Using closet organization systems can be an effective way to manage all of your closet items.  Great care must be taken, though, so you don’t end up with shelves full of clutter.  It’s very easy to wind up in a mess with all that extra room.  And, if you are looking to purchase a new system, it is important to keep this in mind as well – or you’ll end up decluttering in a few years.

These steps will help you declutter your closet organization system:

• Sort your clothes. Get rid of the clothes you don’t wear anymore – they’re in there – we all have them.
• Use baskets for loose items. If your closet is a fairly large walk-in type closet, it is very easy to leave loose pocket change, or anything else lying right on the shelf.   Get a piggy bank for the change, and use a small basket for the other items.  Yes, you will need to empty the basket once  in a while, but at least it’s not strung all over the shelves in the mean time.
• Pick up the dirty clothes. Obvious.  Don’t leave dirty clothes lying on the floor.  This one problem will make a tidy closet seem cluttered.
• Hang your hangers backwards. Set yourself a reminder for one year from today.  Go back into your closet and look for the clothes that are still hanging backward on the hanger.  You haven’t worn them in one year.  You’ve made it through all the seasons, and they’re still hanging.  Get rid of them.
• Throw away the trash. Another no-brainer.  If there is trash in your closet, get rid of it.

The easiest way to start a project like this is to completely remove everything from the closet, clean the shelves, and vacuum the floor.  Then, start putting things back in, in a neat and organized way.  Don’t put it all back in – there will be plenty to get rid of.  Share these excess items by donating the things in good shape to those less fortunate.

A project like this shouldn’t take much more than an hour (give or take – depending on the extent of the clutter), but once it’s finished you will have closet organization systems that will make you proud.