Organizing Your Closet

You have just bought a brand new wardrobe, but looking in your closet you have discovered that there is not room. In fact, you have a lot of clothing that you don’t need. Yes my friend, it is time to develop a closet system and organize your closet. Here are 3 easy steps:

Step 1: Separate Your Wardrobe

The best way to start organizing your closet is to remove all of your clothing, shoes, and wardrobe accessories and sort them. When it comes to separating your clothes, there are three main categories that you want to have for your clothing. Here is a breakdown of which clothing should be in each pile:

• WARDROBE ITEMS TO KEEP IN THE CLOSET: these clothing items should consist of clothes that match the current season (if it is summer time—shorts, dresses, flip flops, sandals, etc; if it is winter time—heavy coats and jackets, sweaters, jeans, boots, etc.). Also keep any item that you wear regularly, like a light jacket, jeans, etc.
• WARDROBE ITEMS TO PUT AWAY IN STORAGE: these clothing items should consist of clothes that do not match the current season. By putting clothing that you will not wear at the current time in storage, you eliminate closet clutter and create space to make finding clothing easier. These items can be placed in storage bins, boxes, or clothing containers.
• WARDROBE ITEMS TO GIVE AWAY: the basic rule for this category is that if you can live without it or do not wear it often, get rid of it. There is no need in keeping clothing that you will not wear. You can give them to a loved one, sell them, or give them away as charity.

Step 2: Thoroughly Clean Your Closet

Now that your entire wardrobe and other closet items have been removed, you may notice that your closet is not as clean as it should be. You may have dirt at the bottom of the closet from your shoes or dust built up on the shelves. You do not want to restore your closet if it is not clean. Get a rag to remove the dust and clean the shelves. Use a vacuum cleaner to get rid of the dirt on the floor. If your closet has a mirror, make sure to clean that as well. If you notice that a few of your clothing items are dusty, you may also want to wash them before returning them to your closet.

Step 3: Return Your Items to Your Closet

Now that you have sorted through your wardrobe and cleaned your closet thoroughly, you can place the items that fit the season back inside of the closet. Any clothing that can be placed on a hangar, hang them up. All other items, like pants, can be folded neatly and placed on closet racks or in cubby spaces. Organize your clothing according to clothing type. Don’t forget about your shoes. Organizing them by pairs makes them easier to find. If it is better for you to use boxes to organize your shoes, get the clear containers to easily see each pair every time you open your closet.

Organizing your closet does not have to be a difficult task that you hesitate to do if you have a proper closet system. With these 3 easy steps, you are certain to never have a cluttered closet again.