13 Tricks for an Organized Wardrobe
I live in a 515 square foot live/work studio. Yep, you read that right! It calls for some seriously creative use of space. But even in past places I’ve lived—a rambler house, a town home, a duplex—my wardrobe has out-sized my closet.
But until I have one of Carrie Bradshaw’s dream closets from Sex and the city, I use many clever organizational tricks.
Organizing your wardrobe is a tricky balance of keeping it neat and uncluttered, but also “merchandising” your clothes, accessories and shoes in a way that you can see them. If everything is tucked away in drawers, bins and boxes, two things happen:
You’re constantly reorganizing after digging something out but then not having the patience to put it back…so things end up in a pile on a chair.
You forget about all the treasures you have because you can’t see them to consider using them in an outfit. You have to remember where that great scarf is and dig it out of the box on the top shelf of your closet.
So, take it from me—the Queen of Small Spaces—you can still have a swoon-worthy closet and dressing area even when you don’t have much room. Below are a baker’s dozen hacks I’ve learned over the years.
I asked my apartment management company to put more shelving higher up in my closet before I moved in. I use it for shoes and other items I don’t need as much. Sure, it takes a step ladder to get up there, but it’s totally worth it!
With my high ceilings, I nabbed extra space for some bins. During "normal" times, my boyfriend and I travel a fair amount to escape the cold. I keep 4 bins above my washer + dryer with warm weather clothes, hats and swimwear so they are accessible, but not mixed in with winter clothes.
They are a magical space saver! My favorites are Joy Magnano. When using them, you can get many more pieces in your closet compared to plastic hangers. It’s tempting to cram it ALL in there, so be careful. You don’t want to solve one problem and create another.
To help manage the volume of clothes in my closet, I use labeled rack dividers. They come with categories on stickers and you can also create your own labels with a dry erase marker. This has been a huge help, especially for items tucked away in the dark corner of the closet.
Get your shoes and boots out of shoe boxes and bins. These shoe slots are my new obsession. What can I say, they save SO much space…and I can see all my shoes at a glance!
I used to fold up all my tees, sweatshirts and sweaters next to each other on a closet shelf. Then, when I’d go to get one at the bottom of the pile, the rest of them fell all over the place. Shelf dividers help your stacks stay neat.
This is one of my favorites! Get a sturdy wooden coat hanger (not plastic or velvet…I speak from experience, they break!) and some inexpensive shower rings. Hang all your tanks on them and voila! They are organized in a neat and accessible way.
When you don’t have enough space on the ground or in the closet, start using wall space. I mounted two coat hangers and hang all my purses on them. It’s kind of like using your purses as decorations!
I use plastic shoe bins from The Container Store to store clutches in a dresser drawer. Again, when they were in a bin with a top on the shelf, I couldn’t see them all.
I grabbed this inexpensive peg board from IKEA and hang most of my chunkier necklaces on it above my jewelry armoire.
The back of the door is a perfect place to leverage extra space. I’ve seen over-the-door storage for everything from jewelry and shoes to tights and socks. I use it to hang my scarf rings on a Command hook.
Instant space-saver! Can’t wait to add fall fedoras to the mix.
When all else fails, move some things out of the closet. Don’t try to cram it in or you’re going to go crazy! In my case, I claimed a space behind a pillar in my studio. Perhaps you create a fun finishing touches space in the corner of your bedroom.
