How to Organize Your Underwear Drawer

A year ago, I realized my underwear drawer was out of control and needed organizing.

Nobody thinks about organizing their underwear drawers. I put off organizing my drawer until I had dividers installed to make storage easier. If you haven’t figured it out by now, an underwear drawer is personal, and the contents of that drawer is not common knowledge. No one talks about what they have or how they manage the upkeep. An underwear drawer is a very private possession for any owner.

The turning point for me came when I was having some exploratory testing at a hospital. I thought nothing of dressing in clean underwear before showing up for the testing. Temporarily dressed in a hospital robe until the procedure, I was allowed to keep my underwear on as a team of doctors and nurses worked on me for less than an hour. I was flat on my stomach and displayed on a table for everyone to observe.

As the hospital staff filtered out of the room after the procedure, I slowly dressed into my clothes. It was then that I realized that I had chosen to wear the wildest design of panties that morning before leaving for the hospital.

When you don't organize your clothes, you wear what you pull out of a drawer or a closet. You are far from making a decision on what to wear. I had carelessly pulled a pair of panties from my dresser drawer with a loud psychedelic design and the face of Jimi Hendrix printed on the butt. I think I would have been better off with a plain color of cotton panties, but I figured the hospital staff got a laugh out Jimi Hendrix staring at them from the psychedelic background. I’m sure they’ve see worse underwear examples from their patients.

EMPTY THE DRAWER AND SORT WHAT YOU HAVE

Underwear drawers, as private as they are, can be wonderful places to act as a catch-all for underwear, clothes, and anything you can think of. Empty the drawer and sort its contents into piles of underwear, socks, stockings, bras, and other apparel. Set aside anything else that does not belong in the drawer.

This is the fun part. Decide that you will wear and either plan to keep, give away, donate or throw away. There will be some pieces of clothing that will not make it back to your drawer. You can’t keep it all. Here are some tips to complete the task:

1) Toss what you won’t wear.

2) Toss what is too tight or too loose.

3) Toss any underwear that is damaged or badly stained.

4) Unless your socks are identical, you can throw away the socks that don’t have partners or gather the orphans in a box or basket. Set it near your washer and dryer in case you wash or dry its missing twin. If you finally find the socks that match, they can be returned to your underwear drawer.

5) Bag the more delicate items like tights, pantyhose, delicate underwear, and other items that can easily get damaged. Use Ziploc bags and label what you have. Place them in a separate area, and don’t mix them with other items.

I have come to believe that my washer and dryer suffer from passive-aggressive behavior. They do the job when it comes to laundry, but I believe they eat socks when they have a beef with me. Since I am retired, I practice the frugal way of wearing socks. To extend their life, I will wear a mismatched pair. It's not like I'm going through clothing inspection anymore because I don't work, and I usually don't leave the house. No one is interested in what I wear, and they sure don't care if my socks don't match. I can also blame my behavior on menopause or a Senior Moment. Whatever works at the moment.

6) Decide where you are going to place your underwear, and only use those designated places for selected items. Do not mix anything and allow the drawer to return to a disorganized mess.

When your underwear is folded, organized, and is stored in its place, the easier it is to find what your need. Underwear makes a big difference to the wearer. When you have the proper underwear that fits properly, comfortable, and clean, you don’t have to worry about how you look in your clothes. Since underwear is used every day, it makes sense to keep an underwear drawer organized. Underwear is the base for what we wear on a daily basis, so if we feel confident about what we wear, usually the rest of our day goes well. By organizing your underwear drawer, you are able to see and wear what you have.

Treat Yourself

Don't wait until your underwear is tattered and worn. Always shop for underwear periodically and don't hesitate to throw out the old. Nothing is more embarrassing than having underwear tear or rip during the day. You either will have to do a quick repair, buy a replacement right away or suffer until you return home.

It's okay to treat yourself to new underwear. Nothing brightens the day like brand new clothing that fits well. How much underwear do you need? You decide, but don't go over board. When you have your underwear drawer organized, you can focus on what you have and use. Knowing this, you can make your decision on whether you want to shop or not.