Da Fashionista.com

New Feature: Inside My Closet
Organizing Accessories

Mr. Diabolina and I finally watched an episode the A&E show Hoarders. OMFG.

The woman featured went from being a stunning southern belle to using a toliet without running water...for 8 years. From a mother of two to accumulating EIGHT THOUSAND pounds of trash under which two cats had been dead and buried for decades. It was the foulest, most shocking thing I have ever seen.

Needless to say, the show has thrown this fashion hoarder into an organizing FRENZY. The last few months have been pretty stressful and I must admit that it's taken a toll on my closet. When you have as much stuff as I do it doesn't take very long for things to get messy. And I realized the last time I did a FULL re-organizing was January 2008. Have accumulated ALOT of dirty pretty things since then.

Happy to report I haven't found any dead cats or dead Forever 21 employees but I have uncovered lots of jewelry and lipsticks and scarves and even bags I'd forgotten about for months. Hoping to pull together a full closet video tour in the next few days too but here's a peak at how the accessories are shaping up.

Wishing you a very clean and fashionable New Year's Eve. I'll be knee deep in designer duds ;)

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Started my accessory organizing how I build most of my outfits: with the shoes...the glorious, glorious shoes. I organize my shoes by color and style. I place the ones I use the most at eye level and the special sparkly occassion ones higher up. My "seasonal" shoes - sandals and boots - are off to the side.

I have acquired so many pairs since Mr. D had my closet built that I now need to stack them up just so. Boxes help contain the madness. Just barely.

Next I organized my scarves. When I do wardrobe consultations, I am always shocked at how piddly people's scarf collections are. Scarves are a simple, cost-effective way to infuse your wardrobe with personality and sophistication. Loved this Elle December 2009 spread on multiple creative ways to rock a single Hermes scarf. My favorite alternative to wearing them around your neck: tying them onto a bag.

Decided to stuff all the print ones I have into four shoe boxes and stacked them in our coat closet. This is a new system so we'll see if it works out. I am determined to wear these beauties more often in 2010.

Next came my bags. They occupy two shelves in the closet. I try to place all of them in dust bags and again organize them according to use. Every day purses on the bottom, clutches, beach and travel bags on top. I used to stack them horizontally but decided to change things up and stack them vertically since most are pretty slouchy or flat.























Finally I tackled my jewelry. I own exactly three pieces of fine jewelry - a ruby ring from my dad, a Tiffany Atlas ring from my mom and a Me & Ro necklace from Mr. Diabolina. The rest of my stuff is junk, junk that I love.

It's sprinkled all over the house but the majority of it is in my bathroom stacked in a Marc Jacobs perfume box. Mr. D was getting rid of a tool kit seperator thingie so I took that and fashioned it into something for a girl. Kept my chunky bangles in part of the Marc box.

Got a necklace tree thing at Urban Outfitters this year. It's really supposed to be for a dainty girl with delicate necklaces not a large and in charge Diabolina with statement ones. Sigh. Decided to create even more of an eye sore by adding my headbands into the mix. I have acquired a collection that would make even Blair Waldorf jeally.

Luckily I haven't been feeling so bad about my overflowing jewelry after watching the very revealing, Lagerfeld Confidential. In the first scene of the documentary, the Kaiser is packing for a trip. His chunky rings are stacked on a looooong bureau in dozens of overflowing bowls. And he's got drawers and drawers of identical looking white collars. Makes my accessories situation look like child's play.

Karl saves the day again by normalizing fashion OCD tendencies. Phew.