Working with a professional organizer on our master closet project was an EYE OPENER!!! Beth, of Bneato Bar, had so many tricks and hacks for keeping life in order. Today I’m sharing the ten organization tips that saved my closet from the disorganized mess it was destined to be with me in charge. Ha! From products I never knew existed to quick and easy ways to keep things looking neat and clean, wanna hear ’em!?
1. Purge
Ok, this one’s obvious but if you want a more organized closet, less STUFF is super helpful. Now, can you go tell my husband that!? Ha! Kidding. But the very first thing Beth did with us was go through every single item of clothing we had and sort out what we no longer wore or wanted. One thing she did during this process that was helpful was allow us to have a “maybe” pile of stuff that we weren’t 100% we didn’t want. We’d set it aside and then after looking at everything we decided to keep, we could see if we really needed any of the “maybe” items. 99% of the time we didn’t, but it helped make it clear to us!
2. Categorize + Take Inventory
Once you have your final keep pile, it is SO key to categorize everything and take inventory. Beth wrote down how many of each type of item we had. This helped when we started purchasing some of the organization items below as it told us exactly what we needed and how many of each, where applicable. Without doing this, you’ll end up buying organization items you don’t need or you’ll run out of items and some pieces of clothing will be left without a “place.” Don’t discount this step!!
3. Color Code Clothes
Color coding clothes is not how Beth typically organizes closets, however since I have a much more colorful closet than a lot of people, it made the most sense for me. Instead of just organizing by “weight” of clothing, I’ve found it incredibly helpful to have everything organized by color. I have all my shirts in my short hanging space color-coded, and then pants followed by dresses and jumpsuits color-coded in my long hanging space. Within each color, I then organize by weight of the clothing. If you have a closet full of color, it’s worth a try!
4. Bulldog Clips to Make Instant Pants Hangers
When we first chatted, I told Beth I wanted wooden hangers but she pointed out that those hangers take up a LOT of space and since our space was limited, we wouldn’t be able to fit as many clothes. She recommended a few narrower, but still pretty (LOL, priorities!), options and I eventually chose these brass hangers. They, however, did not come with a pants hanger option so Beth had the brilliant idea to use mini gold bulldog clips. BAM! Instant pretty pants hangers that don’t take up too much space!
5. Rubber Bands To Keep Clothes In Place
One more trick to help better my beloved gold hangers. Since they don’t have a non-slip feature like those velvet-y ones (I know they’re super popular, but I don’t like ’em!), for any tops with super wide necks, Beth wrapped a rubber band around the end of each hanger. It perfectly keeps the shirts in place, and is hidden by the sleeves so they still look gorg!
6. Shelf Dividers
These are probably one of the most asked about items in our closet. DID you know acrylic shelf dividers exist!? THEY DO! And they are perfect for shelves where you need to stack multiple columns of pants or sweaters. LOOK at that before and after! Without them, the piles would fall or we just wouldn’t even bother making piles but this makes it so much easier. Probably my favorite hack of the bunch!
7. Clear Drawers for Sunglasses
Since my dresser drawer space was taken up by jewelry, there wasn’t room for my sunglasses. Using these acrylic drawers for them keeps them organized on the top of our dresser but allows me to see each pair clearly.
8. File Dividers
Beth knew she had to get creative to store my huge clutch collection and she ended up using these acrylic file dividers which worked out PERFECTLY! Each slot can fit 2-3 clutches and it keeps them organized while still allowing me to see each one. I love that I can hang all the keychains off the ends too!
9. Small Bins in Your Underwear Drawer
Anyone else have an underwear/sock/bra drawer that just becomes one big mess of undergarments? *Raises hand.* We ended up getting small bins so I could easily divide the three categories and keep them separated. Game changer!! Drawer dividers would also be great for this, but they didn’t work with the mesh drawer interiors we have.
10. Wall Hook Turned Valet Hook
I love being able to pull together outfits ahead of time or if I’m doing a shoot, usually this would end up just hanging in front of our other clothes or on a drawer pull, but Beth told us to get a wall hook and turn it into a pseudo “valet hook.” BAM! We hung it on the open space near our washer/dryer and it keeps the outfits I pull organized over there instead of on top of our other clothes. It also is great for storing tote bags, too!!
