How-to organise your closet

Closet Organisation Ideas

Got a hot date or important event coming up, and you can't find anything to wear? Maybe it's not your wardrobe that's the problem, but your closet organisation: a messy, cluttered closet can cause headaches when you are trying to get ready for work, or dressed for a special night out. When you organise your closet, you're likely to find that you have more wearable clothes than you could have imagined.

woman cleaning closet

Professional celebrity organiser Jill Pollack says with closet organisation, you need to start with a clean slate. "Take all your clothes out of the closet," she advises, "so you know exactly what you're working with."

Purge what you don't wear

If your closet is overflowing and you have limited space, the key to closet organisation is to get rid of the clothes that you don't wear.

"If you haven't worn clothing in over six months, it may be time to get rid of them," says Pollack.

"This includes clothing that no longer fits, no longer matches your style, or doesn't make you feel great when you wear them."

Categorise your clothing

When you organise your closet, in addition to separating your clothes by type -- such as shirts, pants, dresses, etc. -- you should also organise your outfits by occasion.

If you want to get really serious, you can then further categorise by length, and finally by colour. Think of it this way: getting dressed in the morning for work will be easy-peasy if all your white, short-sleeved work blouses are in the one place.

Maximise your closet space

Professional organiser Tanya Sinovec of Functioning Spaces explains, "It doesn't matter what size your closet is, the most important thing to remember is to compartmentalise."

Quick Tip

For instance, when you shop for shoes, don't automatically discard your shoe boxes.

"You should always save your shoe boxes and keep your shoes in them," Sinovec says. "Shoe boxes stack easily and neatly and help to free up a lot of useful space. If you have a lot of shoes, take a picture of each pair and tape the photo to the outside of the box. This will keep you from doing the frantic search when looking for a particular pair and keep your closet free of the unnecessary mess that usually occurs after you've been desperately looking."

Continue to purge

Julie Isaacs of Uncluttered Home says closet organisation shouldn't be a one-off affair: you should continuously purge clothes that you don't wear, as closet organisation is an ongoing process.

"Keep a good-sized shopping bag in the back of each closet in your home," Isaacs says. "Each time you discover a garment, coat or accessory that you no longer use and love, drop it in the bag. When the bag is full, get it to a donation site as soon as you can."

Install shelving or hooks

Even if you can't afford an expensive closet organising system, you can clean things up and de-clutter your closet nicely.

"Many people are frustrated with their closet because it's not designed to accommodate the clothing they actually wear," Isaacs says.

"If you wear lots of casual clothing, shelving may be more helpful than hanging space. If you don't like folding, you may need lots of hooks in your closet." These items are readily available at your local home improvement store.

Go get organised!

Closet organisation is easy when you keep these tips in mind -- and once you've organised your closet, getting dressed in the morning will be a cinch!