8 Tips for Organizing Your Linen Closet

All parts of the home can be beautiful, including the linen closet. With a bit of time and effort, you can turn it from an ordinary part of the house into an aesthetically pleasing one without losing its practicality. So check out these eight tips for organizing your linen closet to get you started.

A built-in closet with white shelves

1.     The first tip is to take some time to declutter

Closets can get disorganized over time, so before you start reorganizing, take out everything you have stored here and go through it. Sometimes, less is more. Make an inventory of all the things you own. Sell, donate or recycle what you don’t need to make room for really useful things you will need in the future. Some things can even be upcycled, like using old towels and turning them into clothes for cleaning. This is an excellent chance to do a deep clean of the closet. Doing this at least once a year ensures that your linen closet always stays tidy.

2. Move on to decorating

Combine functionality and beauty by redecorating your linen closet. This is excellent if you just moved into your new apartment or house because you have a blank canvas to work with. But if you are just looking to move, with advice from cleancutmoving.com, you can pack efficiently and make unpacking much less of a chore. Paint the back wall or use wallpaper to add color to the closet. Buy cute door hangers to incorporate into the room. Put some lovely wall shelves or even some built-in pieces of furniture to store your things.

When storing items such as towels, use a combination of folding and rolling to make it look better organized. Style it and keep similar colors together. Use good lighting in the closet to make finding things more accessible. You can even buy an air freshener or potpourri to make it smell nicer.

towels displayed nicely in bathroom
Fold and roll towels to make them look nicer in your bathroom

3. Categorize your linens

The first step to organizing your linen closet is to separate things into different categories by their use. For instance, pillowcases, sheets, blankets, etc. Furthermore, separate them by their size and then by color. Try to keep all your bed sheet sets and towel sets together. When putting items in drawers, such as towels, you can leave them vertically, so they look nice when opened. This way, things will also be much easier to see and reach.

Make a plan of which items will go where before you start putting things back in the closet. Keep seasonal items in the front and switch them out when necessary. Store bulkier items on the bottom and smaller ones on the top. Your most used items should be at your eye level and easily reachable.

4.  Label all of your linens

When you are reorganizing, label everything as you go. This is the key to organizing any closet, not just a linen one. When everything has its place, the closet will look much nicer. With labeling, it will be easier to pack and move later. If you ever find yourself needing to make an emergency move, you can have it done quickly and with no stress. You won’t have to take down storage containers that aren’t see-through just to find something.

Nowadays, there are so many different types of labels that you can even make them match the room. Chalkboard labels are the best because you can easily change the writing on them. You won’t have to go through piles of things to find something or try to remember which size of sheets are stored where. To make things easier, label what size the sheets are and what is all included in the sets.

5. Use different storage solutions

There are so many different ways to sort your linens. Other than storing them in boxes, you can use drawers or shelves. Baskets are also a fantastic storage solution for closets. They double as décor and are easy to access. Hanging baskets on the wall is a neat solution that looks beautiful and uses vertical space. Recently, it has become more and more popular to use decorative ladders as storage solutions for towels. Alternatively, you can invest in a rolling cart for some smaller items you frequently use or decorative pillows if you have them. For linens that take up too much space, store them in vacuum bags and then in larger bins or shelves.

A pink and white bed sheet set on a bed
Another tip is to separate the items in your linen closet by function

6. Maximize vertical space

Make sure to use the vertical space that’s available to the max. Pick out shelves that will go with the aesthetic of the room and the closet. They can be built into the closet or placed individually. You can use hangers on the door or a shoe organizer for some extra storage. If your space is limited, you can invest in some shelf dividers to make it look even better. Consider buying a ladder to access the things on higher shelves safely.

7. Organize your toiletries and cleaning products

Throw out any items that may be expired and sort the remaining ones into categories. You can use a basket with a handle for your cleaning supplies so that they can be quickly taken out of the closet and carried around the house when needed. A well-organized closet removes the risk of forgetting some items and having them go bad. It will be much easier to reach any necessary refills for your home. You can use tissue box covers to make them match the linen closet.

8. Make a designated place for laundry

Image of embroidered linens as decor
Use your linens as decor.

If you have the room, you can have an ironing board built in. Now, you will have a designated space just for ironing. That can easily be tucked away and not collect much dust. Make room near it for iron as well. Buy some laundry baskets to go with the style of the room. You can have multiple to save time and not spend it separating your laundry later. If the space allows, you can build the laundry basket into the closet shelves so it can be hidden.

Final thoughts

As you can see, organizing your linen closet can be a productive and entertaining activity. It will make your space not only more efficient but also more accessible. So let your imagination run wild and have fun making your linen closed a more beautiful space.

To Iron or Not to Iron, That is the Question

a woman holding a black iron

The dilemma of whether you should iron or not has probably sprung up in your mind every time you have had to iron two loads of laundry before work, sleep, lunch, etc. Should we really iron every single piece of clothing? What about bed linen, pillowcases, towels, and other things that nobody in the world outside of your home would know or care whether it is ironed or not? Is ironing absolutely necessary, or is it a remnant of housecleaning times that are long gone? Read on if you want to find out what you should iron and the benefits of doing so.

Why do people iron clothes?

If you were to ask your friends and family members if they iron their clothes, you would probably get different answers – it depends; yes, absolutely; no, never… This shows that the conundrum is almost as existential as Hamlet’s famous ‘to be or not to be’ – some people prefer the tidiness and order that ironed clothes project. In contrast, others do not care about their appearances that much or perhaps think that you cannot tell whether something is ironed or not in the first place.

