How Many Pairs of Shoes Should I Own? The Most Unsatisfying Answer from a Professional Organizer
How many pairs of shoes should I own? How many reusable water bottles does one person need to have? How many books should I keep?
As a professional organizer I get these questions all the time. And I’ll tell you the answer I tell every client for every category. Spoiler alert, it’s really lame. The answer is…. it depends.
It depends because the answer is different for every single person and every category of belongings. But I will share with you 3 things to consider as you find your very own perfect number.
First and foremost you have to consider your space. And be realistic with yourself. The limitations of your space believe it or not can actually set you free. Much like the way a friend or Organizer ( Hi! ) can help rid you of clothes that don’t fit and pans you never cook with your space can give you a definitive idea of how much stuff you can comfortable store.
Which brings me to our second consideration, your preferences. Are you a minimalist? A maximalist? Something in between? I am a minimalist, but also not one of those espousing that everyone should adopt it. If you like clean shelves with a few items on display and countertops that sparkle and shine that’s great! But on the other hand if you love to see all of your collections on display and having four pepper grinders because each one makes you happy and grinds the pepper differently than let those pepper grinders stay! The key is to know yourself and what you feel comfortable living in and with. If you are going to open up a closet door with a hanging shoe rack on the back and feel instantly Closter phobic ( I almost typed closetphobic : ) ) than less is more for you and you can limit your shoe storage to the shelves inside your closet.
The third thing to consider is your current lifestyle. And also what your goals for that future lifestyle are. If you currently don’t run but would like to, then maybe you could get rid of those three bulky pairs of winter boots you haven’t had a need for since you’ve moved to the South. This will make space for your running shoes to be easily accessible and you can spend your mornings running in the sunshine instead of hunting through piles of shoes in your cramped closet.
Your current lifestyle is another area to be really honest with yourself in. If you USED to entertain and often, before the kids came, but now have a kitchen full of complete dish sets and serving ware you never use and also a cabinet that rains down sippy cups every time you open it then you know it’s time to get rid of the serving ware and make space for how your life functions now. If filling sippy cups with juice and dirty, chubby hands with snacks is your current reality make space for it. It’s ok to pass down the serving ware to someone who could use it.
So, to recap this number will not be the same for every person. And as you search for your own idea of how much you should own focus on :
1. Your space and its limitations
2. Your very own preferences
3. Your current lifestyle and goals for your life. AKA what you want to bring attention and focus to.
I hope you are much happier and fulfilled with the number you find for yourself than you probably were with the answer to this question. Happy organizing my friends!