How to Completely Organize Your Master Closet (My Organized Master Closet)

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I’ve had many requests throughout the years to share how I organize my master closet, so I thought I’d finally share since my closet was recently cleaned out for the new year.  I will go ahead and warn you that this is some next-level organization, though, so get ready!  ;o)  But first a little back story...

When we built our house 12 years ago, we selected our floor plan for a few different reasons, one of which, was because the master closet layout was so fantastic!  Brian and I each have our own large closets and mine has a window… you pretty much can’t beat that!  After living with little to no closet space my whole life, having this large one has been the biggest treat!  I never take it for granted. 

In our first house, there was so little space that Brian’s clothes completely filled all three of the bedroom closets, which meant that my clothes had to hang on a clothing rack in the middle of the spare bedroom.  Haha.  He bought the house and lived there alone while we were dating, so by the time I moved in, his clothes were already occupying all of the space and I didn’t see any reason to even bother trying to move things around because it wouldn’t all fit anyway.  When I say the closets were tiny, I mean tiny.  They were only about 2-3 feet wide, and a couple of feet deep.

When I moved in, I just bought one of those big clothing racks from Bed, Bath, and Beyond and called it a day.  The clothing rack wasn’t quite large enough to hold all of my clothes, though, so a lot of them were in piles all over spare bedroom.  It was a mess.  Haha.  After dealing with that for a couple of years, you can probably see why I was drawn to the floor plans with the biggest master closets.  ;o)

When we started the building process, we found out that my master closet would come standard with just one hanging rack down each of the left and right sides.  I didn’t think that was the best way to utilize all of that precious space, so we decided to upgrade to a customized layout.  I ended up designing the layout myself (literally drawing it on a piece of paper) and the builder brought it to life. 

Overall Layout Design + Basic Zones

Left wall, first 7 feet – two equally spaced rows of hanging space (zone for tops)

Left wall, back 2 feet – floor-to-ceiling shelving (zone for shoes)

Right wall, first 7 feet – one high row of hanging space (zone for bottoms and dresses)

Right wall, back 2 feet – floor-to-ceiling shelves (zone for shoes)

I like having the overall layout organized into zones because it makes things so easy to find – tops on the left, bottoms and dresses on the right, shoes in the back, bags on the shelves, and jewelry on the door.  Everything has its own zone.  Now let’s see how each zone is organized.

Left Wall

Right Wall

Zone Organization

Left Wall, Top Rack, First 7 Feet (Regular Tops, from left to right)

Regular strapless tops

Regular sleeveless tops

Regular short-sleeve tops

Regular three-quarter length tops

Regular long-sleeve tops

Regular sweaters/fleeces

Regular cardigans

Regular vests

Regular outerwear

Left Wall, Bottom Rack, First 7 Feet (Themed Tops, from left to right)

Workout sleeveless tops

Workout short-sleeve tops

Workout long-sleeve tops

Graphic sleeveless tops

Graphic short-sleeve tops

Graphic long-sleeve tops

Georgia-themed sleeveless tops

Georgia-themed short-sleeve tops

Georgia-themed long-sleeve tops

Fall-themed sleeveless tops

Fall-themed short-sleeve tops

Fall-themed long-sleeve tops

Christmas-themed sleeveless tops

Christmas-themed short-sleeve tops

Christmas-themed long-sleeve tops

Right Wall, Top Rack, First 7 Feet (Bottoms & Dresses, from left to right)

Shorts

Short skirts

Long skirts

Jeans

Dress pants

Hanging canvas shelf that holds PJs and workout bottoms (PJ tanks/shorts, PJ leggings, PJ fleece pants, workout shorts, workout pants)

Tunics

Strapless dresses

Sleeveless dresses

Short-sleeve dresses

Long-sleeve dresses

Sweater dresses

Evening gowns

Left Wall, Top Shelf, First 7 Feet (Miscellaneous, from left to right)

Carrying bags

Hats

Right Wall, Top Shelf, First 7 Feet (Miscellaneous, from left to right)

Wallets

Handbags

Box that holds travel supplies (travel toiletry bag, travel hair dryer, travel bottles, etc.)

