Home Organizing Tips

​I think it’s safe to say that if you are a normal person living in an average home, you probably have some strong feelings about your closets.  Are we talking about pride, joy, and/or total bliss?  Ah…. no.  If you’re anything like me, you have been embarrassed, frustrated, and sometimes just ticked off your closet.  Too many clothes!  Nothing fits!  How did the floor disappear?  Isn’t it crazy how that little bit of square footage in your house can make you feel so overwhelmed and unorganized?
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In this post, I'll be talking about how I used the Three Commandments of Closet Organization to totally revamp my personal closet.  After I learned these tricks of the trade, I started helping clients turn their closets in a happy place.  Today, I’ll share all the details to help you do the same.

​As a Professional Organizer, I’ve learned that whether you are organizing a closet, a garage, or a sock drawer, there are 3 steps you need to take with every single project. It can be so overwhelming to tackle a project, but if you can follow these three rules, you’re on your way.   Are you ready for me to drop this  closet organization knowledge on you?!?  Get ready to have your mind blown:
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Commandment One: Reduce
Commandment Two: Arrange
Commandment Three: Maintain.
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Sounds so simple, right!?!? Well, let’s take a closer look at how you can do it.

​Before you start organizing a closet, you first should reduce the amount of inventory on hand. Or, to put it in simpler terms, Just Throw Stuff Away, Already.


​I had all these items in my closet, and I’ll guess you probably do too. 
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• Sentimental garments (dresses from my rehearsal dinner 20 years ago, college formal dresses, a leather jacket my late grandmother bought me circa 1987).
• “Skinny” clothes (that totally don’t fit) and “heavy” clothes (that totally don’t fit)
• Clothes that I bought and never wore, but felt too guilty to donate.
• “Maybe I’ll Wear That If I’m Invited to a Alligator Allergy Awareness Gala” (or some other obscure event), which can also be the “I Once Wore That to a Fabulous Party.”  I’m looking at you, 2011 Steeplechase dress and hat.
• Shoes that don’t fit, are out of style, or are too worn out to wear
• Every handbag I had ever owned
• A floor covered by laundry, things I didn’t want to rehang, and other random junk.

I knew stuff had to go.  I KNEW it… but I needed some inspiration.  Lucky for me, this was right about the same time that the book,  The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo,  was all the rage. So, I read it and despite all the Zen/hippy-dippy stuff in there, I walked away with one piece of true wisdom.  Only keep the things that make you feel happy.

Did the shirt I once wore to a company Christmas party in the late 90’s make me feel happy?  No : I just felt bad it was too small now. How about the leather jacket my grandma bought me? No: I kept it because my late grandma bought it, even though I hadn’t worn it in over a decade.  Did the expensive dress I wore once to a wedding make me happy? No, but it was so expensive I thought I thought I should hang on to it.

Did any of it make me happy? Well, yes!  There were a lot of garments that I loved, that fit me well, and/or that I loved.  And yes, I kept my rehearsal dinner dress. I will never wear it again, but it truly makes me happy.
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So that became my rule: If it makes me happy, it stays.  If it doesn’t, it goes. And once I made peace with that rule, it was amazingly easy to get rid of things. A LOT of things.  Like, bags and bags and bags of consignment and Goodwill items. 

​So now that you’ve got a lot less inventory in the closet, you can figure out how you want to organize it. Here are a few of my professional guidelines. 

Get rid of the wire hangers.  

​They are an eyesore, but they also don’t support your garments well. In time, they will bend and bow and ruin the lines of your garment. Ladies, you have nice things, so treat them well.  I don't care if it is a Target t-shirt: treat your clothes nicely!

​Have all your hangers match.
​This eliminates the visual clutter in your closet.    If you can afford it, slowly invest in and build up a supply of the velvet lined slimline hangers. (Better Homes and Gardens makes a box set of 30 that you can purchase at Walmart). Slimline hangers allow you to hang more garments in the same amount of space. I also love that garments don't slip off the hanger. 

