My Closet

Today, a friend asked if I'd done a full photo tour of Dot yet. I have not. I keep waiting for things to be "done," but that will never happen because I think homes should keep a certain amount of fluidity, just like life. 

I've been thinking a lot about my quest for simple living lately. During tornado season this year, I kept feeling like it would be somewhat of a relief if a storm came and just sucked everything out of Dot [but left our neighborhood and home intact]. Weird and completely irrational, I know, but things accumulate so quickly. Lately, cords and wires have had me in a tizzy. I read this post, written right after we moved in. I'm still feeling it. I need a good purge. There are some things in our home that serve no purpose, but I can't cut ties with my sentimental attachment to them - like my great-grandmother's desk. I thought I would start today's tour with my closet. Totally unconventional in terms of an interesting tour - it doesn't have mirrors or revolving purse racks or a plush tufted ottoman in the middle, but it's a place in our home that is ground zero for living with less. It's a must. 

I am a 27-year-old lover of fashion. Perhaps instead of all that the word fashion conjures up, I should use the term "good threads." I am not trendy. I love classic, timeless pieces. So if I am trendy, it's me clinging to a trend that has some classic vibe to it. For all of this love I have for apparel, I have a greater loathing for stuff, and the latter wins out. I have a pretty compact wardrobe. Without further ado, I present my closet [and Jake's, too]:

The door is at one end, and it runs very narrowly behind the wall our bed is on. We're still waiting to come across the perfect something for that wall.

Doesn't it look majestic in its scope?

That's my stuff on top, and Jake's stuff on the bottom. From the bottom up: Jake's shoe shelf, my shoe shelf, my jeans and shorts and accessories (including my rather large collection of old handkerchiefs - I allow myself some indulgences), Jake's pants and sweaters/hoodies. We have one shelf above that where we keep our linens, picture boxes, a breast pump, some hiking accessories, and probably a few other things. I know I have too many skirts. I could probably get rid of at least three without missing them. Our closet would be fuller if it wasn't summer, but we keep all of our coats and cold weather items in a space bag in the attic.

My dresses got the least accessible spot in the house. When we knew Dot was going to be ours, the first thing I did was get a measurement of the closets so we could order organizers. It was so nice to have them in place before we moved in. There was no easy way to make our closet space less awkward, so the longer pieces went to the back so we could have more accessible shelves. There's about 2.5 feet of bar for "tall stuff" to hang on.

Since you've now seen my entire closet, I thought I'd show you some of my oldest pieces. I don't buy clothes too often, but when I do, they're usually with me for quite some time. Exhibit A. I got this dress my junior year in high school. It's the dress I wore to my high school graduation. I still love it. It still loves me.

I got this skirt to wear to church the first time I came to Oklahoma. I mean, one always needs a new outfit when meeting one's future in-laws, right? It's not ironed in this picture, but it's got some amazing pleats. I wore it with a black and white striped square-neck sweater and some Gianni Bini heels with ankle straps (which I also still have - the shoes, not the sweater).

 My great-grandmother's kilt. The day before her funeral, some of her children were going through a trunk and found two kilts. There were two of us there who could fit into them, so they said we could have them. I wore it to her funeral, and I love that I have it. It's a staple in fall and winter.

I got these wool pants on major clearance at Gap right after Jake and I got married. They still look new (albeit wrinkly - please don't judge). I can't imagine getting rid of them any time soon.

My oldest pair of shoes. I got them my senior year on the choir trip in Colorado where I met Jake. I got these babies the day before I met him. They're pretty lucky.

A few weeks after I got home from the trip, I wrote something on the inside curve of the sole during English. I'm happy to say it's still there.

Let it be known that in the small amount of time I spent in the closet taking these pictures, I found a few items to get rid of. Namely a pair of shoes, a dress, and two pairs of jeans. I may have some more jeans. They're my, "Hi, I just had a baby" jeans that I bought after Cora - and then after Magnolia because let's face it: I spent a few months after I had Magnolia tipping the scales at what I did the day I had Cora. That's right. I was me with no baby about to burst out of my belly (or stuck in my pelvis) weighing the same as I did just hours before one did. When you're 5'3 1/4", every pound counts, and 20 extra was a whole lot of heavy (which was really 30 extra to my pre-pre-pregnancy weight, but I don't ever expect to see that number again). Goodbye you jeans, I'm no longer holding onto you "just in-case." Purging feels so good. I'm going to see what else I can get rid of tomorrow.

And just for fun: Here is a picture of me the night I graduated from high school wearing the very dress you just saw above.

(Aunt Brenda helping me with flowers. My mom on the right, Grammy is in the red shirt, and Don's head is sticking up over mine.)

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