Box that holds costumes (Halloween costumes, costume props, etc.)

 

Left Wall, Back 2 Feet (Cold Weather Shoes, from top to bottom)

Tennis shoes

Ballet Flats

Booties

Boots

Right Wall, Back 2 Feet (Warm Weather Shoes, from top to bottom)

Flip flops

Sandals

Wedges

Heels 

Back of Door (Jewelry, from top to bottom)

Rings

Watches

Bracelets

Earrings

Necklaces

(The jewelry organizer can be found here... seriously one of the best things I've ever purchased as there is ample room for every single piece of jewelry you own!)

Back Wall Under Window (Scarves, from left to right)

Scarves 

(B installed towel racks, and that's what they're hanging on.)

 

That’s how the different categories are organized within the zones!  I should also mention that the tops are also organized by sleeve type and color.  Why do I organize them this way?  Well, when I go to pick out an outfit for the day, I typically decide first what kind of top I’m wanting to wear that day (that's why I have them in their own little sections – regular, athletic, graphic tee, Georgia football gear, fall-themed, Christmas-themed, etc.) depending on what we're doing that day and the time of year.  

Once that decision is made, I then need to know what sleeve-type to look for (sleeveless, short-sleeve, long-sleeve) depending on the weather that day.  Then I have each section arranged in rainbow order (pink, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, brown, grey, black, white) from there, so it makes it easier to find what I’m looking for... and also because it's pretty.  ;o)

For example, if it's a Saturday during football season and it's going to be 40 degrees, I know I'll want to wear a University of Georgia top, and probably one that will keep me warm.  That's why I have all of my Georgia stuff in it's own little section... so I can shop that little section and make a quick decision.  

If I'm going to volunteer at the kids' school for one of their class Christmas parties, I just go shop my Christmas-themed tops section where I'm able to see all of the Christmas-themed tops together.  That way, I never have to hunt for anything, and I also don't forget about anything.

Do y’all think I’m crazy yet?!  ;o)

I know this level of organization is absolutely insane to some of you, but this is the kind of stuff that makes my heart sing!  With regard to putting away my laundry, yes, it probably does take me a little longer to get everything in the correct place than it would if I just threw it all in there, but having my closet this way makes me happy and it makes my life easier, so it’s worth the extra time to me.  I’ll happily own the crazy.  This is me, y’all… I’ve been like this my whole life! 

One more thing I'd like to share is that every single article of clothing I own is hanging in this closet.  I don't like storing clothes in drawers, so what you see here is every single thing I own.  My dresser in our bedroom only holds underwear, bras, belts, tights, slips, socks, and swim suits... no shorts, tanks, pants, or shirts whatsoever.  So if you're thinking that I have a ton of clothes, just keep in mind that a bunch of them are basic tanks and tees and jeans that most people probably just store in dresser drawers.  

That said, I do still probably have more clothes than the average person because a) I love fashion, and b) I wear clothes for years, sometimes decades, so I hold onto them for a very long time.  Some pieces in my closet are nearly 20 years old, but I keep them because I still wear them.

I’ve been using this same layout for 12 years now and I don’t see myself changing it, so it’s obviously working well!  One day I’d love to upgrade the materials for the racks and shelving and get rid of that ugly acrylic covered wire, but if I ever do that, I’ll most definitely be keeping the same layout.

Having my own separate master closet was always on my wish list, and it has been the absolute best thing since B and I do not see eye-to-eye on tidiness.  To answer your question, no, I do not organize his closet this way, too.  He has his own much more laid-back approach to closet organization, and I completely respect that.  ;o)

So what team are you on?  Team super-organized closet or team just-throw-everything-in-there?

Happy Wednesday!