MASTER CLOSET ORGANIZATION IDEAS: STEP BY STEP TIPS
When designing our home, I customized our master closet myself and our trim carpenter made it all come to life. I am so excited to share it now thanks to the help of Becky with BeeNeat..a professional organizer out of Edmond, OK. Becky had first helped with our playroom a couple of years ago after we moved into our home and the toys were taking over. She was a natural fit when I needed some master closet organization ideas. Between her and myself, we have provided some very helpful master closet organization ideas that I will share with you today.
Hello! New here? Welcome! This master closet organization post is getting tons of traffic from Pinterest! I hope you enjoy this post and stay awhile! My name is Ashley and I live in Oklahoma with my husband and 3 children. Organizing, home decor and casual fashion are some of my MOST favorite things to share with my readers. Let’s be friends! You can follow me for more tips on Instagram, Facebook or Pinterest. Now let’s get back to my master closet!
- PURGE: The first step to any master closet organization is PURGE. I know everyone says this, but it really does make so much sense. I did a major purge before the organizing ever began. I donated a ton of outdated clothing, shoes and jewelry items from my side. My husband did the same (thanks babe). A good tip from Becky…Items that you have not worn in a year or don’t fit you properly anymore, should go. I will admit, it’s hard for me to let go of so many items, but I forced myself to do it and have never looked back. Why let it take up space when it could benefit someone else? Anything that was still in-style or very nice quality, I took to a local consignment store (Consigning Sisters). Purging beforehand made such a difference and made organizing everything so much easier from the beginning. I highly recommend doing this before you begin. I did save some items for my 2 daughters if they need costumes for school or etc. I put those in the attic so they weren’t taking up space in my daily wardrobe. Click to read more in-depth purging tips here.
2. Get to Organzing: After purging, we started our master closet organization with the largest section of the closet…the hanging clothes for myself and my husband. Before Becky came over for the first time, I ordered these new velvet hangers for our closet. I ordered several velvet hangers to try out before choosing these. I was looking for heavy-duty and wanted the color to match our closet cabinets and carpeting. These have been wonderful and the price is very reasonable. Just having all uniform hangers made such a difference when entering the closet. All the mismatched or plastic hangers went to the recycle bin. Becky then started her organizing magic and sorted the clothes, first by style, then by color. All clothes are arranged sleeveless to long-sleeved, left to right if that makes sense. So for instance, all tank tops are sorted by colors and they begin at the left side and then it goes to short-sleeved tops sorted by color, and then long-sleeved tops sorted by color on the right side. This master closet organization idea has made mornings SO much nicer. I know where everything is and know if I am looking for a grey tank top for example, I know just where to go. She did the same thing to my husband’s side of the closet as well, organizing his button up shirts and blazers just the same way. (Please just ignore all of his camo! Ha!!)
3. Open Shelving: On the opposite side of our hanging area, we have a large section of built-in open shelving that is adjustable. When working on our master closet organization by designing the closet, I knew from our last home that I liked having plenty of open shelving for sweaters and heavier type clothing that doesn’t do well on a hanger. I love that it’s adjustable so I played around with the openings until I got a height that was just right. Becky then folded everything just as you would see in a retail store, which I LOVE! This makes every sweater or top visible, but also neatly stacked and compact. One of the best tips from Becky was to use these affordable shelving dividers to help keep your clothes in their place, but unfortunately they did not fit my open shelving. I would definitely recommend trying one before ordering 25 like I did! We tried to make them work, but they wouldn’t fit on my shelving…my shelves were too thick. Love the idea though.
4. Long Hanging Items & my husband’s layout: On my husband’s side of the open shelving, she arranged his shoes and hats, so they were not intermingled with mine and right in his area with everything else of his. I love that we have our own spaces (if you have been married a long time, I know you can appreciate that!) This arrangement helped to make our open shelving so much more spacious and less chaotic. Underneath his hats, are his shorts and sweaters. To the left of his open shelving is our long hanging area. I’ve got some coats and long dresses and my wedding dress in this area. That is the only area where my stuff is over on his side (sorry honey). I made this area extra deep so we can easily keep all of our luggage there, but not visible to anyone who walks in. I also keep travel bags on these shelves too.
