How to Organize Everything In Your Bedroom Closet

Whether you have a serious love for shoes or a unique sweater for every day of the week, these closet organization tips can help anyone create a clutter-free space. With the right approach to clothing management, you’ll enjoy getting dressed in a well-organized bedroom closet every day.

Many people have embraced the Marie Kondo method of minimizing clutter, but if your collection of shoes or sweaters brings you joy, then by all means, keep it! We’re just here to offer a simple step-by-step guide on how to organize a bedroom closet so everything has its place.

You can’t fix a disorganized closet without first identifying what’s causing the clutter. Open your closet and walk through the motions of picking out an outfit. This can help you spot where your current clothes storage setup isn’t working and where better closet management is needed.

Make note of the things about your closet that slow you down to come up with the most efficient way to organize your closet for your needs.

Here are some questions to help you started:

• What is there clearly not enough space for?
• Is it making you bend down/reach up too much?
• How long does it take to pick out an outfit? Why?
• Is there miscellanea junk that needs to be tossed?
• What can’t you see? Is it too dark? Is it too crowded?

This list of problems will be helpful when it’s time to design your ideal setup, ensuring each closet organizer is chosen to solve a specific issue. That way, you won’t end up with a bunch of random furniture that only partially solves the problem.

If you already followed our guide on how to declutter and clean out your closet, you’re ready for step 3. If not, make sure you don’t skip the important step of decluttering your closet first!

Bonus: Space between hangers makes it easier to find clothes while maintaining them wrinkle-free.

If you need help determining what you should keep and what you should toss, following this closet cleanout flowchart can help.

Simply go through your closet and sort piles of keep, consign, donate, upcycle or trash.

Hold onto clothes that fit well, feel comfortable, and have been worn in the past year. For gently used items, check out local donation or thrift stores. Higher-end pieces could even bring in some extra cash at a nearby consignment shop.

If you’d rather skip donation centers or don’t have any nearby, you can usually find standalone donation boxes in large parking lots. These are an easy way to drop off unwanted clothing and accessories without having to interact with anyone.

If you’re planning a full closet makeover, a quick and hassle-free way to clear out extra items is by booking a junk removal service like LoadUp. They can haul away old clothes, broken shelving, damaged dressers, and other closet clutter.

Sorting your clothes helps you clearly see how many items you have in each category, giving you a better estimate of how much space they’ll need. Once you’ve accounted for everything, you can assign each piece a designated space like a pro.

Categories to organize your clothes into zones:

• Tops: Layer them by sleeve length – tank tops, t-shirt, short sleeves, long sleeve.
• Bottoms: Sort by type: jeans – jean shorts, skirts, pants, shorts.
• Shoes: Line them up by type – sneakers, heels, flats, boots, house shoes, dress shoes.
• Other: Group accessories, gym clothes, dresses, formal wear, coats, and undergarments.

Take your list of closet problems and create solutions for each one. Rather than splurging on an expensive closet system, start by measuring the available space and getting creative with what you have. Consider adding shelving and drawers, but make sure to leave enough room for longer items like dresses.

Repurpose items you already own, such as bookshelves or plastic cabinets with drawers, to create an organized closet on a budget. If you don’t have anything suitable, don’t worry! The final result will far exceed your initial setup, but be on the lookout for items like hanging racks for necklaces or boxes to serve as dividers.

Your closet “blueprint” doesn’t need to be detailed, it can be as simple as stick figures. The key is identifying the prime real estate areas in your closet, placing your everyday items in these spaces, and reserving the less accessible spots for clothes that are worn just a few times a year.

Step 5. Organize Your Closet Top to Bottom

Now, it’s time to dive into the fun part—organizing your closet! But first, make sure you gather all your materials ahead of time. Having everything you need on hand will save you from wasting time searching for tools like a hammer or extra push pins during the process.

For those of us who are a bit shorter, a collapsible step stool is a game-changer. It makes the whole process easier and reduces fatigue, so keep one handy for everyday use. Even taller folks might find it helpful! Over time, things have a tendency to get pushed to the back of shelves, and a stool helps you clearly see everything in your closet without the strain.

When organizing your clothes by color, choose a pattern that visually appeals to you. For wardrobes filled with neutrals, sorting from lightest to darkest works best. For a more colorful collection, you can organize by groupings like black to gray, white to off-white, beige to brown, blue to purple, pink to red, and green to yellow.

Or, you can organize your clothes by silhouette, which simply means arranging them by material, style, or purpose. For instance, group all tops together and then separate them by function like date night tops, work tops, or pajama tops or by type, such as button-downs, t-shirts, turtlenecks, and more.

Once you’ve chosen a pattern, stick with it throughout the organization process to prevent your wardrobe from turning into a chaotic mess. This will also make it easier for you to create outfits on the fly.

The most basic closets usually have a single shelf at the top with a rod underneath, leaving a lot of open space below where your clothes can hang freely. While this setup works for hanging clothes, it’s not always ideal, as not everything should be hung up.

For ideas on how to organize each item, keep reading but here’s a list of clothes that can go on shelves or drawers:

• Shoes
• Sweaters
• Socks and Underwear

• Gym Clothes
• Tank Tops and T-Shirts
• Jeans, pants and leggings

Sweaters

The golden rule for keeping your sweaters looking fresh is to never hang them. Folding is the best method because it prevents gravity from stretching and distorting their shape. However, if you absolutely need to hang one, use thick padded hangers to protect the shoulders from warping.

If you only have a few sweaters, try folding them sideways like files in your dresser so you can easily view them without digging. However, if sweaters are your go-to wardrobe staple, consider using a cubed shelf or clear storage drawers to stack them in groups of three to five. The cube design helps prevent them from toppling over, keeping your closet neat and organized.

