How to Organize and Maintain Your Closets

We all start off with an empty closet that probably has shelves or bars for hanging our belongings. It is up to everyone to stow away their things in an organized fashion…and keep it that way. Sometimes the hard part isn’t when you first put things away, it is the maintaining some sort of order going forward. Why is this important? These types of homeownership tips help for better day-to-day living, but are also very helpful for when it comes time to sell your home. Here are some tips to follow for making your closets work for you and anyone who views them.

Know Your Needs

All closet layouts don’t work for everyone. Take some time to review what you have, what you want to store in the closet and assess your needs. Do you need mostly hanging space? Do you need two rows of hangers? If you have a lot of shoes you may need to add a lot of cubbies perhaps along the floor for them.

The better you plan out your closet for your needs, the better chance you will have for putting things away properly. As you assess your needs, this is a great time to pare down on what you have and only keep what you need and use. If you haven’t used it in over a year, it may not be worth trying to find space for it.

Small Compartments

A good rule of thumb is to have more, smaller compartments. In other words, having more shelves will allow you to break up things like shorts and t-shirts rather than having taller stacks of things that may be prone to toppling over and creating a mess. Creating a better closet system may cost a bit more to set up, but in the end it will save you more time and headache when you are searching for your things. A great tip for these compartments is to put any loose items in clear or transparent bins. This allows you to keep things contained but can easily see what is inside each.

Kid Compliant

For anyone who has children, getting them to tidy up can be a challenge in and of itself. If you want your kids to help in keeping things organized, make it as easy as possible for them. Generally kids are better with putting things away quickly in bins, baskets and cubbies. Hooks are also preferred to hangers in efforts to keep things simple.

Lighting

Keeping things bright will make it easier to see. Choose paint colors that are light so that your closet is brighter and appears larger. For larger closets, improve the lighting with better fixtures so you can see everything that you have.