Building your wardrobe costs a lot of money and protecting it should be a priority. Properly storing and caring for your garments will ensure years of good use. Clothes often become wrinkled and musty while in storage. Use these tips to keep your clothes in good shape and smelling fresh, whether you’re using them or not.

1) Hang your clothes while you store them if you can. Use a spare room, garage, basement, or corner of your bedroom to store a rolling garment rack. Hanging your coats, suits, and dresses will help them to keep their shape. Using a garment rack cover will help you keep dust off of your stored clothes and ensure that they’re not exposed to excess moisture.

2) Don’t you just hate it when you pull your clothes out of storage and they smell bad? You put them in clean, but they still come out with musty odors. Cedar hangers or cedar accessories absorb the moisture that causes this moldy mildew smell. This is more important if your stored clothes are near a bathroom, if you live in a humid climate, or if you store your clothes in a basement or garage. The deodorizing and moisture absorbing quality of cedar is what has made it so popular in closets across the globe.

3) You can store more items in a smaller space by using specialty clothes hangers. Space saving hangers are great for storage. They are slim, fit close together, and allow you to cascade items so that you use less space on the hanging bar. Choose slim hangers that are strong enough to hold up your garments without bending. If the clothes don’t hang properly from the hanger, they will get wrinkled while in storage.

4) Store items that you don’t want to hang, like sweaters, in vacuum sealed bags or plastic containers that seal. You can keep them smelling fresh by using used dryer sheets. Don’t use new ones, because they can leave a white waxy film on your clothes. Using containers that seal or cedar accessories ensures that moisture is not a problem for you.

5) Be creative when it comes to storage. There’s no need to fill up your closets with your out of season clothing. Store containers underneath couches, beds, in the garage, or install a ceiling bracket and hang them from there. Try not to use space in your every day closet and you’ll have more room than ever before.

6) Keep in mind that our body oils are left on clothes that we’ve worn. Make sure that you get suits, dresses, and sweaters cleaned before you store them. Body oils can cause damage to certain fabrics, attract moths and other pests, and make your clothes smell bad.

7) Use the clothes hangers that work best with your garments. Keep outfits paired with hangers that cascade or combination hangers. If you’re careful and follow these rules when storing your clothes, then they will come out of storage fresh and ready to wear.

About the Author: Charlie Hafter is on the staff of Closet Hanger Factory, a leading online resource for clothes hangers. Get all of the closet and clothes hanger accessories you could need at http://www.closethangerfactory.com, which is recognized worldwide for their excellent quality hangers.

Take a look into your closet. Does the sight of all the clutter make you cringe? You may feel like throwing your hands in the air and giving up. Many people feel like there is simply not enough storage and that their closet will always be the dumping ground for all of their junk. A lack of storage space is a problem, but if you concentrate your efforts on making the space that you have more usable and efficient, you can conquer this mess that is your closet.

First you need to make space for the things that need to be stored in your closet. Of course, the first step would be to get rid of as much stuff as possible and give your closet a little breathing room. By pulling everything out, you will be able to see what you really own and what has been crammed in the back of the closet for who knows how long.

When you get everything out, you may be surprised at what you find. You may find clothes that you bought that you forgot you had. You may find that you have a box of junk that you used to quickly clean up when company was coming over. You will probably find a lot of old shoes and things that you no longer like or have a use for. Just by emptying the closet you will automatically free up some space.

Next, you need to be a little hard on yourself. Tell yourself that you are not allowed to own anything that you can’t find a place for. If you can’t part with something and you can’t make space for it in the closet, then you must start thinking “outside the closet”. An armoire, wardrobe, book case, or dresser may be the answer to storing things in your bedroom that need to get out of the closet.

Making room for what really needs to be in there will take a little bit of imagination, and maybe a little cash. Try having a garage sale or selling some items on an online auction site to get the money that you need to upgrade your closet storage. Shelving is not very expensive. You can go with wire shelving that you can customize to hold your belongings, or you can buy the wood for building a personal closet space that works for you.

When you get your closet all set up, make even more room by using the right clothes hangers. Hangers come in a lot of different sizes and types. You can make your closet more luxurious by using cedar hangers. You can save space by using strong metal hangers. You can double up the use of a hanger by getting ones that are designed to hold multiple items, like pants hangers or cascading hangers. Utilizing the right kind of hanger can help you to make the most of your hanging space, freeing up more areas for shelves, bins and cubbies.

About the Author: Charlie Hafter is on the staff of Closet Hanger Factory, a leading online resource for clothes hangers. Get all of the closet and clothes hanger accessories you could need at http://www.closethangerfactory.com, which is recognized worldwide for their excellent quality hangers.

Creating a closet that is uniquely your own can be a fun and rewarding experience. Going into a closet organization project with creativity and uniqueness in mind is a smart move. It can be difficult to fit your life into someone else’s idea of a good closet system. Using your mind and creating special spaces for your personal belongings can make your closet a happy place to visit!

Start by eliminating unnecessary storage items from your closet. Some larger items can be taking up much needed space. Try plastic vacuum compression bags to make things like sweaters, comforters, and out-of-season clothing take up less space. See what you can store in large plastic containers with lids underneath beds, in spare closets, in the basement, or in the garage. Freeing up some space will make the task of organizing much easier and open up options for a closet system that will work better for you.

Next you should try to give away or sell whatever you can do without. If you haven’t worn something in a year, then it is likely that you will not ever wear it again. Donating items to a charity or non-profit organization is a great way to get some tax deductions and help out in your community. When you have your closet contents narrowed down to what you use and need, you can start figuring out the best way to get it organized.

You may need to simply empty the closet and take a good look at what you have. Use your bed and the floor to spread everything out. Experiment a little with categorizing items so that you can begin to imagine what type of storage will work best for you. T-shirts can be stacked into small piles and stored away in cubby-style shelves. You will have easy access to them and you won’t have to tear apart a big stack looking for what you need.

Concentrate on keeping categories small. If you have a lot of t-shirts, consider separating them by style, use or color. Shorts can also go into compartment shelving, or you can hang them on skirt hangers to keep them wrinkle free and easy to access. You can use cascading skirt hangers to hang multiple pairs of shorts on one hanger, saving space.

Do the same with your pants. Pants hangers that are open on one side make them easy to slide out and put away. Keeping your work clothes separate from your casual wear will make getting ready for work a snap. Your clothes hangers can be used to help you make space and also make your closet more efficient. Use hangers for their intended purpose to keep your clothing wrinkle free and easy to organize. For example, coat hangers and wood hangers are perfect for heavier suits and coats, plus they make your closet look beautiful. When your closet is in order and working for you, you’ll start to wonder how you ever lived without it!

About the Author: Charlie Hafter is on the staff of Closet Hanger Factory, a leading online resource for clothes hangers. Get all of the closet and clothes hanger accessories you could need at http://www.closethangerfactory.com, which is recognized worldwide for their excellent quality hangers.