Whether you’ve chosen an affordable studio or one-bedroom apartment or a spacious three-bedroom abode, chances are you wouldn’t turn down extra closet space. No matter how large your closets or how many of them you have, there just never seems to be enough room for all the treasures you’ve collected over the years.

But there are plenty of tips and tricks to help you “find” more closet space. With the right organizing and storage products plus a few styling tricks, you might find that your closets are actually just the right size.

How to Maximize Closet Space in an Apartment

  • Start with a purge: Before you can reorganize and streamline your closets, start with a thorough cleaning. Be ruthless: This is not the time to get sentimental about that high school sports jersey or that ratty old t-shirt that shrunk in the dryer. Sell or donate clothes that don’t fit or you haven’t worn in the last year. Once you’ve found a new home for the castoffs, (whether it’s a friend, a charity, or a consignment shop), remove any empty hangers to maximize closet space.

 

  • Store items outside of the closet: Be intentional with your closet and only keep clothes for the current season hanging in there. Remove off-season clothing and store it in protective organizers under the bed or on the top shelves (see next tip).

 

  • Maximize vertical space: Closets and cabinets often have hard-to-reach, unused space between the top shelf or hanging rod and ceiling. Use this space to store boxes of items you only use occasionally or seasonally.

 

  • Use the right hangers: Switching out bulky, mismatched plastic hangers for thinner felt options will not only maximize closet space, but will also help your closet look neater and more uniform.

 

  • Get organizers: Use baskets or bins to collect and store small items like belts, scarves, and hats in the bedroom closets, or extra towels and  toiletries in the linen closet. Adding hanging organizer shelves that attach to your closet rod with hooks or Velcro will provide extra storage and keep sweaters or even extra linens nice and neat.

 

  • Add an extra rod: Doubling your closet space is as easy as hanging another closet rod. To avoid putting holes in the walls, try adjustable closet rod extenders that hook onto your existing rod.

 

  • Utilize the door: The back of your closet door is a storage solution in and of itself. Add a cork board with hooks to organize jewelry or a hanging shoe organizer, which can be used for far more than just footwear.

 

  • Make the most of your shelves: Keep your purses organized and your sweaters from toppling over with neat and functional shelf dividers. You can also repurpose office supplies like magazine file holders to help wrangle clutches, swimsuits, socks and other small accessories.

 

  • Add storage under hanging clothes: Place a small dresser and shoe rack beneath your shorter hanging clothes, like shirts and jackets, to take advantage of some unused space. Bonus: the top of a dresser can be home to some of those baskets and bins we mentioned above.

 

  • Edit yourself: All too often a closet floor can become a dumping ground for all sorts of random objects. Have designated spaces for all your things, stay on top of the clutter and complete regular purges to keep your closets organized and functional.

Send Cramped Closets Packing with Southern Management

At Southern Management, we know that storage space in an apartment is always at a premium. We understand that nice, large closets can be a must-have apartment amenity. For this reason, many of our communities and floor plans feature walk-in closets and some even offer additional storage.

If you’re still feeling cramped after learning how to maximize closet space in an apartment and are ready to move, check out some of Southern Management’s apartment communities in the Maryland and Virginia region. We have online virtual tours to walk you through every inch of the apartment  so you can plan exactly where you’ll store your entire wardrobe.

Ready to make a move? Contact us online.