Hi there! Sorry again about missing the post yesterday. But it's never too late for a little spring cleaning check in, is it? Continuing on our journey of cleaning out the closets this month (here's Bret & Lou's, and here's mine), I have been hard at work making our entry way work better for us. The entry itself is still not beautiful, but at least the coat closet is working really well.

In case it's not clear, I think closets are important. Organization makes such a difference in how our daily life functions, that I'm more than willing to invest some time, some elbow grease, and even a little money, into optimizing them. And nowhere do I think this is more true than at the entryway. Even before I had Lou, I thought the entryway was an important place to have everything you needed ready to go. But now that I have a child, its importance has magnified a thousand fold. It's hard enough to get out the door while having a surprisingly philosophical debate on why snow boots should trump flip flops as the footwear of choice - you don't need to fuel the rebellion by not being able to find the darn snow boots.

Knowing all this, I tried to set up at least moderately functional systems when we first moved in. Here's where I started.

As with our previous spring cleaning projects, the ideas behind this initial stab weren't bad. I obeyed my own mantra to use all of our space, including the back of the door, and I like the idea of using the clear plastic shoe organizer for things like gloves and hats, and later sunscreen and the like. I also don't think it was a bad idea to incorporate this bench, since it provided so much storage. But between the vertical space it used and the coats hanging on the rod, the whole thing felt stiflingly crammed full, and it was really hard to see what was in the bins. When I had things I needed to return or recycle, there wasn't a great place to keep them short of a big pile in the dark. Using the vertical space up top was fine, but could probably use a bit better execution.

So, I worked on some changes.

First thing: I ditched the hanging rod as a main organizer for our coats. I'm not the first person to come to this conclusion: Rods in front closets are just a total drag. Who has the time or energy to hang coats on hangers when they're stomping through the front door? No one. And hanging coats that way takes up so much space. So I bought three coat racks and planned to hang them along the back wall, side by side, providing plenty of hanging room. I ran into a problem: The walls in here are 1/2-inch-thick plaster backed by, presumably, steel. Or something I could not drill through, except in one place, on the side wall. So, I adapted. One coat rack on the side wall for Bret and I, and three Command hooks on the back wall for Lou's stuff. Even though it's not my original plan, it's still been SO much better than using the rod. It is quicker and easier to hang a coat on a hook, and it turns out we're lazy entrants and exiters. I need all the shortcuts we can get.

I kept the rod installed, because I figured it could provide some necessary storage. That reusable shopping bag on the 'S' hook is holding returns; anytime I have something to return/gift/mail/recycle, it can hang on a hook in here, where it's easy to get to, but out of the way. And, though it's hard to see in these pictures, I also have a special (and very cool) scarf hanger hanging on the rod. It holds - you guessed it - our scarves.

Then I got rid of the bench, and in its place added boot trays, and two bins. The bins hold the stroller, umbrellas and yoga mats. I slid in our sled and my (really big) suitcase filled with once and future clothes. (Heh).

Although I still think the clear plastic shoe organizer was a good idea, I really like this new system. It's not the sturdiest construction on the planet, but it's doing a pretty bang up job holding all the things we need to grab and go. I did do some purging here, for example by reducing our collection of reusable shopping bags from about 1,000 to a half dozen or so, and ditto with the hat and glove collections.

Starting from the top, if you're curious, our door necessities include: Stroller hooks; coupons and receipts (more on those later this week); reusable shopping bags; a purse pouch that holds things like a tape measure and antibacterial spray; more shopping bags; tissues, gum, earphones, sunglasses; Lou's entertainment pouches; and winter hats and gloves. In just a little while, fingers crossed, we can sub out the wintry stuff for sunscreen and such. I cannot wait.

I used 'S' hooks on the side rails to hang my purse and keys, and I love how accessible everything is - but still hidden behind the closed door of the closet, which makes our tiny entry way much more spacious (if currently, still, very plain).

Use a back of the door hook for temporary guest coat storage.

Finally, when guests come, I use this extra back-of-the door hook on the front of the closed closet door for an easy place to hang their stuff. Our entry is small and the coat closet door opens up into the main hall, so it's awkward to get into the closet and hang stuff up with people standing there. This way, people can quickly and easily hang up their own coats. I also have extra boot trays, which are stacked beneath the boot trays in the closet (I got a six pack of these and find they meet our needs pretty well), so I get those out for guests on days when the weather warrants it.

I guess the only thing we haven't touched on is what, exactly is on the top shelf. Two baskets hold outdoor gear ranging from sand toys to roller skates. The banker's boxes are actually just filled with more boxes - all the special boxes for packing glasses and our dishes. We didn't want to throw those away (you never know when we'll decide we're moving somewhere), so I store them there. And we even have a second suitcase of my not-now-maybe-later clothes stashed up there, because there is a LOT of vertical space and we used it. That's my mantra. Y'all.

So that's our entry closet. Weirdly, I have another way to organize this same space that I'll share next week. I'm all about options, I guess. Thanks for the warm reception on these organizing posts - it's nice to hear they're helpful! If you have any mastermind tips, please share, and I'll see you tomorrow.