Five on Friday - Decluttering Update (Master Closet Reveal & Others)

Before I get started today I just wanted to let everyone know that our Hello, Monday link-up will be cancelled next week since Monday is Labor Day and we are taking the day off!

Remember that decluttering journey I started earlier this year?  Well, I realized I hadn’t provided an update on the blog in ages, so I thought I might do that today!  A lot of this was done back in the spring, but I’m still working on a few things, mostly decluttering my computer files.  Yuck.

O N E – Master Bathroom

Our master bathroom wasn’t too terrible to declutter.  We have one large floor to ceiling cabinet that holds everything – medicine, toiletries, towels, etc., so it was pretty much the only thing I had to tackle.  It was stuffed full of junk, and I’m even embarrassed to say that there was medicine in there that had expired back in 2013.  EXPIRED in 2013.  Which means it was probably purchased in 2010.  Lol.  Anyway, I pulled every single thing out, threw away all of the expired stuff and old products I no longer use, and put them all back in nice and organized.  P.S.  I have this nail polish organizer and I LOVE it.

Here is the before:

And here is the after:

May not look like a super drastic difference from the pictures, but man, was it ever! 

The top shelf is for medicine and I got all of ours reorganized into their categories – First Aid (Band-Aids, Neosporin, gauze, etc.), Medicine (Nyquil, Ibuprofen, Claritin, etc.), and Skin Care (Calamine lotion, aloe, sunscreen, etc.).

The second shelf is divided into two sections – The left side is for stuff we both use (cotton balls, q-tips, a sewing kit, extra buttons, etc.) and the right side is for Brian’s toiletries (extra shampoos, razors, contacts, etc.).  He doesn’t have a lot of extra stuff to keep up with, so that’s why he shares his shelf.  :o)

The third shelf is for all of my toiletries (extra shampoos, body lotions, nail polishes, etc.) and I use every square inch.  I typically buy all of my shampoo, body wash, and deodorant in bulk when it’s on sale so it’s nice to have a large shelf that can accommodate all of the extras.  This decreases my trips to Target or Walmart by a ton, too.

The fourth shelf is for all of our extra hand soaps (again, I buy these in bulk from Bath & Body Works when they’re on sale so we have a lot), tissues, and toilet paper.

The fifth shelf is for towels, hand towels, and wash cloths.

In addition to cleaning out that cabinet I also cleaned out the cabinets under our sinks and the three drawers in our vanity.  I bought this organizer from Amazon to hold all of our contact stuff and toothbrushing supplies and I COULD NOT LOVE IT MORE!!  Look how pretty!

I also cleaned out my makeup.  Here is the before:

And here is the after:

Again, doesn’t look too drastic in the picture but I threw a ton of stuff away.

And finally, a little tip to keep your vanity from looking so cluttered.  Keep a big basket on the counter to put all of your every day items.  They will be right at your fingertips and easy to grab, but the basket makes it look more organized than having them strewn all about the counters.  Also, keep a little dish by your sink to hold your jewelry.  I take my wedding rings off every morning when I put on my makeup, but I don’t like the idea of just sitting them down on the counter, so that dish allows me to know where they are at all times and prevent them from falling in the sink and going down the drain.  EEK!

T W O – Master Bedroom

As far as our bedroom went, I really didn’t have too much to clean out – just my dresser and my night stand.  The only stuff I keep in my dresser is undergarments, socks, belts, swimsuits and coverups, and cold weather accessories like gloves and toboggans.  I keep zero actual clothes in there because they are all in my closet.  Here’s the pile of stuff I got rid of from my dresser:

And here’s the pile of stuff that I got rid of from my night stand:  (And the red thing in the yard sale pile is a pressure point massager from Bath & Body Works... I had someone private message me about it when I posted it on the 'Gram way back so I figured I'd just go ahead and put that out there.  Get your minds out of the gutter!  Lol.)

We also have a linen closet just outside our bedroom door and here is the pile of stuff I got rid of from it:

You can’t tell, but that stack is about three feet tall! 

And here is the closet in all its organized glory!

Unfortunately I forgot to take a Before picture, but just believe me when I say that this is much better!

T H R E E – Master Closet

Oh boy.  This was one of the hardest areas to declutter because I had SO MUCH STUFF in there.  When it comes to clothes I am a hoarder.  I am still the same size that I was in college so it is extremely hard to get rid of anything because EVERYTHING still fits.  I kid you not, I still have several skirts in my closet that I bought when I was 19 and I STILL wear them to this day.  That is getting your money’s worth!  Lol.

