Tame that closet beast once and for all! The BEST tips for Small Linen Closet Organization include what to purge, creative use of space, making laundry easier, and keeping items within easy reach.
Getting the linen closet organized has been on my to-do list forever, but the bigger projects and life in general always seem to get in the way. After being literally hit in the face by the avalanche of towels left behind by my dear son, I decided enough was enough.
Do you feel the same way? Ready to tame that closet beast?
I actually loooove to organize a space. In fact, I have worked hard to get makeovers and perfect functionality on our pantry organization, building a custom closet, and killin’ it with the laundry room organization makeover.
Know what I love even more? A space that stays that way! If you have a linen closet that needs some love, here are some tips that helped us get ours under control:
Things to do Before Organizing Your Closet
Before we get to the organizing part, let’s cover a few things. For brevity, I added some commonly asked questions in a drop down below so you can click on what seems interesting.
Everyone is going to have different preferences, but here are some common examples for linen closet shelves:
Toilet paper
smaller items such as cotton swabs and cotton balls
Extra toiletries
Sheet sets
Bath towels
Beach towels
Cleaning supplies
Ironing board
Extra pillows
Medicines
These folding methods apply to both bath and hand towels.
1. If you have a small space, fold the towel in half long ways and then roll it up cinnamon roll style.
2. If you like a pretty-looking folded towel, fold in half long ways, then in half the short way, and then fold into thirds. This creates a hotel-style fold.
3. If you are more of a “just stick them in there” type, fold in half long ways, then the short way, then long again. This should make a square.
Folding a fitted sheet is ridiculously hard if your nurse mother didn’t teach you. However, it is now much easier with this fitted sheet storage tool. Fold it up as best you can and then sort the sheets inside for an easy way to organize them. Best part? Easily fold up your sheets and pillowcases to fit in there with the fitted sheet and keep your sets together!
Fold up your blankets similar to the towel methods mentioned above. You might need to do a few more folds since they are larger, but they work the same!
A zoned space is all about putting items together by category. Here are just some examples:
Create a dedicated space for your linen collection: Designate a specific area for your linens, grouping them by type or size for a neater appearance.
Designate space for cleaning products: Create a section specifically for cleaning products, making it easy to locate everything needed for household cleaning tasks.
Create a dedicated space for beauty products. Because there will always be backups! I like baskets to corral the clutter of different sized bottles.
Tips for Organizing Your Linen Closet
The goal is to make this as easy as possible and get the most out of a small linen closet. Here are just some quick ideas for you to make a plan for how you want to organize your storage space. You don’t need to implement every though!
- Make a plan for what you want to store in the linen closet. Define specific zones to maintain order and ease of access.
- Maximize storage space: Consider using storage solutions that make the most of available vertical space from floor to ceiling, such as over-the-door organizers or vertical shelving units.
- Organize seasonal items: Rotate items based on seasons. Store off-season clothing or decorations in labeled bins to keep the current season’s items easily accessible.
- Incorporate Lazy Susans: Lazy Susans are excellent for organizing items that you need easy access to. They make it easy to reach items in the back without disrupting the arrangement.
- Arrange lower shelves wisely: Reserve lower shelves for heavier items or things you use less frequently to avoid strain when reaching for them.
- Implement color coding. Assign specific colors to different categories of items. This helps in quick identification and adds a visual appeal to the closet if that is your thing.
- Pick a towel color and stick to it. We have only white towels for bathing and dark grey towels for spills/cleaning the dog. This actually helps more than being just visual.
- If you are a list person, make an inventory list to keep track of your items, ensuring you know what’s available without tearing apart the entire closet.
- Store smaller items in baskets and don’t bother organizing it. Toss them in and label the basket.
- Make use of shelf dividers. These shelf dividers create compartments on the shelf to easily view items by category or keep piles from falling over.
- Store less frequently used items on the top shelf. Store things like towels or medicines at eye level for easy access.
- Pair similar items that are similar sizes together to minimize the space they take up.
How to Purge a Closet
This may seem obvious, but we all have little things that are just hanging out in our closets with no actual use. Expired cold medicine? Check. 18 towels in 4 different colors or shredded ends? Been there.
