with you these topics as I work through BACK TO SCHOOL ORGANIZING this week:
Monday-Wardrobe Wrangling
Wednesday-5 Easy Steps To Packing School Lunches
Friday-Tackling Backpacks
Back-to School Organizing for me always starts with my kids’ wardrobes. A thorough cleaning out of the wardrobe is completed before we even buy anything new.
This gives me a clear pictures of what each child needs and saves us money as we resist impulse buys by staying focused on needs vs. wants.
Here’s how we start:
The kids’ and I go through each item and decide if it’s a toss or keep.
And here is my advice on this task….BE RUTHLESS!
If it’s stained, too small, ripped, or your child doesn’t love it…get rid of it!
Free up valuable space in their drawers & closet.
During the summer, I was asked to look at 7 bedrooms for friends & family. And the 1 thing that I noticed…space is never the issue. Too*Much*Stuff is always the issue!
During the summer, I was asked to look at 7 bedrooms for friends & family. And the 1 thing that I noticed…space is never the issue. Too*Much*Stuff is always the issue!
So here’s what we did for my 10 yr. old’s wardrobe today:
Today Tyler & I worked together to clean out his drawers.
{And no, he wasn’t thrilled about this task, but I insisted}
At the end of the day, we have all his favourite shirts:
This tells me that we don’t need to buy him any shirts for back to school.
He has more shirts than Italy has pizza!
Next we tackled his pants drawer:
After we visited this drawer, I realized that this monkey has only 2 prs. of jeans that fit.
Obviously, he and I are going to be doing some shopping for 2-3 prs. of jeans in the next week or two.
He has 4 prs. of shorts he can wear to school in the next week as the days are still like summer.
And here’s the pile that I took to Goodwill today:
Shorts & jeans & shirts that are too small. A few items he just doesn’t like anymore.I also took a pile to Goodwill last week.
Here’s what we did for my 15 yr. old daughter today:
Well. Actually….SHE did this herself:
{I am a proud Mama!}
She sorted & purged herself.
Her clothes are perfectly organized with all her favourite things hung or folded & organized.
And I must say her room has a serious ZEN-like feel happening right now!
She has done such a great job with keeping only those things she likes/uses.
She has things just the way SHE likes them.
Obviously, watching me over the last 15 yrs….she has learned a thing or two.
She got rid of a huge bag of clothes, which we gave to family friends who have 3 girls.
I think that she is even more ruthless than me when it comes to purging.
So there you have it….take an hour or two and get that wardrobe wrangled into shape!
Your Back To School Budget will thank you!
If you would like to read another excellent post on ‘wardrobe wrangling’, please go visit my friend Laura at “I’m An Organizing Junkie” and read a post she wrote called, “11 Excellent Reasons To Get Rid Of Your Clothes”. It really inspired me!
Join me here tomorrow as I tackle schools supplies & study spaces!
I will have some eye candy for you!
Share the Love!
I look forward to this series… yes too much stuff is a big problem here. We are heading toward the end of our school year – how do you cull kids school work? I know you can't keep everything but how do you decide what to keep? Thanks, Jodie
I know exactly what you mean about the pants, Angie! Bear's are fitting above his ankles!!! lol
Old Navy has skinnies on sale 29.00 down to 20.00…happy mama!
Lise~
We do the same thing every year, as well. However, I have yet to see the year where they actually do it themselves. 🙂 Great tips!
Such great tips!! Thank you so much for sharing! And yes, I totally agree that you have to be ruthless or else nothing gets thrown out! 🙂 Thank you so much for linking up to our party! We would love to have you stop by tomorrow and share more of your great posts!
Camille @
SixSistersStuff.blogspot.com