This month we’re talking about getting organized by spring cleaning, and for me personally, that means dedicating 15 minutes a day to cleaning an area of my home.
For my family one of the biggest spring cleaning jobs is to swap out winter and summer clothes. This is probably my least favorite spring cleaning job in the world, with the exception of cleaning the bathroom cabinets.
With seven kids, swapping clothes takes at least two days and all of my patience, as kids try on the new season’s clothes and I try to pack away the previous season’s clothes in an organized fashion.
All this, while dealing with a toddler who is unpacking every single bin and trying on every piece of clothing!
So, how am I going to accomplish the winter/ summer clothing swap in 15 minutes?
I’m not.
But it isn’t going to take me two days, as it has in previous years. This year I learned a little trick to help make the swap go a little faster.
Every day when I’m folding clothes, I hold back the winter clothes instead of giving them to the kids to put away.
Then I’ve spent some of my 15 minute cleaning periods tackling one closet or dresser and removing the winter clothes.
I have a large pile of winter clothes stacked in my bedroom that I’ll store in totes later this week. I’m almost halfway done with the swap and I haven’t even pulled out the bins.
We’ll be dedicating a few hours this week to finishing the winter/ summer clothes swap, but at least it won’t take me all day like it has in years past.
You can read more about how I’ve learned to manage the clothing swap and downsized from twenty-seven bins of clothing here.
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Erin says
It’s too early here to do the clothing swap. Iowa weather means we might need some of our warm stuff through April! 😛
I will be getting out some short-sleeved shirts for my boys, though, gradually as they need them. And then packing away some of their long-sleeved shirts as I wash them.
I have given up on trying to be organized. I have two big bins full of off-season clothes and I just chuck stuff in and go through it as I have time. And then when I know for sure we’re ready to actually switch completely, we have a fun family bonding session where everyone tries stuff on to see what we have, what we need, and what we probably should get rid of. The kids LOVE it. LOL.
angie says
It took me many years of begging my son to try on pants and shirts that there was an easier way. When I find a pair of pants and a shirt that fit him well, I just compare to the others in the Rubbermaid bin to those sizes. If they are pretty similar in size, they get unpacked for that season. If they are quite a bit bigger, they stay in the bin for next year.
TheHappyHousewife says
Yes, we do the same thing! It definitely saves time. 🙂