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 The world from a short person's POV - not Australia or New Zealand. |
Random thoughts, pointed comments, and whatever else crosses my mind 
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| "Begin at the beginning," the King said gravely, "and go on till you come to the end: then stop"... Alice in Wonderland Well, you started with the closet in the master bedroom but closets don't stop there, do they? Feeling the flush of success, it's time to move on to, oh let's say, a child's/children's closet. This closet can be even more challenging than the one you just finished since we all know that these little ones can expand the need for storage space 10 fold. It has been many years since I struggled to corral all the items needed for a child (only one). So my blog will relate the story of my granddaughter's closet. The rules still apply though you will need to be more "judgemental" and creative from time to time, especially if you have children sharing the same space. Age is a major factor when designing closets for children. When they are little you may only need a dresser, toy box, bookshelf and a small amount of hanging space. Most of their things will fit in their bedroom. But don't forget to designate a play space in other parts of the house. This is where creativity really comes into play; for grandparents as well. Toy boxes work very well at this stage if you are able to make yourself store only items used frequently where the toy box is located. Remember you can change out the toys as they go in and out of favor or as the child grows. We still keep a handmade toy box in our sunroom for books and art supplies for our granddaughter to use when she comes to visit. As your child/children grow closets need to keep up with their needs. Once a child starts school what needs to be kept in their room changes. Don't forget to add a desk and chair for doing school work. Now you need more hanging space and a place to keep shoes for school, outings, and every day. Shoes can take on a life of their own as the child expands their horizons. By the time my granddaughter was five her shoe rack needed to house school shoes, dress boots, tennis shoes, dress up shoes and ballet shoes. This has always been an issue in her room. Partly, this may be a girl thing  but still it has been the hardest issue to overcome. She is eleven now and we still haven't completely solved the problem. That will change soon as the family is giving her a specially designed closet for her twelveth birthday in August. I know it seems a little over-the-top but it is what she wants most. We figured there was no need giving her clothes/shoes/accessories if she didn't have a place to put them that would work for her. Oh, did I mention that she is an only child and my only granddaughter?When you design a closet for a child of school age think about how they will use it. Now that they are dressing more on their own, clothing needs to be accessible to them. Bars should be lowered to a position that they can reach or if there are high and low bars in their closet you can put everyday wear on the lower bar and less used items on the higher bar. Dressers are still important since items such as t-shirts, PJs, shorts, and jeans are often stored here. While the child is young, keep the most used items in the lower drawers so that they can reach them without asking for help. Try to keep the closet as flexible as possible since their needs change as they grow and become involved in more activities. Ever since my granddaughter started in competitive gymnastics her closet has become a place to hang leotards, and all the other paraphernalia that goes along with the sport as well as her regular clothing. For now, her closet also houses all her medals and trophies since she re-designed her bedroom. (She tends to be a minimalist when it comes to design.) If you take a trip to the DIY and HomeGoods stores, you can see all the different units that can be used to make closets work for you. Whether you go this route or use a professional, keep in mind what you need to store and where. For girls, you might want to include a high bar for dresses (especially prom dresses). Also, consider shelving for storing mementos and trophies. Now here is the really hard part - you probably can't keep everything a child accumulates over time in their closet. Most of us want to keep all the cute outfits they had when they were little, special toys and gifts, cards and pictures, right? It just doesn't work in an organized, uncluttered home. Remember when you organized your closet you had to sort and purge. Here it is even more important. I suggest having your child help with the process. Learning to make decisions about what is and what is not important in your life is a skill worth passing on to them. We started teaching this life skill to our granddaughter several years ago when her "stuff" started expanding to other parts of the house. We gathered all of her stuffed animals and toys in one space and then worked with her to decide what to keep and what to let go of. We suggested that she could decide what to give to children in the local shelter and what could be sold (She got to keep the money). Anything leaving the house was immediately put in bags and boxes and taken to the garage. Her mother took her to the shelter, more than once, to deliver her donations and when her mother sold several of the large ticket items, she gave our granddaughter the money. This activity worked out to be a win, win for everyone. I think this started her move to becoming a minimalist .I hope that this post has been helpful. In my next post, I'll give you some helpful ideas on linen closets and storing decorative items. |
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Fire dancers!!! Wow! What fun! You really are in Paradise! So happy you for you! 
But I wish I loved it. That would be SO HANDY! So, I've been working on positive self-talk regarding cleaning. I smile when I say these things and I say them out loud if I'm alone or in my head if I'm not. I say things like, "I love to clean. Cleaning is fun. Cleaning makes me happy. I enjoy a tidy space." Blah, blah, blah...
Sure, it's dumb, but if it works, it doesn't matter. 
). 
I'm the prime example of someone who needed her own advice over 40 years ago. 