1) Get out the summer clothes and store them away for next year. Go ahead and toss things that you didn’t wear or that didn’t fit right into a bag or box to give away to charity. This could also be the perfect time to clear out the clutter and have a yard sale to make a little money that can be put towards perfecting your closet for winter.

2) It’s important to clean your closet now that it is empty. Most people don’t take the time to dust shelves, baseboards and light fixtures when there are clothes in the closet. Vacuum the floor, dust and wipe down everything so that you don’t end up with dust balls or microscopic insect eggs on your winter clothing. This could be a good time for a fresh coat of paint or you may even want to go ahead and install that cedar closet liner that you’ve been dreaming of.

3) Now you can determine what kind of space you’ll need for you winter clothes. You’ll definitely need some hanging space for coats and some shelf or drawer space for heavy sweaters. You can make space by moving your top shelf up closer to the ceiling and adding an extra hanging bar down below. You can use the higher shelf for storing your summer clothes, luggage, ski equipment, or other things that you won’t need every day.

4) Hang your pants on one bar and your tops on the other. You may want to put an extra bar on one side of your closet for hanging longer coats and dresses that you don’t want to wrinkle. Use pants hangers for your pants. Some have non-slip bars or non-creasing clamps. If you use clips, use ones that won’t rust, snag, or imprint your pants while they hang. Use coat hangers for your heavy coats. Make sure that these are curved to help your coats keep their shape. Wider shoulders that slope down won’t pucker shoulders or wrinkle sleeves. You can buy petite hangers or extra large hangers for clothes that don’t fit perfectly on regular clothes hangers. Use specialty hangers that hold scarves, hats, and gloves to perfectly store those small winter items without forcing you to install extra shelves or drawers.

5) For the rest of your clothes, you can use space saving hangers, like velvet hangers, to make the most of the space. Space saving hangers are designed to fit flat against one another, using as little space as wire hangers. However, these hangers won’t cross up on the bar, rust, snag clothing, or bend, causing your clothes to end up on the floor. These have a non-slip velvet coating to hold clothes securely in place. The bottom bar is perfect for hanging pants or attaching movable clips for securing straps. You can coordinate outfits by hanging pants and shirts on the same hanger, or even add a hook to hang multiple items in the space of one hanger. Tricks like this can help you to double or even triple the space in your closet, making room for those winter clothes after all.

About the Author: Rick Miller is on the staff of Only Slimline Hangers, a leading online resource for velvet hangers which are space saving hangers, non slip hangers and slim line hangers. For more information, please visit http://www.onlyslimlinehangers.com.

1) Clear out as much of your old stuff as possible. If something doesn’t fit quite right, get rid of it. If you have shoes that hurt, are scuffed, or simply don’t match anything that you have, give them away. Making charitable donations is a great way to help your community and get some extra deductions on your taxes. If possible, have a yard sale or list your better items on an auction site. Use the extra money to upgrade your closet so that it can stay more organized in the future.

2) Come up with a wardrobe rotation system. If you have a closet that is on the smaller side, you may not be able to store your summer and winter clothing in there. Try to find space under the bed, in an armoire, or in the garage for clothing that you don’t use year-round. Be sure to use cedar accessories in your storage bins to avoid musty odors and to repel pests. If you prefer to keep your clothing hanging, invest a little in a rolling garment rack with a zip-up cover to keep your hanging clothes nice and neat while they’re in storage.

3) Space is at a premium, so use it wisely. If t-shirts take up more space hanging than they do stacked on a shelf, use the shelf. If pants stay better organized on pants hangers than stuffed in a drawer, designate one area just for pants. Designate areas, bins, containers, drawers or shelves for pajamas, socks, swimwear, and other small items that you may not want to hang. A simple cubby system down one side of your closet may be enough. Or, consider putting one on each side of the closet, leaving the hanging space in the center free for hanging clothes.

4) Find storage space wherever you can. Is the area on the back of the closet door being used? What about above the closet door? Near the ceiling? There is often space in the closet that we haven’t considered using before that is perfect for storing things that we don’t use every day. Consider placing some small shelves and racks around those spaces for things like hats and luggage that don’t get used very often.

