Organize clothing to help you have a peaceful start to a hectic day.
Gather clothing from clothes closets, wardrobe, dressers/chest drawers etc. and place then on the bed.
Sell or donate clothes that you haven't worn for a long time, that don’t fit and that are outdated. Discard items that are no longer wearable because of rips or stains.
Separate out-of-season clothes to be stored away. Also separate clothing that needs to be folded and stacked like sweaters, sleepwear, activewear, undershirts etc.
The best way to organize clothing is by type and then by color within each type.
Divide clothes into categories like tops, bottoms and dresses. Subdivide each of these main categories into causal and formal. Tops can again be arranged by sleeve length like no sleeves, half sleeves, full sleeves etc. Keep like colors together. Longer bottoms like pants, long skirts, dresses etc. can be folded over a hanger to save space.
Slim line cascading hangers are great to organize clothing. These hangers are only a quarter of an inch thick and have a velvety coating that prevents garments from slipping. They are relatively expensive compared to plastic hangers but the benefits outweigh the cost. Also buy suit hangers instead of shirt hangers so that you can use it for tops or bottoms or both.
Socks, underwear, loungewear, active wear, sleepwear, sweaters, T-shirts and under shirts can be folded and stacked inside your dresser/chest if you have one. Designate drawer(s) for each group of like clothing. If your drawers are not tall enough to stack folded clothes, you can roll or fold them small and arrange them vertically.
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Otherwise you an fold and stack them on the shelf above the closet rod. Use shelf dividers to keep taller stacks tight and separate. Also use the shelf to store small items like socks, underwear, tights etc. grouped together in clear boxes, baskets or totes. These containers can be stacked to optimize space. Label these boxes for easy identification because they are kept above eye level.
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Another option to store folded clothing is hanging accessory shelves. These clothes closet organizers come in 3, 5, 6, 8 or 10 shelves and with or without drawers. These can be hung from the closet rod. These maximize space by using the vertical space. Depending on the height of the hanging accessory shelf, you can put plastic drawer units on the floor underneath it to store socks, underwear, tights etc. This will be ideal for children’s closet.
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Also use the closet shelf to store out of season clothes. To maximize space, use space saver bags to store them. These reusable bags compress when the air inside is taken out using a vacuum cleaner. They are available in a variety of different sizes and shapes. Manufactures of these bags claim that they are airtight, watertight, mold, mildew, bug and odor proof. If you don’t have space for these items in your closet, you can store them in storage area/basement.
Put clothes you wear most often in the center of your closet and less-frequently worn clothes (like special occasion) at one or both end(s) towards the wall(s) of the closet. This way you can see and pick what you want to wear when you open the door especially in a reach-in closet with no lighting.
Once you organize clothing, it is very easy to maintain. Put clothing in their appropriate locations right away in the clothes closet or dresser/chest drawers after laundry. Also when you buy something new, sell/donate something old.
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