Linen Closet Organization (For a SMALL Closet!)

I’d consider myself a pretty organized person. I spend a lot of time focused on decluttering my home and working to make sure things are nice and in order. But something I’ve always struggled a bit with is linen closet organization. I’m not sure why, but despite my best efforts ours is often a hot mess.

For the first few years we lived in this house, it was truly a disaster. Like, unspeakably bad. A couple of years ago, I finally whipped it into shape and it worked great…for a while. But the baskets I bought were a little too big for the shelves, nothing fit quite right and, well, things fell apart again.

All that to say, despite the fact that I often have a super messy linen closet, I’ve spent enough time thinking, planning, and organizing in them that I kind of consider myself a pro.

What’s In Our Linen Closet?

Let’s start here, because it’ll be a little bit different for everyone.

Our linen closet is a bit of a catch-all. We don’t keep towels in there, because those all stay in our bathroom. So, it’s basically just extra sheets, blankets, and pillows. But then, it also stores all of our medicine (see how we organized that here), along with gift wrap, some precious memories, a few cleaning supplies, and a few other odds and ends.

I mean, let’s be real: I’m asking a lot of this small closet.

But, it works! And, with appropriately sized baskets, a little thinking ahead, and a bit of purging, I’ve created a super organized linen closet that I no longer dread opening.

Linen Closet Organization: My Best Tips

Tip #1: Take EVERYTHING OUT.

Listen. I know you don’t wanna. I know it’s dumb and it makes a mess and then you want to quit. But if you really want to get your linen closet (or any space) fully organized once and for all, you have to empty it out.

Once you’ve fully emptied the closet out, take the time to go through and purge a bit. See what you don’t need, what you can get rid of, and what can be relocated. If you really want to go deep with it, check out my decluttering ebook with looooooots of tips and help for doing this step of the process in your whole house!

Why is it so important to empty it out? Let me break it down:

• When you empty out a space, you get a fresh perspective on what you have and how the space functions. If you leave everything in there, you may keep some stuff around that you don’t actually need, just because you didn’t see it!
• Often, the layout we’re using in a closet or cabinet isn’t the most efficient, but it’s all we can imagine because it’s what’s there. By taking everything out, you can try something new that may work much better.
• It’s a reset for your brain and encourages you to try new combinations, layouts, and solutions.

Just trust me and do it, okay?

For me personally, I managed to get rid of a lot of excess, just by taking the time to empty things out. We had lots of extra pillows, sheets, and other linens that hadn’t been touched in 2+ years. I went ahead and donated them, and my closet feels so much lighter because of it!

Tip #2: Group Linens in Baskets

I’ve always just kept everything tossed on a shelf in the closet. But, oh man, does that ever look messy!

I had these large baskets from my last go-round at organizing the linen closet, and I used those for our large extra linens. They don’t fit on the shelves, but they fit great on the floor and can hold a ton of stuff! They don’t hold their shape very well, though, so I’d recommend them mostly for something like this!

As for our extra sheets, I moved those to a smaller basket that actually fits on the shelf. We keep two sets of extra sheets and they fit perfectly in these baskets. They’re super structured, hold their shape beautifully, and can hold a shocking amount of stuff.

If your linen closet holds mostly linens (and not a ton of other random stuff), this may be the bulk of what you do! Maybe your shelves are full of baskets. And that’s great! But, having categories of baskets on the shelves is far more accessible and easy to use, and you’ll find it’s way easier to keep things organized this way.

See a roundup of some really great baskets for this purpose right here!

Tip #3: Utilize the Door!

The back of any closet door is super valuable real estate, and if you aren’t using it, you’re missing out on some really great storage space!

I have this me this metal door organizer and it does such a great job of keeping everything in place. I can keep all of my wrapping supplies together, easy to access, and looking nice. I’ve used a lot of different methods for organizing wrapping paper and supplies over the years, but this is by far the best.

Of course, maybe you have a different wrapping paper solution. Maybe you’d rather store your iron and other laundry supplies on the door. Or cleaning supplies. Or something else entirely! Whatever you want to store on the door, I encourage you to take some time to think about actually trying something. The amount of storage space it will add to your closet is staggering, and it’s such a simple solution.

Oh, and if you are looking to store gift wrapping supplies, allow me to suggest this gift bag rack. I used to have them all thrown in a basket, but this solution is 100% better.

I’ve also got a roundup of great back-of-the-door storage solutions right here!

Tip #4: Plan Your Layout Carefully

One thing I think about a lot when putting things back in my linen closet is what makes the most sense. What things do you reach for most often? What are you grabbing less frequently? Try to keep things at eye level that you use all the time (for us, medicine), and keep things you don’t use much a little more out of reach.

For example, the old scrapbooks and memory boxes that are incredibly precious but don’t get pulled out all that often? They can live on a high shelf – they’re still easy to access, and they’re safe from little hands up there!

But, the sheets for our bed that we trade out every single week? Those need to be really easy to reach!

Just make sure to spend a little bit of time thinking about how you use the space (and how you want to use it) before you start putting things back. It’ll make a world of difference when it comes to the functionality of your linen closet!

Tip #5: Create Cleaning Caddies

If you store cleaning supplies in your linen closet like I do, one key tip to make things easier is to sort them into baskets by how you use them!

I spent a lot of time thinking about how I use the cleaning supplies. I have a certain set of things I tend to use all together every time. So, I got a set of smaller baskets and designated one for bathroom cleaning supplies. Now, when I’m cleaning my bathroom I can grab the entire basket and bring it with me. Things stay more organized, and my life is easier. I designated a second basket for the things I don’t use everyday (like our weekly shower cleaner and my favorite deep cleaner for the shower), and I can just grab that basket when I’m doing a deeper clean!

I also grabbed some baskets to store extra toiletries and other random things that get shoved into this closet. It was important for there to be a space for everything so that nothing ends up just floating around on a shelf!

Tip #5: Find a Place for EVERYTHING You’re Storing!

This tip is a bit of a catch-all but I think by this point you get the idea. If you just start shoving stuff back in your linen closet, you’ll never get anywhere. Consider what you like to keep in there and make sure every single category has a home.

Here are some examples from our closet:

• I have a basket that specifically stores our backstock of extra toiletries.
• We have a basket for not-frequently-used medical supplies
• I organize our medicine in this basket, and keep it organized by symptom

The basic rules of organizing apply here as well: group like items together, have a container for everything, and make sure things are sized properly for where they go and what they’re holding!

Tip #7: Label, Label, Label

Finally, maybe the most important step of them all: LABEL EVERYTHING!

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: you can organize a space all day long, but if your family doesn’t know where things go, it’s only going to last about 5 minutes. Taking the time to label every single thing in that linen closet is you best hope at the rest of the people who live with you being able to keep up!

I’ll admit that I haven’t finished up this part of it yet, but I know it needs to happen if I want this system to stay in place! I love using this label maker for any hard-sided baskets, and these are really great options for fabric baskets!

I can’t even tell you how much of a difference this sort of things makes on a day-to-day basis. Instead of dreading needing something from the closet, I look forward to opening it up and seeing my organizing handiwork. Maybe it’s just me, but there’s something about a hyper-organized nook of my home that makes me heart absolutely sing!