After a short break, I'm back with a new space to tackle for the 2018 WHO Challenge. A huge congratulations to those who have been able to keep up so far.
RELATED POST: Whole House Organization Challenge 2019: A Challenge That Will Make Your Home More Beautiful
If you started the challenge from the beginning, you know that we started our organizational journey in the storage spaces. We tackled a laundry/utility room, and organized a garage. Both spaces turned out great!
Of course, there are those who say that organization does not have to be attractive. I disagree. Think about it, the reason why we're all drawn to organized spaces is because they LOOK beautiful. So before moving on to organize the kitchen, let me show you how I was able to create a more beautiful and practical linen closet in just one day.
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In last year's challenge, I confessed that my linen closet was an area of my home that I am constantly revamping. Why? Although it is small, there's a TON of stuff inside of it. I'm so happy to say that for several years now, I've been able to maintain the order inside of it, with just a few minor tweaks here and there.
Unfortunately, I revamped this closet so long ago that I don't have any before photos. But I want to share with you the key items that I've used to keep it looking attractive and functional. If you've downloaded the FREE WHO Project Worksheet you already know how to break the space down. Here are the elements you'll need to gather in order to set up your beautiful and practical space in just one day.
How to Set Up Your Small Linen Closet For Success
1. INVEST IN HIGH QUALITY TOWELS
Have you ever been stopped dead in your tracks after grabbing a towel at your favorite hotel? Man I swear I could sleep in one of those towels! Super thick, absorbent towels add tons of beauty and function to a linen closet. Cheap towels on the other hand, become dingy very quickly and tend to do less, and less of chore you bought them to perform. For this reason I've been slowly changing over to Turkish towels.
Unlike most cotton towels, Turkish towels have long fibers and are generally manufactured without the use of bleach. This process allows them to be more plush, softer, fluffier, and more absorbent with each wash. AH-mazing!
HELPFUL TIP: Limiting the the color palette of your towels to white along with just 1-2 other colors will dramatically improve the overall look of your linen closet. If that's not an option, try dividing and grouping them by like colors.
2. USE THE "WALL" ON THE CLOSET DOOR
I updated this door storage unit using simple resin baskets from Target. At just 5 bucks per basket, it was a rather small investment for a clean look. Here’s what this unit looked like before I added the baskets. The difference will amaze you. Yes, the trick to making utilitarian spaces look beautiful is to use storage that hides as much visual clutter as possible.
RELATED POST: Organize a Small Linen Closet in 7 Steps
3. CORRAL LIKE ITEMS TOGETHER IN SMALLER STORAGE SOLUTIONS
Lining up your products in solder-like fashion may look good in the beginning. But trust me when I say they will not remain that way. Baskets, bins and clear jars are our friends people! They act as barriers to keep you from over-stuffing your closet. The more stuff you have, the more you need them. A good storage solution will also keep you from coming home after a hard day's work to a disaster in your bathroom.
I purchased the baskets below from Big Lots a few years ago. But Better Homes and Gardens has an affordable line of baskets that are sold in a number of places including Walmart. I even found them on Amazon. Let the buyer beware, however, they cost nearly twice as much on that site.
4. LABEL E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G
When you need to get in and out quickly, a label can be a big help. It will also keep other members of the family from chucking things in the closet without thinking about where they really belong. Of course training them to actually READ the labels is another story for another post.
5. MAKE THINGS EASILY ACCESSIBLE
One of the most difficult things about getting organized is keeping things that way. If the storage systems used are not practical, all of your hard work will be a total waste of time. However, a good rule of thumb is: the easier it is to access your items, the easier it will be to return it them to their proper place. That's why it's important to understand your organizational style.
For instance, do you like to simply toss things in a bin, or does arranging everything things by color or type suit your fancy. Perhaps you like a mixture of both of these organizational styles. Your organized space has to reflect your lifestyle in order to work. If you try to imitate someone else's, the finished product will fall apart in a matter of days.
RELATED POST: How to Find Your Organizational Style
And that my friends, is how I was able to organize this laundry room in just a few short hours. I encourage you to take a bit of time this weekend to purge those unnecessary items from your linen closet. In my next post I'll gather some photos of other linen closets to inspire you along the way. After that, we'll head to the kitchen.
Tell me now:
How do you go about organizing your linen closet?
What storage solutions have you found to be the most useful for your household?
Were there any tips mentioned heere that you found useful?
