Small homes and apartments can be convenient in that you never have to go very far to get the things you need. At the same time, clutter and general disorganization work against convenience. They can rob you of precious time, while you hunt for the things you need. No place is this more of a headache than in your wardrobe closet.

Sometimes taking an afternoon to sit down and declutter your closet is all you need. You might be surprised just how many items you are keeping around that you rarely ever use. Being able to take them out of the wardrobe closet and store them elsewhere helps you assess just how much space you have. If anything, a simple fall or spring decluttering day will help sort out seasonal items that can be stored in totes until the weather changes again.

In this article, we’ll explore some basic tips and organizational items that can help keep the things you need, where you can easily find them.

Add An Extender Rod

Rod extenders are very affordable. This is a great way to increase your total amount of hanger space, without having to force hangers closely together. This is probably the first thing to consider if you have any unused horizontal storage space.

Install Shelf Dividers

Disorganized shelves and cubby spaces make it hard to spot the items you need. It’s all too tempting to overload a shelf with folded clothes, only to find yourself dealing with a textile landslide when you reach for something at the bottom of the pile.

Shelf dividers help break up the horizontal storage space keeping one pile from accidentally intermingling with its neighbor. They also help you stay dedicated to keeping everything in the proper place.

Install Under Shelf Baskets

In some closets, the space underneath shelves goes wasted. Simple undershelf baskets are very affordable and relatively easy to install. You simply secure the runner guides to the underside of a wood or metal shelf. The shallow basket then slides into place.

This provides you with a great space to store simple items like socks and undergarments. Depending on how much depth or height you have you could even use them to keep accessories, extra pocketbooks or handbags.

Install Clothing Hooks On Unused Wall Space

Tightly packed hangers don’t just make it hard to find the clothing items you want, it can even cause wrinkles and potential garment damage. If you take some time to sit down and sort through, you will likely find a fair number of things stuck in your hanger space that would do just find living on a hook.

This includes things like

  • Belts
  • Purses and handbags
  • Scarfs
  • Ties
  • Sarongs
  • Hats and lightweight headwear
    Loose clothing items

Make The Most Out Of Suitcase Storage

Suitcases can be big bulky things that eat up a lot of room in your wardrobe closet. Ideally, it would be nice to keep them in less valuable real estate, like under the bed, or in a basement storeroom. If you don’t have these areas available, there are still things you can do to reduce the physical demands of a suitcase.

If you don’t travel frequently, a suitcase is a great place to keep your seasonal storage items. In the winter you can load them up with summer swimsuits and lightweight clothing that takes well to folding. In the summer, items can be switched around, heavy sweaters, wool caps, and winter gloves can then take their turn in the suitcase.

Even if you don’t have an alternate storage space, you might be able to find an out of the way place in the closet to store the suitcase. A heavy-duty shelf above the closet door, or behind a hanger rack, can keep your luggage stored out of the way, without eating up other valuable storage space.

Thoughtful Shoe Organization

Shoes can take up a lot of space in your closet. Yet you want to keep all of them where they are easy to find. Shoe racks at the bottom of your closet or cubbies that hang under shelves or along unused walls can keep them where you need them.

There are many options out there to consider. Yet for most closets, cookie-cutter shoe organizers will still take up more space than a custom shoe storage system.

Turn the bottom of your closet into a little shoe condo with multi-story shoe storage. You’ll find lots of options here. You could also place these on top of a shelf to make the most of your space.

Pull Down Closet Poles

Vertical space can sometimes go unused in a closet. Pull down closet poles can be manually positioned, but most have some sort of tension built into them. This allows you to set up an entire full or half-length closet rod, with hanging garments or garment bags, that are attached to a simple handle.

When you need something from the upper rod, you simply pull it down, take that you need, and then raise it back up again.

Storage Built Into Seating

Many walk-in closets, dressing areas, and wardrobes have some form of seating. Turning the inside of a bench or seating station into an innocuous storage space gives you somewhere to keep spare items. This is a great place for things like lesser-used footwear, and offseason clothing items. Something as simple as folding up sweaters and storing them in a dressing bench can open up a lot of room on your closet hangers.

Cabinets And Drawers

Loose items kept on shelves are hard to find. Putting them in cabinets and drawers keeps them organized and easy to find. Cabinet shelves and drawers can then be installed with dividers for further organization.

Enhanced Lighting

At first, accent lighting might not seem like a traditional organizational solution. Yet, if you look in a lot of closets with insufficient lighting, you will often find the dark corners are more prone to disorganization. Having sufficient lighting throughout the closet or storage space keeps you encouraged to keep everything neat and orderly. It also makes it easier for you to find the things you need without poking around or trying to find them by feel.