Minimalism Week #9- "Catch All" Closet: Part 1

Every house has one of those places.  That place that you put things when you don't know where they ought to go.  Things that don't have a home.  It is sometimes a junk drawer, a room, a basement, or, in my case, a closet.  (Well, actually... the basement is starting to apply to me, but that is a post for another time!)  I admire people who can keep the "junk spot" to just a drawer or somewhere small.  I am hoping that, with our move to minimalism, my husband and I won't have any need for a "junk spot".  That would be the ultimate goal.

I am the proud mother of a nearly five month old daughter who refuses to nap!  This really limits my time for minimizing projects.  I started working on this closet for this week's project and I will finish next week.  This closet is used for many things.  It stores all of our pet supplies, overflow from our tiny kitchen, tools, sewing/craft supplies and many other things.  I tackled the floor and first two shelves today.

Here is the before:

 

What you can't see is the loads of stuff behind the large bag of dog food.  I wasn't really thinking when I took that picture!

This closet isn't horrible, but it does cause me to shudder every single time I open it.  I can never quite get to what I want and there are a lot of items in the closet that are pure garbage.  I started by pulling everything out.  I made a bag dedicated to my dog's apparel.  She has a winter coat, a Halloween costume (much to my husband's dismay), a life jacket and a few handkerchiefs (for pretty puppy pictures!).  I then put her travel dishes into the backpack we always take with us.  I sorted through her toys and gave them a designated basket.  I folded her towels and stacked them.  

I then tackled the second shelf.  I threw away a lot of items such as: an expired bottled of ear drops for the dog, some expired cat and dog treats, a dog shampoo that doesn't agree with my dog, and a bone that my pup has no interest in.  I donated my dogs "winter booties" and one of her hair brushes.  

The third shelf was easier than I expected.  I had room in my kitchen for a few of the items since my husband and I had gone through the kitchen several months ago.  I donated a few vases (they really start to pile up!).  I also found a home for the phone book (beside the phone, of course!).

Here is the after photo:

Ahhhhhhh.... much better!  Everything is easier to find and my closet has a lot more space.  It is a beautiful thing.

Do you have a junk spot in your house?  One of those places that "things" seem to accumulate?  What strategies do you use to combat this?