How To Organize Your Closet To Create That Perfect Look

We've Organized More Than 10,000 Closets. Here's What We Found.

In this guide we will give you our secrets on how to organize your closet — based on our unique experience of helping 10,000 + customers organize their closets — and their lives.

Because there are so many types of closets; walk-ins, reach-ins, small, large, etc., we’ve broken down our tips based on the most commonly asked questions we get about closet organization ideas.

So, here we go!

But first, if you're really in a rush, here is a solid summary on tips for organizing your closet scattered throughout this guide:

1. Empty your entire closet
2. Sort them into catergories
3. Get rid of what you don't need
4. Put all the clothes you DO need back inside in an organized fashion
5. Upgrade your current closet system if you can
6. If you have a small closet, switch your tall hanging system to a double hanging system
7. If you're just organizing your clothes, divide them into simple categories
8. If you want to organize by color, consider the rainbow method
9. Use your shelves as a display section
10. If you have lots of shoes, consider upgrading your current shelving to a shoe shelf tower
11. If you don't have any shelving, you'll need to get creative with your hanging space by using hanging racks, as described below
12. The space on top of your closet is a great spot to store items you use only once in a while, as well as for display purposes
13. If you have deep wardrobe shelves, commit to just one or two rows of items, otherwise it'll get messy real fast
14. Another idea for deep closet shelves is to utilize shelf dividers (see below)
15. For those who want to divide your clothing by season, it depends on the size of your closet. If you have the space, divide the sections by season. But if you don't have the space for that, keep your off-season clothes in a container.

Now, I know this is a lot to digest, so below, I will go through each organizing tip in exact detail!

We walk into our bedroom closets every day to pick out an outfit. It’s where we start our day and end our day so it’s really important to have a space that reflects simplicity, organization and inspiration.

The following exercise will take you a long way toward that goal.

And, warning: This will take time, so be sure to clear your schedule in advance and dedicate some time for it:

1. First, start by emptying everything out of your bedroom closet.
2. Then, sort everything into categories. Tops, pants, skirts, sweaters, underwear, etc.
3. Third, declutter clothes you no longer wear or feel your best in. Remember, your closet should inspire you! If there are clothes you no longer wear, donate them to a local charity. Clothes you no longer enjoy wearing may be someone’s favorite new outfit.
4. Lastly, organize your clothes back in your closet with a refreshed look and energy.
5. Now, this is the fun part. If you can, design a completely new closet system to fully maximize the space you have. Adding some double hanging, tall hanging, solid shelves and a shoe tower will completely transform the space.

Having a walk in closet means you have lots of space. This is exciting because you can get extra creative when designing and organizing your closet! Good for you!

This allows you to create a very detailed organizing system, but it's also important to remember that…

Just because there’s more space in your closet doesn’t mean we should fill it with clutter.

Instead…

Intentionally fill your walk in closet with clothes that make you feel good.

This is the primary struggle people have with walk-in-closets versus regular closets. But once you commit to keeping only the things you need, following the steps in chapter 2 will transform your walk-in-closet as well.

So to refresh your memory:

1. Empty your closet
2. Sort your wardrobe items into categories
3. Move aside the stuff you don’t need/want anymore
4. If you can, design a new system for your space that gives you the right amount of drawers, shelves and hanging you need.
5. Put everything back in a new, organized way.

Another thing to keep in mind with walk-in-closets: If two people are sharing the closet, it's helpful to designate one side to each person.

Every so often I run into someone who wants to organize their closet by color. And that’s awesome!

Just check out this image from Reader’s Digest:

The best way to organize your closet by color is by following the order of the rainbow. This is also known as ROYGBIV:

If you have enough shelf space, keep your tops and bottoms separate in each color. So, for example, when doing the color red, have a shelf for your red tops and a shelf for your red bottoms like skirts and pants.

Now when you’re aiming for a specific look and color, you'll find it with ease. Having your closet organized by color not only looks aesthetically pleasing, but it also helps you know where everything is.

Cleaning and organizing go hand in hand – they complement each other.

Organizing keeps systems in place, and cleaning allows you to keep your closet and system dust free.

TIPS:

1. Don't forget to vacuum the closet. It may seem silly and obvious, but this space often gets forgotten because it's not an open space. Just be careful to push the clothes away so they do not get caught and to clean behind the hard to reach places.
   
   
2. When cleaning your Modular Closet system use a microfiber cloth and a non toxic oil based cleaner.
3. Reach deep into the corners. You'll be surprised at how much dust and crumbs can accumulate over time in your closet!

Listening to some great music will also help you get everything nice and clean!

For a deeper guide on cleaning your closet, check out this article on She Needs Less.

If your Modular Closet system is mostly shelves, your focus on organizing will be with folding, displaying items and shoes. Shelves are great for the following:

If your closet does not have shelves, you need to utilize your hanging space for all your clothes.

You can make the most of your hanging space by using Modular Closets' Double Hanging and Tall Hanging towers.

If your closet is primarily hanging space with no shelves, focus on making sure your clothes are organized by color and by type of clothing. For example, keep all your long sleeve shirts together and all your T-shirts together and then organize by color.

Pro tip

Since your closet is all hanging, it’s really important to have hangers that are all matching and hold your clothes properly.

Things you can organize on hangers that are usually folded on shelves or in drawers:

Get creative and have fun organizing! The top of the closet can still be used for organizing.

Generally, I would use this space for items you do not need as much access to - family portraits, seasonal items, hats you only wear once in a while, etc. But if you really need the extra space for everyday items, a step stool will do the trick!

Some things that look really nice aesthetically and are still organized are:

- Hats

- Wicker bins with a label

- Family portraits

- Nice handbags

- Dry plants

Having deep shelves is great for utilizing space, but beware of overcrowding or you won’t be able to find anything.

A great way to keep your deep wardrobe shelf organized is to commit to one to two rows of items. This way you can still see everything! I usually keep it to one row.

Shelf dividers are also great to organize your wardrobe shelves and make it evident which categories are which.

Organizing your closet by season can be accomplished in a few different ways.

If your closet allows for it, you can keep everything in your closet but rotate and rearrange each category depending on the season. For example, when winter comes you can organize your sweaters, jackets and heavier items in the front and organize the lighter items in the back of the closet.

It's always a great idea to organize a section that allows you to be prepared for weather fluctuations and keep cardigans and light jackets available when needed.

If your closet is smaller, have a container you always use that you can continuously rotate when a new season arrives. When your closet is filled with heavier winter clothes, the container will be filled with your spring and summer clothes, and then you will fill that bin with winter clothes when spring and summer arrive.

It's an easy and efficient system that allows you to always be prepared!

There are different types of closets with different organizational strategies. If your personal closet organization challenges weren’t addressed here, please leave a comment below and I’ll do my best to answer them in the comments.

And please, if you liked any of these tips and if you found them helpful, do share this guide with your friends on social media!

If you have ANY organizing question whatsoever, feel free to email me at cgiaquinto@modularclosets.com!