Photos by Jeff Mindell | Professional Organizer: Bneato Bar
For all additional product sources in the photos above, click here!
I’m happy to report that almost a month out from Beth’s final organization visit and our closet still looks SO clean and organized! Hope some of these are helpful for you all, too! Remember you can pick up Beth’s book on tidying right here.
Lauren says
This is a lifesaving post for me, since we’re about to move and I want to start off with an organized closet!
Kelly says
Yesssss!! So happy to hear that! And good luck on the move!
Michelle says
I am still so jealous of that walk-in closet, it’s so cool! Thanks for sharing these tips, I think a purge once in a while is the most helpful way to stay organized!
https://www.makeandmess.com/
Kristina B says
The file organizers for your clutches is BA-RILL-YANT. I am totally doing that. During the purge process, I wonder how many times do you hear “Kelly, how many pink *blanks* do you NEED…”? haha!
For me, it would be grey graphic tees.
Kelly says
Hahahah! Very accurate.
Jen says
Another organization tip is to use a folding board when you have clothes you fold. It helps to make everything uniform sizes! http://amzn.to/2oOgzCl
Kelly says
SMART!!!
Hannah says
I’ve never thought of using clips on a hanger to convert it into a pants hanger. Genius! And my closet is also color organized in basically every category. I would be lost without my rainbows. 🌈
Hannah | The Outfit Repeater
Hannah says
I should have said “jeanious.” What a missed pun!
Kelly says
OH MAN! Such a missed opportunity!
Mia says
Ooh thank you so much for this post! I have a humongous closet, but for the items that aren’t hanging, it is very messy/unorganized! I’ll definitely share this with my husband so we can start tackling it! (It’s totally all me making the mess, but I need help! haha!)
Kelly says
Hahaha! I’m usually the messy one too in our relationship!! Hope these tips help!
laurel (abubblylife) says
that bulldog clip idea is BRILLIANT!
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Karly says
Thank you for these tips!! I’m in the process of reorganizating my closet so these couldn’t have come at a better time. 🙂
Would you be able to re-link the sunglasses drawers? The link isn’t working for me!!
Thank you!
https://www.kpapreps.com
Kelly says
Whoops! Not sure why that link was broken. Just re-linked in the post and leaving below too!
https://www.containerstore.com/s/landscape-acrylic-paper-drawer/d?productId=11002073&q=acryclic%20drawer/cid=SM:blogger:pd:elfa:studiodiy
Jane Te says
Tell me more about these magic sock, underwear , bra bins! Must try this to avoid the pile of mess that is this drawer for me!
Karen Blackburn says
I have organised mine into the four seasons with colours so I can mix and match easily. I keep them rolled up in a plastic crate with a lid and am able to grab the right season and hang them up every 3 months while putting the old (clean) clothes back into a box. Saves closet space, keeps moths out, means clothing changes every 3 months, plus allows me to keep a limit on the amount of clothing I have and means I can easily pass items to the charity shop while buying/sewing new styles. This is ideal if you are really short of space.
claudia says
What are the bins that you are using for the socks and underwear, those two drawers of mine are always such a mess, i’ve tried organizing them before but without dividers i understand how it becomes a whole jumbled mess.
Damaris says
How cool!!! My clothes is as colorful as yours but my husband is not :(. The two sides of your closet look complete difference. We are going to bouild a new closet and is goot to know the steps to organizate in a better way. Thanks Kelly for all your tips.
Adi says
These are super useful. I started color coding years ago and never looked back. Such a must!
color switch says
wow, your wardrobe has lots of variety and colors.
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Cynthia says
What brand are the shoes you wore in the Candy Clutch article. Turquoise flip on pointy toe flats? Love them!!
Jack Milgram says
Your closet is a sight for sore eyes! I’ve never seen anything so colorful before. I might have taken a couple of lessons on bringing colors to my life. 😄