Trendy Wednesday - Brights

On a good day, if you saw my closet, you'd think I was an incredibly organized person. The thing is, under the surface, I am a very messy person. I don't mean to be. In fact, I would love to be one of those people who is so organized that they know where everything they own is at all times. Unfortunately, I have a hard time putting things back where they belong.

Admittedly, I have gotten much better since college. My roommates and I hosted the pre-party before formal my junior year. You'd think that'd be reason enough to straighten up, but seriously, I think everything I owned was scattered in piles across my room. There were hangers in the closet, but no clothes on them. It was so bad, that the boys were going in there just to see it. Never good when messiness impresses a fraternity boy.

When we moved to our condo here, one of the things I was most excited about was having a huge closet to organize. I decided it was an opportunity to start fresh. So I decided I would color code my wardrobe. It is amazing what you learn about yourself when you do this! I learned I buy everything in twos, and that I buy mostly brown and black. While the closet was neat - I have all of the hangers facing inward; items first separated by category - jackets, then tops, then skirts, then pants, then denim, then dresses; items then separated by color (ROYGBV); items finally separated by pattern - patterns in front of solids in color order, one thing it was not was bright. Even the items I had in colors other than brown, black, or neutral were dull. It really just needed a little umph, a little pizazz.

In came the brights! It is amazing how one top in a bright fuchsia silk can turn the whole thing around. That and a really good pair of white jeans. Now I can't stop buying brights. I recently got an adorable canary yellow sweater with a little white tie at the neck. I also just bought a super cute pepto pink BCBG bubble dress with ruffles at the neck and the waist. With a pair of gold strappy wedges - it'll be perfect for summer parties. I find that my closet looks a whole lot more fun. It bursting with colors of vibrant orange, plum, lemon, cantaloupe, lime. It sounds like I'm describing the newest line of flavors for Starburst. That's king of what it looks like too!

So, next time you go to try on that perfect tee or a simple little jersey dress in black or navy, see if they carry it in turquoise or red. If you do, I'm sure it will BRIGHTEN your day!

PS - It works for shoes and handbags too!