Saturday

The Jewelry Problem

My jewelry wasn't getting put away where it belonged. This didn't make much sense to me, because the system I use has been effective for several years. Still, it seemed time to revisit the issue since most of my jewelry didn't go back into its case but instead was sitting in a heap on the dresser.

If you've read The House That Cleans Itself, you know that I recommend a very unique jewelry solution: I keep my earrings, necklaces, bracelets, etc., stored in clear plastic divided boxes I got at an office supply store. The point of doing this is so that I can go through my jewelry to pick out what I want simply by looking through the clear plastic instead of making a mess while rooting through a jewelry box.

Click here to see plastic boxes

Taking a new look at this system, I realized where the problem was coming in: I'm up to 8 plastic boxes now, and that's too many to go through so easily. (It's not that I have a ton of fancy jewels or anything, it's just that I never get rid of stuff. I've got earrings in there so old that my kids use them with costumes!) My solution, then, was three-fold:

1. First, I purged unneeded jewelry. My teenage daughters took some of it and the rest I gave to a friend who recycles costume jewelry into beautiful artwork.

2. Next, I picked out the pieces that I wear most often and put them into two of the boxes. The other six boxes contain seasonal pieces (like Christmas tree pins), things that go with just one outfit, or things I keep mainly for sentimental reasons (like my childhood charm bracelet.)

3. I hung a row of pegs for the chunkier necklaces that didn't fit in the boxes.

Now, when I get undressed and need to put my jewelry away, I just have to search through 2 plastic boxes instead of 8 to find an empty spot, and I don't have to fight with the chunky necklaces that made the boxes hard to close.

Problem solved, the House That Cleans Itself way!

1 comment:

  1. I just recently purchased your book, and I LOVE it. I have been telling people about it, and my Mother already purchased a copy for herself. :)

    Some of the things in your book I never even thought about. The most helpful to me was the idea about everything in your home taking time. What a good way to look at it!

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