The linen closet - a beloved feature when house-hunting for your perfect home. The reality is, this space can very quickly become a catch-all for an assortment of all things not wanted in bedrooms and bathrooms.
If your linen closet has become a "dump and run" zone, or if it appears to be bursting at the seams, I am here to share with you how to regain control of this closet and make your life easier in the process.
The best way to tackle any organizing project is to entirely empty out the space in order to assess your needs. Once you have completely emptied the space, wipe down the shelves and floor of closet. Now the fun part begins!
1 - Sort all of the items you would like to store in your linen closet into categories. For example, all medicines should be grouped together, extra bathroom essentials, towels (by size), linens, pillows, etc. Once you have determined what is to remain in this space you will have a better idea on how you want to containerize.
Be sure to check expiration dates on medicines and properly dispose of anything that is expired.
Consider donating or converting into rags any towels with bleach spots or that are worn and raggedy. The same goes for pillows and linens: only hold on to the things that are in good condition, do away with the rest.
2 - If you are limited on space within your linen closet, consider storing extra bed linens in the room they are used. If you have space to store under your bed, you can find a number of narrow, lidded containers that will fit these backup linens. You can also carve out a drawer in your dresser or a small space within your closet for these to reside.
3 - For the sheet sets to remain in the linen closet, match all parts up and store the entire set inside one of the pillowcases. This will keep the entire set together and be more visually appealing.
If you do not know the proper way to fold a fitted sheet, watch this video from Real Simple and prepare to have your life changed!
4 - Towels can be stored a number of ways. If you are going to fold them and place them directly back on the shelf, it is best to be consistent with how they are folded. All seams should face the same direction and this will lend to the stack of towels looking uniform and not teetering to one side.
You can also opt to store your towels inside a container. I personally love the 13"x13" canvas totes. If you decide to go this route, it works better to roll the towel and stand on end inside the tote. You can fit anywhere from 4 to 6 bath towels this way.
5 - If you are short on space in your bathroom(s), keep bathroom cleaning supplies in their own easy to transport container on a shelf in the linen closet. It makes cleaning a cinch when you can grab the basket and go bathroom to bathroom without searching for what you need.
If your closet is filled with a variety of half to barely used cleaning products and you are still on the hunt for the perfect product for a specific task, J Miller with Jen Reviews has done the legwork for you. Check out her comprehensive guide here and let go of the mediocre cleaning products taking up space in your linen closet. Don't forget - if you are a New Hanover County Resident, you can take advantage of the HazWagon and safely dispose of your hazardous waste materials.
6 - Storing extra blankets in your linen closet? They work great in a basket of your choice on the floor of the closet.
Not only is it easy access to grab one when there is a chill in the air, but by using a basket to store them in it won't matter if they are folded perfectly.
7 - Contain medicines and first aid in their own bins; if you have children, separate their products from yours to make finding what you need in the moment all that much easier.
Depending on the quantity of first aid you own, you may want to consider separating it by category (wound care, cold & flu, allergy, after sun care, etc.)
8 - Keep extra pillows on the top shelf, out of the way of the everyday grab and go. Plus, if you are short like me, what else do you really want to be storing on the top shelf? At least if a pillow falls on your head, it won't hurt.
9 - If you are short on shelf space, consider purchasing some under the shelf baskets that attach to the shelf above. They work to maximize the storage space within your closet and will be just the right spot to store sheet sets, hand towels, wash cloths or empty toiletry bags.
10 - Clearly label every container and/or shelf within the closet. I love chalkboard tags and pretty much own stock in the line Michaels carries, but you can label any number of ways.
Once everything is clearly contained and labeled, it is best to get yourself on a seasonal quick-sort and purge to keep this closet in top form.
This is a linen closet that belongs to one of my clients. It is a dream - double doors open to a wall of 4 shelves. We opted to use these 13" cubes from Target to corral all of the loose items and add uniformity to the space. Inside each of these canvas bins, are smaller containers and dividers to keep the items stored in place. The open space on the floor of this linen closet holds a bin with extra blankets and a crate for rolls of extra bathroom paper products.
Happy Organizing! As always, I would love to hear from you! Feel free to comment on my blog and share with your friends and family. Be sure to sign up to stay up to date on my newest blogs!
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