17 Household Items That Can Be Repurposed For Extra Closet Storage & Organization

Have you ever scrolled through Instagram or TikTok looking for inspiration to organize the overflowing bedroom, linen, pantry, and coat closets that are holding decades worth of items in your home? When doing this, it may seem that your only solution is either becoming an amateur contractor and building your own IKEA built-in shelves or dropping a ton of cash at The Container Store on organization systems. But the truth is, you don't need anything fancy or expensive to help you organize your closets and maximize space. In fact, you probably have most of what you need laying around the house just waiting to be put to good use. Further, what you don't already have can be easily and affordably purchased. We've gathered several household items that can be repurposed to organize any closet in your home.

Learn how to use the file sorter that's gathering dust on your office to transform your linen closet into a tidy, spacious zone. Or, discover how to make a stunning sunglass stand out of an old picture frame and some ribbon. These are just a few of the ways to repurpose everyday objects into helpful organizing systems that can help you reclaim space and order in all of your many closets. 

Once the summer season ends, instead of letting your pool noodles sit in the garage untouched until next year, take one or two to create DIY boot trees. These prevent tall boots from sagging, creasing, and ultimately losing their shape over time. They can also keep your shoe rack looking nice and tidy, but you don't need to buy any special equipment. Just cut pool noodles to the length of the boot's leg, then place the length inside each boot. If you desire, you can wrap fabric around the pool noodles for a more chic transformation. 

Have an extra silverware tray laying around, or see one on the cheap at the store? Snag it and hang it up on your closet wall as a super easy, affordable jewelry holder. Use nails to secure it to the wall and glue on some wooden posts to the silverware divider — these will be perfect for holding necklaces and bracelets and keep them from tangling. If you prefer a little glam on your décor, you can easily customize it to your style with scrapbook paper, stickers, and other craft supplies. 

Towel racks are super affordable, and you can even snag them at The Dollar Store. Just install them per the manufacturer's instructions in any one of your clothes closets. Instead of draping towels over them, hang up your ties, scarves, belts, and other long, dangling accessories from the rack. This will reclaim space from your closet's regular tension rods and drawers, freeing up quite a bit of room. You can also hang one of these in your kitchen pantry to hold dish towels and aprons. 

We know this sounds a little wacky, but if you see a stool that you love but totally doesn't go with the rest of your decor, or you are getting rid of your current stools and don't want to throw them in the dumpster, you can repurpose them as a storage stand just by tipping it upside down. The legs are great support for longer objects such as umbrellas, yoga mats, gift wrap, and so on. Just use twine or ribbon to wrap around the legs if you want extra stability and security. 

If you have an extra pack or two of shower curtain rings, use them to get the jeans in your closet in order. Jeans and other trousers are often too heavy and bulky for many hangers, so hanging them is a great way to store them compactly and neatly. Just fold the jeans in half lengthwise, then secure the hook around two belt loops. You'll be able to store a ton of jeans this way, rather than letting them sit awkwardly folded in drawers or draped over tension rods. 

Pop into any discount store like Ross or TJ Maxx, and you'll find loads of cool, quirky photo frames. These can do more than just hold your photos. Just remove the plastic or glass covering and backing, then secure a piece of ribbon or twine across the space. You can just slide your sunglasses or eyeglasses over the ribbons, instead of have them clunking up your entryway closet. You can also secure earrings to wide pieces of ribbon with their backs to keep your jewelry collection organized. 

When you get a new pair of shoes, of course you're most excited about, well, the shoes. But don't discard the shoebox, as it's just as good at keeping your shoes organized in your closet as it is in the store. With the lids, they can be stacked on top of each other for easy storage while protecting your shoes from dings and dust. Plus, they often have a photo of the shoes on the box, so you'll always be able to find the right pair! These can also be used as simple, no-cost drawer dividers. 

