Tip #25: Organize your closet.
now, this post is a little bit tricky. wooden hangers are, admittedly, not the most space-saving of closet storage options. there’s no denying that they’re wide and bulky, regardless of their dashing good looks.
these huggable hangers would probably do the trick much better. and even more revolutionary, these guys come with a hook that allows hangers to hang one from the next. neat-o. i’m a little jealous of these super slim options, but i’m also not one to ditch something that’s perfectly good just because something better came along.
i get a lot of queries about our apartment’s closets. there are two: one tucked under the stairs harry potter-style, and another in our building’s hallway, with a padlock. that’s glamour right there, ladies and gents. we mostly keep winter coats and fancy dresses and things in the hallway closet, though i’ll admit i crunched my wedding dress in the under-the-stairs-closet for the weeks leading up to the wedding. you never know what kind of wedding dress thieves might have been ready to pick that lock!
in both spaces, we try to keep things neat and organized. even, and perhaps, especially, when you have limited closet space, it’s important that you fight the temptation to just cram things in willy nilly. it’s not always easy. i admit to having had more than a few outbursts of frustration while wrestling clothes back in the closet. but, if we remember to put things back more or less in the same spot, it’s easier to manage. and of course, we’ve divided the space down the middle. just don’t think for a minute that james doesn’t try to sneak his haberdashery onto my side.
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though our apartment is bigger than 250-sf (not by much though… only 400-sf), we only have 2 closets, one in the kitchen for pantry items (because we also have no cupboards other than the 48-inches of cupboards we installed ourselves, 24 of which is beneath a farmhouse sink), and one in the living room.
however, this "closet" in the living room was built when people only hung their clothes on hooks in the back, so it's not deep enough for regular sized hangers, and we have to turn our clothes to the side to fit, making the space fit even less things.
we took advantage of vertical space in our 7×8 bedroom, lofted our bed up about 4 feet, and installed a closet rod beneath the bed. though i need to go inside on my knees with a flashlight (because i'm too lazy to change the batteries in our battery-powered push lights), it's totally worth it to have a "closet" all to my own.
we just sort of feel like we sleep in a dorm every night because we need a step-stool to climb into bed 😛
thanks for sharing these tiny apartment tips! makes me rethink some of my midwest habits, and how they are the reason my apartment is cluttered!! haha
cheers, from jersey city 😀
I love this feature! So much inspiration for my own tiny apartment!
This is my first time hearing about the hugable hangers! I may give them a try or recommend them to others! Thanks!
I actually love those wooden hangers. When we moved into our new home, I actually got rid of all the wire ones my fiancé brought with him and switched them to wood. They just look better! And I like to believe they're better for your clothes to hang on, lol.
When we move I desperately want wooden hangers! I love the look and ease of them 🙂
My closet survival tip is that if I buy a new clothing piece, then I must give something away in order to keep the same amount of hangers. Those pants that don't fit on hangers though is another question…
We use wooden hangers too and I think it whatever hangers you do use, (no wire ones of course)using the same makes it look neater. We have a huge house but bedroom closets are 1958 small so we try to keep it tidy.
I love your tips! I have a normal sized house, but have used many of your suggestions. My favorite is keeping all my makeup in a travel bag. So nice to put under the sink and be done.
I had wooden hangers for the longest time- but my wardrobe started to pile up and it got to the point where my closet could no longer contain the clothes hung in wooden hangers. I had to buy the ultra slim velvet hangers- and its like I gained more space in my closet. My step-daughter's closet, the hallway closet and the guest room closet are now filled with the wooden hangers that used to fill mine.
I do have those skinny velvet ones and they are awesome. I sort of mourn my pretty wooden ones, but I'm so relieved not to have my dresses slipping off onto the floor all the time anymore.
I'm sure that Costco is antithetical to the whole concept of small living, but that's where I got my hangers! Enough to stock my closet + gift some to my parents.
Now I want to redo my closet! 🙂
Marshalls, TJ Maxx and any other store sort of like them, have packs of 18-25 of the velvet slim hangers for like 10$…I've been slowly buying them as I visit the store to replace the hodgepodge of mismatched hangers I currently own. I just got a pack of 18 with the hooks for hanging hangers or adding accessories for 9.99$. Now if I could just get better at downsizing! I made a pretty good dent today.
Oh my goodness! We have an apartment that's a little less than 400sf but I can't imagine having a closet in the hallway! I don't think I could handle that. I've always wanted to get uniform hangers that are good quality but budget just hasn't allowed it! So many people can't believe that my boyfriend and I share a closet. He uses most of it, though, as my wardrobe is pretty sparse compared to his hahaha
Kudos to you! Seriously!
Our closet is open, in our living room/bedroom. We just use the plastic white hangers. They match, they save space and I love my closet! http://www.smallishblog.com
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