23 Closet Organization Hacks to Maximize Space
Even if you’re an early riser, mornings can still be difficult. And while we all know that an having a neat and tidy closet can make getting dressed in the morning much easier, the task of organizing your closet is easier said than done. Most of us probably only wear half of what’s in our closet and he items we do wear can be challenging to find.
If you’ve been wanting to streamline your closet so it’s more efficient, we have several hacks that will help you organize your closet and save time in your morning routine.
Gather Materials
Before you start organizing your closet, gather a few trash bags or bins to sort everything. I suggest sorting your clothes in four piles—clothes to throw away and clothes to donate, clothes to give away and clothes to sell.
After removing everything from your closet, wipe down shelves, walls and closet rods, and sweep or vacuum the floor. This is also a good time to take some measurements to figure out what organizational systems will work in the space.
Take all your clothing items out and place them on the bed by category: place all the shirts together, pants, dresses, etc.
As you decide what you want to keep or purge, ask yourself these questions: Does it fit? Have I worn it in the last 12 months? Will I repair it (if it’s damaged or needs alterations)? Does it make me feel confidant? If you answered no to any of these questions put it back in one of the piles.
Once you decide to keep the item, place it back in the closet. Try to go through the items quickly and not get caught up in clothing that you no longer wear because it doesn’t fit, or it’s out of style or it just doesn’t work for you anymore. You want to make your closet work for your life today.
Once you place all the clothes that you’re keeping, go through the clothing that you’re getting rid of. If an item is still in good shape, you can donate it or even sell it. If it’s not in good condition, place it in the toss pile.
Once you’ve emptied out your closet, start cleaning, wiping down the walls, shelves, and hanging rods. This is a good time to measure the shelves to determine which organizing products will fit best.
Here are 23 closet organization hacks that will keep your closet neat and tidy and help make getting dressed in the morning a breeze.
Plastic Rolling Drawers
Utilize the space between the floor and the bottom of your clothing. Generally, the space between the floor and your clothing is wasted. You can utilize this space by bringing in a plastic rolling drawer or a rolling cart for extra storage. Both of these storage solutions work well because they’re easy to move when necessary. Find a plastic rolling drawer here. Find a rolling cart here.
Stacking Drawers
You can also use stacking drawers. Stacking drawers are also convenient and easy to use because unlike bins with lids, you don’t have to unstack and restack all the bins when you need something from the bottom drawers. Find a variety of sizes here.
Stackable Bins
Most closets come with shelves for extra storage, but clothing can become disheveled quickly when retrieving items from the bottom of the pile or adding items on top. To keep clothing on shelves in order, I like to use stackable bins for hard to reach top shelves. With stackable bins, I’m able to just pull the bin down and get what I need—instead of placing clothing directly on shelves, which would make it almost impossible to not mess up the whole pile to get the item that I wanted. These come in a set of 4 in a variety of colors here.
Shelf Dividers
To keep clothing organized by color or type, and keep them from falling over, use shelf dividers like these.
Under Bed Space Containers
For off-season clothing, I use under the bed containers because they help make room in my closet for currently worn items. Under the bed containers are a great way to store clothing for a long period of time without forgetting where you put them. You can find a set of two here.
Add a Stackable Shelf Organizer
Add a shelf riser to easily double your space. You can divide tall stacks of clothes, so you’ll have easier access to what you need without having to unstack and re-stack them. These are also great for pantry use too. Find a set of two here.
Shirt Stacking Organizer
Rummaging through a pile of folded clothes can really mess up the pile and then you have to spend time refolding them. A great solution are these folding boards to “file” folded shirts, one item per board. Simply flip through the boards to get what you want and the other clothes remain neat and in order. You can get a pack of ten here.
Under Shelf Storage Basket
This is one of the most clever storage ideas I’ve come by: an under shelf basket that can be slipped onto a fixed shelf. This allows you to make use of the space underneath shelves which means more storage space for your stuff. You can find them here.
Hanging Storage Shelves
If you’d like to add more shelf space to your closet without having to install fixed shelves, add a hanging organizer with shelves. It even has a few side pockets for additional storage. Find it here.
Hanging Shoe Organizer
No more looking through a pile of shoes on the floor to find the pair you want. Hanging shoe organizers get the shoes you wear most often up off the floor where you can see them. You can find a 24-pocket shoe organizer here.
Space Saving Clothes Hangers
This cascading style hanger uses more vertical space and saves you room on your closet rod. Place clothes hangers into the holes and unhook one side of it and it will hang down with your hangers still in the loops. You can find a variety of sizes here.
Velvet Clothes Hangers
Say goodbye to fallen clothes on the closet floor. The non-slip texture surface of these velvet clothes hangers keeps items in place and prevents shifting and slippage. And they’re much thinner than traditional plastic hangers, so they take up much less space. You can find them here.
Double Hang Closet Rod
The ClosetMaid Double Hang Closet Rod allows you to double your storage space to hang twice the amount of clothing. No installation is needed; just clip the rod onto your existing closet rod. It’s adjustable, so you can expand the height and width to fit your space. And it also works great in kids’ closets because it puts clothes at the right height for them to reach. Find it here.
Fabric Organizer Bag
A fabric organizer bag is perfect to store seasonal clothing, blankets, linens, etc. They have clear windows so you can see what’s inside, so you don’t have to waste time looking for a specific item. It has breathable fabric to help protect items inside from dust and stains while allowing airflow to keep items fresh. Find it here.
Stack & Pull Storage Box
Hard sided plastic bins are essential when you have to store delicate items that can be damaged or crushed in storage, such as hats, embellished tops, holiday decorations and other fragile items. The IRIS Stack & Pull Storage Box contains six bins and each one has a handle, making them easy to grab and the buckle-up latches secure the lid. Find a variety of sizes here.
Use Vacuum Sealer Bags
Vacuum sealer bags allow you to store off-season clothing, bedding sets, throw pillows, and more, using just a fraction of the space. After using a vacuum cleaner to suck the air out of the bag, items take up a lot less room. You can find a variety of sizes here.
Storage Baskets
Baskets are great for collecting odds and ends that wind up in your closet or dresser, but the problem with straw baskets is that they fray over time and can be hard to clean. This Whitmor Rattique Small Shelf Tote, though, is handwoven over a sturdy wireframe and has the durability of resin wicker. Find it here.
Lazy Susan Turntable
Smaller items can get easily lost on a closet shelf and it’s not easy retrieving items towards the back without knocking things over. A simple solution is to place a Lazy Susan Turntable on the shelf, and spinning the table to bring the item you want in front. The trays have edges that keep everything in place when spinning the table. Find different colors here.
Use S-shape Hangers
Maximize your closet space by using S-shape hangers for pants, jeans, skirts, scarves, and ties. These S-shape hangers allow you to hang several items on one hanger, helping you save space. Find them here.
Portable Wardrobe Organizer
If your closet is too small to accommodate all your belongings, consider a portable wardrobe like this 59-inch Portable Wardrobe Organizer. It comes with a moveable clothes hanging rod and 12 storage shelves. Find it here.
Rubbermaid Deluxe Closet Organizer Kit
Whether you have a walk-in or a reach-in closet, this Rubbermaid Deluxe Closet Organizer Kit can help maximize your closet space. The set includes telescoping rods and adjustable wire shelves expand to add 22 feet of shelving space and 12 feet of hanging space. Find it here.