Anyone else struggle with trying to keep the kiddos clothes organized, with their ever-growing wardrobe?  I mean, they grow out of clothes so quickly,  It can be incredibly tricky to keep up with the ever-changing clothing situation.  So I created a few systems to keep the kids clothing organized!

When the kiddos were babies, we had tons of different size baby clothes.  Between the baby showers and the gifts sent to us, I had a ton of clothes that I just threw into drawers.  But, as my baby kept growing, I quickly realized that this system wasn’t working for me.  I needed something where I could have all my baby clothes for one specific size in one area, so I could find everything easily.  I decided to sort the clothing into sizes and store them in bins.  Each size clothes were in a different bin.  I had my three-month clothes in a bin, six-month clothes in another bin, and so on.

When my baby outgrew his clothes, I would take the bin of the new size clothes and dump it out on the floor in his bedroom.  Then, I would take all the clothes that didn’t fit any more and put them into the bin.  Then, I put the bin with the clothes that didn’t fit any more in the attic.

I also stored the bins with my baby’s closet with the next size clothes I would need at the top.  For example, when my son was in wearing three-months clothing, I had the six-month clothes on the top of the pile of bins in the closet.  Then, I had nine-month clothing under the six-month bin, and so on!

To create a system similar to this, start by grabbing some bins.  I love these clear bins, as they are easy to stack and are clear, so you can see inside the bins.  Then, sort the baby clothes into sizes.  Assign each bin a size.  Put all the baby clothes into that one bin for that particular size.  Make sure to label each bin, so you know the size that is in the bin.  Then, stack the bins in the closet with the largest size on the bottom and the smallest side on the top.

But, there are always those clothes that say they are one size on the label, and end up being either too small, or way too big!  When the clothes are too small, I like to put them in the bin for the smaller size.  This helps when you are saving clothes for siblings or cousins.  Then, you just have to pull out the bin with clothing that fits perfectly.

I kept a bag on a hook near the dresser for clothing that was too small if I had already put the smaller clothing bin in the attic.  Then, when the bag got full, I would go into the attic to add the clothing.  This came in handy when I was keeping my daughter’s clothing organized and sorted.  Her room is smaller than my son’s so trying to store lots of clothing bins wasn’t in the cards.  So I stored a lot of the clothing bins in the attic.  I would grab a bin to store in her room, but needed something for clothing that was too small.

Now that I have a preschooler and toddler who enjoy picking out their own clothes, I created a system that allowed them to be independent with choosing their clothing, but still was able to keep things organized.

First, keep all the kids clothes in drawers that they can reach.  This allows them to be able to select appropriate clothing that they would like to wear.  Second, teach the kiddos where their clothing is.  So when you say, pick out a shirt, they know where to look.  And, third, if the drawers of the dresser are too high, consider creating space in the closet that allows for more independence.  For example, my son has clothing in his closet in bins like these from Target.  And he has clothing in the bottom two drawers of his dresser.  The top drawers hold things like his bedding and summer clothes that he doesn’t need in these winter months.  By keeping clothing in bins and drawers that he can reach, he can get himself dressed and pick out his own clothes.

I only have one bin in each kiddos’ closet to store clothing that is too small.  It is nice to have a bin that works to store the clothes that don’t fit any more because if we are getting dressed in the morning and the clothes don’t fit, I will just throw them in the bin that is in the closet.  I talk with my kiddos about when clothing is too small, we either donate the clothing or give it to our cousin.  They love being able to give their old clothes away to help someone else.  It is wonderful to see them get excited to give the clothes away once they have outgrown it!

Now it is your turn to try a system to keep your kiddos’ clothing organized.  Grab some bins to sort baby clothing into sizes.  Then stack in a closet after you label each bin with the specific size clothing that is in that bin.  Once the kiddos can pick out their own clothing, make sure to store their clothing in drawers or bins that they can reach, which allows them to be independent in picking out their own clothes.  Keep a bin or bag in your child’s room for clothes that are too small.  Talk to your child about donating or saving clothing so they understand why we don’t wear clothing that is too small.  Use the higher drawers on the dresser to store things that the kids don’t need or use, such as sheets or out-of-season clothing.