Of course, for important professional or family events, wrinkled clothing can leave a terrible impression. You probably wouldn’t trust a financial advisor with your money if he showed up to work wearing a sloppy, creased shirt and hanging trousers. Whether your shirt is ironed or wrinkled can move the scales toward you nailing or messing up your job interview. Particular social norms have to be adhered to on certain occasions, and ironing is, in those cases, mandatory.

Should I iron my Jacaranda Living sleepwear?to iron or not to iron jacaranda living sleepwear

Ok, so you might want your nightgowns and pajamas that you wear to be ironed. If you like your sleepwear to be crisp then yes iron it, it’s 100% cotton so will be wrinkled out the dryer. If you hang them when damp the wrinkling is minimized, and a quick smoothing with your hands when they come out of a warm dryer works wonders!

crisp white cotton ironed pajamas

But what about T-shirts, jeans, shorts, dresses, and other casual clothing? And what about bed linen, table linen, towels, pillowcases, bathrobes, and other such items?

The ‘to iron or not to iron’ dilemma usually pops up in times when you urgently have to iron your shirt right in the middle of something else that you have to do in your home.

a man in yellow PVC safety suit next to an ironing board and iron

The ‘non-ironing’ school of thought

People who dislike ironing note that ironing everyday clothes is unnecessary because you do not have to look spick and span every time you leave your home. You may not even know who your neighbors are, not to mention that you may not care whether they iron regularly or not. This kind of thinking is completely justified in this day and age, and luckily we live in a world where your personal appearances are becoming less and less important.

Proponents of the non-ironing approach to living further argue their case by saying that what one does not see, one does not know about. So, clothes such as socks, underwear, and other such garments and household items such as bed linen, bath towels, and others definitely fit into this worldview.

Some people avoid ironing clothes such as jeans or underwear because they feel it does not make a difference.

a green iron standing on a white jacket

In light of this, some ‘non-ironists’ swear by the following technique – leaving your clothes to dry on hangers. If you previously shake off the piece of clothing and put it properly on a hanger, it can flatten out the fabric and thus leave your shirts, pants, and dresses looking as if they were ironed.

Interestingly, there are products on the market that could eliminate even this ‘natural’ drying method. You might consider getting a wrinkle release spray or automatic ironer, a device that uses warm air to dry and iron your shirts and blouses. You just set the timer, and before you know it, you are ready for a new day at the office. The manufacturers of automatic ironers note that this appliance saves money, time (and sanity for some), and is also more gentle to the fabric.

The ironing school of thought

There are, of course, people for whom even unironed socks are anathema. Tidy people and people who have to keep up their appearances have integrated ironing into their daily lives, just like brushing your teeth or showering. However, there is more to ironed clothing than projecting you are self-disciplined and well ordered.

Organizing your personal space is not simply a matter of being meticulous with your personal belongings. It has a convenient purpose, as well. For instance, if you have to move out from your apartment, washing and ironing your clothing beforehand will make packing much easier since you will be able to stack your clothing without taking up too much space. You may even considerably shorten the process of packing if you decide to give away clothing that no longer fits or is too old and rugged.

Some people enjoy ironing because it gives them a feeling of control over their things.

a woman smiling while ironining

On the other hand, ironing is crucial if you want to make sure that your clothes and sleepwear do not carry any germs, mold, or skin parasites such as dust mites. As an example, steam irons kill bacteria and germs efficiently since they reach extremely high temperatures. Especially if you have little kids, it is necessary to iron bed linen, pillowcases, and any other thing they might reach, such as baby door hangers or tissue boxes. These things tend to soak up dust and other potentially dangerous substances fairly quickly, so ironing them provides extra protection against germs and bacteria.

ironing pillowcases and bed linen

Naturally, there are other benefits to ironing your clothing. Firstly, steam ironing softens the fabric and returns stretched clothes to its original state. This makes your clothing look as if it has just been bought. Not to mention how much money you would save on dry cleaning, especially if you have a white-collar job where crisp white shirts are mandatory. Additionally, dry cleaning services use chemicals to clean your clothes. That is why dry cleaning should be used only sparingly as it is meant for those items of clothing that cannot be washed and ironed at home.

Finally, we are not being ironic when we say that, no matter if you are an ironist or a non-ironist, it is crucial to know whether and under which circumstances to iron or not to iron.

 

 

Photos used

https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-in-coveralls-standing-by-ironing-board-3951358/

https://www.pexels.com/photo/woman-in-green-coat-holding-white-and-black-nike-sneakers-4107231/

https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-in-white-long-sleeve-shirt-and-white-pants-holding-black-and-silver-clothes-iron-5202911/

https://www.pexels.com/photo/green-white-philips-iron-53422/

 

5 Unique Valentine’s Day Gift Ideas for Him

We brought you 5 Unique Valentine’s Day Gifts for Her recently, but we can forget about the men!  Here’s a few ideas on some unique gifts for him.

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Shaving Set with Custom towels
Men like pampering too.  Treat him to a classic shave set, soap and a few nice towels to bring his grooming experience to a whole new level!  He’ll be thankful to get such a close shave and pat dry with luxurious custom towels for him.
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-Valet
Help him keep his things organized with this custom valet.  It even has space to put his cellphone charger in it.  These boxes are great for storing his cufflinks, watches, collar stays and wallet.

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Frank and Oak
Do you have a fashionable man in your life?  He will appreciate a subscription on Frank and Oak.  This company creates new, customized clothing selections for him each month and then he can select what he would want to wear.

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-Bourbon of the month
Maybe your man enjoys a good bourbon now and again.  Check out Mouth’s Bourbon Every Month.  They send a full size bottle of a different type of independently produced bourbon every month.
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Car Care Kit
For your car lover, get him a car care kit!