Tricks of the Trade. 3.

Now, I already know, this one won’t work for everyone.

Is that a weird disclaimer?

Well.

There it is anyway.

And I’m not going to pretend this is an original idea.

It’s not.

I read it somewhere else a few years ago.

I found the idea intriguing, but not suitable to our family at the time.

But now, in this house, the idea has come full circle.

It works.

Beautifully, actually.

What is it?

Oh, yeah

That.

It’s a Family Closet.

Sort of.

Our house is over one hundred years old.

A hundred years ago people had no washer and no dryer and no great wealth of attire.

Or of stuff, probably.

So what they didn’t really need was a closet.

Upstairs, for three bedrooms, we have one closet.  One very small, unlit, oddly shaped closet.

(Which would make a very cool secret hiding place for kids but is right now storing excess everything because, well, because we need it to.)

Downstairs there is one small closet in our bedroom.  (You should see the clever ways I’ve crammed Kevin’s t-shirts in there.  No.  Not really.  There’s nothing clever about it at all truly.)

But we do have a nice-sized laundry room.  (And by laundry room, I actually mean back porch.  Because that’s what it really is.  But not any more.  Now it’s a laundry room.  And a family closet.  Because I get to be in charge like that.  In the laundry room, I can make all the rules.  No, it isn’t much – but it’s mine and since I love being the boss of things, I’ll take what I can get.  Queen of the Back Porch.  Yes.  That’s what I can get.)

It seemed silly to wash clothes, dry clothes, fold clothes, carry clothes upstairs to said tiny closet and then bring clothes back downstairs for children to wear.

Especially when this long, narrow space called a back porch had loads of extra empty room and I had several unused shelves and a plethora of semi-coordinating containers.

Now all of the kids (excluding Riley who prefers to keep her own clothes in her closet-less bedroom) store all of their clothes right here in the Laundry Room.

And it’s so convenient it’s crazy.

Wash clothes.  Dry clothes.  Fold clothes.  Step over to shelf and put clothes away.

Boys clothes are all here together in tidy little bins.

Girls clothes are here on this bigger shelf in somewhat less tidy, but still acceptable, little bins.

Dresses are hung on the sides of the metal rack here with “s” hooks and there’s another tier of shelves on the side for pajamas and underwear and swimsuits.

I know this can’t last forever, but, for now – it’s genius for us.

My laundry is done so much more efficiently  and quickly and I have hardly any excuse to let it pile up at all.

And that’s it.

It’s not incredibly attractive decor, but it’s so functional and practical!  (Two words that don’t make my heart melt but do help maintain my sanity.)

The family closet at our house.