Northshore Living: Utopia in Your Closet

by Kimberly Sanders Vanderbrook

My husband calls them fashion breakdowns. You know, when you try on everything in your closet, hoping to find something that looks and feels great, but ultimately settle for a less-than-perfect outfit. What’s worse is the clean up—the fallout of reject outfits littering your bed and dresser.

I’ve had plenty of fashion breakdowns, and I’d grown tired of looking in my closet full of clothes, yet having nothing to wear. So I decided to call in a professional—Patty Beal of Closetopia—to tame my wardrobe, with the promise of a pulled-together look tailored just for me. Patty, a professional closet organizer, does not sell closet organizing systems. She will not install countless shelves in your closet or provide cedar lining. Instead, Patty bills herself as a wardrobe editor. Her approach is part of a growing trend of local professional organizers—sort of a northshore version of TLC’s popular show “What Not To Wear.” In short, she is someone who can give an honest evaluation of your clothes and help you make the most of what you have. At first, I admit, I was skeptical, but I invited her into my mess of wire hangers, piles of tee shirts and fashion mistakes.

Before starting her business, Patty worked in retail for twenty years. Many of her customers whom she helped in the fitting room asked her to come to their closets at home and piece together their wardrobes. She saw the need for a “closet editor.” Closetopia was born and has been helping fashion victims ever since. Part stylist and part psychologist, Patty helps people deal with a very private part of their lives. “There’s a lot in everyone’s closet, and not just clothes. Some people have emotional and financial reasons for hanging on to things that just don’t work for them. I help them get to the bottom of why they still have items and teach them how to select things in the future that really work for them.”

As the day approached when Patty was to come into my closet, I grew surprisingly nervous about what she would find there. I knew that I was guilty of holding on to some things way past their expiration date. Embarrassingly enough, I’d had some of my clothes since college. Many just didn’t fit. Some were maternity clothes. And most—like the dozens of suits from my lawyer days—didn’t fit my current lifestyle as a mother of two. Some clothes were worn out. Other pieces were “great finds” I had purchased on sale, but never wore because I didn’t have anything to go with them. I’ll admit I hid some of my less-than-fashionable favorites, because I was sure that Patty would make me get rid of them!

She arrived early, armed with a box of industrial-size trash bags, a friendly smile and lots of energy. She immediately put me at ease, and soon we were going through my closet piece by piece. Her wit and easygoing manner made it a fun experience. After a quick survey of my mostly black clothes she joked, “You dress like Johnny Cash! We need to get you some color!” Piece by piece, she weeded out the clothes that clearly didn’t work for me anymore—three bags full! Patty donates all the clothes to charity, so on top of the reward of looking great, someone else is blessed with what you let go.

Next, I tried on everything and she helped me pull together multiple outfits with the pieces I had, often suggesting great combinations that I had never thought of. She took photos of the outfits we put together so I would remember what to wear with what. She also helped me part with my pre-baby jeans, my 1990s “date dress” and other things that I was holding on to. “People keep their clothes longer than their cars. But clothes have no value unless you wear them,” she observed. “Everything hanging in your closet should work for you right now. You shouldn’t have anything that you can’t wear and that doesn’t make you look and feel great—that’s utopia in your closet. Looking at clothes that don’t fit you or having lots of clutter creates stress. Clutter is an outward expression of an inward thing. When you open your closet, you should have an inner feeling of peace and functionality, not chaos.”

But Patty didn’t stop there. After my closet was pared down to only things that work for me, we went shopping. In three hours we were able to find two pairs of pants, two skirts, several shirts and a cool dress that made countless outfits and coordinated with the clothes I already owned. We also purchased accessories to complete my outfits. What’s more, she taught me what to look for when shopping on my own. By the end of the day, I was selecting Patty-approved outfits all by myself.

Hiring a professional to tune up your wardrobe is like hiring someone to fix your car. It’s best done by a professional and is well worth it. Taking a professional closet organizer shopping is like having your own private stylist—at least three women in the dressing room asked for her card when they overheard her guiding me through the ordeal of trying on dozens of outfits!

Sure, hiring a professional to help with my closet was an investment, but it’s one that is paying off in the ease and simplicity it has brought to my life. My new minimalist approach to the perfect wardrobe has helped me overcome the urge to collect too many things and realize that a simple, beautiful wardrobe that makes the best of my assets is really all that I need.