As you put away your summer clothes and get the hats, scarves, boots, and coats back out for fall and winter, the closet that stores your outdoor gear is about to take on a very important role. With all that outerwear in there, the closet can get disorganized fast. Here’s how to keep it in order.
Overhaul your storage philosophy
First, embrace some chaos. By that I mean employ the chaos method, which involves pulling everything out of the closet and piling it up in the middle of the room, creating a (temporary) mess. Once all that outerwear, all those umbrellas, and all those shoes are in a big pile, start to categorize them, making smaller piles out of the big one. Boots go in one pile. Scarves go in another. As you create these piles, do some decluttering, falling back on the five-second rule and giving yourself five seconds to make a decision about everything you pick up. You either throw it out, donate it, sell it, or keep it.
Once you have all the categorized piles of things you’re holding on to, keep the principles of the Organizational Triangle in mind as you put them back in the closet. Namely, remember that all similar items should be stored together and everything needs a designated storage space.
Ideally, that involves containers. Using containers, dividers, and shelves to create boundaries for each category of similar items will keep it all in order.
Coat closet organizers
To start, you should get an over-the-door storage piece with a lot of dividers in it. These are usually sold as shoe organizers and look like this:
I use these for all kinds of organizing beyond shoes. Extra bag straps, belts, scarves, socks—the dividers in these are perfect for keeping smaller items organized. If you have a lot of shoes, use it for that, but if you need storage for littler things, this is a solid option. You can also get versions that have different-sized pockets and sections, perfect for boots or larger items, or hanging shoe organizers that attach to the bar in the closet, alongside the coats and clothes within. In general, the more small compartments you have, the more granular you can get with the categories you’re organizing, which helps you keep everything in order, so I’m all about getting two or three of these and stuffing everything in them.
Adding some extra shelving is key, too. My hall closet has a single built-in shelf and a puny clothing bar, so I added additional shelving at the bottom. Something simple, like a three-tiered shelf with two drawers in the bottom, is perfect here. I have one of these:
I’d also be remiss not to mention my all-time favorite organizing tool, the humble cube shelf. I have cube shelves in all my closets, in my kitchen, in my bathroom, and in my living room. They’re ideal for organizing because they create clear boundaries for all your categories, plus they’re easy to install and clean. They come in all kinds of configurations, so you can get one with three cubes, one with nine, one with a differently sized compartments—whatever suits your needs.
Finally, consider moving some of the things inside the closet to outside of it. Storage furniture is functional, attractive, and super useful. Why not a foyer bench with room for shoes or an attached coat tree? Maintaining some separation between your stuff is key to keeping the categories in order, so if the hall closet doesn’t have much space, you have to get creative.
