Storage Basics for Your Closet--How to Store Your Clothes, Shoes, and Accessories

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Use the Right Hangers

Use rounded wooden, plastic, or fabric-padded hangers to give garments proper support and help maintain their shape. Wire hangers are too flimsy for anything but T-shirts, and often stretch shoulders out of shape.

The best hangers have swiveling heads so you don't have to worry about making sure they're facing the right way--and standardizing your hangers will not only make your clothes more accessible, it'll look neater and more organized.

Elbow Room

Don't crowd your clothes. To look their best, they need enough room to breathe and hang freely.

Keep It Clean

Don't put away dirty clothes. Time makes most stains more difficult to remove, and everything you have hanging in your closet or folded in your dresser should be clean and ready to wear--otherwise, what's the point?!

Ditch the Dry Cleaner Bags

Unless your closet is cool and well-ventilated, natural fiber clothing stored in plastic dry cleaning bags may get mildewed during the summer months. To discourage mildew, empty closets twice a year and wash laminate or wire (not wood) shelving with a mixture of 3/4 cup of chlorine bleach and 1 TBSP powdered laundry detergent in a gallon of warm water. Leave five minutes, rinse with clear water, and wipe dry. Make sure it's completely dry before you put your clothes back in the closet--you don't want them to get bleached.

Bag the Laundry

Dirty clothes can reek in less than a week. Stow away from the closet in a tightly lidded basket with a lining you can remove for monthly cleaning.