5. Drawers: Next on our master closet organization project, we moved over to my drawers and glass cabinet display area. Becky likes to roll clothing in drawers. Any PJ sets are rolled together so you can unroll it and don’t have to search for the other piece. Brilliant tip! She also suggested these drawer dividers for our drawers. In my drawers, I keep bras in one drawer, panties in one and socks in another. I have workout leggings and shorts in one drawer. I have pajamas in one drawer. I have swimsuits and cover ups in a small drawer and the other small drawer holds my scarves which she neatly rolled so I can see all of them at once. I have tried my best to roll everything when putting it back in the drawer after its been washed because it really is so helpful. One of the most helpful master closet organization ideas from Becky was this.
6. Handbag Storage & Hats: Above my drawers is my glass display area. I knew when building, I wanted an area to keep all of my handbags, totes and clutches easily accessible and on display! I have been collecting handbags since college, so they are near and dear to me! Becky recommended these purse shapers and I am very pleased with how they keep the shape of my bags without getting creases or dents in them. We put glass shelving in this area and they are adjustable so I can adjust the shelving depending on how tall some of my bags are. I love this acrylic bin (I did not order the lid) I used to organize all of my clutches. It’s hard to keep small clutches upright, so using this keeps them all standing up and looking neat. To the left, I keep all of my hats. These hat stands are what I ordered for this area, but they didn’t make it in before these images were taken.
7. Women’s Custom Shoe Shelves: Now to my shoe shelving. I did the shoe shelving for my area along the back wall of the closet and added a full size mirror to the middle of the shelves. Our last home had inclined shoe shelving and I could not stand it because my shoes constantly fell down onto the ground. So when I met with the trim carpenter, I made sure to tell him I wanted them flat so nothing would be falling off. I would recommend if building anytime soon, to make sure they are level and not on an incline. I used these boot shapers for my tall boots to keep them standing nice and tall. We kept everything color coordinated for the most part and similar styles next to each other.
8. Jewelry Organization: And lastly, my most favorite area of the whole master closet organization project…My hidden jewelry cabinet! I wanted this hidden because my jewelry can get so messy, so quickly and did not want the mess to be visible. We had a full length mirror built and the trim carpenter put in on a hinge so I can open it, and voila…all of my jewelry is there! We had glass shelving built for this cabinet as well. My actual hanging jewelry organizer is not for sale anymore, but this wooden jewelry organizer is very similar. This jewelry organizer is perfect if you can find a handy spot to hang it somewhere in your closet or bathroom. Having a hanging organizer helps to keep everything visible so I really like that. But, I had so many long hanging necklaces that were getting tangled even with the jewelry organizer. So are you ready for the BEST TIP of THIS POST…Use these jewelry command hooks for long necklaces without the need for screws or holes in your cabinets/walls! I absolutely loved this idea and ordered 8 ASAP. My husband did too because he hates for me to mess up the wood in our home with holes. I played around with the heights inside my cabinet before placing them. I have 2 on each crystal hook and am so pleased with how they have held up. Highly recommend using these. They have crystals on them, so they look a little nicer than a typical command hook. And they can be removed anytime without any damage. This necklace organizer is highly rated as well and lots of bloggers use it.
For the glass shelving, I ordered several more genius organization tools. These jewelry trays are pretty and expandable, so you can customize the width that fits your space. They would also work well in a drawer. I am so pleased with how these linen necklace display busts look. They display my statement necklaces so well and are a great price too. This matching linen bracelet organizer is perfect for all of my chunky bracelets and watches. What do you think about the acrylic sunglasses display? I love seeing them all in one place! This sunglasses organizer is really pretty too. I love how this area looks merchandized like I am shopping at a store and these organizing and display products have a lot to do with that!
I am 100% confident you can implement some or all of these master closet organization ideas into your own home. Most of these tips are affordable and easily doable, it just takes a weekend and some motivation. Imagine your closet if you purged it, color coded everything and then how de-stressed your mornings would be as a result. Please don’t forget to subscribe to my blog so you always get posts first from me. Follow me on Instagram@curlsandcashmere to keep in touch on a day to day basis. Thank you and have a great week!
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Your closet looks amazing! Loving the open shelves and display cabinets
Author
Thank you!!
This closet is AMAZING. Becky did such a great job! Can’t wait to have a house with a huge closet like that just to have it organized so well! An organized house makes a world of a difference.
katiesartz.com
Author
Thanks Katie!!! She was very helpful!!
