Clever Closets Around the House

Once great for college dorm bathrooms, bath caddies can now find a spot in your home. Get a matching set of caddies and line them up in your bathroom linen closet. Decide on an organization method that works best for your family. A house with lots of kids would benefit from designated caddies with each kid's toothbrush, toothpaste, and other bedtime necessities. If you are a smart shopper and buy sale items in bulk, caddies are a great way to corral all your shampoos, soaps, razors, and more. You'll be able to clearly see items you're running low on.

The coat closet sees a lot of traffic—and a lot of clutter. And what piles up in your closet will change from season to season. Outfit your closet with organizational gear that is useful year-round. An over-the-door pocket organizer is perfect for corralling mittens and hats during the winter, and umbrellas and sunscreen in the summer. Hooks on the back of the door and along the closet wall are smart closet additions as well. And no matter what the season, shoes will always track in something from the outdoors. Use a shoe rack to keep footwear organized. Set the rack on a large jelly roll pan or other tray to collect the muck from the bottom of shoes and boots.

Sharing a bedroom comes with many advantages and disadvantages. While your kids can keep each other entertained, they also learn valuable lessons about personal belongings—especially when it comes to closet organization. Having each child's clothes on the same rack is a strict no-go. Avoid the clothing mix-ups by designating a side for each kid. If they share pajamas or lounge wear, keep those in bins stacked up in the middle. Just be sure to keep undergarments separate!

In shallow closets, space is crucial. Sometimes an extra inch or two would make all the difference! Get that added space by replacing the door with a curtain. This stylish solution expands floor space near the doorway by just a hair. The change could make room for a larger laundry basket or an extra-puffy winter coat. Install a wall hook or keep a decorative ribbon on hand to tie back the curtain when necessary.

A shelf-lined closet can be just what you need to keep your space neat and organized. See-through storage containers are perfect for this sort of tucked away space, allowing you to see what you need before sifting through all the drawers. Different sized and labeled containers fit snugly on the shelves, ensuring that everything has a place and the closet stays organized.

Towels, sheets, and blankets are necessities but can be a headache to organize. Keep your linen closet in tip-top shape with a few organizing tools. Use shelf dividers to create cubbies on existing shelves. Label each cubby as the designated spot for specific linens—a spot for kids bathroom towels, guest towels, twin sheet sets, queen sheet sets, etc. Use baskets to round up extra toiletries and cleaning supplies. High shelves are ideal for storing large, infrequently used items such as bulky comforters and extra pillows.

An adjustable shelf unit provides extra storage space and a more organized layout for your closet. Specific compartments and products to boost organization help make sure that everything has a place and makes your closet look tidy. Desk organizers, mini drawers, photo boxes and even magazine holders can be used to eliminate clutter and make sure everything is in order.

Create your own tucked away work space simply by using a wall-mount storage system and setting up a makeshift desk. In this crafty closet, a hollow-core door sits atop stacked storage cubes, perfect for a DIY work surface. The original pole bracket is still in place, allowing the closet to be used traditionally as well.

Try this smart closet storage idea: Install a second bar to add more hanging space. In this bedroom closet, a shorter, lower bar is suspended from the top bar, leaving room on one side of the top bar for longer items, such as dresses. The lower bar is at the perfect height for hanging shirts on top and pants and skirts below.

By adding a few room-like features, you can turn a closet into a practical home office that can be tucked away behind closed doors when not in use. Make the storage space feel more like a room with a colorful coat of paint and a pendant light to brighten up your work surface. Use table legs and wall brackets to convert a prefinished wall shelf into a slim desk, then bring in ready-to-assemble modular storage units for books, files, and office accessories. Hang decorative bulletin boards on the wall for the finishing touch.

Despite their heavy workload, laundry rooms are often squeezed into small spaces where clutter can make the space feel even more cramped. To give the room a more spacious feel, replace closet doors with simple canvas curtains that slide neatly out of the way when open. Above the washer and dryer, mount a storage shelf for laundry detergents, fabric softeners, and stain removers.

