12 Dec Seasonal Clothing Storage – What Are Our Closet Storage Options in Warm Climates?

Professional Organizer in San Antonio

As a Certified Professional Organizer in San Antonio, I’m often asked various questions about business productivity or home organizing…anything to make life easier. The latest question came from a fellow business owner after our first cold front hit: “Hey, Helene! What are professional organizer tips for seasonal clothing storage?”

We have two seasons in South Texas: stinkin’ hot and not as hot.

We rarely see color changes in the spring and fall – maybe for a week if we’re lucky. We don’t get snow – once every five or ten years perhaps. In a good year, we’ll have several inches of rain per month instead of our usual drought. From April through October, the daytime highs are in the 90s and 100s with evening temperatures hovering around 80. We celebrate if we can wear sweaters for Thanksgiving and New Year’s.

Our challenge is that we experience major temperature swings within incredibly short periods of time. It might be 80 degrees on Wednesday then 40 on Thursday, then back up into the 70’s for the weekend, returning to the 80’s and 90’s the following week. These unpredictable weather patterns pretty much ruin the concept of seasonal clothing storage for South Texas residents and others who live in warm climates.

In “normal” parts of the country that experience defined seasons, folks can pack up their out-of-season clothes in bins and store them on upper shelves in the closet or in a spare bedroom or the attic. That’s seasonal clothing storage. If I’d packed up my summer clothes during our first cold snap this fall, I would’ve been in trouble since we returned to 80-degree weather after a few days.

Certified Professional Organizer Offers Tips

So, what are our options for seasonal clothing storage in South Texas and other warm climates? Here are a few ideas:

1. Keep your summer and spring clothes in your bedroom closet since these are what we use most often. Store your fall and winter clothes in a guest room closet so you can grab them on cooler days. The downside is that you’ll have to go to another room to get your clothes, but since it’s not too cold for very long, it’s not that terrible. Consider it extra exercise.
or
2. Keep your summer and spring clothes in your bedroom closet and have a limited supply of fall and winter clothes stored in bins in a guest room closet, attic or garage. When the weather turns cooler, switch out your lesser used spring and summer clothes with your fall and winter clothes. You’ll still have your favorite spring and summer clothes in your closet for when it heats back up. The downside is that you’ll have to make a decision about what to remove, but keep this in mind: We only wear 20% of our clothes 80% of the time, so there are surely clothes you don’t wear often that can be packed up.
or
3. Keep all four seasons of clothing in your closet. This means having fewer clothes since your entire wardrobe will need to fit in one closet. You can keep your winter clothes in bins to protect them from dust while they wait in your closet on shelves, then remove them from the bins and set them back on the same shelves when the first cold front comes in.
or
4. Keep all of your summer and spring clothes in your bedroom closet. Purchase a storage piece (like an armoire or dresser) for your bedroom that will hold all of your fall and winter clothes.

You’re probably catching onto the pattern – we can’t put away entirely our spring and summer clothes for long because of our crazy temperature swings. But we also need access to cold-weather clothing when the temperature drops below 60. (That’s cold to a South Texan!)

I personally practice option #3 because:

1) I’d rather use my time for cooking and eating a feast or watching a movie than switching out clothes;

2) the fewer clothes that are in my closet, the less I need to track and take care of; and

3) I’m always cold, so I’m the crazy person in the grocery store in July who’s wearing a sweater because I’m freezing in the A/C, so I use my sweaters year-round.

But that’s me.

The best seasonal clothing storage tips from a professional organizer for you is the one that works for your lifestyle, personality and schedule. What’s the best system for you?

For more information on Seasonal Clothing Storage and hiring a Certified Professional Organizer visit us at www.livingordersa.com

About Helene Segura

Helene Segura teaches go-getters how to use their time more efficiently in order to have a more peaceful life. For details about her, be sure to visit https://www.HeleneSegura.com

• Mail
|
• Web
|
• Twitter
|
• Facebook
|
• LinkedIn
|
• More Posts(393)