Start by eliminating unnecessary storage items from your closet. Some larger items can be taking up much needed space. Try plastic vacuum compression bags to make things like sweaters, comforters, and out-of-season clothing take up less space. See what you can store in large plastic containers with lids underneath beds, in spare closets, in the basement, or in the garage. Freeing up some space will make the task of organizing much easier and open up options for a closet system that will work better for you.

Next you should try to give away or sell whatever you can do without. If you haven’t worn something in a year, then it is likely that you will not ever wear it again. Donating items to a charity or non-profit organization is a great way to get some tax deductions and help out in your community. When you have your closet contents narrowed down to what you use and need, you can start figuring out the best way to get it organized.

You may need to simply empty the closet and take a good look at what you have. Use your bed and the floor to spread everything out. Experiment a little with categorizing items so that you can begin to imagine what type of storage will work best for you. T-shirts can be stacked into small piles and stored away in cubby-style shelves. You will have easy access to them and you won’t have to tear apart a big stack looking for what you need.

Concentrate on keeping categories small. If you have a lot of t-shirts, consider separating them by style, use or color. Shorts can also go into compartment shelving, or you can hang them on skirt hangers to keep them wrinkle free and easy to access. You can use cascading skirt hangers to hang multiple pairs of shorts on one hanger, saving space.

Do the same with your pants. Pants hangers that are open on one side make them easy to slide out and put away. Keeping your work clothes separate from your casual wear will make getting ready for work a snap. Your clothes hangers can be used to help you make space and also make your closet more efficient. Use hangers for their intended purpose to keep your clothing wrinkle free and easy to organize. For example, coat hangers and wood hangers are perfect for heavier suits and coats, plus they make your closet look beautiful. When your closet is in order and working for you, you’ll start to wonder how you ever lived without it!

About the Author: Charlie Hafter is on the staff of Closet Hanger Factory, a leading online resource for clothes hangers. Get all of the closet and clothes hanger accessories you could need at http://www.closethangerfactory.com, which is recognized worldwide for their excellent quality hangers.

1) Wire shelving is perhaps the cheapest way to go, but it is not necessarily the lowest in quality. Metal shelving systems have come a long way. They usually don’t rely on those tiny plastic clips to hold them up anymore. Most have bars that anchor into the wall studs to provide a versatile space for hanging shelves, baskets, drawers, and hanging bars. These systems can give you the versatility and strength that you need to create a personal closet space without spending a fortune.

2) Wire shelving upgrades. If you have wire shelving but you’re not crazy about the look, consider some of the newer accessories and upgrades that are on the market now. They look a lot better than the standard wire and are really useful, too. The basket drawers are perhaps the most popular wire closet system addition right now. Baskets are great for organizing and storing smaller items that can make your closet look junky. Baskets give the closet system some texture, warmth and depth that the wire alone doesn’t offer. These basket drawers are mounted on smooth gliding rails that make the basket function exactly like a drawer. However, you can easily lift out the basket and take it with you while doing laundry to make keeping your closet organized even easier.

3) Press board laminate systems can be attractive, inexpensive and useful. They give your closet that “wood shelving” appearance without investing in solid wood. These systems usually work a lot like the newer wire shelving systems and hook onto metal brackets that are secured to studs in the wall. The adjustable shelves make this type of system a desirable one to many people.

4) You may be able to install solid wood shelving systems for less money than you may have thought. Do it yourselfers find it relatively easy to install wood shelving, stain and varnish it themselves. You can even use slats to rest shelves on so that you have some control over how close together or far apart the shelves sit. Adjustable shelves may prove invaluable when you are looking at keeping your closet organized long-term.

No matter which type of shelving system you decide on, your hanger choice may be just as important. There are different clothes hangers for different needs. Selecting the right hangers for your closet can make it look beautiful or help you to save space. Coat hangers and wood hangers are perfect for coats and suits, where specialty hangers, like skirt hangers or cascading hangers, can help you save space and keep organized.