5) Choosing the right clothes hangers can make a huge difference in the space that you use and how organized you are able to keep the closet. Space saving hangers, like velvet hangers, prevent clothes from slipping, puckering at the shoulders, or becoming tangled up on the bar. They are slim enough to fit closely together. You can also get cascading hangers that allow you to hang multiple pairs of pants on one hanger or coordinate outfits to save time and space.

About the Author: Rick Miller is on the staff of Only Slimline Hangers, a leading online resource for velvet hangers which are space saving hangers, non slip hangers and slim line hangers. For more information, please visit http://www.onlyslimlinehangers.com.

Make sure that your furniture is functional as storage areas. Furniture in the bedroom can make it look nice and finished out. However, if it doesn’t work for you, it can end up being a place to stack things. You can raise your bed with risers to create more storage underneath. Use a dust ruffle to cover what you have stored under there. Drawers on casters, flat plastic containers, and even shoe organizers are great things to put underneath the bed.

Your dressers may have plenty of drawers to store some of your extra items. However, if you keep all of your clothes in them, then they may not be serving you as well as they could. Arranging your closet so that it can accommodate your clothes will allow you to clear out most of your dresser drawers for storage. Now, you may be wondering why you should swap out using your dressers for clothes and your closet for storage, so I’ll tell you why.

Dresser drawers can be useful for storing clothes, but generally only for a couple of layers. You can’t see what you have when you get to those deeper drawers, so you end up unfolding the stack or not finding what you’re looking for. Drawers, especially deeper ones, can be great places to store items that you don’t have to get to very often.

If you use your closet for clothes, then you can more easily see what you have. You can use clear bins for smaller things and hang your everyday clothes. Using space saving hangers, like velvet hangers, will allow you to fit your clothing closely together without wrinkling them or having them slip off onto the floor.

Using closet and hanger accessories that are made to save space in your closet can help you to maximize the space, even if you don’t think you have enough room. Cascading hooks, specialty hangers, and hanging shelves are all very inexpensive ways of doubling or tripling the space in your closet. Using velvet hangers will help you ensure that your closet will look stylish and your clothes will be protected from damage.

About the Author: Rick Miller is on the staff of Only Slimline Hangers, a leading online resource for velvet hangers which are space saving hangers, non slip hangers and slim line hangers. For more information, please visit http://www.onlyslimlinehangers.com.

1) Pair tops and bottoms together. This can save you time when you are getting ready for work or for a night on the town. Pairing outfits together not only saves you time, but can double the space in your closet. You can use specialty suit hangers to hang the pants or skirt with the top that matches it best. You can also use cascading hooks or other hanger clips to make an outfit take up the space of one hanger.

2) Use hangers designed to hold multiples of each item to save more space. If you use pants hangers that allow you to hang a few pairs on one hanger, you can save a lot of room. You can use ones with clips or ones that simply drape over each other. Some will simply have hooks for you to hang a few hangers on one base. You can use these for skirts or any other item that can be draped.

3) Use bins for small items. This will make your closet look more organized by disguising what all you have in the closet. It’s also a lot easier to stay organized when everything has a place to go. Baskets or bins can go into cubby spaces, on shelves, or on the floor of the closet. You can color coordinate so that your sock bin is a different color than your husbands, or however you determine works best for you and your closet.

4) Sometimes using hangers for their specific purpose can help you save space. For example, suit hangers and coat hangers are usually curved to help you keep the shape of the shoulders of your heavier garments. This curvature helps the hangers to stay close together without wrinkling and cramming your clothes. Flat metal hangers and velvet hangers are very slim, fitting close together on the bar. The necks of high quality metal and velvet hangers are designed not to get crossed up on the bar, unlike those old flimsy wire hangers.

5) Using cascading hooks and finger clips on velvet hangers will allow you to customize the hangers to fit everything in your closet. Plus, they come in all kinds of colors and interesting prints to make your closet look great. Because they are space saving hangers, they will help you to efficiently organize your space while making it look great at the same time.

About the Author: Rick Miller is on the staff of Only Slimline Hangers, a leading online resource for velvet hangers which are space saving hangers, non slip hangers and slim line hangers. For more information, please visit http://www.onlyslimlinehangers.com.

