An organizers secret weapon: Color Coding
As a professional organizer, I have spent countless hours color-coding closet wardrobes. The reason so many organizers, like myself, meticulously color-code their clients’ closets is not only because it looks beautiful when it’s complete.
Creating blocks of color in an organized closet is far more functional than beautiful. In organizing, the key is to set up a space so that you can find what you want when you want it. The best systems make getting dressed quick, easy, and mindless.
Many of us can quickly recall the color of a dress in our wardrobe. If you know that all your reds are in the same spot, it makes sifting so much swifter.
Have you ever come across an item in your closet and thought, “I forgot this was in here!” Chances are it was wedged between two jackets that completely camouflaged it. Am I right?
Color-coding your closet and drawers can dramatically reduce overwhelm and decision fatigue. Trust me, when it comes to something you do every day of your life, like getting dressed, it’s worth investing time now to save time later.
But why, Mon?
Time is money. It compounds! Save a little time here, a little time there, and all of sudden you’re freeing up hours of your life to put towards things that are really important to you.
So go ahead, spend a couple hours and color-code that closet or give it a mini upgrade! I promise you it’ll make getting dressed in the morning more fun, your closet more beautiful, and your routine more efficient.
Bonus closet idea: Deep in the closet weeds but not sure what to do with once loved but tired trends? Update your wardrobe with minimal effort. Custom PVC Patches are a fun find for an instant update. Currently, obsessed with these Chenille patches and getting creative with denim, hats and old sports clothes. Whether it’s vintage letters, cute animals, personalized totems, or symbols, you can easily give old clothes give new life.
Now for the tips:
Here’s how I organize clothes by color, pattern, and styles for ultimate efficiency:
- Group “types” of clothing together (ie. sleeveless, short sleeve, long sleeve, dresses, blouses, jackets, etc.)
- Within each group of clothing type, create color blocks.
- Use the extended rainbow (ROYGBIV +) to color coordinate. Think: White, tan, pink, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet, brown, grey, black. Do what’s intuitive or follow my formula.
- If you have patterned items, create a “pattern section” or decide on its primary color and group it with that color. The only wrong system is no-system.
- If you prefer to wear a lot of black, rarely white, put the black color-blocks at the front of the line up.
Hungry for more closet inspo? Check out 40 ways to organize your shoes.
