How to Organize Your ClosetHome » Getting Organized » How to Organize Your Closet
By Katie-Anne Gustafsson If you’re like many people, the idea of hanging the freshly collected dry cleaning up in the closet is a fantasy. It belongs to the days before kids, before starting a 12-14 hour working day career, and certainly before your weight started to bounce between a size 8 and a size 28! These days your closet probably resembles a storage container rather than an effective way of managing your clothes. It doesn’t have to be this way! You can reclaim your closet for the purpose it was originally intended – it won’t take you the whole weekend to do it. Use the three simple steps below to organize your closet. Outline 1. Prepare 2. Evaluate 3. Sort 1. PreparationBefore you organize your closet, prepare yourself.Choose a day when the kids are elsewhere, you don’t have to go to work or when no one’s expected to visit. Take the phone off the hook, disconnect your cell phone and turn off the computer. Next prepare the room. Get a supply of garbage bags, some freezer or address labels, and plenty of clothes hangers! Remove all of the pillows and cushions from your bed and then place a clean sheet over the top of it. This is now your sorting depot! Finally prepare your closet. Empty everything that’s inside it, onto your bed - You’ll be able to sort through everything without having to keep bending down to pick things up. The easier you make the task, the more successful you’re going to be at getting it done. Now you’re all set. Your bed is full and until it’s clear you can’t go to sleep tonight. Let's move on to the next step to organize your closet. 2. EvaluateEverything that was in your closet needs to be evaluated.Nothing gets a free pass. NOTHING! Don’t just slide something back in there because you don’t know where else to put it. That’s part of why you lost control in the first place! Decide what is supposed to be in the closet and everything else needs to go in another pile to await storage reassignment! What size of clothes do you currently wear? These are the only clothes that should be in your closet. If you haven’t worn something for more than two years, it should go. If it’s in need of repair, put to one side in a repair pile – it doesn’t go in the closest until it’s ready to wear! If not, then it should be put in a pile to throw out. Work through every single item that’s on your bed and assign it a place. It either goes on a hanger as current wearable clothing that fits, or in the: • repair pile Once you get through with the clothing, start on the shoes, purses, and any other items that belong in your closet. Your bed now should be empty. Your closet doors should close without a fight and all of your clothing hanging smartly inside them without being crushed. Congratulations! It’s now time for the final step. 3. SortingStart with your closet.Look at all the beautifully hung clothes. Move them around so that you create bands of color. Hang separates together as outfits. Now all you need to do each morning is open your closet doors and take out an outfit. You know it will fit. You know it’s ready to wear. Wasn’t that worth the effort? Storage Pile Garbage Pile Donation Pile Repair Pile That’s it! You’re done! Your closet is now organized. Make a commitment to go through your closest every 6-12 months to ensure that it stays that way. Remember, to earn hanging space in your closet, clothing must fit, and be ready to wear, if not it should go into the storage pile, donation pile or garbage pile « Return to Get Organized Main Page from How to Organize Your Closet Related ArticlesTips for Organizing ClosetUseful closet organization tips by Women's Media Organize Your Room Clear Closet Clutter
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