I recently wrote a post on small closet organization in which I referred to organizing your closets into closets of like items for example,extra batteries. I had mentioned that I tended to have batteries all over my home but I had a hard time finding a battery when I need one.
As anyone knows who follows this post I am keen on closet organization. I feel that I am fairly aware of most closet organizer systems and other products that are currently on the market. However, I found a product yesterday that I had never even heard of before. It is a battery organizer. The irony is that I had just blogged about organizing batteries days before and I found this product completely by accident.
I think this product is spectacular and would fit neatly into many small closets. The price is right too. Give it a try. You have little to lose. In the interests of full disclosure I have not ordered one yet but I expect it will be a Christmas prezzie for someone this year.
I also found a cute blog about small closets that I thought was cute and helpful. So check it out. Any information on closet organization or closet organizers is good information.
Friday, November 20, 2009
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Tips on Small Closet Organization
Do you have the curse of small closets and the corresponding burden of small closet organization? Many of us do. Anyone who lives in an older house that has retained it's original charm likely has to struggle with small closets. Do not despair. It is possible to organize those small spaces in a logical and efficient manner. If you follow the following guidelines you will be well on your way. If you are really stuck (even after reading this post) you could start with an internet search for small closet organization ideas or how to organize your small closet.
1. Purge. This is the important first step in any closet organization. You absolutely must not skip this all important first step. Purge and them purge some more. Examine everything in the closet with a ruthlessly critical eye. This step is particularly important for organizing small closets. Most of us hang on to stuff long after it has lost it's utility. We keep broken things because we think they can be easily fixed. We keep sweaters because it was our favorite sweater in college. We keep half used birthday cake candles when we realistically know that we would never stick them on another birthday cake. We keep lots and lots of junk for very illogical reasons.
2. Organize your closets with like items. Remove everything from your closet and make a quasi firm decision about the purpose of your closet. Limit the categories of things you will store in a particular closet. If you are like most people you have items such as batteries in 3 or 4 locations in your home. For example, I had batteries in the work room, in the kitchen, in the living room, and my bedroom. In fact, I had batteries in every room that had a remote or a radio. I had a lot of batteries but could never easily find them when they were needed. Collecting all of your extra batteries and putting them in one central location is one of several great ideas for organizing a small closet.
3. Buy a decent small closet organizer. These organizing systems are available in many different locations. There are dozens of online distributors. These systems are also available at Home Depot or Canadian Tire. A good small closet organizer will have a combination of shelves and drawers. Shop around and find the one that is right for you. Rubbermaid makes good quality adjustable storage systems.
4. Think about buying hanging shoe bags or sweater bags. These bags are a great way to make extra shelf space in a small closet.
5. Be disciplined and diligent about the process and maintenance of your closets. Once you have sorted and organized your closet do not start adding junk to it. Otherwise you will have to re-invent the wheel the following year. It is much easier to keep your closets organized than to have to go through the organization process year after year.
Remember it is possible to organize a small closet but you need to be firm about what you need to keep and strict about not storing clutter.
1. Purge. This is the important first step in any closet organization. You absolutely must not skip this all important first step. Purge and them purge some more. Examine everything in the closet with a ruthlessly critical eye. This step is particularly important for organizing small closets. Most of us hang on to stuff long after it has lost it's utility. We keep broken things because we think they can be easily fixed. We keep sweaters because it was our favorite sweater in college. We keep half used birthday cake candles when we realistically know that we would never stick them on another birthday cake. We keep lots and lots of junk for very illogical reasons.
2. Organize your closets with like items. Remove everything from your closet and make a quasi firm decision about the purpose of your closet. Limit the categories of things you will store in a particular closet. If you are like most people you have items such as batteries in 3 or 4 locations in your home. For example, I had batteries in the work room, in the kitchen, in the living room, and my bedroom. In fact, I had batteries in every room that had a remote or a radio. I had a lot of batteries but could never easily find them when they were needed. Collecting all of your extra batteries and putting them in one central location is one of several great ideas for organizing a small closet.
3. Buy a decent small closet organizer. These organizing systems are available in many different locations. There are dozens of online distributors. These systems are also available at Home Depot or Canadian Tire. A good small closet organizer will have a combination of shelves and drawers. Shop around and find the one that is right for you. Rubbermaid makes good quality adjustable storage systems.
4. Think about buying hanging shoe bags or sweater bags. These bags are a great way to make extra shelf space in a small closet.
5. Be disciplined and diligent about the process and maintenance of your closets. Once you have sorted and organized your closet do not start adding junk to it. Otherwise you will have to re-invent the wheel the following year. It is much easier to keep your closets organized than to have to go through the organization process year after year.
Remember it is possible to organize a small closet but you need to be firm about what you need to keep and strict about not storing clutter.
Small Closet Organization
Small closet organization may be the most critical closet organization in your home. The space in these closets is at a premium. Any excess clutter will make the closet largely unusable. When it comes to organizing your small closet you must be ruthless about what you put in to it. You may choose to buy closet organizers but that will be one of the latter steps in the process.
