It's tough to keep kids organized any time of year, but the school months are definitely the most challenging. Between trying out (and tossing aside) endless outfits each morning, changing when they get home, and losing clean-up time to homework duties, our children have a tough time keeping their closets clean. Luckily, these 10 brilliant tips should help you get your child's closet in order-and keep it that way!
Make easy and versatile chalkboard labels out of switch plate covers so that your child's closet can adapt to his changing needs and growing bodies. Change the tags by season, size, clothing type or whatever other options your child needs.
Many parents find that removing closet doors makes organization much easier overall. With no doors, it's tougher for articles of clothing to fall and get lost in the corners of the closet floor, and because of the additional light and easy entry, kids have an easier time navigating (read: cleaning) their closet space.
For the most part, kids' clothes take up less space than adults', so it's likely that there's some extra room in your children's closets that's not being used. Make use of the space at the top of the closet by adding out-of-the-way storage shelves. It's a great place to store party shoes, seasonal clothes, winter gear and more!
Instead of simply having shelves (or even drawers) in your child's closet, those flexible fabric boxes from IKEA are the way to go. Not only are they inexpensive, but they're easy to carry out of the closet and around the room, making the outfit-picking process less painful, while also assisting in cleanup.
No matter your child's age, clothing dividers are a brilliant way to maintain order in their closet. Split clothes up by season, size or occasion, so that your child knows exactly where to look for what. These easy DIY dividers give you the freedom to use whatever labels suit your needs.
Got an old dresser drawer lying around? Turn it into roll-out shoe storage that fits under your child's bed. This will free up that constant pile of shoes on the closet floor, and it will help you keep all those untied sneakers and un-Velcro-ed sandals out of sight.
If your child is young enough, his or her shoes can be easily stored in a leftover wine box divider! Use a large bag or box to hold the divider, fill it with shoes and slide it into your child's closet where they'll have easy visibility and access to shoes when they need them.
Asking your child to bring you clothing that they've grown out of can turn into a weekly occurrence, and, somehow, you still won't get everything. Simplify the process by adding an "outgrown" hamper to your child's closet, so that every time they find a tight-fitting or worn-out piece of clothing, they can toss it in the hamper for you to collect later.
Because your child's clothing won't take up the full hanging space of one rack, add a second one about halfway down the closet to double your storage space and put more clothing within easy reach for your child.
Say goodbye to sorting through your child's clothing as you seek empty hangers-this clever tip will provide access to all the hangers you need whenever need them. Make a designated "empty hanger" side of the closet, and ask your child to hang every hanger there once it's free of clothing.
For more awesome organization tips, tricks and ideas, check out Hometalk's organizing page.