Styled and Sorted: Master Closet Organization Brilliance

You shouldn't have to worry about things falling out when you open your closet doors, nor should you need to spend half an hour hunting for the outfit you want to wear. Bringing order and aesthetics to a chaotic closet isn’t that hard, and it doesn’t have to be that expensive. Tidying your closets can be a simple task.

First, empty your closet

The first step in organizing your closets is to empty them. Grab everything inside and toss it on the floor. Find at least three boxes, and separate the items into stuff you're going to keep, donate, and discard.

Place like with like

Before you put everything back, place like items together. Place men’s shirts with men’s shirts, women’s skirts with skirts, blouses with blouses, dresses with dresses, pants with pants, and jackets and blazers with other jackets and blazers. Some people even color-coordinate their clothing. If there are two closets for clothes, one can be dedicated to spring and summer wear, while the other is dedicated to fall and winter wear. Also, gather together accessories such as ties, hats, scarves, and bags.

Some items to buy for brilliant closet organizing

Among the most important things to buy for your closet are hangers. There are different hangers for different types of clothing, and no piece of clothing should be placed on a wire hanger. A selection of padded hangers, tie hangers, wooden hangers, skirt hangers, shirt hangers, suit hangers, and trouser hangers is a good investment. Other things to get are pegboards, storage bags, and garment bags.

Figure out the best closet systems

Professionals like those at The Closet Factory offer a variety of closet systems, not just for your bedroom’s reach-in closet but also for your walk-in closet or dressing room, your home office, bathroom, garage, and other places in your home. A closet system can be elaborate and luxurious or plain and simple.

Consider tension rods and tension poles. Long poles can divide the closet into three sections and then be used to support shelves, bars, and shoe racks. One high rod can hold long items such as dresses and pants. The section beside it has two rods. The higher rod holds shirts and blouses, and the lower one holds short skirts. Another section holds outdoor wear such as coats. Line shoes on shoe racks along the bottom of the closet. Place bags and purses and boxes or baskets with hats, scarves, gloves, and other accessories along the top shelves. If the closet has a door, you can attach a row of hooks inside to hold belts.

Another system for closet organization is basically a large box made of wood, melamine, or some other sturdy material that has compartments and bars for clothes, cubbyholes for shoes, and adjustable shelves for accessories. Other items you might think of adding include ironing drawers, cubbies for rolled-up ties, boxes with dividers, tray shelves for shoes, and small cabinets for jewelry.

To learn more about systems to make your closet both easier to use and aesthetically pleasing, turn to TheHomeMag’s pages on Instagram and Facebook.