C.J. Braden • 3 Minute Read
The Ultimate Guide to Beauty and Closet Organization
Originally published 6/7/2021
Updated 7/6/23: See updates at the bottom of the article, including a shiplap wall, a DIY pendant light that survived Hurricane Ian and more!
When it comes to home organization, it’s something I do very well and have for a long time. I’ve loved to organize and clean since I was a child. One of my first jobs was cleaning and organizing our neighbor’s houses. Maybe it’s strange that I loved to do that at such a young age, but it’s a skill that has helped me throughout my life and I’d like to share some of my best closet organization tips and tricks with anyone that would like to learn more about it.
Read on to learn how I organized our closet/getting ready space in our latest home on Sanibel Island.
Bedroom with Vintage String Chair
In our latest home, the second floor was renovated at some point (prior to our purchase) to be an entire bedroom suite. It takes up the entire floor, which is nice, but I felt like it needed a bit of division.
Beachy Room Divider
We currently live on Sanibel Island in Florida, and I’ve incorporated a lot of “beachy” style into our home. To divide up the space between our closet area and our bedroom, I decided to add a room divider.
See my perfume organizer below or via my YouTube channel @carolynjbraden:
Organized Getting Ready Room
I wanted a room divider that was stylish, yet effective and chose one that was made out of natural materials. I found the exact same divider on several websites, but ended up purchasing it from Walmart because they had such a great price on it.
Room Divider and Clothing Organization Rack
On the side of the divider closest to our closet, I added a pipe and wood clothing rack from Amazon. I use it to hold my purse, to hang delicates when they need to air dry, hold clothes when I am steaming them, and to hang clothes when I am planning outfits.
Getting Ready Room with Vanity and Beauty Product Storage
Outside of our closet, I turned the space into a “getting ready” area. I added an oval desk, an organization unit with drawers, a vanity light and a gold stool I already had from our previous home. We also added a gold and black ceiling light from Amazon.
Wall Mounted Shelf With Organized Beauty Products
Opposite the vanity, I added a wall mount shelf unit for my beauty supplies, a mirror from Target and jewelry hangers crafted by my husband.
Find the buying guide and many more photos of my beauty supply organization by clicking this link.
Tropical Storage Ottomans
I used storage ottomans (ones I used in my last home) to hold hair tools and other hair supplies). My mannequin is from my grandmother and comes in handy when I sell any of my clothes on Poshmark or eBay. It also looks cute enough to keep out and hold my beach hat.
Gold and White Vanity with Gold Stool
My vanity is a desk from Amazon and holds my brushes, a large light-up makeup mirror, an additional small makeup mirror, my Dyson straightener (hidden behind the mirror) and more. The organizational drawers (from Amazon) hold makeup, jewelry, and sunglasses. I imagine I will wallpaper the wall behind my vanity at some point. We’ll also have to paint the space eventually too.
Geometric Gold Lamp and Plant Rack
I found the geometric dome lamp at Target. I had the mug made (with a photo of my dog, Minnie Pearl) to hold some of my makeup brushes. It’s my favorite photo of her and I love seeing her cute face every day I do my makeup.
Wall Mount Plant Rack by Hilton Carter for Target
I purchased the plant rack from Target as part of the Hilton Carter collection. I have been successful at rooting several types of plants and use this to do it. The plants currently on display are live and from my yard.
Organized Vanity and Closet Area
Behind my vanity area is our walk-in closet. It’s a nice space, though I want to get in and re-do some of the wire shelves, but that will have to wait as we have many other areas to tend to in our home.
Walk In Closet Organization
In our closet, I use sturdy velvet hangers because they are very slim and hold our clothes very well. I organize our daily clothes primarily by color. This kind of intricate organization drove my husband crazy at first, but then he admitted to liking it because he can find particular things much easier.
Walk In Closet with Faux Fur Rug
Because we moved to southern Florida from a much more up and down mid-west climate, we still have lots of bulky winter clothes (some of which we actually had to use in the cooler-than-usual Florida winter in 2020). I keep those grouped together for easy access in the winter.
We fold some things like t-shirts and store them on a shelf, but because there is so much space, we hang most items like jackets, shirts, pants, sweaters and coats.
Closet Shoe Storage and Organization
I added a large faux fur rug, which feels nice to sit on when putting on shoes. The closet was lacking shoe storage when we moved in, so I added three cubby style storage units from Target. I also added some fabric storage drawers to organize small things like socks.
Organized Closet Storage
I used our same cedar hampers (we’ve had them for 20 years!) for dirty clothes. I also have my travel makeup trunk in the closet for extra makeup organization (because I have lots of it!). The closet also has a slim tall cabinet which I use to hold our iron and steamer, purses and some extra odds and ends.
Closet Cedar Clothes Hampers
I keep some of my shoes in their boxes and store them on higher shelves.
Hopefully this gives you some ideas that you can use for organizing your closet in your own home. I didn’t buy everything all at once, which is key to being able to afford exactly what I wanted. If you buy things over a period of time (and ALWAYS shop around to find the best prices), you can make a space exactly how you imagine but it just may take a little time and patience.
My home is always a work in progress and I always seem to find new ways for organizing things all over the house. Stay tuned for more creative ideas!
9/20/21 Update: See our new barn-style door addition to this area by clicking this link!
Barn Door to Replace Pocket Door
Update 7/6/23: After our home got hit by Hurricane Ian on 9/28/22, we were very fortunate to even have a house still standing. We had lots of roof damage and siding damage and some leaking inside the home, but it’s still livable. See our shiplap wall and some of the awesome we did prior to the storm (that were thankfully not affected) by clicking this link.
Learn about our Hurricane Ian experience by clicking here.
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Have you used any of my tips and tricks? If so, let me know by leaving a comment in the comment section below. Or, leave a DIY home update tip for others to read about. Sharing is caring!
C.J. (Carolyn) Braden is a regular contributor and editor for Carolyn’s Blooming Creations. She has been featured in numerous media publications such as InStyle Magazine, on HGTV, on Bustle.com, and more. She is the author of the books Georgia McMasters in Amethyst Lake Cemetery, How To Be Yourself: 3 Ways To Help You Being You, and the illustrator for the children’s book Bridging Connections. She is a former classroom teacher that now dedicates her life to educating others on how to live their most healthy, creative and happy life. Learn more about her visiting our About Us page.