​If slimlines aren’t in your budget, you can always purchase plastic hangers.  This may be my OCD, but try to do all one color.  Again, it eliminates the visual clutter.   Note: I've started seeing plastic slim hangers in stores, but have yet to try them out.  Let me know in the comment section below if you've used them!  I'd love to hear how they work.

Arrange by function (not color).  I believe you should put like-items together. That means all work tops in one zone, casual tops in a different zone, etc.  Then within each zone, arrange by length. So, in Work Tops, go Sleeveless to Long Sleeve.  In Pants, go Capri to Bootcut.  When you’re getting dressed, you think about what you are doing that day and/or the weather.  You don’t say “Oh, it’s hot today. I think I’ll wear green”.  You say “It’s hot and I have to work. I’d like a sleeveless top”. 

Put the things you wear most frequently closest to the door.
If you work 40 hours a week, put your nice work clothes up front.  If you seldom dress up, put your casual things closest to the door.  I personally like to put the trendy seasonal items at the front of my closet, and the classic pieces further back. However you dress is the way you should organize your closet. 

​Now that you’ve hauled out tons to donate and/or sell and your stuff is all gorgeously arranged, you want to keep it that way.  

Let's move on to the third Commandment of Closet Organization. 

Want to keep your closet under control?  Then it's all about the ratios, my friends.

Follow the One In, One Out rule.  It’s easy.  If you buy one new shirt, you must get rid of one old shirt.  Two new dresses?  Gotta donate 2 old dresses, pal. If you can make yourself follow this rule, your closet will never again get out of control.  PREACH~!

Need to thin out your items quicker?  Try a One In, TWO Out ratio.  
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Want to be even a little more hardcore?  Don’t keep extra hangers around.  That way you can’t “cheat” the One In, One Out rule because there aren’t extra hangers.  It’s brutal, but I’m here to tell you, it works.

I'm going to be honest: it takes time, patience, a couple gut-checks, and sometimes a little money, but you can organize and maintain your closet if you follow the 3 Commandments.   

Let's hear your questions in the comments section!  Do you think the 3 Commandments will work for you?!?

Professional Disclaimer: The ideas, recommendations, and opinions on this website, blog, and made in person are for educational and entertainment purposes only, and should not be considered legal, financial, or medical advice. I am not an attorney, doctor, or licensed financial professional. Sage Organizing Co., LLC is not liable for any losses or damages related to actions or failure to act related to the content of this website, blog, or in-person discussions. If you need specific legal, financial, or medical advice, consult a professional in your area.

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Clutter Puts the "Rage" in Garage: 

If you're willing to get a little dirty, you can DIY some garage organization and create a faux mudroom that won't cost a fortune. 

Over the years, garages have the tendency to go through an ugly metamorphosis:they begin as nice tidy spaces that easily hold two cars and then suddenly one day they are total unusable disaster zones.  It happens to the best of us!  But it doesn't have to be that way.

When my husband and I  decided that we were tired of the clutter taking over our garage, we decided to DIY: we cleaned out the Garage of Shame and turned it into a gorgeous Garage Drop Zone.  After learning the tricks to successful garage DIY organization transformation,  I started helping clients do the same.   In this post, I'll share all the details to help you do the same.

The ​cold hard truth: when people hear that you’re a Professional Organizer, they assume you have a perfectly organized home.  That it’s always clean, everything is put away in its place, and your closets and drawers are full of rainbows. So it is tough for me to admit that I was one of those people that had a Garage Of Shame. 

You know what I'm talking about, don't you?  Cars that doesn’t run.  Enough kid sports equipment to start a minor league team. All the stuff you bought at Costco that doesn't fit into the kitchen.  And for the Love of All That is Holy: Shoes. Shoes, Shoes, Shoes. 

I get it: most people  don't have mudrooms inside, so all the shoes, backpacks, jackets, wet towels etc. ended up all over the kitchen floor near back door.  The garage also has to hold all the tools, car stuff, gardening items, lawn equipment, etc.  The real estate in the garage is valuable space and it gets ABUSED!

