The other day I let you know that my OCD kicked in and we overhauled my daughter’s closet. It really didn’t take as long as I thought. It occurred to me that Riley really lacked a great place to keep her toys. We were stuffing them in her bookcase along with her books and art supplies. Things were beginning to look way too messy and she was having a hard time cleaning up her room. Her clothes were a whole other problem. She was unable to reach her hanging clothes and things weren’t operating well at all. Here is a look at how we fixed things: 
………………………………. before 
The “before” of this side of the closet does not look too bad. It worked really well for a long time. However, now that Riley is picking out her own clothes, she needs to be able to access the hanging items. We also found that these plastic drawers weren’t working well enough. The top two were two shallow and the bottom two were too deep and large. Things were getting lost and therefore unworn. The hanging sweater bag is ok and I actually think they can work really well. But her dress up clothes were always spilling out. 
I failed to take a “before” shot of the left side of the closet, however it was nothing for her to use. It was either things I needed to store or blankets and sleeping bags that she rarely uses. …………………………the plan So if you are going to organize something I highly recommend sitting and staring at the space. I sat on her bed with my cup of coffee and stared until it came to me. Make sure you think it through. I was literally going to have my hubby rip everything out of the closet {the pole and the shelves}. I thought it would be best to start with a blank slate. But in sitting and staring . . . and looking at what we really needed to accomplish, I realized it would be a pretty simple solution. The left side of the closet needed to be for toys while the right side needed to host all of her clothes. And she needed easy access to them. We did some measuring and realized the only thing we needed to purchase was an Expedit from Ikea. The only other thing my hubby had to do was slide the wire rack down a few inches. …………………………….…after 
I already had the white Ikea file boxes. They were unused and this was a perfect spot for them. They are holding things like extra blankets, Halloween costumes, and out of season clothes. The sage green box is for special cards and keepsakes that we want to hold onto. I like having one spot to easily put them. 
My new train of thought is that if it doesn’t fit in the Expedit . . . or if books are overflowing on her bookcase, it’s time to purge! In case you are wondering what is in the pink bins, this is how we organized things: 1. Stuffed Animals 2. Build-a-bear clothes 3. Dress up clothes 4. Magna Tiles and Magnetic Ballerina Dolls The top two pink bins: sleeping bag in one and clothes that she will grow into in the other. 
While at Ikea this weekend, I discovered these great fabric bins. I normally buy them elsewhere for twice the cost. They come in pale pink and black. We got lucky! Only $4.99 each. 
The two white bins are from Target. I like that they are only half the height so she can easily see her American Girl doll clothes. The other one hosts random toys. 
This side is now entirely for her clothes. So much more organized. 
Oh, and do you see what is on her floor! Nothing!!!! Oh, yeah! The joy I took in being able to vacuum her closet floor was a little silly! There is something very cathartic about a clean floor. Another random tip. You can see a new pair of shoes next to her baby book. If you have a picky child when it comes to shoes, buy two. I always buy the next size up so they are ready to go when she outgrows the previous pair. Saves us another agonizing trip to the store for more school shoes! 
One basket if for stretch pants. I find rolling them makes it easier to see the options. If they are folded on top of one another than she forgets what she has. The cute little suitcase is for special things she doesn’t want her brother playing with. I told her it’s okay to have precious things that you don’t always share. She seems to think this is pretty cool. 
The best part is that she can now reach her everyday clothes and school clothes. Her pants, shorts, etc. have a new home in a new dresser! Stay tuned for Part 2 of this post. 
I also like that after she is dressed in the morning, she can leave this side of her closet open and access all of her toys. She has a bookcase in her room for her books and art supplies. If you stuck with me to the end of this post, I am impressed! I also have to share that Riley did not want to organize her room at all. In fact she protested. But once we got home and built the Expedit I had her involved with the whole thing. She decided what would stay and what would go. When I offered to label her bins she said I didn’t need to as she knows where everything is now. She has even admitted that it’s so much easier playing and cleaning her room because she knows where to put things. Ahhh. Success. The poor girl just needed the proper system. I think we are good now {until she decides she doesn’t like pink anymore. . . than we’re screwed!}. What about you? Is there a spot in your child’s room that just isn’t working? Or in your room?
