Organizing Home Office Closets

February 23, 2011

Recently, I have given you advice about what to consider when organizing clothes closets and kids closets.  What about a home office closet?  Many people convert a spare bedroom into a home office.  Often the closets are overlooked.  Most bedroom closets need to be retrofitted to work effectively in a home office.  Here are some things to consider when setting up your home office closet:

  • Store Supplies – Supplies are the most common thing you will store in a home office closet.  For example: printer ink, printer paper, staples, tape, scissors, labels, filing supplies, CDs, binders, brochures, business cards, letterhead, notecards, envelopes, postage, pens, pencils, markers, highlighters, paper clips, rubber bands, binder clips, post-it notes, etc.  I could go on and on.  If you try to cram these items into a traditional closet with a bar and a shelf across the top, you are likely to experience stress and frustration whenever you try to find something.  Which brings me to my next point…

    • Scrapbook Paper Storage Cube System

  • Use Lots of Shelves – The more shelves the better.  This will allow you to divide some of the smaller items into bins or buckets and still have plenty of space.
  • Use Adjustable Shelving – Your needs will change over time – I guarantee it.  Adjustable shelving allows you flexibility to change your closet as needed to work for you.
  • Consider a Literature Sorter – A literature sorter or paper sorter is great for organizing different kinds of printer paper (white, colored, 3 hole punched, etc.), letterhead, labels, envelopes, etc.

Remember the fundamental law of organizing: a place for everything and everything in its place.  If you want your home office closet to be functional, you need to group the different types of supplies together and assign them a “home”.  Once you do this, you will always know where to find them and it will make clean-up a breeze.

– Donna Lindley, Certified Professional Organizer and owner of Rochester Hills, MI-based Organize Your World, Inc.

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