Organizing in the New Year (ONY)-Closets

Our month-long series continues today on  
ONY.
Organizing in the New Year
 focuses on one area each week,
keeping these intentions in mind:

~Purge if necessary,
because you can't create your dream
if it's cluttered with things you don't use.
Keep in mind, one object in, one object out.
If it doesn't do something for you, 
pass it on to someone else who can use it.  
It's all good.

~Use what you have to create a more streamlined home 
that still has your special touch.
Repurposing functional items adds to their value.
If they make your life easier or help you feel more comfortable, 
they are worth keeping.

~Try moving everyday items to different rooms
and use your creativity to use them in a new way.
The worst that can happen is that 
you find it doesn't quite work in the new application.  
Just start over!

If you are working toward more order in your life,
I hope these posts will help you jump start your vision.

The best advice I can give you is to
just start somewhere.

Closets are one of my favorite things to organize.
There's just so much potential!

 

Baskets are a wonderful way to corral linens.
This small linen closet was reorganized here.

 



Two sheet sets for each bedroom and a few extra towels and washcloths
are more than adequate for our family of three.
When sheets or towels are replaced,
 the used items are donated to the local animal shelter.

 The master bedroom closet in our home is actually a walk-through.
It spans the bathroom on the other side of this wall.
Even though the size is generous, 
it's important to use the space efficiently.



 

 Including a linen closet in the master bedroom is a great idea.
Sheets for this room can be kept here,
and there is ample room on the shelves for miscellaneous items.
(An emergency kit and an extra flashlight are housed here too.)


 

Color coding your wardrobe is a real time-saver.
Especially when time is limited, 
it makes it that much easier to find exactly what you want to wear.



Placing a small mason jar filled with baking soda in the closet keeps things fresh.

Acrylic cubes can be used for shoes, gloves or mittens,
scarves, or even small toys in a child's room.
Don't be afraid to think of new uses for storage items.


 

This is a tool caddy,
slated to house all those loose nuts and bolts in a garage.
Instead, we used it as an initial place to store Lil' Guy's Lego bricks.
Then, we came up with a better idea.



You can see that this could easily be placed in a closet
to make a built-in work area for homework or creating.
Using the closet in that way frees up space in the room.
See our final solution here.




 Here's where you can find a complete closet makeover we did for Sister
a few years ago when we went to visit her on vacation.



Getting started is the hardest part.  
One closet in your home could be a great jumping off place.
Start small, even if it's just a shelf or purging the clothes 
that no longer fit or work for your family.
It feels mighty satisfying to open those closet doors, 
knowing that what's inside is a little bit of order.
Consider this your challenge to organize one of your closets this weekend!

Read more about this series here:

ONY-bathrooms
ONY-office