The clothes chair

Do you have a “clothes chair”? You know, a chair that sits in the corner of your bedroom and on which you pile clothes that have been worn once and are too clean to be put in the hamper, but not clean enough to be put away? Do you see it as an eyesore, as something embarrassing? Well, I’m here to say, don’t! There’s no reason to feel shame about that chair – as a matter of fact, I encourage you to fully welcome it in your room!

Most people have one, because they are just very practical. And its practicality is exactly why I think it’s perfectly fine to have it! It allows you to keep some clothes there, relatively unwrinkled, so that you can get another wear out of them before washing them. As long as this system works for you (or as long as you can *make* it work for you), it’s all good.

The key is to avoid letting it get out of control. Ideally, you should still be able to see the chair, and to distinguish individual pieces of clothing; otherwise, it looks like a pile of clutter. Make it a point to look there first when you get dressed, so that items don’t linger there too long and don’t become part of the scenery. You can also decide to grab items off of the chair and throw them in the wash to round out a load of laundry you need to do (e.g. all the white items, or all the delicates).

Don’t mix very clean clothes and definitely dirty ones! Dirty clothes should go straight in the hamper; a load of clean clothes from the dryer can be set aside before being folded, if you must, but do set a time to take care of it promptly (the sooner the better, to avoid wrinkles). Even then, it’s a better idea to dump those clean clothes on the bed or in a laundry basket rather than risk mixing them with those on the chair.

If the chair *really* bothers you, consider draping clothes over a blanket ladder, or set aside a small area of your closet specifically for this if you have the space. Another idea to make it look more intentional is to get a clothes valet, also called a valet stand. Again, don’t let things pile up too much!

Bonus tip: If you don’t know where to store your pajamas during the day and you want them out of sight, try folding them and placing them under your pillow.