image lab by marcellas reynolds
marcellas@ragemonthly.com
time to spriNg CleaN?
Spring has sprung. Okay ma
ybe I’m a bit early but I’m ready for it. It’s a time for
rebirth, a fresh start. Renewal. There’s a feeling on a global level of change in the
IT STARTS WITh ThE CLOSET
air. Maybe it is the new President. Or just Michelle on the cover of Vogue. Whatever
it is, it’s time to make space for the new. Time to open yourself up and clean out the
old ways of thinking, doing, being. And it starts at home.
This is what I do with all my personal shopping clients: We talk about their lives,
what they do for a living and what they do for fun. We talk about their needs. Then
we go to their closets. I pull out every article, every stitch of clothing, shoes and
accessories. Then we clean the closet from top to bottom. You can’t work well in
a dirty space. I believe in matching hangers. Your closet is a shrine. The clothes
inside create a first and sometimes lasting impression that impact the way you
live in this world.
Once the closet is clean and primed we look at each and every garment. The
clothing is separated into three main categories: work, weekend/casual and eve-
ning/dressy. This is important. You don’t want to have to root through evening
gowns to find that black skirt you are wearing to work in 15 minutes! Outerwear
and boots are never included with normal clothes. They take up lots of space
and demand their own closet. Once we’ve separated the closet into the three
categories then we separate the clothes into their season with the current season
front and center.
Suits go in first with blazer hanging in front of trouser, not on same hanger, with
lighter color and fabric suits progressing to darker heavier fabrics. Next blazers.
Next trousers/skirts. Next shirts, solids to prints to stripes. Sweaters are always
folded, never hung. This helps sweaters keep their shape. Try to keep sweaters
out of direct sunlight to avoid fold lines and bleaching. Next goes casual clothes
which includes anything you wouldn’t wear to work (but not gym clothes)! Jack-
ets/blazers first. Then casual shirts and tees, again light to dark. Next casual pants
and jeans (yes… I hang my denim).
Everything should be hung facing you as you enter the closet. It’s all about ease.
You shouldn’t have to search through your closet for what to wear.
Now, here are tips to make your wardrobe
spriNg aNd user-frieNdly:
1) Use Rit Liquid Dye in black to re-dye your blacks. Many shirts lose their color
after repeated laundering. Re-dying is a great way to prolong the life of the shirts!
2) Take things that need to be tailored immediately to the tailor or get rid of them.
Why take up space for new with old? If you are waiting for something to come
back in style, it’s not going to. If you are gonna lose those extra five pounds to
wear that old pair of pants, let them go! Pleats are so over anyway!
3) Take all your shoes to the shoe repair and have them polished and resoled if
needed. Nothing makes an outfit look frumpy or low-end more than a pair of
beat-up shoes!
Voila! The secrets to a well-organized closet and a simple step toward an easy,
breezy, beautiful Spring Clean! Good luck!
Marcellas Reynolds is a correspondent for E! Networks and host of Style Networks’ Shop Like A Star.
Look for Marcellas on Style Networks’ newest show, Fashion Rocks: Iconic Style. Check your local
listing for date and times. For more information, visit
www.marcellasreynolds.com.
74 RAGE monthly | MARCH 2009
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