Back to school season can be a busy time of year, especially with young children. You’re heading off to buy school supplies, first day of school outfits, and shoes that will hopefully last until next summer. Before you know it, your kids’ closets will be overflowing, creating an unorganized mess. Well, lucky for you, it doesn’t have to be that way! Start the school year off on the right foot with a well organized closet to hold all of those new supplies and fun clothes. How can you do it? Follow along with these tips and tricks for organizing kids clothes and closets.
It’s no secret that kids grow out of clothes and shoes fairly quick. As a money and time-saver, the younger siblings often get stuck with the older siblings hand-me-downs, but after a while they can become worn out. The first step to having a perfectly organized kids closet is to get rid of old, worn out, or unwanted items. If it doesn’t fit anyone, donate it. If it has too many holes in it, toss it. You get the picture. This can even be a helpful step for old toys or school supplies. If something hasn’t been used in a long time, it’s probably time to make room in the closet. Consider donating items that are still in decent condition and could be used by someone else.
In most homes, kids closets are not very big. If you’re finding it difficult to really fit everything or come up with an organized layout, it may not be a bad idea to reconfigure the layout or design altogether. With a customized closet design, you’ll be able to plan exactly where you want things to go, how much hanger space you’ll need, and how many drawers you might want. You can even decide whether laminate or wire shelving units would be best for you.
If you don’t have the ability to completely reconfigure your closets layout, try reorganizing it to feature more time-savers. Avoid morning meltdowns by organizing the closet so everything is more accessible. Try choosing outfits with your children on Sunday afternoons for the entire week, then organize them by day in the closet with hanging tags or even in cubbies. Utilize a door hanger for easy access to shoes and accessories or even for toy organization. Having everything placed in a convenient location within the closet will help save precious time in the mornings while getting ready to head out the door.
We all know that with every stage of life, there are different wants and needs. Toddlers have completely different necessities than that of a teenager, but nonetheless, they do have one need in common – an organized closet. Keep in mind the following tips for organizing closets based on age.
While babies are probably not heading to school this year, you don’t want to forget about the youngest child’s closet. Baskets are an excellent way to organize baby clothes and accessories. A baby will grow the quickest of ages, so having baskets organized by clothing size allows for easy access. Plus, you are able to easily see whether or not you’ll need more of the next size and your baby continues to grow.
As babies and toddlers become preschoolers and elementary-age, baskets become a place for toys and accessories, rather than clothes. As your children continue to grow, so does the need for organizing. Make sure that you have hangers that at made for little clothes, rather than adult-sized ones. Hang everyday clothes in the most accessible place in the closet, and nicer clothing hung toward the back, as it won’t be needed as frequently. Those baby baskets can now be used for socks, shoes, and toys. Another thing to keep in mind are those extra-curricular activities. Make sure you have a place in your kids’ closets for band instruments, sports equipment, and more.
By the time kids reach the pre-teen and teenage stage of their life, they’ve probably accumulated plenty of clothes and accessories. Completely reconfiguring your teens closet could be the best thing at this stage. Make sure to include their input on where to place jewelry or baseball cap storage. At this age, it could be a good idea to start organizing closets by season. Place clothes that were used for the summer and spring into tote to store elsewhere in the house in order to make room for fall and winter clothes.
Don’t let the busy season of back-to-school keep you from getting your kids’ closets organized. With help from Harkraft, you can get a customized closet based on your needs, whether it be for a toddler or a teen, improving efficiency and maximizing storage. If you’re ready to organize your kids closets, contact us today to get started!
