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I’ve scoured the internet high and low, and paid close attention to professional organisers, to bring you this guide on how to organise your wardrobe.
Having recently given my wardrobe a complete overhaul, I can confirm it IS worth the effort to declutter and organise your wardrobe — making getting dressed in the morning so much easier and giving you all those happy feelings only a perfectly organised space can.
Related article: How to style and organise your pantry
Related article: Inside Steph Pase’s home from Just Another Mummy Blog
1. Declutter
By starting with a declutter. Avoid hanging on to clothes that we no longer want or need — saving valuable space in your wardrobes. It can be hard to let go of clothes that might fit us again one day or that cost us a lot at the time. As Marie Kondo says, if it doesn’t spark joy, thank it and let it go.
Some helpful questions to ask yourself when decluttering are: If I saw this in a store, would I buy it? Have I worn it in the last 6-12 months? Do I know someone who would get more use out of this than me?
A good tip is to work by clothing type, such as all pants and then all tops, so you can compare similar clothes at the same time, making decisions easier.
There’s a fabulous resource from Planet Ark here on what you can do with items you no longer need so nothing ends up in landfill — including donating work clothes to organisations like Dress for Success, donating saleable clothes to charities, and even what to do with damaged clothes so they are recycled or reused.
2. Find the right storage solutions for your needs
If there’s one thing I’ve learnt, the trick to keeping a space organised is to invest in the right storage solutions. Unless everything has a ‘home’ and items are easy to access, tidy spaces won’t stay tidy for long.
Even if you’re limited on space, there are fabulous products on the market now that can help you maximise every nook and cranny of your wardrobe. I’m going to run through a few of my favourites…
Elfa range at Howards storage
Not going to lie, these products aren’t cheap but there’s a good reason they have a cult following — quality, durability and design.
If like me, you find your wardrobe doesn’t offer enough functional storage space, a few of these products might be the solution you’ve been looking for. Although our wardrobes are quite large, we only had rails to hang clothes and this made storing T-shirts, knitwear and other clothing a challenge.
I designed a new internal wardrobe solution that incorporated Elfa’s range of pullout drawers, pant racks, shelves and shoe racks. Their flexible products clip into brackets so it’s easy to change or move things about as your needs change.
You can browse the range here.
Hanging storage solutions
If you’re renting or looking for more budget-friendly options, there’s a wide range of hanging storage solutions that allow you to maximise the vertical space in your wardrobe.
Hanging fabric shelf organisers are perfect for storing folded clothing and some ranges have been designed to fit baskets which can act like drawers.
Hanging shoe racks use a similar design but with smaller pockets to fit your shoes.
Depending on the type of wardrobe you have, a storage solution to hang over the back of your door could provide some much-needed storage space. You can find plastic or fabric shoe holders that hang over the backs of doors through to metal shelving units.
Storage baskets
I’ve never met a basket I didn’t like and the uses for them around the home are endless. In the wardrobe, I love using baskets to keep smaller items together and tidy, for example putting all scarves in a basket.
Baskets are also a great way to maximise high overhead cupboards that may otherwise be wasted.
My favourite store to shop for baskets is Freedom and you can check out their range online.
Invest in quality hangers
Do your clothes a favour and switch to quality hangers with smooth, rounded edges. Timber hangers offer a luxe look but are quite bulky so if you’ve got limited hanging space, those slimline velvet hangers are ideal.
Small boxes are your friend
Watch any episode of ‘Tidying up’ with Marie Kondo and you’ll learn one of her favourite tricks to keeping drawers organised is to use a range of smaller boxes inside to separate items.
If the inside of your drawers looks like a mixed salad, why not give this technique a try? I find it’s also helpful for standing up items. And when you store things upright, it’s easier to see everything at a glance.
Design from scratch
The solutions I’ve mentioned above are to make the most of a wardrobe you already have or to retrofit solutions but if I had my time again, I would take more time to design my wardrobe from the start.
There are great services out there to help you to find a stylish solution for all your storage needs, such as Freedom’s wardrobe service here.
3. Organise by category and colour
You’ve decluttered, picked up the right storage solutions and now it’s time to put everything back into your wardrobe. But how best to organise things? Professional organisers agree, organising by category (ie all pants together) and by colour makes life easiest.
You can also save a lot of time using this wardrobe organisation system — making it quicker to get dressed in the morning and when packing clean clothes away.
4. Separate the seasons
If wardrobe space is an issue, don’t clog your wardrobe with clothes you won’t wear for months. There’s no point looking at summer dresses in the peak of winter or having bulky coats take up space when it’s hot outside.
Use space saving bags or utilise space elsewhere in your home to keep these clothes packed away until you need them.
5. One in, one out policy
Your wardrobe should now be looking decluttered and organised with every item in its place. Here come the tough part — keeping it this way!
A tip many professional organisers swear by is the ‘one in, one out’ policy where for every new item you purchase, you need to let an old one go.
This trick means you’re continually editing your wardrobe and only keeping clothes that fit and make you feel good.
I hope you’ve picked up some new ideas to organise your wardrobe! If you’ve got other storage tricks or hacks, share them in the comments below so we can all give them a try.
More home organising ideas
This article was first published in November 2020 and continues to be updated with the latest information and tips.
