My Not-so-Scary Closet

After a little trip to Home Depot to get a few containers, I got to work on organizing my scary closet. You can see the BEFORE pictures here. I really didn't do too much to change my spare closet. I used it as a catch-all for anything and everything I could shove in there. I still use it for storage since I don't have a basement or a useable attic, but now I can actually walk into the closet and easily find what I'm looking for. Before I show you my pictures, I'll share my tips for getting a storage space organized.

1.Take everything out of the space you’re organizing.  I find it easier to completely empty the closet instead of working around the clutter that’s in there.  Besides, when you take everything out, you’re more apt to get rid of clutter instead of putting it back in the closet.

2.  Separate your belongings into piles.  I made a pile for things I want to donate.  You might also want to make a pile for things you want to sell on eBay or at a garage sale, etc.  Then I made a pile of items that I wanted to keep, but didn’t want to put back into the closet.  There were some candles, for example, that I wanted to hang onto, but I relocated them to a cabinet in the kitchen where I’d be more likely to use them sometime this century.  I also made a pile of things that I wanted to put back into my closet.

3.  Go through those sections again and find a few more things to put in the donate or sale pile.  Most people tend to hold onto things they don’t use or need.  If you haven’t seen the item in five years, you can pretty safely say you don’t need it.

4.  Go online to the storage and organization section of the Home Depot website.  Get an idea of what kinds of options are available for organizing your things.  Because this is just a spare closet that I use for storage, I wasn’t too concerned with aesthetics.  I was simply interested in getting my things into some containers that would fit on my shelves.

5.  Get some containers (I personally like clear ones so I can easily see what’s in them) to organize your things. Put them back into your closet in a way that makes the best use of your space.

6.  Take pictures and brag to the world that you cleaned up your act.

Now here, without further ado, are the AFTER pictures . . .

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AFTER
This closet was such a mess, I'm surprised I didn't find a family of armadillos living in there, quite frankly. Now I have my belongings in clear boxes that fit on my shelves.
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AFTER
I'm still keeping my luggage in here, but I've condensed it, putting smaller bags inside the larger ones so it takes up less space.
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AFTER
Look at all the floor space still available! I can actually walk in my walk-in closet!
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AFTER
I put some boxes on my little shelves to hold photos and other small items. And now I have 4 garbage bags of clothing and other items to donate so someone else can get use out of them. It's a win/win all around!

A big thanks to The Home Depot for sponsoring this campaign. Click here to see more of the discussion.

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