Is your closet door the one you keep closed when company comes over? These 15 DIY closet organization ideas will help you fit more in and find it faster, even in a tiny reach in. Some are five minute fixes, like shower hooks for handbags, a tie hanger for tank tops and wire hangers bent to hold flip flops. Others are weekend builds: a slide out scarf rack, ceiling hung clothes rods, a coat closet with kid height hooks and complete makeovers with new shelving, wallpaper and even a chandelier. Start by pulling everything out and letting go of what doesn’t fit or doesn’t get worn, then measure every wall before you buy a single bin. You’ll be amazed how much room appears.
1. How to Organize a Small Closet
Organizing a small closet starts with a ruthless declutter. Pull out anything that doesn’t fit or hasn’t been worn in years, and getting dressed suddenly gets easier. Next, make a list of everything the space has to hold, like pants, shirts, dresses, stacked sweaters, shoes and even luggage. Then fix whatever is broken: shoes piled on the floor, sweaters out of reach, hangers jammed onto one rail. A customizable rail and shelf system such as IKEA’s BOAXEL lets you choose every shelf, rod and shoe rack to fit your exact space.
Get the full tutorial at Abby Organizes.
2. Tie Hanger Tank Top Holder
Tank tops take up a surprising amount of rod space, so try hanging them on a tie hanger instead. A whole stack of tanks loops onto one hanger by their straps and takes up the width of a single shirt. A second tie hanger handles belts the same way. In a boxy apartment closet, every inch counts, so add a top shelf for folded clothes, hang a shoe rack made from bent hangers on a tension rod, and put necklaces on adhesive hooks. Little magnetic canisters keep earrings handy without taking any shelf space.
Get the full tutorial at Life. Design. and the Pursuit of Craftiness.
3. Organize Your Closet With More Hanging Space
Need more hanging space without a new closet system? Add a second hanging tier under the rod you already have. Cut a wooden dowel to the width you need, drill a small pilot hole near each end and twist in an eye screw. Attach a length of chain to each eye screw, then hook the top of the chains over the existing closet rod. Shorter tops and folded pants hang on the lower bar while the upper rod keeps its full length, which nearly doubles the space for short pieces.
Get the full tutorial at DIY JOY.
4. DIY slide-out scarf and belt organizers
Slide out scarf and belt organizers work like a drawer turned on its side. For scarves, attach a piece of MDF or plywood about 11 by 26 inches to a strip of 1 by 2 poplar with pocket holes, then mount one half of two 10 inch drawer slides to the closet wall and the other to the board. Screw towel bars or IKEA rails across the front and drape scarves over them. The belt version is a short 1 by 4 lined with small cup hooks on a single slide. Gold spray paint makes the hardware look fancy.
Get the full tutorial at View Along the Way.
5. Garment Rack DIY
A pipe garment rack adds hanging space anywhere, and it comes apart on moving day. Black steel pipes, tees, elbows, nipples, end caps and floor flanges from the hardware store’s plumbing aisle run about $70 to $80. Spray paint the galvanized flanges black so every piece matches. Build the two bases first, tightening each fitting with a wrench, then add the tall sides, the top bar and a lower bar to keep it sturdy. Change the pipe lengths to fit your space, and unscrew the bases whenever you need to store it.
Get the full tutorial at A Beautiful Mess.
6. Organizing Flops
Flip flops pile up fast in summer, and this hanger trick gets them off the floor for free. Mount a leftover curtain rod, a wooden dowel or a piece of PVC across two shelf brackets. Grab the flimsiest wire hangers you own and a pair of needle nose pliers. Snip off the bottom bar of each hanger, roll the cut ends into little curls so nothing sharp sticks out, then bend the wire into a shape like a stick figure flexing its muscles. Each pair hooks over the arms by the toe straps.
Get the full tutorial at Epbot.
7. Girly-Glam Closet Makeover
A tiny reach in closet can feel like a dressing room with the right details. Build simple shelving, paint everything a crisp white, and carve out a little vanity zone for jewelry. A mirror from a yard sale, found for just a dollar, fits the nook, with small hooks screwed on each side for necklaces. Clutches stand up neatly in a clear plastic letter sorter. Add built in drawers lined with velvet and dressed up with jewel knobs, then finish with bold wallpaper and a sparkly chandelier for pure glam.
