It would be completely lame if I posted a blip referring to spring in June. Thus, this post is being penned tonight… nothing like a natural deadline, right?

I love spring. The (hypothetical) change in the sky’s color. The (theoretical) lessening of rainfall. The (supposed) presence of the sun on a more regular basis. There’s another reason I love spring. It’s the same reason I love fall. What is it you may ask? It’s the great wardrobe switcheroo.

Now, I’ll admit that I tend to be a bit of an odd duck. While I have a circle of friends that subscribe to the wardrobe switcheroo methodology, I know that most PNW-ers don’t bother. With an average temperature range of 30 to 70 degrees (note: I did not fact check that statement), most get by wearing layers.

Not me. It has nothing to do with practicality. Rather it’s all mental. You see, when I get to pull big boxes out of the closet each April/May and September/October and get to pull out clothes which I haven’t seen in months, I have a Rebecca Bloomwood moment for free. I pull out scarves, sweaters, and skirts which I literally had forgotten about. Thus, there’s a huge budget-friendly incentive to have wardrobe swticheroos.

So… I snapped a couple of pictures to reveal the scary, strategic and rewarding moments of my old switcheroo (keep reading for the new one I discovered recently):

My basic strategy is:

• Start with the closet | Moving left to right, I start pulling out “seasonal items” and place them on my bed. I then unload a box of clothes and hang “new” articles on available hangers. I then fold/roll (whichever is easiest) whatever is on my bed.
• Move to the drawers | Sort items here in the similar manner mentioned above.
• Pare things down throughout | Believe it or not, I’ve always done this (besides musing about a recent desire earlier). If I haven’t worn something in the last six months, have a negative body image moment when I see it, notice some mending needs, or determine it’s showing too many signs of “love”, it gets sorted as follows:

Far Left | Offer to Community Group Girls First then Donate

Center | Take to Dry Cleaners for Cleaning/Repair

Far Right | Toss It

Admittedly, as I switcheroo-ed this time around, I remembered that I got rid of a lot of summer season shoes last year. Hmph. I wonder how I’ll ever remedy that? : )

Here’s a snapshot of the results:

Now, with all that being described, I was surprised that as a renter of a house with gardening rights, I had a new switcheroo to perform.

In fact, it wasn’t until I was looking at old pictures that I realized just how BIG the flowering kale had grown.

As I looked into the container, I also confirmed that it had become a favorite place for one of the neighborhood rats with tails (aka squirrels):

A trip to my nearest gardening center resulted in a couple of replacement plants:

The selection of these plants sealed the deal that a fall switcheroo will be in order (since they’re annuals), however, I think this is a rhythm I’m glad to accommodate.

Unfortunately, I don’t think Goodwill accepts exceptionally menacing looking flowering kale.

Maybe next year?

What about you? Are you a switcheroo-er? What’s your method for success?