It's likely you don't hang all of your clothes out on a line in the yard with clothespins. And yet, you almost certainly have some clothes pins lying around. Take a piece of scrap wood and hammer two nails in on either side, and secure it to the wall of one of your closets. Then tie a piece of twine between them and add a few clothespins, and there you have the perfect hanging rack for small, lightweight accessories such as gloves, scarves, beanies, and caps. 

If you love board games enough to collect them, you know that they take up an enormous amount of storage space. To reclaim that closet space but keep the boxes, transfer the game pieces, cards, and dice to old pencil cases or other small pouches. You'll just need to label the baggie for safe-keeping, and you can store the game board vertically on the same shelf, like a really thin book. Ready to thin out the collection in your closet? There are plenty of unique ways to repurpose old board games as home décor. 

Half of the fun of buying a new candle is that it comes in a pretty jar. But when the wax is melted and the wick spent, these jars usually end up in the recycling bin. Instead, upcycle candle jars as containers in bathroom and kitchen closets. Thoroughly remove any wax residue and run them through the dishwasher, then store odds and ends in the bathroom such as q-tips, makeup removal pads, and elastics. You can also cut the tops off of plastic shampoo bottles and use them to store brushes.

Repurpose an unexpected office supply to get your bathroom and linen closet in order. Some manufacturers sell these as an overpriced towel rack, they are really nothing more than file dividers, and they can add some much needed structure to the situation by holding rags, small towels, pillow cases, and so on. Just roll the linen into a burrito, then slide it into one of the dividers, and stack them up. You can always pull from the pile without disrupting the linens, and the dividers can help you keep sheet and towel sets together for easy, at-a-glance organization. 

Another excellent pull from your stationery supplies to get your linen closet in order is binder clips. Binder clips are excellent for keeping napkin sets together and make it easy to pull sets out without making entire piles of linens collapse. Just fold your napkins so they lay flat, organize them into sets, and snap them together with a binder clip. Don't stack too many napkins in a single set, or the binder clips won't be able to securely hold them together. Store them clip out, and just pull sets out as needed. 

Changing cabinet hardware is one of the best ways to refresh your kitchen, but if you have any leftover cabinet door and drawer pulls, bars, or knobs, put them to good use to get your closets sorted. Just install them directly onto the wall and use them to hang all manner of things from necklaces and bracelets to belts, scarves, dish towels, keys and so on. You can even install these on shelves in the closet that need more vertical hanging storage. 

When you're done sipping a canned beverage, don't send it straight to the recycling bin. Wiggle the tab back and forth until it pops off, then slide the hole over the neck of a hanger. From the tab's other hole, you can place another hanger which will create a cascading effect, allowing clothes to take up less room on the tension rod. This is ideal for any matching sets you want to keep together. Similar cascading hanger systems can be purchased, but why do that when you've got the no-cost recycling option sitting in your fridge? 

Ever thought about file sorters to hold onto your handbags? Once you've emptied them of old paperwork, you can still find a great use for these organizers in the closet. Many handbags can sit comfortably in them, preventing your bags from folding and being crushed, which can damage the fabric or leather, leaving them cracked, wrinkled, and worn down. Just stack your file dividers on a closet shelf and place your handbags gently in them, making sure not to force any large bags in, as this can also damage them. 

Instead of buying pricey airtight laundry bags, just take your sandwich bags to get your swimsuit drawer in order, especially when it comes to bikini sets. There's nothing more frustrating than losing the matching bottoms for a bikini top, and it's often because all of these swimsuits just get tossed in the drawer after a swim sesh. Sandwich bags take care of this, and as a bonus, you can take the plastic bag to the pool or beach and store the wet swimsuit in it, keeping the rest of your items from getting soaked! 

Most kitchen pantries lack vertical storage, which is a shame because there are oodles of awkward tall objects that need it, like cookie sheets, cutting boards, and the boxes that hold foil, plastic wrap, and sandwich bags. Magazine racks are ideal storage solutions for kitchen pantries and closets, and can usually be found at antique and thrift stores for a great price! Just slide one of these on the bottom shelf of the pantry or to the side, and use it for all of these awkward, tall items.