4 Super-Organized Women Spill Their Secrets

The Closet Conqueror

Margot Fooshee
 Fashion executive and mother of one, New York City 

Cleverly Rigged Shoe Storage

Inside Margot’s impeccable closet are two drawers set up to house 15 pairs of shoes each. Wedge-shaped wood inserts run the length of the drawers to keep everything in place. Short boots sit just above; tall boots live in the back. Margot’s toddler daughter enjoys a similarly soothing shoe-scape.
 
 Genesis of the system: “The drawers were built for shoes,” says Margot. “But laid flat, my shoes didn’t fit well. Angling was the solution, so I hired a carpenter. It took a few tries to get the pitch right.”

 Payoff: “I can always find the pair I’m looking for, but my shoes are otherwise out of sight.”

 Seminal organizing memory: “As a kid, I would organize my sister’s soap collection when she wasn’t looking.”

 Advice for shoe lovers: “Keep only your main pairs where you have easy access. Those I wear less often are in hot pink boxes at the top of the closet, where they don’t take up valuable real estate.”

 Too much of a good thing: “My husband’s also very organized, but we both have separate systems. So sometimes we end up unintentionally hiding things from each other.”