A Coat Closet Makeover

Real Simple helps a coat lover convert a jam-packed space into an orderly one.

The Situation

Samantha Marcus Yanks has always had a thing for coats. She once owned a whopping 40 of them. But for years, she was afraid to open her coat closet, which housed not only her beloved outerwear but also bulging laundry bags, bath towels, hostess gifts, and wrapping supplies. And somehow a vacuum cleaner balanced on top of the entire heap.
 
By donating extraneous objects and categorizing what was left, order was restored.

What Samantha Has Always Loved

• The closet’s nine-foot-high ceiling, which is tall enough to accommodate two rods of clothes.
• Well-lit built-in shelves offer plenty of storage.

What She Wanted to Change

• Not being able to reach the upper levels. Samantha, who is five-two, literally used to climb the shelves to retrieve items.
• The black-hole factor: “I had to hunt for everything I needed,” she says. “And I had no idea what was on the bottom shelves―none.”