Organize your closet with these tips in a way you’ll truly love

What you want is a beautiful and functional home. Organized closets with everything you need and nothing more. And boy, we’ll get you there, organizing is a process. There is no quick fix, just snap your fingers and you’re done. Because the truth is, what usually happens to most people is that they are fixated on their goals by an organized closet, but they have the wrong mindset to achieve them. They focus solely on the outcome of those goals.

In other words, they are motivated to “do everything” so that it “looks a certain way,” without necessarily taking the time to properly organize it.

And this mentality fails. And it fails for a very obvious reason… So let’s take a look and see why and how to organize a closet that you’ll really love, shall we?!?!

The house is continuous

One of our beliefs at Elegant Simplicity is that, like life, living in an organized home is continuous. There’s really no beginning or end to creating it – your home is where the process takes place.

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Now, this is totally contrary to the way the domestic industry teaches us to think in finite terms.

“Get organized!” or “Deglomerated once and for all!”

As if the decisions you make today, right now, in this moment, about which clothes you will keep + which clothes you will donate, last forever.

Like you’ll never buy anything again.

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The bombshell truth is that everyday life, no matter how much we try to stop time, continues to evolve.

That’s why when you think about how to organize a closet, you can’t approach it with the “just get it done” mentality. “Select it from the list.”

These are lies. There are some mistakes that we hear promoted by the national industry to encourage you to think… and buy… with impulse.

Now, we’re not telling you that you’ll never have an organized closet, that your home will never look cluttered, organized, well-maintained.

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It absolutely will!

But the precursor to understanding how to organize a closet that is truly functional and has everything you need is changing your mindset that organizing means creating systems that can be maintained, learning the skills to modify and adapt these organizational systems to help you navigate the natural, inevitable, and ongoing evolution of your home.

Because when organizational systems can’t be maintained, when the organization is complete “to do it all” or “check it off the list,” then we simply become frustrated with ourselves and others because our closet, once organized, is no longer organized. .

The benefits of having an organized closet

So with that mental shift, that organization isn’t like a rotisserie chicken, you can’t set it and forget it, let’s look at the benefits of having an organized closet.

Clarity

We at Elegant Simplicity say: Clutter creates chaos because we know from a decade and a half of experience that a messy space creates a messy mind. When our mind is cluttered, we feel overwhelmed.

And when we feel this overwhelming friction, emotionally we start to get frustrated with “what to wear” or “I can’t find it” or “it’s not as good as it used to be.”

Having an organized closet where everything has a place + everything in its place allows you to start the day + end it with clarity.

The objects are cared for

One of the incredible virtues of an organized closet is that when items have a home – shoes on a shelf, clothes hanging, jewelry + accessories in a drawer – items last longer. Because you have a place dedicated to them, there is not only visual peace, but you actually take better care of what you invest.

We feel better

I’ve written a lot about how clutter affects us, but living in an organized home (with organized closets) affects us too. When we know where to find things, we can see them visually in an organized way. Not only does it give us a sense of confidence in our appearance, but it makes us feel like we’re making the most of what we have.

And, sometimes, whistles, which pick up an unexpected outfit: this and that. And other times, that simply means making sure we have things we don’t have to go out and buy more of.

Donating is easier

When you know how to organize a closet and maintain it, the benefits of donating what is in good condition but no longer used to charity are full of satisfaction. Simply because you can see what you no longer wear (+ want to donate), you not only create space to add to your wardrobe, but it also makes it easy for you to see the value in someone else having it.

You took care of it + it’s time someone else benefits.

Invest in what you want, but also what you need

Having an organized closet where everything has a place gives you the opportunity to invest in what else you want or need. Instead of buying on impulse, you will shop with intention. You don’t have too much to buy, you buy what you want, what you need + you have space.

More space

A fairly obvious, but noteworthy, benefit of having an organized closet is space. When you have everything you need + nothing more™, then you’ve made room for what you value.

Sometimes space comes in the form of collecting items in baskets + containers, items organized in a drawer, folded on a shelf, or hung in a specific way.

Either way, the space in your closet creates breathing room.

A few simple steps to organize a closet

Many of our organizing clients struggle with not knowing what to do first.

Should they take everything out of the closet and then only bring back what they want into the room? Or should they leave everything as it is, but get rid of what they know they don’t want?

And the reality is that a messy closet happens for a very specific reason.

Because you don’t know.

Not only do you not know where to start or what to do with some (or all) of these things, but when you don’t have a plan, the clutter and organization can feel like a constant wave of overwhelming decisions.

If you think so… then the first step is to not start dealing with a garbage bag in one hand and a donation bag in the other.

Currency

The first step for you is to determine what you want from this organized closet in your home.

Only by knowing with focused clarity what you really want will you achieve your goal.

We like this quote from Simon Sinek: “vision is the ability to talk about the future as clearly as if we were talking about the past.”

Looking at your closet right now, wouldn’t it be great to have this level of clarity about what they should be and where they should be stored?

You bet! That’s why the first step to organizing any closet, but especially this one, is to evaluate.

Let me build on this for you. If you don’t have a clear reason why you want to get organized, what this organized closet will do for you, or what it will even look like if you have an organized closet… well, then not only will you end up wasting a lot of time, energy, and a lot of money, but you will most likely never reach your #OrganizingFail destination.

And that’s a shame, right?

Not to upset my friend, essentially, this is exactly why we developed our robust organizational process, which delivers results.

So, continue + evaluate.

Because before you know it, this will become your saving grace. Your North Star. A lighthouse you can rely on and refer to often because it helps you identify what you ultimately want in your home. And as you navigate your closet, it’ll help you outline a prioritized game plan that gets you from A to Z, letting you check things off as you go.

In short, wow, it keeps you on track and is designed to actually help you solve the problem.

clutter

What you want to do is delete everything. We know that it can be a BIG task at times and we also know that it always gets complicated before it gets better. By removing everything from your closet, you free your mind from the way you currently set it.

We need a clean slate to reimagine a better way, a better way forward, because if it worked, we wouldn’t be here right.

Organize

At a high level organization it is a process of sorting, classifying and grouping as elements. Then, when everything is ready, we guide our customers by sorting everything into groups that make sense to them.

Now, in the previous evaluation phase, you may have highlighted what works and you can start from there. But one of the hidden gems or secrets of the trade *wink* is grouping items into categories by asking yourself:

• Do I use it?
• do I love her?
• Do I need it?

This way, you make decisions without saying “sweep away, donate, keep,” which can often be overwhelming in itself.

Implement it + Maintain it

One of the biggest challenges our organizing members face when it comes to knowing how to organize a closet is putting it back together. And really, this is why we wholeheartedly believe in 1:1 organizing, because how your closet is organized is ALL up to you.

Not just how you want it to look – heck, function always precedes aesthetics. So this is how you need it to work.

What things do you need regularly?

What things do you want to use in front of you?

Do you have enough space (which often depends on the amount of stuff) to store seasonal items in your closet?

There are so many variables that go into putting things back in the closet, but the most important aspect of putting things back together is that it makes sense and works for you.

The organizational system must be intuitive for you. This does not mean that it will be organized or that it will not be necessary to change the system.

There, my friend, are simple steps on how to organize a closet in your home. And if you liked this blog post, then, without a doubt, you will go crazy for our FREE video course: 4 days to a more beautiful + functional home

Also, don’t forget to check out our amazing free resource library, or if you want to start your home organizing journey, request a FREE 30 minute Clarity Call and… let’s talk!