Anyway, I ended up getting rid of 63 regular items from my closet!!!!  Every single one of those hangers had an article of clothing on it!

I also got rid of 13 old formal dresses that I had been hanging onto including…

Five old bridesmaids dresses from weddings I was in…

And four old high school prom and homecoming dresses.

Whew, those were probably the hardest to say goodbye to.

I got all of my leggings organized in a basket:

And I cleaned out a TON of jewelry.  Here is the before (and my exact jewelry organizer is here):

And here is the after:

Lots of trash and old shoe boxes went out, too.

I did away with the greige color on the walls and painted the closet white (Benjamin Moore – Chantilly Lace), I spray painted the frames and window hardware gold, I hung a new curtain, and I painted my little table blush pink (Benjamin Moore – Little Piggy). 

This closet has been my labor of love all summer and I’m excited to share it with you today.  Ready to see the reveal?  Here is the before:

And here is the after:

What a difference, y’all!  With the white walls I feel like I can finally see everything in there so much better.  The room is lighter, brighter, and airier than before, and it looks even bigger with the lighter color on the walls!

I know y’all are probably thinking that it doesn’t really look like I decluttered since I still have so many clothes, but I did get rid of a lot!  I only got rid of the things that I didn’t wear anymore, so everything you see in here is stuff that I still genuinely wear.  Some of the pieces are almost 20 years old.  Lol.  And it also looks like a lot of stuff because I hang every single article of clothing that I own – tank tops, t-shirts, blouses, dresses, shorts, pants, etc.  I don’t put ANYTHING in drawers.  The only thing I don’t hang is leggings, and I would hang those, too, if I had the room.  I know a lot of people put tanks and t-shirts in drawers, but I just don’t like doing that because I feel like I can’t see everything as well, and everything gets wrinkled… even if you roll it. 

Since I have so much stuff hanging, I organize them into categories - tanks, sleeveless blouses, short-sleeve tops, three quarter length tops, long sleeves, cardigans, and vests, and I also have separate categories for graphic tees, fall tops (pumpkin shirts, Halloween shirts, etc.), and Christmas tops.

And each category is also organized in ROY-G-BIV order.  And if you don't know what that is, then we can't be friends.  (But seriously, it's rainbow order - red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet.)  Yes, I know that's crazy, but it helps me find what I need very easily.  #WavingMyCrazyFlag

But anyway, everything is light and bright and organized to the max and I love it! 

F O U R – Outdoor Closet

Our outdoor closet was a HOT MESS, y’all.  We added this closet on back in 2015 and just threw everything inside it with the intention of going back and organizing it a couple of weeks later.   Well, three years went by without us doing that, so this spring we finally decided it was time.  I completely forgot to snap a before picture, but trust me when I say that you couldn’t even get in there because it was so bad.

I did manage to snap this picture after we had pulled most of the stuff out:

Then we got rid of all of this stuff:

B hung some lawn equipment hangers and some hooks, and now it looks like this:

All the heart eyes!

F I V E – Play Room

Ugh.  I’m cringing even remembering doing this because it was so awful.  Here is the before:

And here is the after:

Just ignore that little pile of stuff on the floor in the middle.  At the time when I snapped the pictures that was all I had left to organize.  It was all the teeny tiny pieces that fall off of stuff that you have no clue what it goes to. 

We got rid of bags and bags of stuff from this room and I re-categorized and relabeled all of the bins to suit their growing needs, and voila!  All done. 

And I’m sorry to report that it looks like a hot mess again.  I blame summer break since they were home 24/7 for ten weeks straight. 

Looks like I have my work cut out for me again!  As always you can follow along on Instagram Stories!

And finally before I go, my friend, Sarah, just recently started her adoption journey and she is launching a t-shirt fundraiser today to raise money to cover some of the costs.  Adoption is expensive so I know she would greatly appreciate any contribution.  The t-shirts will be $20 and you can head over to her blog for more information.

Happy Friday and HAPPY FIRST UNOFFICIAL DAY OF FALL TOMORROW!!!!  #CollegeFootballIsBackBaby

*Linking up with A Liz Adventures and Carolina Charm for Five on Friday, A Little Bit of Everything for Friday Favorites, Meet @ the Barre for Friday Favorites, and Cup of Tea for High Five for Friday.