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7 Goals for Organizing my Toddler's Closet

January 28, 2021

This post is sponsored by Walmart

Every week, I've been trying to tackle and organize one storage space in our house and this week, it was all about Polly's closet. None of our girls have a dresser in their rooms so we store all of their clothes, shoes, seasonal gear and extra sheets in their closet.  Polly is 3 and growing and changing so fast that I really felt the need to get a few simple systems in place for her (and me) to get her closet organized once and for all!

This is what we started with:

Not bad, but there was room for improvement. With little kids (Polly is 3), everything is LITTLE so it's easy to just put it on a shelf and then it gets messy fast. I wanted to:

  1. Add baskets inside the cubbies (in lieu of drawers) to designate different folded clothing categories and keep them neat.
  2. Add some sort of shoe/sock storage (since finding the matching shoe is always a problem in this closet!)
  3. Implement a "grown out of" spot so we can immediately take the item of clothing out of rotation and donate it when there's a good size collection.
  4. Get all matching hangers
  5. Have easy access to clean sheets (just in case I need to change them in the middle of the night)
  6. Include a small step stool to encourage independence.
  7. Install some hooks to hold her bags.

I find it so helpful before starting any organization project--or any project for that matter--to make a list like this. Write down what the pain points and goals are. It helps me to focus on my needs and keeps me from over-buying...which for me is incredibly easy when it comes to organizing! ;)

Walmart kids' line and home line has a lot of incredible decor and organizational pieces at great, budget-friendly prices. I saved some other favorite picks here. I wanted things that looked good, and could grow with her too. I mixed a few different baskets to designate different tasks (including an adorable kitty basket that makes Polly very excited), and repurposed an incredible toy storage for her shoes!

Hook | Velvet Hangers | Kitty Rope Basket | Wire Basket | Toy Organizer | Seagrass Basket with Leather Handles | Step Stool | Seagrass Landry Hamper

Before putting any of this in her closet, I went through and donated a lot of clothes that she grew out of. Some of the things all three of our daughters had worn! I kept a couple keepsakes and the rest felt good to clear out. Here's how it all looked in the closet!

The matching hangers alone make me so happy! And I love that these are slim and hold her shirts in place. Her tops and dresses remained on hangers and we now have a designated basket for bathing suits, denim, soft pants, pajamas and underwear. Above her dresses, I put two smaller sea grass baskets for clothes that she's outgrown and extras.

The toy storage turned shoe/sock storage has been working out SO WELL and she enjoys matching her shoes and it seems like we can always find them, too. The two seagrass baskets in the middle house sheets/extra bedding and that lidded hamper at the bottom is so stylish, I want one for our bathroom!

Organizing doesn’t need to be complicated or expensive at all, in fact, this took me about an hour tops. If you can get even just a few cute baskets to contain loose clutter, you’ll feel so much better every time you open those doors. At least I do. 

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  1. Where are the pj's, undies, socks, the daily casual play clothes that at her age kids, when prompted, can change into? I don't see anything easily accessibke and at lower eye level for them. Do you have to do all clothes grabbing for her?

  2. I love this post!! This is so helpful!! I would love to know what you'd recommend for book storage? We've done the ikea ledges in a few rooms but thinking of a smallish piece of furniture for one of my kiddo's rooms. Any ideas?

  3. Not related to closet organizing, but I noticed you did not fill the wood knots on the closet door to make it smooth - something that you have done in other areas of the house. Is there a design reason you decided not to fill them here?

  4. Love the toy bin storage for shoes! Clicked on the link but it didn’t show measurements for the toy storage or the bins? Not sure if it will fit my older kids’ shoes. Would you mind sharing the dimensions? Thank you!

    1. Hello, Melissa! I have metal baskets on painted shelves. I got a few packs of the adhesive felt circles. Once I adhered a few to the runners on the bottom of the baskets, they slide in/out easily, with no scratching of the paint.

  5. I LOVE that shoe organization idea! I think we might do that with our front shoe closet that currently just has one sad full basket of kids shoes all jumbled together!

  6. I love everything you chose - it all looks perfect. This post is so timely for me! We have a hall coat closet that we use to store shoes (to keep them away from the dog who likes to steal if they are left by the door) and I have been meaning to organize it for a while now.

  7. I love, love the grown-out-of basket idea. We really struggle with too many clothes not fitting for my son in particular, and it’s turned into a pile of clothes in his closet that may/may not fit!

  8. Cute Cute! Would you be willing to share some photos of how you transition the trim color from the hallway to her room? Thanks!

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