1) Just go ahead and empty everything out of the closet. There may be more junk in there than you realize. Separate everything into piles as it comes out. You will definitely need to begin by making some tough decisions about what you want to keep. If it’s questionable, go ahead and put it into a box. Store it in the garage, basement or attic for a while. If you don’t miss what’s in it after a year, donate it to charity. Sometimes a trial run of living without something will help you realize that you don’t need it. In the meantime, you can enjoy the increase in closet space.

2) Make special places for everything. If you have old year books, photos, computer equipment, luggage, and other items in your closet, then you need to either make a place for it, or get it out of there. Sometimes a trunk at the foot of the bed, an armoire, or a wardrobe can house these items and help you clear out space for your clothes in the closet.

3) Donate what you can to charity and then prepare for future donations. This will help you to keep your closet organized over time. You may decide to hang a bag on one side of your closet labeled “charity” so that you can toss things in it throughout the year. If you wear something and then decide that it just didn’t fit right, throw it in. If you swap out your winter wardrobe for your summer wardrobe, donate what you never wore that season. Keeping it in sight will keep organization on your mind all year long.

4) Once you’ve really thinned out the heard, you may still find that your closet is crowded with the things that you want to keep. Utilize specialty hangers to make up to three times more space on your hanging bar. Cascading hangers, skirt hangers, pants hangers, and other specialty hangers can allow you to hang up to six garments on one hanger. Cascading hangers can help you to get your outfits ready to wear by pairing up tops and bottoms. Use space saving hangers, like velvet hangers, for everything else. These non-slip hangers are great space savers, but are sturdy enough and attractive enough to provide you with years of closet bliss.

About the Author: Rick Miller is on the staff of Only Slimline Hangers, a leading online resource for velvet hangers which are space saving hangers, non slip hangers and slim line hangers. For more information, please visit http://www.onlyslimlinehangers.com.

You can organize things yourself or hire a professional. Either way, it will be up to you to make the final decisions. Jot down notes, draw designs, and ask for other people’s opinions. Having a clear and concise plan will help you stay motivated to finish the task. Look online for ideas on how to handle your problem items.

Starting with bulky items is a good idea. First consider getting them out of your closet all together. Suitcases, camping equipment, blankets and other bulky things can usually be kept in a basement, garage, under the bed, or in a spare bedroom. Making room for the things that you use daily is a good plan.

Next, get rid of things that you don’t use. Remember to include shoes, dresses that are out of date, suits that are too tight, or clothes that fit, but you simply don’t prefer them. Most people hold on to items for years after they wear them for the last time. If there’s something that you don’t want to get rid of that you haven’t worn in a while, go ahead and wear it. See if you can remember why you don’t wear it and then decide whether or not to keep it.

Make spaces for hats, shoes, sweaters, suits, dresses and t-shirts. Your closet needs are personal and will differ from other people. A “one-size-fits-all” closet doesn’t always work out. Utilize adjustable shelving, bins, baskets, hooks and buckets to get the space organized.

Part of making the closet look nice is matching up the hardware. Hooks, drawer pulls, cabinet knobs, hangers and rods can all be updated to match. If you match your hangers, you’ll be surprised how much more uniform your closet looks. Choose hangers that are sturdy, save space, and do not damage your clothing. You may want coat hangers for suits and coats. They will help your heavier items keep their shape.

Choose hangers that don’t cross over each other on the bar. Old wire hangers are notorious for this and can make your closet look messy. Try the new space saving hangers
that are on the market. These velvet hangers grip clothing. They are slim enough to save as much space as wire hangers in your closet. However, they are much stronger. You can also buy specialty space saving hangers like pants hangers, skirt hangers, and dress hangers. You can get accessories like cascading hooks and finger clips to make even more efficient use of the space in your closet.

Organizing your closets can be some work, but the effort will be well rewarded with the time that you save and the organization that you are able to maintain.

About the Author: Rick Miller is on the staff of Only Slimline Hangers, a leading online resource for velvet hangers which are space saving hangers, non slip hangers and slim line hangers. For more information, please visit http://www.onlyslimlinehangers.com.

