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Wardrobe Change: Closet Organizing Strategies for Moms

Simply, simplify, simplify! New moms are busy women, generally handling more than is expected in today's time. And in reality, you'll be short on time now that you have a new baby to take care of. Therefore, it's essential to choose wash and wear clothing-not only will you be able to get dressed and ready in a flash, you'll also save oodles of cash on dry cleaning.

Choose and wear clothing that is comfortable and low maintenance, yet stylish-you don't want to have to pull out the ironing board at a moments notice. Today, not only are clothing manufacturers making easy to clean fabrics, but styles have relaxed on what is acceptable for busy women. It's hard enough adjusting to motherhood on its own to then be saddled with feelings of not looking put together, is another added stressor.

If you're happy with your existing style, stick with it. However, you may discover after moving into the role of "new mom," you want to simplify and adjust your clothing choices based on time-off from work or if you opt to stay at home.

If you're in the midst of determining your "new mom" style, pull out some fashion magazines and flip through, cutting out pictures of clothes that attract your eye. Next, go try on clothing to get a better idea of what fits now and what looks best. Take a friend who will honestly help you assess your choices. It may be that you're more comfortable in a pair of jeans than tailored pants, and it's more likely that the jeans will be more practical.

Organizing Your Closet

To effectively organize your closet, follow these steps, here are some simple steps to making the most of your closet space by deciding what stays, what goes and where it all should live.

• Clear your bed or floor space
• Begin by grouping like pieces together, for example shirts, pants, suits, dresses, etc.
• Then go through each pile and separate the clothing into one of the following categories:
• • Keep-these items will return to the close
  • Donate-give these pieces to a charity. Make sure they're still wearable (no stains or missing buttons)
  • Consign-This pile will go to a consignment store. Check the local store's guidelines for consigning.
  • Give away-These items go to friends or family members
• Next, zone your closet-choose specific areas for each category of clothing/shoes/purses. By placing like items together, you gain a clear perspective on what you actually own.
• Load clothing into established zones in the closet
• Color separate-this gives you a good perspective on how many black t-shirts you actually own and whether or not you really need to keep all of them.

To maximize closet space, consider using an extender to double your vertical closet space in some areas where you can hang shirts up top and skirts or pants on folded hangers below. Add hanging closet organizers to expand and utilize vertical space. Hanging shoe organizers are a great way to keep shoes from getting kicked to the back of the closet too. They can also be used to hold handbags or rolled up t-shirts if you're short on drawer space.

Organizing your closet can make dressing for the day a joy versus a dreaded task. Remember, quality versus quantity when it comes making the most of your wardrobe.

Stacey L. Crew is a Professional Organizer and the author of the GOPACK for New Moms, a 200-page book on organizing from conception through baby's first year. Stacey is mom to Claire and Jenna and one busy woman! For more great organizing tips for busy women and new moms, visit www.gopack.org.

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