Getting Organized (As Best As Possible)

Ryan and I are picking up/purchasing our 2nd armoire next weekend (a cute little vintage one that was once used in a Roseburg bed and breakfast!), and I wanted to start reorganizing my vintage items in order to prepare. I asked Ryan to patch the back of my current armoire, that way it's completely closed up and moths can't sneak in (yes, we have moth problems here...grrrrr). I make my own moth repellent sachets using my own homegrown herbs and oils, and I have noticed that they work very well in ENCLOSED spaces! However, anywhere that gets a lot of air flow (like an armoire with a giant hole in the back for TV wires and such) won't hold the moth-repelling scents quite as well or as long. Moths are wily, opportunistic little creatures, and will wage warfare on your wardrobe before you even know they're there!...

...Anywho, I've lost track of my point...

Well, let's take another brief tangent to discuss my all-natural herbal moth-repellent sachets. The actual sachet I make out of a vintage linen napkin that I cut in half! I always sew in a loop of cord at the top of the sachet so that I can hang it off of a coat hanger. As far as herbs go: I grow large amounts of sweet woodruff on my property, which has been used since medieval times for its wonderfully sweet smell when dry. I use it to perfume the insides of dresser drawers, and I also throw it into my moth sachets to help offset some of the other (less favorable to people) smells. Next in the sachet comes a large pinch of dried wormwood, and then I always throw in a small stick of cinnamon and a handful of whole cloves. Finally, I soak the thing in lavender and camphor oil, and hang it up in my closet (making sure it does not come in contact to any clothing or other fabrics!). Usually I throw a few chips of cedar into the closet as well for good measure. These work VERY well in small (enclosed!!) spaces, and normally, within a few hours, if there are any moths present in the closet, you will see them come flying out (at which point, we send them to their maker). Yes, I realize that it's not the adult moth that destroys clothing - it's actually the larvae - but if I kill off/repel the adults, at least I'm eliminating the possibility of more babies. This is a fragile theory, so please don't contradict me or I might cry.

So, long story short, I reorganized this armoire to hold all of my short wool and vintage fur coats, as well as a few hats and hat boxes (filled with hats). The armoire has three drawers at the bottom, and the top drawer I organized to hold my feminine underthings and other unmentionable female attire pieces. The middle drawer contains all of my vintage purses and gloves (all 18 pairs of them...I think I need to stop buying gloves), as well as a pair of Kewpie dolls that my grandfather gave my grandmother when they were dating.

The bottom drawer I have deigned to share with my husband (*grin*), and holds our socks and undergarments.

The "new" armoire will hold all of my long wool/fur coats and dresses, and (because it is a shorter armoire with a flat top) I will be able to stack my remaining hat boxes on top of it! Hurray for storage solutions!