5 Tips for Organizing Your Closet Storage

Imagine how great it would feel to shake off this stress and get your closets in order. At Diplomat Closet Design, we help people experience refreshing closet transformations every day.

Here are our 5 top tips for organizing your closet storage.

1- Group Like with Like

First, don’t be tempted to simply take all the clutter from across your house and cram it into a closet. Organizing your storage takes a careful, thoughtful approach.

Here’s a rule of thumb to keep in mind: categorize, don’t hybridize. This means you should group categories of similar things together, instead of lumping various things into the same storage space.

As an example, think about your bedroom closet. If everything is all mixed together haphazardly, it’s probably frustrating to get dressed each morning. You move things around, looking for certain items, feeling like you’re wasting time.

However, if your closet is properly-designed, it has ample space for each category of item: shoes, belts, work shirts, casual dresses, and so forth. Each thing is easy to find. Getting dressed feels simple and enjoyable.

2- Add Nooks and Shelves

The biggest problem with most closets is that they are wide-open spaces with little to no shelving. This actually encourages disorganization, because there’s not enough structural support for your storage needs.

This is why we recommend adding custom shelving, nooks, and organizational features. With a bit of custom design, you’ll be able to store more things in each closet, which keeps more clutter out of your home and makes you feel more organized every day.

3- Reconsider What’s at Eye Level

When you open your closets, what do you see right at eye level? This is a very important question. It indicates how useful and efficient your closets are on a day-to-day basis.

If your most-used items are down on the floor, or way above your reach, it’s an annoyance to use your closet. This isn’t just true for adults – it’s true for kids’ closets too, which have a much lower natural eye level.

Each closet should be customized for the primary person or people who use it. Keep frequently-used items at, or just below eye level and within arm’s reach.

If the people in your home have widely different heights, either set aside different parts of the closet for each person or add a custom ladder or stair-step that makes things easier for the shortest person to reach.

4- Incorporate it Into the Decor

Your closets will also be more useful and enjoyable if you incorporate their design into the overall decor of your home. Use similar colors, materials, woods, and hardware that are found throughout the rest of the house.

For example, if your home has dark hardwood floors, add dark hardwood closet shelving in your coat closet and kitchen pantry. These frequently-used closets are also frequently viewed by visitors. When they match your decor, you’ll be proud to open them up and show off what’s inside.

5- Declutter Frequently

It’s a good idea to do both daily and periodic decluttering. On a day-to-day basis, be thoughtful about what you add to your closets. Consider removing old and unused items before adding more. Do a deeper decluttering once or twice a year and donate excess belongings to charity.

Remember: closet organization isn’t a one-time event. After you add storage, shelving, and custom features, control closet clutter and you’ll always feel organized.