I’m going to be giving you three tips on how to organize your kid’s closet so that it can be easily maintained after you put it in this order. We are going to especially focus on how to use every inch of the space that you have in your child’s wardrobe. So, if you don’t have much space, I’ll also be giving tips that I use with my clients when I’m working with small closets. These three tips won’t include the whole purging process, I’m going to assume that you have done this and that the clothes in the wardrobe are the clothes that your child is currently wearing. If you haven’t and need a little help on how to be ruthless you can read here.
I do believe that if we spend time and organize our children’s closets in such a way that they can keep them organized and we can eventually win that time back. We won’t have to be constantly reorganizing it when the order gets messed up again.
You must think about access
In order for everything to be maintained and organized, we need to have everything that they use the most within easy reach. So that we not only can find them easily but that they can put them back easily as well – so time to get down to your child’s level!
First – think about what they are wearing the most. What are they wearing daily? Then put all of these clothes within easy reach. For example – if they don’t wear uniforms, then obviously they’re going to wear comfortable trousers or leggings to school every single day. Put it all within reach so that they can not only take it out but can also put them back, that way they can start to put away their own clothes. They are able to help and that is one less thing on your to-do list.
One way I’ve done this system is in my daughter’s closet using baskets. She is able to see all of her baskets and is able to help put her clothes away and get dressed on her own.
She has three baskets, four drawers, and then a bit on the other side are the clothes that she is currently wearing. Her out-of-season clothes are high up and not within her reach. But that’s okay because she’s not using it and then, later on, I’ll take down her summer clothes and I’ll put them within reach.
At her eye-level she can see her current clothes at all times.
If your kid’s closet is large, you can also put in a bar that is at their eye level and they are able to reach their clothes and hang them up. You can also use hanging organizers that are on Amazon (or in any of the hardware stores), attach them to the bar and then you can use them as a shelf so that way you utilize the vertical space to its maximum.
Maintenance and labeling your kid’s closet
My tip number two is labeling. And this is not only great for your kid, but it’s also great for anyone who’s putting away their clothes. How often do you lose something only to find it somewhere the next week because your cleaner or your partner didn’t know where they belong!
As much as this may seem over the top – write labels. For example: sweaters, jumpers, underwear, socks – and stick them onto the drawers. This way, whenever your partner goes to put away the clothes in your kid’s closet, they know exactly where to put them.
If your kid is young, like my four-year-old, and doesn’t know how to read yet, then you can use a lot of picture labels and even have them help you make them and stick them on.
I have done this with my children’s clothes, and this helps them to find their own clothes and also to put them away.
It’s all about space
This is an essential tip to implement if you use every single inch of space in your kid’s closet and it’s important that your child has a space for everything that they own.
In order to do that, you need to use the use of a single space and utilize the vertical space that you have in your wardrobe. For instance, I’ve got three baskets in my daughter’s wardrobe. The thing with these baskets is that they are quite short and there is extra space behind them and at the back of the wardrobe. So the tendency is to throw stuff in behind the baskets, and you forget what’s there!
Shelves and other organizers
You can put in a simple thing, like a cardboard shoe box, or more baskets! That way the back can act as an extra shelf. So, for instance, you could put a money box in behind there on top of the box. And all this just means that your child can actually see what’s there. And you can see what’s there as well!
The other thing that you can use is a shelf divider – these are quite handy for utilizing the vertical space. You can clip them onto two shelves, and then you can use that to keep your child’s toys, clothes – basically anything!
You can get these in IKEA, and they’re really handy for dividing the shelves and utilizing the space.
Another thing that is quite handy, and I’ve used it quite a bit with my clients are, the shower caddies – that stick onto the tiles in your shower. Well, similarly, you can use them here in your wardrobe! Of course, you’re not going to store anything too heavy.
I had a client who really liked badges, as well as their kid and they needed somewhere to keep their badges. This was the perfect solution for them!
Take a look in your hardware store for the shower caddy sets that stick on and then you can use them on the shelves and closets as well.
There are many, many ways to optimize every ounce of your space. Just stand back and look at your wardrobe, and really see if you’re using every ounce of space in your kid’s wardrobe.
My best tips are that you need to find a space for everything and at the same time bring stuff down to the child’s level. You also need to label everything, so everyone knows where things go. That way order is maintained with less input from you.
Join my Facebook community Organize & Optimize your home or send me an email hello@organizemyhomespace.com and let me help you get started today.
Lynne x
Professional Organizer
My Home Space