Maximizing Your Closet Space

With the weather being so cold lately, most of our focus is now on improvements that we can make on the inside of our house. One of the things that you should decide to makeover is your closets. Clothes go in, but do they always come out? If that is your problem and whether it is a bedroom closet, hall closet or even a linen closet, how can you get the most of your closet space?

What you should do first is sort through your closets. If you haven't worn it in a year or two (there must be a reason why you haven't worn it) or you are holding onto it until you fit into it, get rid of it. Even if you are hoping the style will come back in time, chances are it may, but when styles come back usually they are altered slightly in some way. This is a perfect time to give to charity or in the case of kids' clothes being too small, pass them along to a family that can use them. The saying that 'less is more' certainly does apply in this situation because if an article of clothing is stuck in the back somewhere, chances are you will forget about it and forget to wear it.

After sorting out your clothes, shoes or linens and deciding what can be donated or even trashed, you can go ahead and separate your clothes, shoes and even linens down into groups as to the season. Even linens can be broken down this way because if you are like most people, you have quite a little bit of seasonal linens such as Christmas table clothes and towels. You can put the off season clothing, shoes and linens towards the back of your closet and switch them when the time is right.

When it comes to racks and rods for the closet, the best way to maximize closet space is to have two rods, one above the other. Since pants (folded over a hanger), skirts and jackets are short, you can use the extra space for more. This system is usually called "double hung" and the proper hardware can be picked up at most big box stores and hardware stores. While this is good for shorter items, clothing such as women's dresses and longer skirts should be hung on a single, higher rod. You may want to put in a couple of narrow shelves that you can store sweaters, wicker baskets for accessories such as scarves or incorporate a cubby system for pairs of shoes. Also, hooks on the side of the closet wall will work well for things such as purses and smallish bags or even scarves, so that they are at your fingertips.

Children's clothing should be hung on a low placed rod that is easy for the child to reach and as in an adult's clothes closet, you may want to have shelves for further storage. Hooks inside the closet door are good because they can be used for bags and housecoats and the like. For both an adult and a child's closet you will want to also maximize the floor space. Look for shoe racks for your shoes or plastic bins to store toys and off season clothing.

It may seem like a daunting task, but if you do a little bit of sorting and storing a little bit at a time, you will maximize your closet space in no time!