With regards to the linen closet here are a few ideas of things you should purge:
- One towel color. – this actually helps more than being just visual.
- “Dog” Towels – To keep your towels fresh, designate a few towels for giant spills, washing the dog, muddy children, or other dirty jobs. However, you don’t need more than 3 and it is easier to not mistake them if they are a different color or kept in a separate bin.
- Sheets with no partner. I know there is a debate on this as many are no longer using a top sheet. The bottom sheets do wear faster, leaving extra top sheets. In either case, if you have more than 1 backup sheet per bed, it’s time to toss.
- Expired Medicines and toiletries – yes, check the dates.
- Rule of 3 – If you have more than 3 of the same item, you probably won’t get to it before it expires. Toss!
Baskets and Bins
Baskets and storage bins are great for storing smaller items, like cleaning products or toiletries. They provide visibility and accessibility. Mix and match baskets for a cohesive look, which means less visual clutter. Baskets
Woven baskets. are wonderfully light and pretty, but they tend to shed in my experience. That will be true of most wicker or soft woven backets.
Wire baskets. Metal wire baskets work well for being able to see something at a glance without needing to pull down. However, small items can fall through gaps or tip over
Glass jars. Use wide mouth for easy reach in and cleaning. I already had mine on hand, but I love these other jars too!
Plastic bins with lids. Plastic bins are ideal for categorizing and protecting items from dust or moisture. Label them for quick identification.
Fabric Bins. I was pleasantly surprised how sturdy they are. They are great for soft items like hand towels or beach bags.
Linen Closet Labels
If I am being honest, I need labels in my life, because I can never remember where I put things and I feel so lost. Labels are like a friend I haven’t seen in forever waving me over to the cool girl’s lunch table. Seriously.
If you like these labels, I actually have them as free printables in our subscriber library. Sign up for all our updates and freebies at the bottom of this post.
Organization Tip: Level Up!
This is a pretty novel tip that I recently learned. I was scanning Pinterest and a realization hit me after comparing all of the prettiest linen closets:
All the shelves were organized by height!
What I mean by that is that each shelf contained items of the same height. Towels were stacked next to bins of the same height. Glass jars were all of the same height. And so on and so on. It made each shelf look like a curated collection rather than cluttered mayhem.
Handy Door Organizers
This is the tip that saved my closet. Install hooks or organizers on the back of the door to make use of that space for hanging items or storing smaller accessories.
We put all of those bottles of “stuff” in one of these handy door organizers. Total game changer.
This door organizer is solid – items don’t roll over or clink. I wish I had it years ago! The pockets are deep and pretty wide too.
More over-the-door organizers that are useful:
So now this little closet finally looks like it might not hit me over the head again. And the organization rules make me more confident that everyone in the family can keep it organized too!
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More Organization Ideas
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Audene williams says
Hi i just saw your design they are wonderful, I love them very much. they are simple and nice.
Marife Lindsay says
You did a great job in illustrating the famous phrase ” A place for everything and everything in its place”.
Mili says
Hello,
I loved the way you have organized. I am so inspired to do so.
I have one shelve in my en-suite laundry area. I want to add two more shelves. Where can I buy them?
Rachel says
I buy most of my shelves (either melamine or wire shelves) at Lowe’s or Home Depot.
Lisa M Vitkin says
Where did you find the compact plastic drawers?
Rachel says
I’ve had those for a bit. I believe they were from Walmart, maybe Target.
LAC says
You’ve labeled everything so clearly except the grey bins. Out of curiosity, what did you organize in those?
Rachel says
haha, great eye. The grey bins contain wash cloths, heating pads, and our “dog towels” – aka, the raggedy towels for cleaning up messes, washing the dogs, etc. The main reason they aren’t labeled yet is that I didn’t like the ribbon hangers. I plan to get some card style hangers like thesecard style hangers like thesecard style hangers like these for the bins.
Erin Thompson says
Great ideas, I ordered most of these items for my bathroom closet, looking forward to how it ❤ comes together
Vanessa Lowe says
This seems so well put together and easily written. I was going to just skip the sigh up…..but thought I would be missing helpful, chic ideas.