When you start to organize your small closets or cupboards you must be very disciplined. The first step you should take is to remove every single item out of the closet. Once the closet is totally empty, give the closet a good cleaning. Sweep and mop the floor and dust all of the shelves. This might also be the time to put on a fresh coat of paint. I always recommend painting the interior of every closet in a nice off-white latex paint. Don't make the mistake of using an oil paint as your closet will have a strong paint smell for a very long time.
Once the closet has been emptied, cleaned and perhaps painted, you can then get started on the organizational aspects of the closet organization. The first step in the process is to review the contents of the closet with a critical eye. As a general rule, I recommend getting rid of 10% of the contents at a minimum. In other words get rid of 1 out of every 10 items. If you tend to be a bit cluttered, try to get rid of more than 10 percent. Be very disciplined at this point. You may actually want to leave the items out of the closet for a few days in order to choose to get rid of things that you really don't use or need. For example, don't hold on to green shoe polish on the chance that you might buy green shoes in the future. Green shoes are ugly but in the unlikely scenario of being gifted unpolished green shoes you can always purchase more polish. The same goes for red polish.
Once you have purged at least 10 percent of the closet contents you can start to think about putting items back in the closet. At this stage you should narrow the focus of the closet. Try to store your belongings in categories. Store like items with like items. For example, keep all of your cleaning supplies together. Keep the bottles of cleaner with the rags, brooms, mops and pails. Decide on what the focus of your closet will be. Start with one category. For example, start with cleaning supplies. If there is extra room add another category like extra light bulbs or extra batteries. Small closet organization is easier if you organize the closet in terms of distinct categories.
After you have determined the categories of items, then you can apply your mind to returning the items to the closet. At this point you might want to consider what I refer to as closet infrastructure. For example, are there enough shelves and or hooks? Should you invest in some plastic bins to help keep things sorted out. You may want to move a shelf or add other shelves. Don't make do with what you have just because it is there.
There are excellent small closet organizer systems available. There are pre-fab closet organizers and custom made closet organizers. A quick google search is a helpful way to figure out what might suit you and your closet. You can purchase these systems online or at home hardware stores like Canadian Tire, Lowes or Home Depot. Home Depot has some cheap closet organization systems. If you cannot find something that suits your closet you can order a custom made closet organization system.
Closet organization can be a difficult and relatively mundane task. Get rid of items you never use s a first step. Fortunately there are some good ideas for small closets. You need to be diligent and disciplined. However, if you follow the steps mentioned above you will be well on your way to a well organized small closet.
When you start to organize your small closets or cupboards you must be very disciplined. The first step you should take is to remove every single item out of the closet. Once the closet is totally empty, give the closet a good cleaning. Sweep and mop the floor and dust all of the shelves. This might also be the time to put on a fresh coat of paint. I always recommend painting the interior of every closet in a nice off-white latex paint. Don't make the mistake of using an oil paint as your closet will have a strong paint smell for a very long time.
Once the closet has been emptied, cleaned and perhaps painted, you can then get started on the organizational aspects of the closet organization. The first step in the process is to review the contents of the closet with a critical eye. As a general rule, I recommend getting rid of 10% of the contents at a minimum. In other words get rid of 1 out of every 10 items. If you tend to be a bit cluttered, try to get rid of more than 10 percent. Be very disciplined at this point. You may actually want to leave the items out of the closet for a few days in order to choose to get rid of things that you really don't use or need. For example, don't hold on to green shoe polish on the chance that you might buy green shoes in the future. Green shoes are ugly but in the unlikely scenario of being gifted unpolished green shoes you can always purchase more polish. The same goes for red polish.
Once you have purged at least 10 percent of the closet contents you can start to think about putting items back in the closet. At this stage you should narrow the focus of the closet. Try to store your belongings in categories. Store like items with like items. For example, keep all of your cleaning supplies together. Keep the bottles of cleaner with the rags, brooms, mops and pails. Decide on what the focus of your closet will be. Start with one category. For example, start with cleaning supplies. If there is extra room add another category like extra light bulbs or extra batteries. Small closet organization is easier if you organize the closet in terms of distinct categories.
After you have determined the categories of items, then you can apply your mind to returning the items to the closet. At this point you might want to consider what I refer to as closet infrastructure. For example, are there enough shelves and or hooks? Should you invest in some plastic bins to help keep things sorted out. You may want to move a shelf or add other shelves. Don't make do with what you have just because it is there.
There are excellent small closet organizer systems available. There are pre-fab closet organizers and custom made closet organizers. A quick google search is a helpful way to figure out what might suit you and your closet. You can purchase these systems online or at home hardware stores like Canadian Tire, Lowes or Home Depot. Home Depot has some cheap closet organization systems. If you cannot find something that suits your closet you can order a custom made closet organization system.
Closet organization can be a difficult and relatively mundane task. Get rid of items you never use s a first step. Fortunately there are some good ideas for small closets. You need to be diligent and disciplined. However, if you follow the steps mentioned above you will be well on your way to a well organized small closet.
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