Public Service Announcement – Part 2 Shirts and Jackets

I’m feeling less fired up about the state of the closet today than I was last week, but I’d like to follow through with the PSA that I promised. Which was shirts and jackets – how to fold ‘em, hang ‘em and keep ‘em in order.

Listen up you slob-inskies! I know you’re in a hurry, but taking a moment to hang your jacket properly now will make for smooth wearing the next time you reach for it. This really applies to everything, just the other day I went to put seven perfectly folded brown paper grocery bags into a single brown paper grocery bag that is in the closet. All in all the receptacle should hold approximately 15 to 20 bags, but in it’s current state would only house 5 or 6… why? Because the two bags that were in it were folded so wrong that it took up the space of 15. One was just on top, horizontal-like, blocking the mouth of the bag. I know this seems trivial, but because someone didn’t take the time to do it right initially, I couldn’t just slip my bags in easily like I should have been able to and get back to more important things. I had to pull the whole thing outta the back, refold and reinsert. So, here’s my question… Why do I have to take the time to FIX the situation at hand? Us women do so much more as it is, as White Chocolate states: men go to work, come home and feel like they’ve done their job – DONE! Us gals do all that – and then the rest.

So here’s what I feel like: I’m working along, working along then BAM! Gotta stop to reorganize the pantry.

I’m working along, working along then BAM! Gotta stop to straiten the (fill in the blank). I’m working along, working along then BAM! Gotta stop to straiten the (fill in the blank). I’m working along, working along then BAM! Gotta stop to straiten the (fill in the blank). I’m working along, working along then BAM! Gotta stop to straiten the (fill in the blank).

I believe this is how resentment builds (just a thought)

So I guess my request is simple, let’s treat our living environment as if we live on a boat. On a boat everything has a place and everyone who lives on a boat knows that it could be very dangerous if things are not stowed properly. Then consider the efficiency that is needed due to the space (or lack thereof). Talk to anyone who has ever lived on a boat, they can give great tips on organization and DISCIPLINE!!!!!

Okay, let’s get back to folding.

Don’t do this:

T-shirts: again, a rectangle with fins. What you want to do is pinch the very outer edges of the shoulders, right on the top seam and fold it in half length wise – back together, front out. Then take those fins and fold them strait in, not at a diagonal. This area with the fins composes about 1/3 of the long rectangle that we are left to deal with, so let’s take this top, fin area and make a fold directly below it (at the armpit). Then repeat to finish with a perfect square really! It’s brilliant! Super easy to stack and very sturdy for when your searching through your stack to find the shirt of the day. If you have a long sleeve, go strait in with it also, then do a 90 degree angle to get it in line with the body of the shirt.

If you completely suck at this HANG IT! -it’s not a bad idea to hang everything if you have the closet space. It’s the best way to coordinate you shit by type and color and to really see what you have to work with. Because, really – we only wear and re-wear the top half of our stacks and drawers.

Dress shirts and jackets: designers put nice seams and folds in these items to house your shoulders and a freakin hanger! The picture above show you exactly how NOT to do it, especially in your son’s closet… what are you teaching him? For years – abuse, addictions and bad closet etiquette have been passed down from generations to generations in this country and it’s got to stop!

Just take a minute to:

1) put the hanger in all the way to the shoulder area.

2) move the clothes on either side of where you’d like to place the jacket on the bar so that your jacket or shirt may hang strait down, we don’t need friction between the items.

3) then, move the clothes on either side of your item back, so that there is no crowding.

It wouldn’t kill you to put pants with pants, short sleeves with short sleeves, jackets with jackets… you get my meaning? It’ll only make your rushed mornings more efficient and delightful!

Okay, enough with the Public Service Announcements for now. Next week I promise to write about something much more entertaining! For now I’m off to move my laundry along to make room for Jack to start his…

T-bone

April 17, 2010. Uncategorized.