How To Design Your Own Closet Organization Systems

By Meryl Shana

If you're planning to use a closet for extra storage space, you should learn about all the options you have when it comes to installing closet storage systems. There are literally thousands of different shelving units, bins, and boxes for you to pick from.

Before you begin, you'll need to decide whether form, function, or a combination of the two are most important to you. If you don't care whether your closet looks glamorous or coordinated, you have more options. You could choose from canvas totes, plastic tubs, or rolling bins.

You can find a wide variety of Rubbermaid plastic totes and bins that you can use to enhance your closet storage. You could use little containers normally used for leftover food to store craft items or hardware; you could use giant totes for some of your biggest items, such as cushions from the patio furniture or the holiday decorations.

The best thing to do with the large bins is to place them on the floor beneath the wall mounted shelves. You can then fill up the shelves themselves with bins of assorted sizes.

Labeling is one of the keys to good closet storage systems. You should clearly label each tote, bin, and tub so that you'll always know what's inside.

It's best to keep all similar items in one place, so that way you can tell what's in any box just at a glance. You can use a label maker to make the process easier, and you can always peel off the labels and switch them out later if you need to.

Another option is to label the storage bin with a permanent marker, or you can tape a piece of paper to the side or front of the bin that describes the contents.

Clear or translucent professional organizer bins are a great choice, since you don't have to create quite so detailed labels for them. You can see the contents at a glance, which means you can be even more organized and save yourself some time.

Rubbermaid has a great selection of these that you can use in your closet storage systems, too. Keep in mind that you can also get specialty storage for your closet, too, for gift wrap, craft items, and other hobby supplies and item.