Get an organized linen closet with these tips, so it’s no longer just a messy jumble of sheets, towels, toiletries & other odds & ends.

Is your linen closet such a jumbled mess of sheets, towels, toiletries and other odds and ends? Well, here is how to finally organize your linen closet so it is neatly organized and functional.

It doesn’t cost very much (if anything), and basically involves finding better ways to fold towels and linens and storing toiletries more efficiently.

(Just so you know, this page contains some affiliate links. If you click through and make a purchase, I may receive a commission (at no additional cost to you).  Click here to see my full disclosure policy.)

How to get an organized linen closet – Towels.

Towels seem to take up the most room in our linen closets. Here is a great tutorial on how to fold towels so they fit neatly no matter how wide or narrow your shelves are.  Keeping them folded into a consistent size really saves on space (and just makes them look neater, too).

Ready to get organized? Get your free guide of 10 fast and easy ways to get organized for under $10 below, created by a professional organizer (me 😊).

How to get an organized linen closet – Small items.

I have a small set of plastic drawers in the kids’ linen closet for smaller items. Things like elastic hair bands, nail clippers, extra bandages, cough drops, extra toothbrushes and floss from dentist visits, and all those little items that seem to accumulate and get misplaced because there is not a good place to store them.

How to get an organized linen closet – Linens.

You have probably seen posts that make you feel terribly inadequate where people neatly fold the flat and fitted sheets and store them inside the matching pillowcases and they look so perfectly folded.  I can fold flat sheets pretty well especially twin-sized, but I have a king-size bed and I just cannot fold them perfectly.  So, I am going to go with the theory that they are very BIG sheets and I am really short with basically a T-Rex-length arm span 🙂  But I DO have them folded and, although are not perfect, they are neat and not wrinkled. Good enough for me!

Nope – never gonna happen in my world… Sorry, Martha Stewart.

Just to go along with my T-Rex theme, this is how I feel making my king-sized bed, but that’s for another post 🙂

How to fold those dreaded fitted sheets.

I was very excited to find this great tutorial on how to fold fitted sheets and it really does work – even for my big king-sized sheets! Yay!

Use storage boxes and bins for an organized linen closet.

I am a big believer in using storage baskets and bins to organize items in the closets.  This time of year is a great time to pick them up on the cheap because stores have their summer/ beach inventory out now.  I can always find great things like this at my local dollar store.  It really helps keep bulky items organized, and you can easily store extras in them as well.  With 5 people in our house, we shop at Sam’s Club for paper products and toiletries so plastic bins and baskets make it easy to store the items that come in multiple packs, like bathroom cups, toilet paper, tissue boxes, toothpaste, and those large bottles of shampoo.

Here is an example just using beach baskets.

Here is one that uses storage baskets.

I love the look of these woven baskets, especially if you have a an open linen closet without doors.

And here is one that uses storage bins.

Using white baskets and bins, makes your closet feel more open and less cluttered. I really like these sturdy plastic bins.

And another:

How to get an organized linen closet – Make your own storage boxes.

Here are a couple of great ways to use boxes you already have and make them into attractive, functional storage boxes.

First, turn a plain old cardboard box into this.

This is just as good as one from a fashionable store.

And here is one from a Kleenex box (gorgeous).

So, here is my own linen closet, just in case you were wondering 😉

I use lots of labeled shoe boxes, but since it is in my master bedroom and the door is shut most of the time, I don’t bother with covering the boxes yet.  Might get to it at some point, but for now, they are labeled so we can find things quickly and easily. And adding an over-the-door shoe bag or over-the-door hanging shelves is a GREAT way to add even more storage.

You can see 25 ways to organize using over-the-door shoe bags HERE.

By the way, right below the arrow on the above left-hand picture, you’ll see a small clear plastic tackle box.  That is where I store my earrings.  Check out this post to see: Easy way to organize earrings.

How to get an organized linen closet – Labels.

Want labels to better organize your items? You can get our printable ultimate pack of labels RIGHT HERE!

Now you have all the tools you need 🙂

It really won’t take long to do and what a difference it will make to finally have an organized linen closet. What other kinds of items do you store in your linen closet?  If you need some more ideas, leave me a comment and I’ll be happy to give some more suggestions!

Happy organizing!

~Pam