5 smart tips for storing your clothes

Sarah Tolle—Homify Canada Sarah Tolle—Homify Canada
Projektfotos: Aufbewahrungs-Lösungen für jeden Raum, Elfa Deutschland GmbH Elfa Deutschland GmbH Modern style bathrooms Wood Wood effect
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If you find that you're constantly battling a heaping pile of clothes in your bedroom, it's time you approach your clothes storage in a new way! Clothes have a way of piling up, whether it's between the hamper and the washing machine or the dryer and the dresser. Take a look at your clothing from a different point of view, and examine your clothes storage from a cyclical perspective—what is your clothing journey from the instant you take it off the hanger to the moment you put it back on again?

This idea book will help you approach your clothes storage from a new perspective, offering ways to streamline and organize your laundry every step of the way.

1. ​Washing your clothes

If you find that your main hangups revolve around washing your clothes, here are a few tips:

1. Don't use an enormous hamper. When your hamper is enormous, it's easy to let your dirty laundry sit for ages. If your hamper is about the size of your washing machine, seeing it filled to the top will be a natural cue to do your laundry on time without having to think about it.

2. Give yourself surface space. Folding laundry becomes a chore when you've got to squeeze it in between the papers on your dining room table. Give yourself counter space in the laundry area for folding, applying stain remover, etc. This laundry room features a simple wooden countertop that slides out from the wall, providing a dedicated space for these chores.

​2. Using your closet

A closet is often seen as an out-of-sight, static storage area, when in fact your closet is something that you see, change, and use almost every day. Make it an enjoyable experience to be in there, and you're much less likely to procrastinate when it comes to hanging up your clothes. Here are some tips for making it enjoyable:

1. Purge. Get rid of anything you don't wear, and don't fool yourself into keeping it just because you used to like it. Only keep what you'll actually wear.

2. Illuminate. Add more light to your closet—if you can, get a bulb that's indicated as natural light or sunlight on the label so your space offers as fresh an atmosphere as possible. 

3. Organize by colour. The mind takes many subtle cues from its environment; spending a few extra minutes keeping your clothes loosely arranged by colour (like the shoes in this image) turns your closet into a visually appealing work of art.

Fore more cleaning and organizing tips, see this idebook: 7 Habits to Keep your Home Always Clean

3. ​Finding more space

If you're short on space, you can either opt to get rid of a few things, or you can create more storage space. Look to the attic for unused space—like this picture, the shorter spaces in a home offer few possibilities for living space while offering a ripe opportunity for storage! 

If you're stumped, talk to an interior designer about the innovative ways they've found to maximize storage space in a home.

4. ​Streamlining your storage

If your clothes are constantly getting uprooted when you shove pillows, boots, suitcases, and comforters into the closet, reassess where you're putting your stuff and why. Streamline your storage: items you don't use often should be tucked out of the way. In a room like this one, there are storage areas with varying degrees of accessibility, from an accessible, open shelf at chest height to an overhead cubby to drawers under the bed. Items like suitcases can hide under the bed, while things like your gym shoes should get a more accessible spot.

5. ​Embracing the awkward

There are a few awkward spaces in your home that offer a great opportunity for convenient storage. The space under the stairs can often be redesigned to accommodate a closet. Look at these awkward spaces as opportunities to finally get your pile of clothes up off the floor!

For more tips on getting your home clean and organized, read this ideabook: How to Clean your House Quickly for Last-Minute Guests

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