Jeans, Pants and Leggings

Figuring out how to organize pants in your closet can be tricky, but it really comes down to personal preference and the space you have available.

Jeans can be hung or folded, depending on your preference. However, if you’re working with a small closet and limited hanging space, folding and filing them into a drawer is an excellent solution. Be sure to organize your jeans by either color or style, such as bootcut, skinny, flare, etc., for easy access.

If you own corduroy or other textured pants, don’t hang them unless you can clip them at the waist to avoid ruining them with a permanent hanger line.

Tank Tops, T-Shirts, and Gym Clothes

Avoid stacking items on top of each other in drawers. Instead, fold your tops as usual, then fold them in half again and arrange them in the drawer one behind the other,(like a filing cabinet). This way, you’ll be able to see the edge of each top clearly. For bottoms like leggings, yoga pants, running pants, or shorts, fold them similarly and store them near your tanks and t-shirts for easy access.

💡Pro Tip: Cut off the lids to empty shoe boxes and use them inside drawers to create divisions.

Socks and Underwear

Easily one of the messiest drawers is the sock and underwear drawer. They’re small, hard to fold, and just so easy to ball up and throw in a drawer. Sorry, but the time for change has come.

Begin by sorting socks by color and underwear by style. You can choose to fold them neatly and store them in drawers, or if folding isn’t your thing, opt for organizers with tiny sections just large enough to hold one or two pieces. This way, everything stays in its place and easy to find.

This not only keeps everything neatly in place, creating the illusion that you took extra care to organize, but also helps prevent mismatched outfits, like navy socks with black pants.

Shoes

Most likely you have limited shelf space, but are tired of bending down to determine what shoes to wear. Luckily, there are so many space-saving shoe organizers out there.

An over-the-door shoe rack is an excellent way to utilize your door for storing shoes, accessories, or both. There are also cloth vertical organizing systems available, which feature cubbies designed to hold one pair of shoes each and hang on clothing rods. These systems can serve dual purposes, not only keeping your shoes organized but also acting as a helpful divider.

Alternatively, if you’re a shoe collector (like we mentioned earlier), consider storing your shoes in clear plastic bins with a photo of each pair on the front. While this method takes up a bit more space, it’s perfect for shoe enthusiasts or those with extra room to spare.

Now that you’ve sorted through everything, you should be left with your go-to, everyday items. Whether you’re organizing your closet by color or silhouette, try to keep the front and center of your closet reserved for the clothes you wear most frequently.

So, if you’re a bleary-eyed, sleep-drunkard in the morning, show yourself some mercy and hang your work clothes at the front of your closet. If this forces your color pattern to shift a little, then so be it.

These are types of clothes you should hang in your closet:

• Button Downs, Blouses and Nice Tops
• Suits, Coats, and Formal Wear
• Dresses and Skirts

Hangers, Blouses, and Tops

Any top that isn’t a tank, sweater, t-shirt, or workout piece should be hung on sturdy hangers that won’t cause damage. Wire hangers are known for ruining nice shirts by warping, tearing, or staining, so do yourself a favor and recycle them.

It depends on your closet if you need felt, clip, wood, or plastic hangers, but a good rule to follow is thin and the same color to avoid being blinded by a kaleidoscope of hangers.

Suits, Coats, and Formal Wear

Since most of us don’t wear formal items regularly, they should be stored toward the back or in less accessible areas of your closet. For suit jackets and matching pants, use wide-shouldered suit hangers with a pant bar. These hangers allow you to keep the pieces together, while also providing enough support to preserve the shoulders of blazers and heavy coats.

When your coats are out of season, slide them to the back of your closet. For those that live in especially frigid areas, store poofy jackets a box elsewhere to reserve valuable space for things you need on the regular.

Dresses and Skirts

Divide your dresses into casual and formal categories, keeping the casual ones in easy-to-reach areas for quick access, while storing the formal ones toward the back with your other special-occasion gear. From there, group them according to your chosen system (either by color or style). For skirts, organize them similarly to your dresses, but make sure to clip them by the waist and hang them on appropriate skirt hangers.

For long maxi dresses, try using two hangers. Slide the bodice over one hanger as usual, then drape the skirt through a second hanger on the bar where you would normally hang pants. While it’s best if they can hang freely to prevent wrinkles, keeping them bunched up on the closet floor will only create more clutter.

Don’t forget to organize your jewelry by metal type, color, and style! Necklaces can be hung on thumbtacks or racks, while rings, bracelets, and scarves are best stored in a drawer, box, or bin to keep them neatly organized.

Accessories like purses and scarves can be stored in clear boxes or displayed in wicker baskets on lower shelves, making them easy to see and access while keeping your closet organized.

For ties and belts, hang them on a rack or hook. Many hanging organizers are designed to hold them neatly, cascading them down so you can easily see the patterns and colors. If you can’t find an organizer, you can also roll them up and store them in small bins within a drawer.

Get Rid of Clothes That’s Left and Maintain It

Right now, you might have plenty of time to keep your organized closet looking pristine, but as life gets busier, maintaining it can get tricky. Set a schedule for yourself to get rid of items you haven’t worn at least once every season, and plan for a full closet overhaul at least once a year.

Always evaluate the condition of not just your clothing, but also your dressers, cabinets, organizers, and more. When things start to fall apart and get worn down, bag them and toss them! Holding onto worn-out items only makes your closet feel cluttered and disorganized.

In other words, next time you can’t find what you need or your dresser drawer keeps jamming, that’s a good sign you need to reorganize your closet and call LoadUp to haul away the rest.

Related Articles from the Trash Talk Blog:

• Bathroom Organization Hacks
• Where to Sell, Recycle & Donate Clothes
• Best Ways to Organize Your Living Room
• Clean Out Your Closet: Step By Step to Decluttering Clothes