Space Bags

I decided to take that leap of faith today and believe that warmer weather is really on the way by switching out my winter clothes for my summer clothes. This is always a chore, both physically and mentally as I wrestle with myself about packing my sweaters away for the season. Is it really going to be warm enough?

The first step in the process is to sort through my dresser drawers and closet creating three piles of clothes. The “keeper” category speaks for itself. These are items that I really like and that fit my lifestyle. The second category includes the clothes I have not worn this year and most probably not last year either. This category contains clothes I either bought on sale or were gifts that really don’t suit me. It’s a tough category because most of the clothes are fairly new, causing me to feel a little guilty about passing them on. The third category is easy. These are the clothes that are just plain worn out. You know the type.

Once all the decisions are made, it’s time to find alternative living solutions for each category of clothing. Now that my daughters have moved to their own places, I get to use their closets. I don’t know what I ever did without that space. Maybe I should be a little more ruthless with the category #2 clothes but what if I need to dress like a grown-up again someday and need my old suits and dresses? I guess I’ll just wait until they are hopelessly out of style before parting with them.

On the advice of a friend, I decided to try the Space Bags to store my sweaters and anything else that folds nicely. The concept of these bags is great. You fill the bags with whatever; close the zip lock and the vacuum out all the air. The bag compresses and becomes quite firm and easy to move around. The bags can be easily stacked wherever you store your clothes. That’s the good news. The bad news is that they don’t hold their seal. After about 15 minutes, the air had leaked back into the bags. I resealed them and tried again, but to no avail. Well, the bags are made out of a sturdy plastic and will still be useful for storing clothes whether or not they hold a seal.

The job is done and it’s nice to see the light spring colors hanging in my closet and stacks of t-shirts in my drawers. I’m ready for a nice warm spring and a wonderful summer. Note to self: Stop shopping so I won’t have to worry about where to store my seasonal clothes.