The before was already pretty, but you just took it to a whole new level, really cute!
Looks amazing Courtney! I love that she can access everything on her own. We can't expect them to pick up if they have no way of knowing or a place to put everything (I was guilty of that at times when my girls were young). I thought I was the only crazy mom buying two pairs of shoes at a time when mine were little. It made life so much easier, especially since Kate had a thing for red shoes!!
You asked if readers had a room that wasn't working – how about an entire house! 🙂
These big old houses either have very small closets or they are entirely non-existent! I realize when they were built, people didn't have the "stuff" that we do, but how to deal with storing things can be a major problem. I'm contemplating the 'pitch' philosophy – if I can only muster up the courage!
Sue
Wow. Can you come to Saint Simons? 😉 I agree with Gaby–it was pretty before–thank goodness for OCD. 😉
I need my closet to look like this please…maybe a visit to Atlanta is in your future 🙂 thank you for the inspiration!! Time to clean out those closets!!
Cheers
~ Jillian
http://www.hersplitends.com
What a beautiful job you have done. It is not only organized, but bright and cheery. ; )
Kristin
theocdlifestyle.blogspot.com
Love the new storage – the pink bins make it look very organized since you don't see everything inside – you did a great job!
We recently had to rework our daughters closet due to the fact that her brother was moving in to make room for a nursery. All of our changes were very simple but it has worked out so well. my daughter loves that she can reach all of her clothes now. Check it out if you get the chance. http://klham.blogspot.com/2012/04/shared-closet.html
Very cute! I'm a firm believer in the Ikea Expedit bookcase…they better never get rid of it =) And don't you just love that you can't see any of the toys. great job and really really cute!
Looks great and now you have given her the tools she needs to stay neat and organized and the rest is up to her. I have tried all sorts of systems in my daughter's closet but it continues to be a challenge because she is just naturally messy. It drives me nuts!
Her closet looks great and SO organized!! I bet she's super happy with it now! Love the little flowers! Such a fun touch!
You're the best at organizing. Her closet looks great. I bet she loves it, too! And HELLO Barbie! 🙂
I totally struggle with my daughter's closet. I'm rearranging it every few months and it's just not "there" yet. Can't wait to see more!
You did good! I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only one does that "sitting and staring" thing. My hub always gets nervous when he sees me doing that. 😉
Beautifully organized and a darling space! You did a great job. Yesterday I dumped everything out of our linen closet and sat and stared it it for awhile to figure out the best way to organize it. You are fantastic at organizing, Courtney. I love Riley's pink room and her adorable extra pair of shoes! Adore those curtains, too.
Clever ideas! The closet looks fantastic, as well as super functional. I'm going to forward your post to my sister as she's looking for ideas for her daughter's room.
So pretty and so functional! I love what you've done (even though the before wasn't looking half bad to start with!) and it's great that your daughter loves it, too.
Wow oh Wow — you are an organizing genius! It looks great…so clean and functional. Great tips on rolling the leggings, and buying the extra shoes!
What's funny is I thought it looked kind of cute before! But of course it's amazing now : ) Although I'm type A and very organized, I don't always have the patience for projects like this… bravo!
I love this closet, it make me want to go organize my daughters closet!
So smart! It's so fantastic that you didn't have to do much, just add in the Expedit {my favorite organizing furniture EVER} and now it's amazing! And it was before, so kudos to you. Love the floral embellishments you added to the bins to take them a step further. And one more reason you and I are so similar, I always find myself, cup of coffee in hand, staring at a space or project until it just comes to me. Love it!
xxoo!
Jen
Love the makeover and all the colors and pieces that came together.
Question: The link for "The top two pink bins" is not working.
Can you tell me their source?
Thx.