Get the full tutorial at View Along the Way.
8. From Wiry Slobs to Sleek Hanging Rods
Ceiling hung clothes rods trade bulky wire shelving for a clean, airy look. The secret is the hooks: swiveling ceiling toggle hooks rated for 50 to 90 pounds, about $6 each, because drywall alone won’t hold a full rod of clothes. Use an adjustable closet rod, which comes as two pieces, so one package makes two rods with no cutting or painting. Thread one long loop of braided cord through the rod and over the hooks, tie it off with three knots and melt the cut ends with a lighter. Two rods run about $30.
Get the full tutorial at The Design Confidential.
9. From Cluttered Mess to Mini-Dressing Room
A closet just 4.5 feet deep and 6 feet wide can still feel like a dressing room. The trick is using every wall well. Run two aluminum rods down one side for tops and jackets. On the other side, stack shoe cubbies and bins, leave a long hanging section for dresses, and add two more rods for pants and skirts. Keep shoe boxes on the top shelves. Then hang everything by color, from whites through to blacks, which looks gorgeous and nudges you toward the brighter pieces you forget about.
Get the full tutorial at Deeply Southern Home.
10. DIY Coat Closet Makeover
Coat closets love to collect junk, and this one day makeover fixes it. Empty the closet completely and take out the bar and the hangers. Paint the walls a soft mint, then give the trim and the shelves a glossy white. Spray paint a row of hooks gold and screw them into the trim, so coats go up with one hand instead of a fight with hangers. Add a second strip of trim lower down with its own hooks so little ones can hang their own coats. Labeled canvas bins on the shelf corral hats and gloves.
Get the full tutorial at Classy Clutter.
11. Easy DIY Closet Make Over
Fabric walls give a basic closet a custom, boutique look without any glue. Measure each wall and take the numbers to the fabric counter, and choose something sturdy rather than sheer, like outdoor fabric. Iron it first, fold the edges under, then start at the top middle of each wall and work outward with a staple gun, tugging the fabric tight as you reach the sides. Add an inexpensive closet system from a big box store, a storage cube and a shower curtain rod for extra hanging, plus track lights so you can see it all.
Get the full tutorial at Belinda Selene.
12. Closet Organization
Long, standard depth closets with sagging wire shelving waste a lot of space. Rip out the old wire and plan a real closet system instead. Many brands, ClosetMaid included, offer a free online design tool: measure the height, width and depth, pick reach in, and compare layouts. The units arrive flat packed, so expect some jigsaw puzzle assembly and plenty of leveling so clothes don’t slide. Use molly bolts where you can’t hit a stud. One long rod plus two short ones gives room for dresses and doubled up shirts.
Get the full tutorial at Ann's Entitled Life.
13. How to Hang Handbags
Shower curtain hooks are the easiest handbag organizer you’ll ever buy. Pick up a pack of S shaped or double shower hooks at any big box store and slip them over your closet rod, then hang a bag by its handles from each one. They slide back and forth easily, so you can make room when you need it. Some are a tight squeeze over a thick rod, so expect to muscle them on. On a wire shelf, hook the small end over the bar instead. Bags stay visible, upright and off the closet floor.
Get the full tutorial at A Thoughtful Place.
14. Closet Organization Outfits Ready for School
School mornings get so much calmer when outfits are picked out ahead of time. Keep the top rod of a kid’s closet for clean clothes and save the bottom rod for the week ahead. Print the days of the week on cardstock, punch a hole near the top of each tag and slip one over a hanger hook. On Sunday night, take five minutes together to choose five outfits, plus a sweater or jacket, and hang one under each day. No more arguing over clothes when everyone is tired and running late.
Get the full tutorial at A Thoughtful Place.
15. T-Shirt Drawer Organization
T shirt drawers turn into a jumble because stacked shirts hide everything underneath. Fold each tee into a small, firm rectangle instead: smooth it face down, fold the sides and sleeves in, then fold it in thirds from the bottom up. Stand the folded shirts on edge in the drawer like files in a cabinet, so every design shows at a glance and you can pull one without wrecking the rest. If a row starts to flop as the drawer empties, prop the end with rolled socks. Practice a few times and it gets fast.
Get the full tutorial at AllDayChic.
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