About the Author: Charlie Hafter is on the staff of Closet Hanger Factory, a leading online resource for clothes hangers. Get all of the closet and clothes hanger accessories you could need at http://www.closethangerfactory.com, which is recognized worldwide for their excellent quality hangers.

1) Start by clearing out the clutter. Donate clothing, shoes, belts, and purses to charities that can really use them. Don’t forget to collect your receipt for a charitable tax deduction later. You may be surprised how quickly those closet cleanings can add up to a real tax break!

2) Design a closet model that will work for your belongings. If you have a lot of purses, you may want to designate a shelf designed specifically for holding all of your handbags. A simple shelf with dividers about five inches apart should give you many spaces for keeping purses separated and dust-free.

3) Shoes are a problem in most closets. The floor is not necessarily the best place for shoes. Try to use one inside wall of your closet for shoes. The back of the door is also an option if there is no room inside the closet. A simple peg rack, or dowel rack can be really inexpensive and useful for organizing a closet. Use stain and varnish to make it look like a high-end addition.

4) Find some closet accessories that not only make your closet look great, but are also useful for keeping things organized. Specialty clothes hangers, like tie hangers, scarf hangers, belt hangers, and even jewelry hangers can be used to help keep your closet in order while adding to the high-end theme that you’re going for. Choose wood hangers and matching specialty hangers to make the look uniform throughout your closet.

5) Your clothes hangers are extremely important. Once you’ve got your design down, your hooks, pegs, and shelves installed, finish the look with wood hangers. Nothing is better than an elegant wood clothes hanger. They are timeless, sturdy, and more inexpensive than you may think. Buy bulk hangers or wholesale hangers directly from the manufacturer to save a bundle. Make sure that you choose coat hangers for coats, pants hangers for pants, and other specialty hangers that will make your closet functional and beautiful at the same time. When your closet is done, you’ll be excited to keep it neat and organized every day.

About the Author: Charlie Hafter is on the staff of Closet Hanger Factory, a leading online resource for clothes hangers. Get all of the closet and clothes hanger accessories you could need at http://www.closethangerfactory.com, which is recognized worldwide for their excellent quality hangers.

Tailored coats, wool coats, suit coats, and other winter wear is generally shaped at the shoulder. This helps them to look nice when worn over other clothes. It covers bulk and gives you clean lines that make you look sharp. However, ordinary hangers are not meant to hold the shape of these garments. Hangers that are too slim will make shoulders pucker and hang flat. Once that shoulder shape is lost, you could never get it back.

Choosing a coat hanger that helps your coats keep their intended shape and structure can make your coats look nice for many years. A high quality coat hanger is generally curved to fit the shape of the back of your fine coats. The shoulders should be wide, but slope down so that the corners do not push out on the sleeves. There are coat hangers made for bigger coats and plus size coats. There are also ones made in petite sizes and even children’s sizes.

You can stock the rest of your coat closet with clothes hangers that save space. These are great for lighter jackets and sweaters. Your hangers should be sturdy enough to hold the weight of the garments that you put on them. They should also have good enough grips to hold onto slippery fabrics when you pull your other coats out.

Putting wet boots and shoes in the bottom of your coat closet may keep them out of site, but it can cause your coats to smell musty. That musty smell is actually mold and mildew developing in the fabrics. You should come up with a place for your boots and shoes to dry, outside of the closet. If you’re worried about moisture, mildew, mold and musty odors, you might consider wood hangers made from cedar. Cedar clothes hangers not only deodorize, but it actually absorb moisture, keeping your coats safe.

You may need bins or baskets labeled for gloves, scarves and hats in the winter. You can get separate ones for each family member to keep things separated and easy to find. Clear bins can make it easier to see what is in each container. Mesh baskets that hang inside the door are also nice. Check out some pantry organizers that attach to the door and consider them for your coat closet organization.

About the Author: Charlie Hafter is on the staff of Closet Hanger Factory, a leading online resource for clothes hangers. Get all of the closet and clothes hanger accessories you could need at http://www.closethangerfactory.com, which is recognized worldwide for their excellent quality hangers.

