Our hall closet is the bain of my organizational existence. I honestly cannot keep that thing together, neat and efficient to save my life. There are always big bags of stuff from Costco, snacks, cleaning supplies, miscellaneous bags – you name it, it lives in this closet. So, I thought I should find a better way to keep things organized so that I can actually use it, and maintain order.
A friend of mine suggested buying shoe organizers to help with this project. So, headed to my favourite home store, bought some nice (and nice looking) shoe organizers and set to work to find a way to make this closet useable again.
Here is what my closet looked liked before – horrible right?
I purchased these two shoe organizers:
First step: I cleaned every single thing out of that closet and decided what needed to go somewhere else, and what really needed to be in this closet. Then, I took out the two organizers from their packages and hung them from the closet rail. I designated the sweater bag for things like paper towels, toilet paper, and anything else flat (like Swiffer Wet Jet Pads) and filled it up. That once organizer allowed me to get rid of my big bulky packaging from Costco.
Then, I took cleaning supplies and equipment that fit into the shoe holder and placed those in there. Alternative use: pre-packaged snacks, juice boxes etc can be stored in these pouches for easy access. However, if storing food you cannot also store cleaning products.
The whole job took me about 20 minutes and cost $30.
I love it! And, I have been able to keep it like this for months. So easy, so effective.
What tips do you have for closet organization?
Oh yes I am loving the after pics. Job well done!
This is so smart! I never thought to use those closet organizers for anything other than clothing, lol. I might need to try this. I agree with Rosey, love the before/after pics :)
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Thanks! It was a neat trick and worked so well. And, they are so versatile.
Kerrie @ Family Food and Travel recently posted..Easy Closet Organization/Makeover
OMG!! Wanna come do mine! lol!! PS I love the the SCCTO lunch bag in the corner!
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Lol – thanks – great eye to catch the lunch bag! I love that bag. :)
Kerrie @ Family Food and Travel recently posted..Easy Closet Organization/Makeover
I have to admit, my closets are a disaster. But I try to keep the disorganization somewhat contained. I bought one of those hanging sweater bags for my own closet and love it!
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This is a really good idea. I’m always looking for organization ideas because I’m horrible at it. It’s so hard for me to think outside the box for some reason. For example, I never would have thought to put cleaning supplies in a shoe organizer. Thanks for sharing.
I love your before and after pics. My hallway closet is also the bane of my existence but dont think your shoe organizers will help but it does provide inspiration since I am tired of opening the door and things falling out.
We use these in our kids’ closets too. I have allotted one space for sports uniforms, one for undies, etc. I also used a shoe one for my cleaning supplies when we had a laundry cupboard with stacked laundry.
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Nice closet makeover! I was just thinking about storage solutions, as we’re moving into a different house this month and the storage has not been optimized.
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I love this, my closets are stuffed so tight I can’t get anything out! I need this!
Mitch
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WOW the closet looks fabulous now! love the organization :)
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I love this idea, it’s ingenious and I am definitely going to try this in our storage closet too! Thanks for sharing :)
Monica recently posted..PAIN AU CHOCOLAT ~ #27 of 52 Breads in 2013
Wow, what an improvement! That gives me ideas for our guest bedroom closet. I especially like the idea of getting the cleaning supplies up and easily visible. Thanks
What a great transformation!
I use clear bins to organize everything in our closets. All the mitts together. All hats. All cleaning products etc.
I like how you used the over the door shoe organizer for your cleaning products. I usually travel with a shoe organizer and hang it in our hotel room to store shampoo, hair ties etc but we don’t use it at home for anything. Thanks for the reminder that the shoe organizer can be used at home too LOL. Now to dig it out of the suitcase…..
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Nice!! I love organized closets and such! Great purchase!
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Love it! I’m sure it makes a huge difference. And easy too!
Dani @ lifeovereasy recently posted..How To Have A Crazy Awesome Sister Road Trip
you have so motivated me to get my closets organized!!! thank you :)
I love how simple and easy this solution is! We created an over the door wrapping paper station in our closet.
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Those organizers sure come in handy don’t they!?
Tammi @ My Organized Chaos recently posted..Mom vs the Chaos
I love the shoe organizer idea! I have no tips for you, nor do I dare to show pictures of what my closet looks light. ~Shudder~ I keep the door shut, does that count??
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Your closet looks awesome! Love the transformation!
Happy to have found a new site to read. Thanks!
Your closet looks great! I use a shoe organizer attached to the back of my hall closet to hold items that would otherwise be lost in my junk drawer. At a glance, I can see my rolls of string, measuring tape, flashlight etc.
Love this!! It’s simple, quick and cheap. Perhaps this is what I need. My closet at the moment is a dungeon.
Thank you for this!! My closets are currently the bane of my existence. Exploding, overstuffed messes that I just don’t even want to deal with. I think that investing in some serious organizers would seriously be my saving grace. Thanks or taking the time to share yours!
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Oh,I don’t think I can look at my closet without crying!It’s just so messy!
Oh, Kerri, that looks great! I am blessed with built in cubbies and organizers, and I don’t know how I’d ever live without them. Well, I guess I’d be doing exactly what you did! Way to tame the chaos, girl!
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We have a Elfa (Container Store) pantry door organizer in our kitchen that we love. The problem is, we wanted to use the same system in our utility closet, but found that the width of the door is too narrow. I have seen the tip of using a shoe organizer to put cleaning supplies, etc & suggested it to my husband. He didn’t think it was a good idea. Now that I have seen your post & the picture of the shoe organizer that you used, I think we have our solution. I just didn’t want to have your normal run of the mill shoe organizer to replace the Elfa system. But your picture showed that this could work for us. Thank you.
So glad that it was helpful for you – I think that buying a nice thick shoe holder is he key. A thin plastic one would just result in the cleaning bottles being stuck in it.
Apt timing, as we just demo’d one of our closets and are putting up sheetrock and an Elfa system we bought at Container Store!
jealous – would love something more permanent :)
I never would have thought of shoe and sweater organizers but they worked so well for you. I am a big believer in getting stuff off the floor – now if I could find a good idea for the vacuum cleaner, steam mop, mop, broom….
wow, amazing what you can do in 20 minuts eh :)
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These are some great ideas! I’ll have to incorporate something similar for my kids rooms.
Haylie – they would work well in a kids room too. Great idea!
Great closet makeover. I think we might need to start organizing our hall closet since it looks every similar to yours.
Love it! Too bad I don’t have many tips as my closets almost always turn into a mess. I try to use lots of organizers and boxes though!
I always have the best of intentions to be organized. this looks easy, I should really do some Fall cleaning
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This look so simple! I have a couple of closets that could use this makeover lol. Sometimes no matter how hard I try to keep my closets organized, they always get cluttered :( lol.
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