Many times the space you have is more than enough for your belongings.

Our tendency to become packrats clutters the storage space we have and makes our closets a nightmare to find the things we’re looking for. Where do you begin organizing your closet? The thought can be overwhelming, but here is a great place to start:

 

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Begin by going through and clearing out your clothes.

Look at your wardrobe from an outsider’s point of view. Are there clothes in there that you haven’t worn in several years? Are there clothes in there from last decade? Are you really going to wear them again? Most likely, the answer is no. Get rid of them. If you can’t part with them, at the very least put them in storage until the next time those trends make their way back into your life.

At any home store, you can purchase extra garment storage. There are under-the-bed type storage chests, stand-alone garment storage or space bags that are compressible and vacuum-sealed. These space bags triple your storage space and are air and water tight, so your garments stay clean.

After sorting through your clothes, get rid of extra sports equipment or papers and magazines that have made their way into your closet. Empty shoe boxes make great organization containers. Cover the shoe boxes in your favorite fabric or in pictures for a more sophisticated look.

Make a few alterations.

 

If you have drawers in your closet, consider installing drawer cubbies. The next time you’re looking for that scarf or a belt that only comes out on special occasions you won’t have to sort through everything else in the drawer.

If you do need more space, sometimes all you have to do is look up. Many closets have an attic right above them. With some construction, combining the closet with the attic will give you a significant amount of extra storage space and the appearance of a much larger closet.

If you have additional room in your closet or want to reorganize the racks and shelves, consider these measurements as a guide. Allow for 36” for shirts, 45” for pants with a cuff hang, 20” for pants double hung, 38” for men’s suits, 30” for women’s suits, and 70” of hanging space for long dresses.

Whatever the size of your closet, keeping it organized and free of clutter from now on will only take a few minutes of your time on a regular basis.

 

 

 

About Maid Brigade

Maid Brigade, Inc. offers residential cleaning through over 356 franchise locations in the U.S., Canada and Ireland, and has been recognized and featured for its quality assurance policies and the work of franchise owners in many major publications including Success Magazine, Entrepreneur Magazine, USA Today and The Wall Street Journal. For more information, visit www.maidbrigade.com.