1) Get rid of the excess! This can actually be the hardest step. Our clothes remind us of people, events, or times in our lives. It’s hard to let go of the memories and part with the pieces of our wardrobe that harbor them. But, there is a solution. If you’re having trouble getting rid of clothing because of sentimental value, take photos. You can create an album that you keep in your closet. You can even cut a piece of material, save a ribbon, or decorate the page with the buttons from the article of clothing. This album will take up a fraction of the space and the memory of the clothing will be preserved.

2) Your goal should be to plan a space for everything. Belts should be on a belt rack or belt hanger. Ties should be rolled neatly in a shallow drawer, hung on the wall or on a tie hanger. Even scarves and stockings can be hung on a scarf hanger, which is a wooden hanger with smoothly bored holes that won’t snag delicate fabrics.

3) Separate items into different containers. Don’t put all of your small items in one drawer unless you have a drawer organizer. This just junks up the little space that you have. Everything gets mixed up, buried underneath each other, and becomes unusable. Utilize buckets, bins, baskets, dividers, whatever you need to make a place for each thing. Buckets are great for socks, underwear, pajamas, and more. Most people can find a foot of space to build or install a cubby system to hold all of these buckets and baskets, keeping their closet organized.

4) Utilize door space by purchasing an over-the-door organizer that helps you tackle problem articles. For most people, it’s shoes. But for you, it may be hats that are the problem, hair accessories, or other small items that take up space in the closet.

5) Make use of space saving hangers. Many specialty hangers will allow you to hang multiple items on one hanger. Sometimes these are called cascading hangers, or you can buy cascading hooks to add to your space saving hangers. Retailers use this trick all the time and it is equally as effective in your home. You can double the space in your closet instantly. Other space saving hangers are velvet hangers with a flat design. They grip clothes, fit very closely together, are super thin, but are very strong and attractive. Long gone are the days when we have to use wire hangers to save space.

About the Author: Rick Miller is on the staff of Only Slimline Hangers, a leading online resource for velvet hangers which are space saving hangers, non slip hangers and slim line hangers. For more information, please visit http://www.onlyslimlinehangers.com.

First you have to clear out all of that old junk. Some people store things for decades without ever looking through what they have. Boxes of books, photos, old clothes, and keepsakes can overrun your closet, leaving you no room for the things that you actually use. If this is the case in your closet, it is time to take action.

Pull everything out of the closet and start going through all of those old boxes. Many times, we store things that seem important at the time, but later we realize that we are never actually going to use them. Additionally, some of those things that we do want to keep can be kept elsewhere. See if you can make room in the basement, a spare bedroom, under the bed, or in the garage. If you have to, try to install some cabinets or shelves outside of the closet for storage. Give away and throw away all that you can.

Next, you need to prepare your closet for maintenance. If you can’t maintain the organization that you worked so hard on, then you’ll find yourself right back where you started. After the junk is cleared out, you may notice that your next closet dilemma is your out-of-season clothing. You need to have a plan.

Label containers so that you don’t end up digging through the wrong ones in a hurry, leaving them torn apart all over your closet. Separate things as much as possible and label them accordingly. You may have a box for jeans, one for sweatshirts, one for pajamas, etc. Keeping things separated helps to keep things organized, but also forces you to use multiple small containers that are easy to store, instead of giant boxes.

Now you should only have the clothing and shoes that you are going to wear this season left out. If it still seems like too much for your closet, then you need to update your hangers. Using space saving hangers can triple the amount of space in your closet. These velvet hangers are sturdy, but fit flat together, saving space and preventing wrinkles. They don’t get bent or tangled like wire hangers and can be a valuable addition to your closet. They also have cascading hooks, clips, and specialty designs that hold certain clothes delicately, yet firmly, so that everything in your closet is organized and neat.

About the Author: Rick Miller is on the staff of Only Slimline Hangers, a leading online resource for velvet hangers which are space saving hangers, non slip hangers and slim line hangers. For more information, please visit http://www.onlyslimlinehangers.com.

