Closet Systems

Closet systems are a helpful way to help the perpetually unorganized to get themselves heading toward a less cluttered existence.  As a reformed clutter bug, I can tell you that getting yourself organized can go a long way toward changing your entire outlook during the day.  When you wake up in the morning and one of your first chores is digging through piles of stacked clothes or pushing forty pounds of hanging clothes from side to side on a closet rack, it doesn't exactly inspire you to put a smile on your face.

When you take the time to organize your closets, you will find that finding the essential items you are looking for becomes much less of a chore.  There are a variety of closet system options available today.  Some people prefer to just use their existing closet set-up, but using an actual closet system can really speed things along if you have hit your breaking point and cannot take the clutter anymore.

The basic idea behind closet systems and any kind of closet organizing is to have a place for everything and everything in its place.  This may seem like a bother when you are setting things up and putting items where they "belong" but in the long run, the time savings and reduction of stress make it a task that is well worth the while.

One step that some people dread in getting their closets organized is "the purge".  Just as the name implies, this is where you get rid of the heavy duty clutter.  Most people have a ton of clothing (and sometimes other items) stuffing up the available space in the closets that they don't even remember owning.  It may help during this step to ask a relative who is brutally honest (we all have one of those, don't we?) to help you in your decision making.  As you move through your closet piece by piece, ask yourself and/or your helper if what is before you is still right for you at this point in your life.  You may find that some of the clothes are either too big, too small or just plain out of style.  I have found that a good rule of thumb is if I did not wear the clothing at all during the past year, it is gone.  The first time I purged my closets, I also took on all of the stored boxes of clothing that I had managed to store around various parts of my house.  I could not believe how much stuff there was that I did not even remember owning.  Just getting rid of items like that can go a long way toward freeing up space in your home and closets in particular.

Once you have eliminated all of the clothing and clutter, your mission becomes more of an organizational task.  At this point, you can use your own creativity to decide what method works best for you, but in general you may want to consider placing similar types of clothing together and from there, organizing them by categories such as sleeve length, color, season, or whatever suits your needs.  Some people prefer to start with a clear division between clothes that are for work and clothes that are for "play".  This is a classic approach often taught to children by their mothers to avoid ruining their best clothing, and it still has its place when we have grown up.

When you start stocking your newly emptied closet space, avoid over-packing any areas.  This is an area where installing an actual closet system can really help you out.  Closet systems usually have built in divisions  that intentionally do not allow for over-stacking of items.  Usually, a closet system will be designed with the dimensions of typical pieces of clothing taken into consideration.  In other words, one section of your system may be specifically designed to be wide enough to accommodate two shirts or sweaters stacked three or four items high.  This allows the clothes to be stored without wrinkling and gives you enough room to work with that you can easily take individual pieces of folded clothing out without having to shove, pull, stuff or otherwise manipulate mulitiple items which usually ends up in the cluttered state your are probably trying to get rid of right now.

As far as the actual hardware of closet systems goes, well, you have a lot of options to choose from in this area.  Probably the most economical closet systems would be the type made of wire that perform the basic function of splitting up the available space you have in your closet into more efficient compartments without many bells and whistles being involved.  As you go up the chain of closet systems, you will find all sorts of interesting and useful add-ons that slide in, pull out, fold up, you name it...if it can help in the way of storage, it has probably been built in to some of the top of the line closet systems.  These higher end systems cost more money, but they are also much more aesthetically pleasing to the eye.  Some actually stand alone quite well along an empty wall.  They come in a many different materials and finishes designed to match your home's decor.No matter what specific type of closet system you choose to use for your organizational needs, you will find that having a home that is less cluttered can really have an effect on your overall sense of well being.  Not having to spend extra time searching for things and eliminating ironing chores can not only save time, it can go a long way toward a more stress free existence.