Buzz
Photo: Kostikova/Getty ImagesNo matter how often you sort through your closet, pulling out items to sell or donate, space always seems to be at a premium. The dream of an impeccably arranged wardrobe can quickly turn into chaos when our clothes outgrow the available storage. But what if your closet has more potential than you think? By applying these space-saving strategies, you'll see how your closet can feel much larger than you imagined.
If you're stacking pants, cramming scarves into drawers, or leaving off-season clothes visible, you may be overlooking valuable space. To optimize every inch, we've gathered clever organization tips. With these techniques, even the smallest closets can feel surprisingly roomy.
1. Use Towel Bars for Scarf Storage
The Chronicles of HomeWhen Jennifer Bridgman, the creator of The Chronicles of Home, found her scarf collection expanding, she had to come up with a new way to organize it. Her creative fix: transform a wooden towel bar into a stylish scarf rack.
After attaching the bar to a simple, empty wall in her closet, Jennifer hung each scarf neatly in loops. To recreate this look in your own closet, simply add an affordable towel bar to a blank wall space.
2. Organize Drawers with Dividers
Annie SelkeWithout dividers, drawers can quickly turn into a jumbled mess of socks, belts, and undergarments that you have to sift through every morning.
Designer Annie Selke advises, "When everything is in its designated spot, you'll waste less time searching through your clothes and accessories. An organized closet makes both dressing and packing for trips a breeze!"
Take the time to declutter your closet, and you'll save precious minutes each morning. Start by assessing what you actually own.
"Be realistic about how much you need to store," suggests Selke, then design your storage system around that. Once you’ve added dividers to your drawers, you can say goodbye to the chaos of your old sock drawer,"
3. Hide Away Off-Season Clothes
Casey BrodleyWhen Joy Cho of Oh Joy! turned to the organizing pros at Bneato Bar for closet help, she discovered an important tip: Keep off-season clothes hidden from view. Instead of cluttering up your space, use storage baskets or boxes to neatly stow away seasonal items.
While this may not be the best spot for items you use daily, it’s the perfect place to store clothes you won’t need for months. Label each container with a word, number, or color to help you remember what’s inside.
4. Showcase Your Jewelry
Brighton KellerWhen Brighton Keller of Brighton the Day designed her ideal walk-in closet, no detail was overlooked. "It was really important to me to have everything visible. That way, I could easily create outfits," Keller shares.
To keep her jewelry within easy reach, Keller transformed a small blank wall. After mounting a few clear organizers, she elegantly draped her statement necklaces over them. Instead of occupying precious drawer space, these eye-catching accessories now serve as both functional storage and stylish decor.
5. Store Pants in a Single Row
Coveteur/Alec KuglerIf you usually fold your pants over the bar of a shirt hanger or stash them in a drawer, you're not utilizing space as efficiently as possible. Instead, Stephanie Mark, co-founder of Coveteur, recommends hanging your pants on ultra-thin skirt hangers for maximum space-saving.
When pants are draped over a shirt hanger, they take up more space; however, by clipping them at the top, you can fit twice as many on the same bar. This method aligns with Mark’s philosophy: "If you can’t see it, you won’t wear it." With pants organized in a single row, each pair is easy to locate, saving valuable time during your morning routine.
6. Designate a Spot for Every Purse
Polished HabitatIf your purse collection is as extensive as your shoe collection, consider taking a cue from Melissa George of Polished Habitat and investing in or crafting purse dividers. George designed wall-mounted acrylic clutch holders (check out the full how-to here) over a few weekends. She also added custom-cut acrylic sheets into one of her closet compartments, creating a separate space for each purse.
"Acrylic was the ideal choice to keep things neat while still allowing visibility," explains George. To achieve a similar look in your own closet, consider investing in transparent organizers available in stores.
7. Utilize the Back of the Door
pbteen.comThe back of your closet door is an underutilized space, just waiting to serve as a spot for storing shoes or organizing scarves. Attach the right organizer, and it will feel like you've gained extra feet of closet space. The only thing left to decide is how to handle that now-empty floor space that used to hold your shoe collection.
8. Get an Under-Shelf Basket
Polished HabitatMany closets have a few extra inches of unused space beneath each shelf. To maximize this space, Melissa George of Polished Habitat opted to install a few under-shelf baskets.
These shallow wire baskets clip effortlessly onto the edge of a shelf—no screws or hardware required—and can store everything from socks to extra toiletries. Once you add a couple of these floating baskets to your closet, you'll wonder why you ever let this area go unused.