If your kids are budding Picassos, designate a closet as storage central for all of their paints, brushes, and other supplies. Buy bins or baskets that are the same size and assign supplies to each one. Look for plastic baskets with handles, which are easy to clean and easy to transport from a closet to a work space. To prevent supply overload, sit down with your kids every few months to weed out empty bottles and dried-out markers.

Outfit a small, narrow closet with shelves you can install yourself to give the space an organizational boost. Shelves placed close together provide a smart way to organize cumbersome rolls of wrapping paper. The rolls will lay flat and be protected from being crushed. Take a trip to an office supply store for file storage boxes and tags. Be sure to measure the height and width of your shelves to ensure what you buy will fit neatly on the shelves.

Gather individual materials to turn an unremarkable closet into a crafter's haven. A metal pegboard against the back wall is a great place to hang shelves and is also a quick and easy way to hang tools and supplies. A cutting board resting on top of filing cabinets makes for an instant work space with lots of storage. Curtains allow the whole area to be hidden away when not in use.

Save space in a shallow linen closet by rolling up towels instead of folding them. Put lost space to use by installing towel racks on the back of the door to hang wrinkle-susceptible linens, such as tablecloths. With these delicate linens out of the fray, they won't be crushed by sturdier towels and blankets.

Plan out your pantry to store all of your kitchen must-haves. Instead of installing shelves from wall to wall, these shelves stop short, leaving room on the wall to mount a broom and mop holder. By sacrificing just a few inches of shelf space, these cleaning necessities have a place to call home, and any storage space that was lost was regained by mounting basket-inspired shelves along the back of the door for condiments and spices.

This space once housed a closed-off, cluttered closet. The decision to remove a closet door can be a scary one, but opening up this closet had a positive outcome. With the door gone, the space was fitted with custom cubbies that met all the requirements for a savvy mudroom closet. Shallow cubbies fill the back of the space, leaving room for a bench extension in front, the perfect perch for taking off shoes. With an open storage space such as this, don't forget about adding a little style. Line the back of the space with wallpaper, or paint it a fun color.

Make a clean sweep of your utility closet by organizing all the household cleaning supplies—you'll make cleaning a breeze when you can find everything easily in one place. Separate cleaning supplies in containers for specific rooms: a bathroom bucket with cleaner for the toilet, shower, and glass; a bedroom caddy with a dust cloth, surface cleaner, and linen spray. Stash sponges and used rags in wire trays and baskets to let air in and moisture out. Store gloves, cleaning wipes, and extra supplies in a hanging shoe or sweater organizer mounted on the inside of the closet door next to hooks holding the broom, mop, and dustpan.

Dedicate one closet to all the arts and crafts supplies in the house and you'll always have exactly what you need on hand for school projects, home decor creations, or just creative play. Start by filling the closet with basic adjustable shelves, then use a variety of storage boxes and containers to organize your supplies. Canvas boxes with dividers work well for storing papers and fabric scraps vertically where they can be flipped through easily. Use clear storage boxes and containers so the contents are visible. And use boxes with lids for easy stacking.

Creative thinking makes the most of this small closet in a nursery. By removing the door and building in a simple cabinet with a top, the space is now a handy baby changing station. To make this transformation in your nursery, include storage shelves and a drawer in the base cabinet. Up top, cut a semicircle from the existing (or added) shelves at the doorway opening to allow headroom for baby and grown-ups. These shelves put nursery necessities within easy reach.

Conquer garage clutter with handy metal bins. Assign a specific item to each bin, and you'll avoid the frustrating search for a tape measure or a roll of tape. Fasten sharp tools, such as saws, to a pegboard storage system so reaching into a bin doesn't become a hazard. Keep screws and nails in small boxes and round up all of the boxes into one bin, so you can easily find a deck screw or finishing nail.