The Last Oasis...

I've always had a thing for closets.  After lusting over many a celebrity closet, I have a very clear idea of what my ideal one would be.  And after watching The Secret the other night with Laia and Marissa after one too many glasses of sake (Paul got the DVD in a gift bag, I promise I did not actually spend money on it), I am convinced that this very clear vision of mine will eventually attract the perfect closet to me.

So here it is.  I want my closet to be spacious enough so that I could walk in, turn around unencumbered, and generally just hang out if the mood struck me.

And in that same vein, I would like a cushy chair or chair equivalent on which to lounge:

And I want sufficient room, or sufficient organization systems, such that there is complete and utter order at all times.

Well obviously this closet utopia of which I speak is quite a few years off.  I live in New York for god's sake.  My apartment in total is about the size that I would require for the ideal closet.  So in the meantime, rather than mope about my lack of offensively large closet, I figured I should at least attempt to meet one of the three requirements I described above with the resources I currently have available.  Clearly, space is not an available resource, so I had no choice but to impose insane organization on the tiny space that I do have.

After my freezer and my spice cabinet, I would say that my closet is the last oasis of organization in my apartment.  All other cabinets and storage lockers simply contain things, they do not impose any sort of order on the contents.

But behold what a moderately together person (me) can do with a lot of time, a little willpower and millions of trips to the Container Store:

Just to clarify, every piece of clothing that I own (coats excepted) is contained in this closet.  So obviously, if you plan to try to replicate this system in any way, step one is get rid of 75% of your clothes.  Honestly, not as hard as it sounds.  You only wear 20% of what you own on any kind of regular basis anyway, and getting rid of the marginal stuff feels absolutely great.  You're no longer bogged down by excess and you've (hopefully) donated the items you don't need to someone who can really use them, which always feels good (and provides a nice tax write-off).  I personally found myself at Housing Works about three times per week when I was going through this cleansing process. 

Step two is get thee to the Container Store.  Get these boxes for your clothes (I have boxes labeled underwear, bras, workout, pants, tank tops, short sleeve shirt, long sleeve shirts, accessories, evening, but obviously adjust to fit your needs).  And if, unlike me, you have access to a dresser of some sort, this part is probably not necessary.

And get these boxes for your shoes.  Only $1.99 each!

This way shoes can be easily stacked at the bottom of the closet and you don't have to deal with shoe racks, which frankly I find impossible to use satisfactorily.

And finally, these boxes for your sweaters.  

And these lovely, effective, all natural herbal sachets to repel moths.

And there you go.  You'll never have to search around for that t-shirt you've been wondering about again.  Unless of course it gets lost in the wash.