Girl, you’re closet is to die for! Ah-mazing! Definitely “stealing” some of your organization ideas! Loved how everything is organized! Thanks for sharing!
Author
Thanks Andrea!!! I appreciate it!
Love all these ideas! Totally makes me want to go in my closet right now!
Love your closet! I’m planning to remodel my huge closet and will definitely use yours for ideas!!
Author
Thanks!!
I love it all!! It’s a dream closet for sure. Since I live in a small home built in the 1930’s which practically has zero closet space I’m definitely going to use some of your tips! Starting with the Command necklace hooks.
Author
Wasn’t the hooks the best idea?!!! Thanks for stopping by!
Author
Yes!! The hooks were such a great tip!!! Thanks!
I have serious closet envy!!!
Author
Awe thank you so much!!!💗💗💗
Your closet is amazing! I love your velvet hangers and those shelf dividers! So nice and organized!
Author
Thanks Logan!
Wow! Your closet looks amazing. I love all the tips. I am going to get those jewelry Command hooks ASAP. Thanks for sharing.
Author
Of course! The hooks were such a fab tip!
Wow! Your closet is a dream!! Love the organization! 😍
Author
Thanks jessi!!!!
So lovely!!!! I would love something like this someday! Enjoy love!! XO
https://www.theweekenderafashionfieldguide.com
Jaw dropping here. Your closet is a dream. I love the color and layout of it all. How organized you have it too. It’s an overall dream!
Love those hangers! I have the exact same ones! LOVE!
Author
Thank you Carissa!!They have been great!
Dream closet! Everything is organized so beautifully, love the layout too!
Author
Thank you Taylor!!!
I do have a question. I have a client that shared this with me. It’s a great set up, design and very neatly organized! Do you mind sharing the cost of what you have in it?
Author
Sorry, I have no idea.
One day….
Author
😘😘
Do you know the height of each opening? Our trim carpenters are about to start on ours and they said I only have room for two rods per “column”. We have 9 foot ceilings. Seems like I could have some that are stacked 3 high and then some that are 2 and probably some that are just 1 for longer things
Author
I will have to measure sometime this week, Our ceiling heights are 10ft in the closet.
I love your closet! It’s the perfect size! Do you think that you could please do an overhead sketch and wall length measurements? My husband I are land developers, currently designing our own home! I would love to do a closet like yours! I keep coming up with a huge closet like 12’0”x12’0” for us! Haha
My closet (from what I can tell) is the same size and height as yours. My closet is driving me crazy. The builders obviously just put poles in there and were done. I’m trying to figure out how to keep my stuff organized and how I’m going to afford doing a built in system like this to make use of our space. Would it be rude to ask how much your project cost? Any tips on how you kept your stuff organized before this? I literally just gave up Saturday and threw all my clothes onto the floor.
Author
Hi…I’m not sure how much the trim carpenter charged us. We custom built the home and I had him make the shelves and the hidden jewelry cabinet and purse storage when we were building. I used lots of baskets and bins before with a label maker and then just color coding hanging clothes. You can buy a handy jewelry organizer and hang it somewhere possibly? Good luck!!! Thanks!
Beautiful closet! Would you mind sharing the dimensions of the entire closet? I did see you have a 10 foot ceiling, but didn’t see dimensions of the length and width! Thanks!
Author
Hi! Let me try and measure for you ASAP. Thanks!
Hello, I’ve seen a few ask for dimensions. Did you ever get a chance to measure your closet? I’m curious the depth of the cabinets off the wall. I.E. how far out do they extend off the wall. Also the width and height of your shoe storage shelves. and of course what is the spacing between your hanger bars on the triple hangers. Trying to do the same with my 10′ ceilings but at a standard 391/2 between bars, I don’t have room for the base board and the crown. Would love to know what that distance is between your triple bars. Thanks, great closet.
More ideas…
1 I have many long necklaces so use longer hooks, say 4 inches and organize by color
2. I built closet for hanging space so have dressers outside of it for underwear, glasses, etc
3. I keep a rolling storage ottoman inside closet to hold suitcase when packing at perfect height, or to sit down when putting on boots, etc
4. I have tall mirror inside closet which is not only useful, but makes closet seem roomier with more light.
5. Insure great lighting in all corners when building a closet.
6. I have deadbolt lock on closet, used especially when traveling. The master closet is one of first places an intruder will visit!