10 Genius Small Closet Organization Ideas to Double Your Storage Space

We've all been there. You throw open the closet door on a Monday morning in hope that something presentable will greet you - instead you're met with a mass of entangled hangers, shoes strewn haphazardly across the floor and sweaters on the verge of toppling off a cluttered shelf.

When square footage is limited it's easy to believe that the only solution is a bedroom extension or walk in closet but in actual fact closets are inherently wasteful with the space they do have.

Most standard closets waste between 40-50% of their interior space

The good news is that you don't have to hire professional organizers or spend thousands on a custom built closet to maximize the area you have. Here are 10 genius closet organization ideas that will help you transform a cramped, unusable closet into an accessible boutique within your own home.

1. Do A "Reverse Hanger" Audit Before Buying Any Closet Organizers

Chances are you wear about 20% of the clothes in your closet on any given week. That means that any organization system you put in place to make the other 80% more accessible is just creating more work for yourself

The Setup: Take an hour and hang every single hanger in your closet backwards so that the hook faces you.

The Rule: Every time you wear a garment and wash it, you put it back in the closet facing the right way

The Reality Check: After 3-6 months any item of clothing that's still facing the wrong way in your closet is fair game to be donated. Gather everything that's hanging incorrectly into donate/sell piles.

2. Add A Tiered Double Hanging Rod

Most closets only have one rod running along the length of the closet at about 65-70 inches from the floor. (Unless you're a full-time gown wearer or trench coat personality, in which case this tip may not apply to you.)

To maximize hanging space in your closet you can easily add another rod beneath the first. Double your hanging space and instantly free up square footage in your closet:

If you rent or don't want to drill into your closet walls to add another rod, you can buy an "add a rod" tension system that attaches to your existing rod with either adjustable straps or metal brackets.

Divide your new top and bottom rods logically:

Top: Everyday shirts, button downs, cropped jackets, and cardigans

Bottom: Trousers folded over hangers, skirts, and denim

Lastly, reserve a narrow long-hang space on one side of your double rod system to the end of your rod systems so that dresses, long coats, or jumpsuits have space to hang straight down without bunching.

3. Switch To Ultra-Slim Velvet Hangers

A disorganized jumble of thick plastic tube hangers, bulky wire dry cleaner hangers and heavy wooden coat hangers can waste precious linear inches of your hanging bar just by virtue of their thickness

Swap out your existing hangers for ultra-slim velvet ones to free up space along the length of your rod. Velvet hangers are also much thinner than standard plastic hangers (about a third of the thickness) and will free up space instantly when you replace an entire closet's worth of hangers.

Say goodbye to slipping spaghetti straps, silk blouses and wide bottomed tops pooling on the floor. The non-slip surface of velvet hangers will keep your clothes from sliding off the end of the bar.

Finally, replacing a rainbow of mixed plastic hangers with single color velvet hangers in either black, ivory or slate grey will instantly make your closet feel more pulled together and organized.

4. Make Use Of The Space Behind Your Door

Your closet door is actually a wasted vertical space that you can put to good use by adding an over the door organizer.

Instead of making a cluttered display of your shoes on the floor of your closet, hang a canvas or clear pocket over the door organizer with pairs of shoes in the pockets to create a cohesive, dust free shoe display. (Try to keep shoes in similar finishes grouped together in adjacent pockets.)

Use specific rows or pockets in the organizer to store belts, sunglasses cases, rolled scarves, lint rollers, and everyday jewelry pouches.

Or if you'd rather save the visual clutter of the organizer for your closet floor, try hanging an over the door rail with hooks for storing hats, light jackets, everyday tote bags, or bathrobes.

5. Use Bins + Labels To Store Things On Upper Shelves

Your top shelf is a magnet for heavy sweaters that slide around, but how can you make it a useful storage space without a stepladder?

If you have canvas or woven bins that match your closet's existing storage bins, fill them to the brim with items that you only need occasionally (like seasonal swimwear or formal handbags) and tuck them onto your shelves. This will instantly give the illusion of more space while keeping less-used items out of the way.

Make sure to label the front of the bin or attach a tag so that you know what's in there without having to rummage through the entire contents.

6. Use Acrylic Shelf Dividers For Neat Stacks

When you leave stacks of folded jeans and knits on your shelves they tend to topple over and become an unmanageable pile of laundry.

Try using clear acrylic or coated wire shelf dividers (which slide onto standard shelving boards without screws) as makeshift bookends to keep stacks of knits, sweatpants, and jeans upright and contained

7. Try The Marie Kondo "File Fold" Method With Drawers

If you have a drawer based closet system (with wire drawers or an internal dresser) it's easy to stuff clothes in haphazardly. Instead, try folding clothes into compact rectangular file like packets and arrange them front to back inside the drawer like file folders in a desk drawer.

This allows you to instantly see what's inside each drawer without digging through a ton of laundry. Nothing is buried beneath a mountain of other garments and choosing what to wear becomes much easier.

8. Create More Hanging Space With Cascading Hooks

If you've maxed out your closet rods, it's time to head downwards. Buy a pack of small tiered cascading hooks and clip the top of one hanger to the very bottom of a second hanger. Repeat this process until you've created space for 2-3 additional hangers.

If you want a quick hack for extra hanging space, buy a couple of soda cans. Cut off the tab at the very top of the can and use it to hang a second hanger by sliding the bottom of the can through the top hanger.

Use tiered swing hangers for storing skirts and trousers to maximize space on your rods. With this system you can fit 4 pairs of trousers on the space of 1 hanger.

9. Store Shoes On Staggered Racks + In Under-Riser Drawers

Stacks of shoes on your closet floor is an eyesore, not to mention damaging to your footwear. A two-tier expandable shoe rack placed beneath your hanging shirts is a great way to use this wasted space. It can hold up to 6-10 pairs of shoes and keeps them all organized and within easy reach.

If space is really limited, try using shoe slot organizers to stack pairs of shoes on top of each other (heel to toe) to cut the amount of space a pair takes up in half.

For shoes that you want to display but also keep clean, use clear front shoe boxes in a stackable design.

10. Create A Strict Out-Of-Season Rotation System

Part of the reason why small closets feel so cramped is because people feel the need to rotate an entire year's wardrobe all at once

Try storing off-season clothing elsewhere or in vacuum bags. Heavy wool sweaters, scarves, and puffer jackets can be stored in vacuum-sealed bags to save space and keep out moths.

It's a good idea to do this twice a year (once in spring and once in fall) to clear out your closet and give it a chance to breathe.

Putting It All Together: A Weekend Closet Organization Checklist

Organizing your entire closet from top to bottom can be a huge ordeal so here's a simple checklist for organization on the weekend:

Saturday Morning: Empty and clean your closet.

Saturday Afternoon: Put out your new slim velvet hangers and organize your hanging clothes by length.

Sunday Morning: Divide up your top shelf contents by category (travel clothing, seasonal accessories, etc) and separate your stacked piles of knits with acrylic shelf dividers.

Sunday Afternoon: Set up the organizer on your closet door, file-fold your drawers, and store any out of season clothing.

A small closet doesn't have to mean a chaotic closet. By maximizing your storage vertically, you can create the illusion of a much larger closet while still being able to access everything you need in a timely manner.