Decide which areas would benefit from a custom design as you take the first steps toward organizing everything in your home. 

I usually focus on a single area when giving tips on home design and organization, but today I’m doing a virtual walkthrough of the home. Custom design can benefit many areas of your home. Custom design sets the foundation for organization throughout the year and gives you the ability to thoughtfully organize everything. When you organize everything, you extend the life of cherished possessions and improve the livability of your home.

Of course, I’m not suggesting a huge remodeling project. Take this imaginary tour of your home. Envision how these custom components and accessories can increase storage and improve organization. Decide which areas would benefit from a custom design as you take the first steps toward organizing everything.  

Organize Everything from Beginning to End

Better organization begins the moment you enter your home. Living in Annapolis we enjoy four seasons, and it’s convenient when the reach-in closet in the entryway holds outerwear for all four seasons. Double hanging rods increase closet capacity. Custom shelving installed above hanging rods is great for hats, gloves, and scarves. Hooks properly placed on the back of the closet door hold umbrellas, dog leashes, or reusable shopping bags.

Tips to keep the entryway closet organized throughout the seasons:

• Purge items that are worn out or haven’t been used in over a year.

• Be disciplined. Avoid the last minute hunt for misplaced items. As you return home place items in the closet, where they belong.

Even the MudRoom Deserves Good Design

A custom-designed mudroom brings untold organizational benefits to everyone using it. Lockers, with or without doors, give your young athletes personal space for their equipment. Slide-out chrome baskets—small, medium, and large—hold those sports items that don’t neatly fit on hangers. You can even personalize lockers with name tags or team logo. Dedicated space for your kids’ equipment, especially when the practice field is muddy, keeps the mess from invading other areas of your house.

Tips to keep the mudroom clean and organized:

• Choose tile or linoleum on the floor for easy cleanup, especially in wet weather.

• Purchase a bench—a welcome convenience when removing snowy boots and shoes.

• Keep an old, but very absorbent towel on a hook to quickly wipe up snowmelt.   

Organize Everything in Closets Big and Small

If your closets are already packed, and “stuffing” is the appropriate verb to describe how you arrange your clothing, then closets should take priority on your mission to organize everything.

Walk-in closets have near-limitless possibilities for a custom design to match your wardrobe and lifestyle. Island or peninsula cabinetry transforms an empty space into countertop area for staging accessories and items. Custom drawers lovingly and securely protect jewelry. Soft-close drawers that shut smoothly and quietly bring a sense of elegance. A built-in hamper with removable liners replaces unsightly laundry baskets and makes the transfer to the laundry room so much easier.

Reach-in and walk-in closets outfitted with single- and double-hung rods organize your wardrobe—formal wear, suits, gowns, dresses, and blouses—and make every item easily accessible. No longer will you hunt for lost items. Your footwear collection is displayed on adjustable shelves to accommodate everything from winter boots to summer sandals.

Tips to keep your closet well organized throughout the year:

• Don’t overpopulate your closets. When you buy a new item remove an older item.

• Cycle clothing and accessories with the seasons. Place current season items within easy reach. Place out of season items on high shelves or low drawers of the island.

• Regularly clean your closet like you would any other room. Dust bunnies, wire hangers, and dry-cleaning wrappers have no place.   

Laundry Room: No Better Place to be Neat and Clean  

You’ve gathered soiled uniforms from the mudroom and laundry from kids’ bedrooms and closet hampers. In many homes, especially older ones, the laundry room is at best utilitarian. A thoughtful assessment by an experienced professional can create a custom design that makes the entire laundry process more tolerable, dare I say, enjoyable. Imagine cabinetry crafted to perfectly fit around your washer and dryer, hanger rods to prevent wrinkles, and a hideaway ironing board at exactly the right height. Custom design creates a laundry environment to help keep clothing neat and clean.

Tips to keep your laundry room tidy:

• A piggy bank to collect all the spare coins left in pockets.

• A small basket to collect orphan socks, in hopes of finding their lost twins.

• Smaller, reusable containers for detergent from big boxes or bottles to avoid heavy lifting and potential spills.

Pantry Preparation

In a typical week of grocery shopping and meal preparation, your pantry experiences more traffic than any of your closets. Just like your wardrobe, the fruits, vegetables, beverages, ingredients, spices, and condiments of your culinary preferences are unique. A custom-designed reach-in pantry accommodates all of your culinary and nutritional needs. Adjustable shelving organizes everything from the two-dozen cereal boxes you regularly stock to the Villeroy & Boch dinnerware used on special occasions. Sturdy, adjustable pull-out storage places boxes, jars, and cans within easy reach. Slide-out wine racks safely hold regional and foreign vintages.

If you’re fortunate to have a walk-in pantry, in addition to the appointments mentioned above, your custom-designed pantry can include floor-to-ceiling lazy Susans to maximize corner space and make hundreds of culinary items instantly accessible. Cabinetry with soft-close drawers neatly store and protect table linens, place settings, and dinner napkins. Integrated chrome hooks hang aprons, potholders, and utensils that don’t easily fit in drawers or on shelves.

Tips to keep your pantry and its contents organized (and fresh):

• Use tall, clear plastic containers to store flour, grains, bread crumbs, chocolate chips, and nuts. Items will keep fresher longer.

• Small baskets or bins keep odd-shaped items like bags of chips, pretzels, pastas, and candy, from spilling.

• Don’t let items go to waste. Check your inventory monthly and prepare a dish using items (especially infrequently-used condiments and ingredients) that may be expiring soon.

Don’t Just Close the Garage Door

In many homes, the garage is your least organized area. It’s easy to just shut the door and forget the mess. But with all that space and the variety of seasonal items stored in your garage, it may present the biggest organizational opportunity. For automotive items, strong metal baskets keep car care items—window, chrome, and upholstery cleaners, wash mitts, wax, oil, and brake fluid, within easy reach. Heavy-duty steel shelves holding up to 300 pounds are great for storing seasonal items like chains, studded tires, and sports racks for skis, personal watercraft, and bicycles.

If your garage doubles as a workshop, then you’ll appreciate high-quality cabinetry with adjustable shelves to keep power tools organized. Custom cabinetry excels in keeping the myriad supplies and items in your garage from getting dusty. More importantly, in contrast to any boxes or bins currently stacked in your garage, cabinets make these items almost instantly accessible. Frequently used hand tools are organized on the wall with a wide variety of hooks, racks, and magnetic holders. Never hunt for a tool again.

Tips to keep your garage clean and organized:

• Keep a shop vacuum with a long extension cord plugged in to quickly clean up wood dust, dirt, spills after any project.

• Use a leaf blower to “sweep” a garage floor in minutes. If you haven’t cleaned the garage in a while, I recommend wearing a dust mask.

Let Our Team Help You Organize Everything

As you complete the imaginary walk through of your home, which areas of your home would benefit the most from a custom-design? You may want to prioritize your list. When you’re ready, schedule your free design consultation with Closet America and our team of professionals will meet with you in your home at your convenience. Our experienced designers excel in optimizing storage space to meet your unique organizational needs. Before you know it, you’ll be well on your way to reaching the goal of organizing everything.

Lead image source Unsplash user Christopher Harris