Happy Friday Everyone! WOW! What a week, right? I think no matter what side of the election you were on, we have to keep moving forward and be thankful for everything we do have. Easier said than done, but possible 🙂 With that being said, I am very excited to share this post with you as it is near and dear to my heart and I think it could not have come at a better time.
Last weekend I had the wonderful opportunity and blessing to meet a friend of a friend, who is such an example of perseverance and strength. A very good friend of mine introduced me to one of her friends who is going through a very rough period in her life, rougher than anything I have ever experienced at once. Her friend was diagnosed with breast cancer and has undergone surgery and chemotherapy. On top of that, she recently lost her home and had to move unexpectedly, which is where I come in. Given that I love to organize and would do it for free (its truly my passion) my friend asked if I would be willing to help organize her friend’s closets because they were in disarray and she physically could not do it herself given her weakened state due to the surgery and chemo. She also mentioned that her friend wouldn’t be able to pay me for my services because she is on a tight budget given her recent misfortunes. That didn’t change the decision I had already made to help, though, because like I said before, I would do this for free especially for someone in need.
So we set out a plan of how we would help her together, me donating my time, energy and services and my friend purchasing hangers, containers and organizers (such a sweetheart for doing so). This closet makeover was very different from the ones I have done in the past because our goal was to get her belongings out of garbage bags, hang everything up in an organized fashion and store the items she didn’t need to use during the (upcoming) winter months. In addition to that, we wanted to make sure that she could easily access the clothes and shoes she needed to go to doctor and treatment appointments, given that she can’t move a ton of things on her own. I also tried to make use of some of the hangers she already had, like pants and skirt hangers, where I would normally purchase multi-hangers for those items.
All in all, I am so happy that I had the opportunity to help her in the smallest way. Being around someone who has faced so many challenges, but still puts a smile on her face is inspiring and it also reminded me that sometimes giving is as simple as giving your time. I didn’t organize her shelves or her accessories as she can’t use the shoes and bags right now, but as she continues down the path of her healthy recovery, I will go back to put the “Maya” touch on her closets 🙂 Check out the before and after pics below and as always, thanks for reading!
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Closet 1: BEFORE So this is 1 of 2 closets in her bedroom. Its very deep, but as you can see, there was a lot of stuff just thrown in there since she had to move abruptly. |
Closet 1: In-Process
Every closet process starts with me removing all of the clothes. Its a lot of work, but it allows me to get a sense of the space and think about where things will be best placed. As I mentioned above, the shelves were not part of this round of organizing so I left them as is.
Closet 1: In-Process
These are all of the things that I pulled out, boy it was a lot to go through, but I was up for the challenge 🙂
Closet 1: AFTER
So this is as done as we hoped for this round of organizing. I made use of her pants and skirt hangers, my friend stored her purses in the containers on the bottom and I pushed a lot of her lighter close to the back part of the closet. Next round I will reorganize everything and switch out plastic hangers for velvet ones. She already had black and white plastic hangers so my friend purchased more for her and we tossed all the wire and mismatched hangers in the garbage.
Closet 2: BEFORE
This picture doesn’t do this closet any justice, its much bigger than it looks. She actually has a desk set up on one side with her computer, but like the other closet, it was literally piled with things from her move where you could not even walk inside.
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Closet 2: BEFORE
There’s the desk! But it was literally inaccessible. I like that there is a little window in there though, its actually a perfect nook for a desk or vanity.
Closet 2: AFTER
I forgot to take in-process photos of this closet because I was working so hard. I think 4 hours had passed and I wanted to keep moving to make sure I left her in good shape. I moved these shoe hangers over from the first closet and organized them with her comfortable shoes so that she could grab them for appointments. I also hung her robes right in the front for easy access. All of her jeans were hung using the pants hangers she already had. The tote on the floor has summer clothes expertly packed in there for next year haha.
Closet 2: AFTER
Look at all those jeans! Now finding a pair to wear is so much easier. Plus, where did all those bags and boxes go that were piled up? On hangers of course! I can’t take all the credit though, my friend’s help was invaluable. She organized and stored all of the accessories (not to mention she bought all the totes and extra hangers!).
Closet 2: AFTER
I was just trying to show how deep this closet is in this pic. I swear my picture taking skills are on the up and up! But, as you can see, you can literally walk inside the closet. Only downfall is that there is no light and at this point, it was 10pm (7 hours in). The next round of organizing will tackle the shelves and some removable lighting.
