Decor Problems Only Fashion People Have, Plus How to Solve Them

Image: Imaxtree

When style is more about self-expression than simply clothing oneself, there’s a tendency to get overwhelmed with stuff. It’s not that we’re hoarders per se, it’s just that when you follow fashion closely, one pair of black winter boots per decade just isn’t going to cut it. Here, we’ve pulled together some of the most common wardrobe housing issues along with ideas on how to fix them.

Too Many Clothes

Too many clothes and too little space for it all? Such is the problem for a serious fashionista. We’ve all been there. If you’re unsatisfied with forcing sweaters and T-shirts into overstuffed drawers or trying and failing to keep your closet organized with all the hangers and the weirdly-shaped clothes, you have options!

First, use this time (before fall is really in full-swing) to take stock of your wardrobe. Look over every piece and try to judge it objectively: Is this piece still “me?” Does this piece still reflect my personal style? If the answer to both of those questions is yes, great — keep it. If not, consider either donating it to a local thrift store or reselling online through a service that fits your needs. Now that you’ve successfully whittled it down to the essentials, get a little creative. While you can stuff your closet and dresser to capacity, think about how you can display and store clothes in other ways around your bedroom. Specifically, think about stand-alone clothing racks and under-the-bed bins.

Clothing racks are a cool way to keep your favorite pieces visually front-and-center. You can create a capsule autumn wardrobe and keep it on the rack, so that getting dressed in the morning is a much easier experience. Under-the-bed storage bins are ideal for out-of-season pieces. Also, grabbing an inexpensive (perhaps secondhand) open shelf is a cool way to display neatly folded sweaters — a nice pop of color and texture within your bedroom. You can also display prized pieces (like a killer designer dress you scored at a flea market) by hanging it from a hook on the wall — frocks as wallpaper is a cool twist on fashiony decor.

Too Many Shoes

Same as above: Consider getting rid of things that reflect trends that have come and gone, are no longer a part of your personal style or are so worn down they’re now technically useless. Donate or resell the ones you don’t want anymore (trash the super-worn ones, of course). Now that you’re happy with your pieces, it’s time to get creative about storage. Keeping them lined under your bed is a simple, no-frills solution — they’re out of sight, but still conventionally located.

You can also store out-of-season shoes (sandals in winter, boots in summer) in under-bed bins, which help extend your floor space. If you’ve got a pretty bare bones closet, consider your options. You can hang your shoes in a shoe sleeve, or install one (or two or three) shelves above where your clothes hang to put your shoes. For your splurgy footwear, consider putting them on display. Can you imagine a cooler decor choice than putting your prized Miu Miu glitter heels on a special shelf in your bedroom? Or put ’em on top of your dresser next to your other goodies for a constant glam reminder.

Too Many Baubles

When you have a lot of bracelets, necklaces and earrings, it’s important to keep it all relatively organized, so that your collection doesn’t become a huge mess. One decor tip we love is if you’ve got a vanity (or a top of a dresser) with some empty space, use that as a display for your most-worn jewels. Steal ideas from your favorite shops. You can buy special displays, but we love to use small saucers to keep earrings together, or quirky crystals as a quick holder for bracelets. For keeping necklaces in line, use nails (or a non-permanent alternative) within your closet or on the side of your dresser. Think of organizational tools that will keep your precious pieces separated, like plastic craft organizers. A kind of off-the-wall idea: buy a thick binder and some inexpensive hole-punched plastic pouches. Put pieces unlikely to tangle in each pouch and store the binder on your bookshelf.

Fashion Magazine Overload

Not only do you subscribe to the usual suspects — Vogue, ELLE, Marie Claire — but you also pick up the odd indie fashion rag for perusal. Sometimes it can be a real space-stealer. What to do? Curation. The key to keeping your mag stash under control is going through it constantly, and actually reading them! Or if you can’t, but recycle day is coming up, scan through an issue and tear out articles and fashion stories that appeal to you. For the fashion mags that you just have to keep (those $20+ indie rags from Europe), invest in magazine files and keep them organized by title. Buy several of the same style for a nicely streamlined look. It’s a much better option than keeping them stacked in the middle of your room. Alternatively, if reading periodicals is an important part of your life, you can get a stand-alone holder (or wall-mounted one) to keep them always in full view.

Who hasn’t ripped out an ad from Vogue‘s thick September issue and tacked it on the wall? It can certainly work, but if you want a slightly more grown-up feel, it needs an upgrade. Consider buying inexpensive picture frames and making a gallery wall. Another cool look would be to collect a ton of neatly cut-out ads and make a whole tile-like wall out of it (would be particularly cool for inside your closet; you can also do this to line dresser drawers). Another thing that lends this look a more grown-up vibe is simply using a corkboard to tack up all the inspiring imagery.

Too Much Makeup

Another issue for beauty mavens — too many beauty products! Too many spa-like potions, too many statement lipsticks, too many eyeshadows. It can be tough to keep up. It’s also tough to get rid of products when you realize they don’t quite suit your needs. It’s not exactly hygienic to donate mascara to a secondhand shop, although eBay could work if the product is high-end or in-demand. The key here is keeping a cool-looking display that gives the products the space they need. Make your bathroom shelves look like those of a high-end store with organization and thoughtful groupings; keep the colors and products you use most grouped on your dresser with a small bud vase for maximum glamour. Keep sporadic-use items out of sight in a dedicated drawer or a pretty box in the closet or under the bed.