Listen: every home needs a Drop Zone for storage. You have to have a place for all the shoes, the backpacks, the jackets, etc.  If we just had the right place to put things away, all  our lives will be complete, right?!?!

But it's not so easy.  In my case, I ran into several problems.

• Problem #1 was, there was no room inside.  We don’t have a home with a mudroom, and a remodel isn’t in the budget. If we were going to get the functionality of a mudroom, we’d have to DIY build it in the garage.
• Problem #2 was the budget.  We decided on taking on this project in October.  You know, that month that’s realllly close to Christmas.  So our budget was next-to-nothing.  This project had to get done on the cheap.  
• Problem #3 was that we don’t have the skill set to build custom storage cabinets. We knew that whatever we couldn’t do ourselves, we’d have to pay someone else to do.  Which put us right back at the budget problem.

 Even with all these obstacles, it just takes a little creativity and figure out a way to DIY the organization of the Garage of Shame. 

​The first thing I did was sit down and made a list of what functions the garage currently had, as well as the additional functions we wanted it to have. After that list is written, always run it by another person in the house.  In my case, my husband looked at the list and caught things that I had totally missed, like, you know… Sports Bar. What self-respecting residential garage doesn't have a sports bar in it?!? Ah, Duh!

​Then to triple check, I researched DIY garage organization zones on Pinterest. I knew that I wanted to copy the “zone” concept that I read about. I also knew that I wanted it to be pretty, but not too feminine for a garage. But most of all, I wanted to make sure I had a home for everything. 

 Here are things that I see in most home garages:

• Tools and Painting
• A box of miscellaneous wires and chargers that has been collected since college.  
• Gardening and Lawn
• Old toys, car seats, etc. that have been outgrown
• Wedding gifts that the homeowner feels too gulity to throw away
• Cast off furniture that was deemed too nice to throw out
• Bikes, Scooters, Strollers and some sweet Green Machines
• Sports Equipment, both kids and parents
• Piles of shoes, boots, roller blades, and ice skates
• Sports Bar & Memorabilia (couches, tvs, serveware, memorabilia, beer refrigerator)
• Work storage, especially for people who work out of the home.
• Costco overstock, especially extra paper towels, beverages, and cleaning stuff
• Holiday and Birthday decor storage. 
• Evidence of mice, spiders, birds, bugs, and once, a Copperhead snake.  Yes: that was my house. Don't ask. 
• Enough pop-up field chairs and/or beach chairs to seat a dozen people.

But most garages also need storage space for:

• Backpacks and Totes
• Closed storage for paper goods (to keep the bugs and mice away from the paper towels)
• Jackets, hats, mittens
• Pet stuff​

Suggested articles:
Assess the Mess: How to Plan out Downsizing a Home 
with free printable Room-by-Room checklist

Step Two: Draw out your plan.  I measured all the spaces, then added in the zones I wanted to create. Rough sketches at first, then I  used chalk to draw it out on the garage floor so I could get a “feel” for what it would look like. You can pencil it in on the walls, use painters tape to mark it out...whatever.  Just get the vision of what you want it to look like before you start. 

Now that I knew what I space would generally look like, I had to decide what was going to be re-used and what was not. I inspected the inventory:
What Hadda Go: 
*The banged up metal shelving unit that came with the house had to go. 
*The circa 1940’s desk that was warped and covered in 15 layers of paint had to go.
*And so did the pretty, but way too narrow-shelved bookcase I had from my days at the bookstore. It all went to the curb (and a guy in a truck took it before the City did).
What Was Getting a Second Chance 
A bookcase with deep and adjustable shelves, that was painted an unfortunate shade of dusty blue sometime in the 90’s. I slapped on two coats of black paint to match the color of the new bookcases I was purchasing. (My goal was to have all the seperate pieces look like they were one cohesive wall unit). 
What Needed to Be Purchased
Fixtures: 2 new bookcases with doors. I decided to go with Billy bookcases from Ikea, then added the doors on the bottom shelves. The price was right! I also wanted a bench and a row of heavy duty hooks.  I couldn’t find a product I liked that would fit the function, so I found a local handyman who built a bench and row of hooks.
Décor: I love closed storage, so I was going to need baskets, bins, etc. I purchased those at Walmart (their Better Homes and Gardens product line has cute pieces at great prices). Naturally, I was going to need some new indoor outdoor rugs (Ikea), pretty wall décor and hooks (Hobby Lobby).  All in, I think I spent about $500 on the new stuff, including the material and labor from the handyman. 

