What a Really Organized Closet Looks Like

Ginny Grocer, Organizing Home Life
"My hubby and I bought a 50-year-old home and have been working on updating it over the last few years. The master closets were reach-in style with very limited space for organizing our things. We were dealing with a single rod, double high shelves, and lots of wasted floor space. (Yikes.) I had been using miscellaneous baskets until we could afford to install a closet organization system—when we did, we evaluated our closets and recognized our unique needs before designing them. My hubby wears business suits, dress shirts, and pants, and has very few shoes. I, on the other hand, have as many shoes as my closet can handle and have long dresses as well as shorter tops and slacks. The new design works so well for both of our needs and hardly an inch of space is wasted. The closets still look almost exactly like they did right after, because the system works. It's easy to put things away when there is a designated place for each piece. We love it!"

Ginny Grover is the expert organizer behind Organizinghomelife.com.

After:

For those with a limited amount of space, it's important to utilize the overlooked areas in your home that can be reimagined as storage. Add hooks, shoe bags, or racks to the backs of doors, install high shelves for items you use infrequently, and use decorative bins or clear containers to store items neatly and provide easy access to their contents. Think creatively about neglected spaces in your home.

Maximize hanging space with double rods.

Shoe clutter is one of the hardest things to get control of—the average woman owns well over 20 pairs! There are endless storage options: get shoes up of the floor and display them on a shelf, either in shoeboxes or neatly arranged in rows. Clear plastic bins keep the dust off and extend the life of shoes—you probably spent a fortune on them, so care for them well!

Place purses and bags inside each other like nesting dolls.

Closet organization doesn't end after you've purged and categorized. Go one step further by color-coding clothing to finish off the space. It's pleasing to the eye and gives the space a more uniform and streamlined look. A color-coded wardrobe also speeds things up when you are picking your outfit for the day.


Text excerpted from The Complete Book of Home Organization Copyright © 2016 by Toni Hammersley. Published by Weldon Owen, a division of Bonnier Publishing USA.