1) Become charitable, have a garage sale, or give your clothes to family and friends. Most of us keep way too many clothes in our closets. How many times have you switched out winter for summer clothes only to realize that you didn’t wear half of them? The first step to organizing your closet, or any other part of your home for that matter, is to get rid of junk. Start looking at extra things as “space stealers” instead of “things that I might eventually need”. Now that the excess is cleared out, you can work on the next phase of organization; categorizing.
2) Categorizing is probably the most important step in the organization process. If you can’t figure out what category something should go in, then it will inevitably become junk or clutter. Everything needs a place and before you can assign it one, it has to fit in with other things that you keep. If it’s pens and pencils, categorize it with office or school supplies. If it’s your son’s precious handprint mold or finger painting, categorize it as a keepsake. You can create categories and sub-categories to keep things organized. Depending on what you have, you may have an entire dresser dedicated to keepsakes, souvenirs, and memorabilia. One drawer could be things made by one child, another drawer for the other child, one for your husband’s keepsakes, and one for yours. The dresser top can be used to rotate things that you would like to look at into and out of storage.
3) The next step is to measure out how much space you will need to get your closet organized. Let’s say that you have a big stack of t-shirts. You can hang them and measure how much space they take up, or fold them and see how much of a shelf they will occupy. Write it down and then come back to it later. Do the same for your pants, dresses, skirts, shorts, socks, etc. Then you will have all of the data that you need to figure out which combination of bins, drawers, shelves and hanging rods will best accommodate your wardrobe. You may be amazed how much space you can save simply by swapping out a shelf designated for holding your shorts for a couple of cascading hangers that keep them wrinkle free and easy to access in a fraction of the space.
4) Now that you’ve figured out the most efficient arrangement for your clothing and accessories, think about what you use most. Most professional closet organizers will tell you to place the things that you use most front and center. If you store your socks up high on a shelf, you’re not very likely to keep putting your socks in there. You’ll end up making another pile somewhere that is more convenient. The key to staying organized is to make it as easy as possible to put things back where they go. You don’t want baskets with latching lids, for example. It’s much easier to toss things in without having to put everything down in order to open the lid.
5) You can make even more space and protect the investment that you have in your wardrobe by selecting the right clothes hangers for the job. You should always hang coats and suits on coat hangers or wood hangers that are curved to keep the shape of the shoulders. Your hangers should fit the space and the style of your closet. Choose ones that help you keep things organized. This could mean getting a few different types of specialty hangers for organizing belts and ties, cascading clothing, or simply choosing the ones that inspire you to keep the closet neat.
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.