Now that there was a written plan, a boatload of Ikea boxes to open and assemble, and miscellaneous bags of products all over the kitchen, it's time  to get to work preparing the space.
Step One: Binge and Purge.  For about 2 weeks, we spent 30 minutes to 2 hours a day hauling the crap out of the garage. We filled our neighbor’s trashcans two weeks running. When we set things to the curb for the City to pick up, some random guy in a pickup hauled things off before the City got here. I filled the back of my truck and did a Goodwill run almost daily. Please hear me when I say: THROW OUT YOUR JUNK. IF YOU DON'T LOVE IT ENOUGH TO KEEP IT IN THE HOUSE, LET IT GO. 

Step Two: Ikea Rage.  Now that we had room to work inside the garage, it was time to paint existing fixtures to match.  That was my DIY job, while my husband was in charge of Ikea-ing. I can’t repeat the language he used while building the bookcases, but you did notice the I said “Ikea rage”, right?!?  
My handyman built the bench and row of hooks unit, then I painted and stained it.

Step Three: Install.  When everything was ready, anchor everything to the walls, level it all out, installed hooks and, lastly,  put up decor pieces. 
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Step Four: Stand back and say DAAAAA-YUUUUMM!  Marvel at your brilliance. Crack open a cold beer. 

​Putting all the stuff back into the new units was like December 26, when you have to put all of your new swag away.  You’re excited and happy, but it’s still a pain in the rear. We left the units empty for a couple of days, partially to marvel at how good all the storage looked, partly to plan what was going where. 
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I knew I wanted all the paper products to be behind the closed doors of the bookcases.  Same for all the shoes. Having the beach towels out and easily reachable was important (our shorty is a year-round swimmer). We immediately started using the (well-anchored) hooks to hang backpacks and swim bags, tote bags, jackets and wet towels. We were able to move items that had been in hard to reach spots inside and put them outside in the unit. 

Suggested Reading: 
Post-Holiday Organizing: Detox + Declutter Your Home After the Holidays

​After everything was finally put back, we went through “Tweak Week”.  That’s when we figured out by trial and error what worked well in each spot.  Having the recycling bin right next to the door wasn’t going to work, so we ended up moving it about 6 feet away.  Same goes for the dog food bin.  Knowing how we actually lived with the new space, instead of my ideal concept of how it should work, was important. 

​So how is it all working out, several months later?  I’m very happy to report that we have maintained the garage organization almost 100%.  It got a little hairy around Christmas when it became the Shipping and Receiving department, but my husband cleared it all up shortly after the holidays were over.
 
Our favorite things?  I personally love that all the shoes are put away into their closed bins every night. My shorty is happy that her swim towels actually get dry and don’t end up in a stinky pile.  And the husband likes that his sports bar is now a source of pride, not shame. 

Sure, it was a lot of work, but DIY'ing a Garage Drop Zone has made a huge difference in my life and the lives of my clients.  It's so calming to pull into your garage and actually be happy!  So take the plunge...take the "rage" out of your garage!! 

​Let's hear your comments, questions, and success stories in the comments. 

Professional Disclaimer: The ideas, recommendations, and opinions on this website, blog, and made in person are for educational and entertainment purposes only, and should not be considered legal, financial, or medical advice. I am not an attorney, doctor, or licensed financial professional. Sage Organizing Co., LLC is not liable for any losses or damages related to actions or failure to act related to the content of this website, blog, or in-person discussions. If you need specific legal, financial, or medical advice, consult a professional in your area.