Start by evaluating your priorities when it comes to storing things. Do you really need every single thing in your closet? Not only can you most likely get rid of a lot of things, but half of the things in there probably could be stored somewhere else. Make rules and boundaries for your precious closet space so that you can make it more efficient and effective for what you really need it for.

Blankets, suitcases, pillows and other items can come out of the closet and be stored underneath beds. You can put them into large plastic containers that will protect them from dust, pests, and pets. Categorize your storage items as much as possible so that when new things show up in the bedroom, you’ll know where you should put it. This will help you keep your closet organized once it gets that way.

Now that you’ve narrowed down what you want to keep in your closet, organize it outside of the closet. Use the bed or the floor to stack up the things that you want to keep in the closet. Play around with configurations to see what you like. Do you think you could make more space if you hung all of the items that are the same length together? Hanging all of your pants together, or smaller shirts together often makes room for a second bar, drawers, or laundry basket underneath. Doing this can actually double your space.

If you install a second bar, consider moving the top bar up a little. There is usually a lot of unused space by the ceiling, so you may be able to move that shelf up higher, too. If you have longer dresses that need a high bar, install a smaller one on one side or the other of the closet so that they can hang down. You may also decide to push the bars back so that you reveal space at the front of the closet.

If you do have some room at the front, you can install shelving. Corner shelves, cubby shelves, or just book style shelving can give you tons of extra storage in a small space. Utilize boxes, bins, baskets and buckets for these little hidden spaces.

When you are done, update your clothes hangers. There are many options here. You may love the look of luxurious wood hangers. You may decide to go with hangers that save space. There are also specialty hangers, like belt hangers and tie hangers that can help you keep the closet organized.

About the Author: Charlie Hafter is on the staff of Closet Hanger Factory, a leading online resource for clothes hangers. Get all of the closet and clothes hanger accessories you could need at http://www.closethangerfactory.com, which is recognized worldwide for their excellent quality hangers.

There are many closet systems on the market, some more expensive, some less expensive. You can get away with the cheapest closet system that works by going with wire shelving. Because you can cut the lengths of wire shelving that you need, this can be a cost effective option that doesn’t hinder your creative style. However, some people do not like the look of the wire closet system, and would like something more permanent or attractive, like wood.

Wood shelving systems can get very expensive, but not if you do it yourself. You may need a helper to install wood shelves, but having a second person on the job can be beneficial anyway. Run your ideas past your partner and get input. Sometimes, if you open the door, so to speak, people will surprise you with their ideas. Do some research online as well so that you can get ideas. Figure out what you might be able to build and put it in the plan.

Customize the design as much as you’d like. Things like drawers can be difficult if you’re inexperienced, but something like a shoe shelf can be relatively easy. You can slant shelves and install a dowel rod at the front to keep shoes from slipping. Simply glue it down or tack it with finishing nails. Make sure that you sand, stain, and varnish your shelves, unless they are cedar.

Cedar closets are really beautiful and offer many benefits; one being that you don’t have to stain or varnish! Cedar is a very aromatic wood that actually deodorizes your closet. It absorbs moisture and humidity from the air so that you don’t ever have to worry about mold, mildew, or their musty odors. Cedar will also keep your closet free of pests. It’s so beautiful and all you have to do is sand.

When you’re done with your project, dress it up a bit by using wooden hangers. You can buy wholesale wood hangers to make it an inexpensive upgrade for your closet. Cedar hangers are a great addition whether you have a cedar closet or not. You may also want some specialty wood hangers, such as a tie hanger, belt hanger, or pants hanger. These don’t just look great, they’re functional, too. You’ll have your new closet looking great in no time.

About the Author: Charlie Hafter is on the staff of Closet Hanger Factory, a leading online resource for wooden hangers. Get all of the wood hangers and closet accessories you could need at http://www.closethangerfactory.com, which is recognized worldwide for their excellent quality hangers.