How To Clean A Closet So That It Stays Organized

In this blog post, you can learn how to clean a closet once and for all. This ultimate guide will work on your closet and any other closet in the house, including your kids’ closets.

It is so easy for your closet space to start feeling more like a junk drawer than the place where you keep your clothes, especially if you have a small space for a closet. But even the tiniest closet can be kept clean and organized with the proper setup.

When you follow each of these closet cleanout tips, you will have a fully organized closet, each item of clothing will have a home, and it will be easier than ever to keep it organized all year long. So, if you’re ready to clean the closets in your home, then keep reading!

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What Is The Best Way To Clean A Closet?

After years and years of routinely cleaning out my closet and my families’, I have found a cleaning routine that works very well. The key to doing this successfully is to get prepared in advance. This helps ensure it all gets done in one day instead of stopping mid-project and picking it back up later. (It’s much harder to pick a project like this back up after you’ve stopped working on it.)

That’s why I want to show you how to clean a closet efficiently so you can get it all done in one day.

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How To Clean A Closet (In Just One Day!) 

Step One: Do Your Laundry

The first step before cleaning a closet is doing all the laundry. This will ensure you have everything you need to thoroughly clean and organize the closet. There is nothing worse than getting a closet cleaned only to realize you didn’t account for some of the clothes in the laundry.

Step Two: Gather Everything You Will Need

The next step is getting everything you need to clean the closet together. This includes all the cleaning supplies you will be using and any organization pieces you will be using.

For cleaning supplies, I recommend having the following:

• A Trash Bag
• Clean Cloth
• Warm Water & Vinegar Mixture
• Disinfecting Wipes
• Vacuum
• Mop (If Needed)

When choosing organization pieces you want to use in the closet, it will depend on the layout of your closet, what you already have, etc. It can also be helpful to consider what you are currently struggling to keep organized. For example, if you’re struggling to keep your tops organized because you don’t have enough space to hang them all in your closet, it could be worthwhile to research other storage solutions for tops.

With that being said, here are some typical organization pieces you might like to use in your closet.

• Storage Bins
• Stackable Bins
• Closet Systems (All-In-One With Cubby, Racks, etc.)
• Hangers
• Baskets
• Wire Shelves
• Over The Door Organizer

Step Three: Remove Everything

When the day has come to clean your closet, it is ideal to start with a clean slate. To do this, remove everything from the closet and out into the room. As you remove stuff from your closet, putting everything into different piles, like one for tops, one for sweaters, and so on, can be helpful. Doing this now will help you when you get to step five.

You can also do this by clearing out one closet section at a time. However, I find this to be more time-consuming since you will jump back and forth between the steps. So, if you can, empty the entire closet.

Step Four: Wash & Disinfect Everything

Once the closet is empty, it is time to wash and disinfect everything. I like to start by washing the walls and any shelving. I use warm water and vinegar to do this, but you can use any cleaning product. Make sure the cleaner you use won’t strip away paint since you will be washing walls.

If you want, you can also disinfect all the surfaces inside the closet as well.

Once you’ve cleaned the walls and shelves, you can move onto the floors. Take the time to give it a good vacuum, getting into all the corners. And, of course, if you have hardwood, vinyl plank, or linoleum floors in your closet, you can also do a thorough mop of the space.

Step Five: Organize & Declutter Your Clothes

Now that the closet is clean, you can start to organize and declutter your clothes. This part of the process can be quite time-consuming, depending on how many items of clothing you have. If you haven’t yet, now is the time to put on a movie or podcast episode to keep you motivated!

If you haven’t put your clothes into separate piles yet, you can start by doing that. This can make it easier to see what you have regarding the number of tops, pants, and so on.

The next step is choosing what clothes you want to keep, donate, or throw away.

If decluttering your closet is something you struggle with, here are some tips you might consider following.

1. Follow the one-year rule, which means getting rid of anything you haven’t worn in a year.
2. Follow the Marie Kondo method, which means getting rid of clothing that doesn’t bring you joy.
3. Only keep clothes that are in good condition.

If you want to closet purge as much as possible, consider using a capsule wardrobe. These wardrobes are great because you only have a select few staple pieces of clothing in your closet that you can rotate through. Ideally, each piece will also go together so that you can make different outfit combinations. Capsule wardrobes are a great way to avoid a cluttered closet and eliminate decision-making in the morning about what you will wear.

Step Six: Make An Organization Plan

Once you have pared down your clothes and accessories, you can start to make an organizational plan based on what is left.

For example, how do you want to store your pants? What do you want to do with your seasonal items? Do you want to keep your work clothes separate? These are all things you can consider.

It can also be beneficial to think about what organization method will work best to keep a clean closet all year. For example, if this is your kid’s closet, then rolling things up into drawers may not work since they will likely pull everything out.

Here are some closet organization tips you will love.

1. To save space in your dresser drawer, roll up your clothes and store them vertically.
2. Allocate one area of your closet to hang long items and another for short ones. You can double up the hanging shelves in the short area or use the extra space for storage containers.
3. Split up your different kinds of undergarments into totes, or use drawer dividers for the inside of your dresser.
4. Get the type of hanger to hang scarves, jewelry, hats, etc. You’ll find some here!
5. Use an over-the-door organizer for hard-to-fold items, jewelry, etc.
6. Install hooks or hangers on the back of the door or the wall inside to hand purses, backpacks, hats, and so on.

Step Seven: Put Everything Away In Its New Home

Now that you have a plan, it’s time to put everything away. This is the most fun part because you finally get to see your hard work pay off. Once you have that clean closet, you will be so happy that you took the time to do this project.

How Do I Make My Closet Less Cluttered?

Doing general upkeep is the best way to keep your closet less cluttered. To do this, try implementing a daily routine where you put away any clothes lying around the house and put all dirty clothes into a hamper. Make sure you get your family involved in this routine too. After all, it’s not just your clothes and closet.

You can also go through your closet every couple of months and donate or throw away items you don’t need anymore. This will help keep things clean and organized throughout the year. If you struggle to give up your clothes, give yourself accountability by committing to donate any unwanted clothes to a local charity twice per year.

Finally, it might be helpful to add additional storage solutions as you need them for your closet. This can look like adding more shelving as needed, buying a dresser, installing an all-in-one system, etc.

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I hope that this guide on how to clean a closet has been helpful to you. Now it’s time to set a goal of when you want each closet in your home cleaned and getting to work. Happy closet cleaning!

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