Most homes have at least 6 closets, and many have multiple walk-in spaces as well. But it’s pretty unlikely that any one of the closets in your home has additional room for storage. All too often, people haphazardly jam random items into their closets, overstuffing them to the point that it becomes almost impossible to even shut the closet door. Rather than render your closet space useless, consider revamping and reorganizing the closets in your home to minimize clutter and save countless hours hunting for those all but forgotten clothing items, shoes, or cleaning supplies you may need.

-Rethink Storage Methods-

Even after completely cleaning out a cluttered closet, you may find that within a couple months it has returned to its original state of chaos. In that case, the problem may not be how much stuff is in there, but the way those items are organized. To really take advantage of the space available to you, it can be a good idea to put in hangers, pegboards or cork boards, extra shelving, or even small filing cabinets. Especially with larger items, such as brooms and mops, it is far easier to keep them flush with the wall to take up as little space as possible.

-Give Each Closet a Purpose-

Though it might seem easy to use your closet as a catch-all for the many miscellaneous items that you don’t have a better spot for elsewhere, the result of doing so may make it much more difficult to find what you actually need when you go into your closet. After all, there are few things worse than pushing aside several coats and pairs of shoes just to find an electric drill. To avoid this problem, take the time to move specific types of items into different closets. There are two main benefits in doing so. First, you will always know the first place to look when searching for a particular tool, cleaning supply, or piece of clothing. Second, you will likely find that, through organizing each closet in such a way, there are many things hidden in your closets that you don’t need, and donating them or throwing them away will give you much more room for storage than you thought you had.

-Convert a Closet to Something New-

If your kids move out of the house, you decide to give up skiing, or even if you just decide you don’t need so many pairs of shoes, you may find yourself with an extra unused closet. Instead of letting it sit empty and collect cobwebs, why not convert it into a more useful space? A small closet can easily be converted into a bookshelf by removing the door, adding shelving space, and perhaps repainting, and it will likely surprise you how much more open this small change will make a living area feel.

Larger closets can be converted into anything from a small home office (complete with desk and office chair) to a makeshift miniature wine cellar. In a relatively small space, it is generally inexpensive and not overly time-consuming to make these types of changes, but the difference will certainly be felt by you and your guests.