Organise your linen cupboard in five steps

While not the most glamorous of subjects, the linen cupboard is a life necessity and if yours is anything like mine, it’s a constant uphill battle to create order amidst the chaos. So when decluttering specialist (yes, there is such a thing!) Jo Carmichael, of All Sorted Out, reached out with some expert tips I was all ears.

“An organised linen cupboard feels like you have an organised life, am I right? At one point or another everyone goes through the stress of a dreadful linen closet. You cannot find a towel or a sheet to save your life and somehow your husbands car parts have managed to find their way into a section of it,” says Jo who has identified five key steps in making your linen cupboard more functional and efficient to use.

The clear out
“First things first you need to empty the cupboard of what looks like a disaster. Start in a small section, whether it be top to bottom and work your way down. Place all your items in an area that you can go through everything clearly like a spare bedroom or lounge room,” says Jo. This is also a great time to dust and wipe down the inside of your cupboards before placing your organised items back inside.

Do I really need this?
“Once your cupboard is completely free the fun begins, and it’s time to start sorting. Start by making different piles of things, such as towels, blankets, sheets and so on. This is the time to start clearing away items that don’t need to be there. For example, start throwing the old towels with stains and the blankets with holes,” says Jo. And this is where the more exciting part lies because decluttering your old linens makes way for the new and you will also find that you have far more space to work with too. “It’s great to have a linen closest that is not bursting at the seams and is far more visually appealing and practical too,” says Jo who suggests parting with anything that hasn’t been used within the last twelve months.

Organisation
“The key to a neat and practical linen cupboard is all about coordination. Keep all elements together and not all over the shop. I like to organise my linen cupboard by placing items I use more frequently such as towels and sheets in the middle so it’s easily accessible, and the ones I use not as often up the top such as winter blankets. Make sure you fold all linens neatly before storing them because messy, thrown in linens will mean they are likely to tumble down on you while trying to jam the door closed,” says Jo. Ahem, guilty as charged!

Label it
“Once you’ve grouped the king or queen bed linen in a pile and single linen in another pile, be sure that everyone knows this by labelling. It really helps to adhere to placing things back in the correct spot and the kids love it too,” says Jo. This is something I have been meaning to do for an age – when beds need to be quickly changed, it’s pretty irritating feeling like nobody in the house knows where the linen belongs but me and I’m sure I’m not alone on this one.

Keep it neat
“Baskets can help keep it neat and tidy inside the cupboard.  Face washers and flannels, while handy, can be contained in a small basket so they don’t get mixed up with the bath mats. Once you have finalised the placement of your cupboard it’s up to you to keep the space clean,” says Jo who believes you should only ever store what you really need. “Keep the space practical by having enough of what you need – not 30 towels for a family of four for instance,” says Jo.

For more | IKEA expert shares top decluttering & storage hacks