1) Finish clearing out the summer clothes and get them into storage. You will need containers or boxes for summer clothing. Shallow containers are great for storing things underneath beds, where they will be out of sight, yet accessible for the next season. You can use bed leg lifts to make extra space under the bed. Don’t forget to get beach towels, floats, and other summer accessories out of your closets, too. Get all of this stuff out of the way and you can make room for your winter clothes.

2) Thin out your winter clothes and try to leave room for new clothes that will be coming in. Coats should be kept in a coat closet so that there is room for your bulky winter clothes. A small shelf can usually be installed in most closets to make space for your sweaters to stack. You don’t really want to hang them, because they can get stretched out at the shoulders. They are also more likely to get snagged when hanging, because you’ll be pushing them around while you’re looking for clothes to wear. Many people ruin sweaters because their rings snag the sleeves while they’re hanging.

3) Make room by giving as much as you can to charity. This is definitely the time of year for giving, so be generous and give away usable items that you don’t wear for one reason or another. Make limits for yourself on what space each item is allowed to take up. Only allow so much room for pants, so much for long sleeved t-shirts, sweatshirts, thermals, etc. If you discover that you have way too many pants, try to get rid of some. Shoes are notorious closet space robbers. Be selective about which ones you want to keep.

4) When the closet is thinned out, come up with a design that will allow you to make the most of the space. Vertical space is often ignored. How much empty space is available up by the ceiling? That top closet shelf is usually too low for what you need to store there. Consider installing a second shelf above it for items that you don’t use much, like suitcases. You’ll be surprised how much room this makes! You can then use your regular top shelf for bins or baskets that hold smaller items, like gloves, scarves, socks, underwear, phone and camera chargers, or whatever you need to store out of sight.

5) Update the rest of your closet by investing a little in space saving hangers, like velvet hangers. Velvet hangers are flat and can save more space than you imagined. The velvet hanger surface grips clothing without damaging it. Using space saving hangers affords you the extra space that you need for hanging all of the new clothes that you will be getting for Christmas!

About the Author: Rick Miller is on the staff of Only Slimline Hangers, a leading online resource for velvet hangers which are space saving hangers, non slip hangers and slim line hangers. For more information, please visit http://www.onlyslimlinehangers.com.

1. Get out of season clothes out of the closet. Winter clothes especially are bulky and take up a lot of space. They either eat up the closet with huge bins, or require more space than you can make on your hanging bar. The key is to get some of that out of the closet. Instead of storing out of season clothing in the closet when you’re not using them, find some attic, garage, or spare bedroom space for storage. Use containers that seal out moisture and protect your clothes from insects. Cedar closet accessories are great for keeping clothes smelling fresh, repelling insects, and absorbing moisture.

2. What if your closet is still crowded after you remove the alternate season’s clothes? You can make extra room by getting the bulkiest items out of there. Big coats and comforters take up a lot of space. Comforters can be stored in big bags that you can vacuum the air out of. You’ll be shocked how much smaller they get! Then you can simply prop them against the wall behind your hanging clothes and they’re off the shelf completely. You can hang big coats on a wall mounted bar outside of the closet. Dress it up a bit with wooden coat hangers and you won’t mind having it as part of your décor. You can also use a portable garment rack to keep clothes that aren’t used very often out of sight.

3. Once you’ve done that, you closet should be getting better. Give away as many clothes as you can. If you are storing something that you didn’t wear last season, then you’re probably going to care about it even less when it comes out of storage again. Have an exchange with friends and give whatever is left to charity. Another option is to have a garage sale and use the money to update your closet.

4. Install some shelving that accommodates the items that you own. If you waste a lot of vertical space because shorter items sit on deep shelves, then add some smaller shelves or cubbies on top of the existing shelf. A simple riser or divider can double the space in the closet storage areas.

5. Make the absolute most of closet space by utilizing space saving hangers, like velvet hangers. These new hangers are super strong and have a velvet coating to prevent clothes from slipping and ending up in the floor. They come in different styles that can hold multiple items on one space saving hanger. You’ll love the look and be shocked at how much space these slim velvet hangers can make.

About the Author: Rick Miller is on the staff of Only Slimline Hangers, a leading online resource for velvet hangers which are space saving hangers, non slip hangers and slim line hangers. For more information, please visit http://www.onlyslimlinehangers.com.