Now that you've done your spring closet cleaning and sorted and purged all of your wardrobe necessities, it's time to put it all back in assigned homes. Most of us can't afford a complete custom closet makeover system, so try some of these inexpensive products to utilize some of that unused space above and below the standard rod and top shelf:

• Double your hanging space by handing a "rod doubler" from your existing rod for shorter items, like shirts and jackets.

• Canvas hanging shelves are great for sweaters, shoes, and purses. They work particularly well in kids' closets. Assign a "shelf" for each category of kid's clothing: shirts, pants, underwear, socks. This makes dressing in the morning a snap, especially for kids who wear uniforms to school. You can also assign each shelf a day of the week - Monday through Friday, and put a complete outfit in each shelf. Do this on Sunday night for the whole week, and you've just saved scads of decision-making and searching time every morning that week!

• Those over-the-door multi-pocketed shoe organizers work beautifully not only for shoes, but for scarves, socks, belts, underwear, or any other small item you have multiples of. Be sure to buy one with clear, vinyl pockets so you can see what's inside at a glance. By the way, these don't need to be hung over a door to be used. Hang one on a closet wall using two small cup hooks or nails instead.

• If you have the shelf space, use clear shoe bins or sweater bins to corral shoes, purses, hats, or anything else you don't need to access every day. Using clear bins eliminates the extra step of having to open the lid to see what's inside. If you prefer opaque bins, label each bin clearly so you know what's there without looking. If you like to store your shoes in their original boxes (and you have the space), snap a photo of the shoes and glue it to the front of each box.

• Use shelf dividers to keep piles of sweaters, etc. from toppling over when you take the one from the bottom out!

• One of my favorite closet systems is the Elfa system from The Container Store. It comes in all configurations for all kinds of closets, even free-standing so you can create a closet where there is none. The website even has a great design-your-closet feature. More expensive than some systems, but less than custom-built, it's a great alternative.

There are organizing products galore for each and every item in your closet. However, until you know exactly how many of each item you need to store, or how much space you need for each category, don't give in to temptation and buy storage containers or organizing products until you've done your "sort and purge".  Also, don't forget to measure your spaces so those lovely baskets you went to all the time and money to purchase won't be just a quarter of an inch too wide or tall for your shelves!

For weekly motivation, inspiration, events and product recommendations, check out my Facebook page for The Organized Way.   Share your own organizing successes and challenges. I love hearing from you! 

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