Dresser drawer organization doesn’t have to be intimidating. The method I will be sharing with you will allow you to see each piece of clothing you have. It will also help you decrease the time you spend looking for your things. This post may contain affiliate links. This means if you use my links to make a purchase I make a small commission at no cost to you.
The method I will be sharing with you is definitely Marie Kondo inspired but I have made it my own. The filing system is the point. This allows you to see each piece of clothing. No more digging through piles messing up your drawers or forgetting you had a specific piece.
It may seem intimidating to follow this method, but I can assure you it’s not at all! I find it so much easier. Once you get the hang of folding this way, it becomes second nature and it goes just as fast as any folding. Plus I’ll share my secret tip to minimize time each morning!
This post is all about dresser drawer organization.
Dresser Drawer Organization
I HIGHLY recommend purchasing some sort of drawer organization. This makes it super easy to stay organized. The filing system in itself is great. But I find that having bins helps to keep things neat. Also, there are just some items that seem silly to me to be folding. Like, the day I’m folding my under skivvies, I have WAY to much time on my hands, sorry! These bins allow things to be thrown in there while remaining organized. I designate each bin to something such as: t shirts, long sleeve shirts, tank tops, underwear etc. You’ll come up with something that works for you.
The bins I swear by are the SKUBB boxes from IKEA. I have the white ones but they also come in gray. They come in a set of 6. I love the 3 sizes and the fact that they fold down when not in use.
Amazon has a comparable set of boxes you can find here. They come in beige or gray and they also fold down. Amazon also carries the IKEA SKUBB boxes (on Amazon) for a bit more than you’d pay at IKEA.
Get out of season clothing out of your drawers
This will save you a good amount of space. Also it will avoid you wasting time sifting through things you’re not going to wear anyways. I have one larger IKEA SKUBB box I use for off season clothing. I also limit myself to the one box. This helps me to not buy more clothing than I need. If the box is too full then I need to get rid of things. It’s a good time to sift through things anyways when you’re switching your seasonal clothing in and out.
My large SKUBB box is pictured below. Amazon sells a set of 2 of these larger SKUBB boxes you can grab here, again for a higher price than IKEA. You can store it in the closet or under your bed. Mine is in my wardrobe.
What to put in closet vs dresser
You need to figure out what actually needs to go in your drawers as opposed to being hung up. Below is a list of things that should be hung:
Dresses and skirts Blazers and jackets Work or school uniforms Anything that will wrinkle if folded
Tip: Never hang sweaters and knits: These items will get stretched out if hung.
Looking for renter friendly closet ideas? Check out my post on the IKEA Pax Wardrobe.
My secret tip: Organize your drawers by activity
Okay, I guess this isn’t rocket science, but hey, you never know. Sometimes we don’t think about the obvious with everything else we have going on.
So say you’re getting ready for work more than anything else during the week. This is the activity you do the most during the week (days wise). Make sure that whatever you need to get ready for work (other than your hung items) is in one drawer. So that drawer should have your under clothing, work shirts, work pants, socks, etc. If you are a stay at home mom, maybe that drawer has your under clothing and lounge clothing in it. Whatever you wear around the house all day.
The point is to only open one drawer to get ready in the morning. Now I know that it may change if you work only a few days a week or something. But just pick the activity you get ready for the most and put your under clothing and all you need for that activity together.
TIP: give this activity the most easily accessible drawer. I wouldn’t put it too low or too high. Give it the best spot as you’ll open it the most.
Next make drawers for all your other activities and make sure all you need for those activities are together, minus the under clothing that is likely in your first drawer.
I am able to get ready for work by opening one drawer and I pull my uniform pants and jacket out of the closet the night before and lay them out. I have one drawer in my wardrobe that I put all of my dress sweaters in and tights and any undergarments I use for my hung items. This way even that drawer has to do with my hung up items so they’re all together and I can get ready from my wardrobe. My other activity drawers are: workout, lounge, pajamas, going out.
We’re trying to avoid opening 5 different drawers and walking from one side of the room to the other. This saves time not only in the morning when you’re getting ready, but also when you’re doing laundry because things are easy to find. I usually open 1 drawer, sometimes 2 or 3.
File folding method I use
So I chose to show how I fold a pair of jeans and a long sleeved shirt, as short sleeve shirts are easier. Essentially, I use this method to fold everything else. But if you want to see how to fold other items using the KonMari (Marie Kondo) method I will link to a video here where she folds different items. As I said, mine may differ a bit, but it works for me:
- Fold your jeans in half and lay flat. Be sure to run your hands over the jeans to smooth them out between each step.
- Fold the pointed corner of the inseam in so it makes the jeans more of a straight line.
- Now fold the legs up to the bottom of the pocket.
- Fold the top of the jeans over at the spot where the legs end.
- Fold the top down one more time to make a square.
- The jeans should stand on their own.
- Lay your shirt out flat with sleeves out to sides. Run your hands over the shirt between each step to keep it smooth. I lay my shirt front side down, Marie Kondo lays hers front side up. Either way this will work.
- Visually break your shirt into thirds. Fold one over the middle third section with sleeve straight out.
- Fold the sleeve straight back over itself.
- Now fold the sleeve down perpendicular so it fits nicely in the third of the shirt you folded over. Repeat these 4 steps with the other side.
5. Your shirt should now be a skinny rectangle. Visually break it into thirds.
6. Fold the top down to the start of the bottom third section.
7. Fold the bottom third section over the top.
8. Fold the bottom over one more time to make a small square.
9. The shirt should stand by itself.
These little squares you now place into your SKUBB boxes or organization bins. Place the bins into their proper “activity” drawer. Personally the jeans are a bit bulky and I place them directly into my drawer.
As I said earlier, I basically use these two methods as a guide to fold any other items I have.
And that’s it!
So that is my dresser drawer organization tips. I have been doing this for years and I LOVE it! It’s nice to see all the clothing I have. I am better about getting rid of things too because I can physically see everything and it’s so much more obvious to me that I’m not wearing some of it. Honestly, while writing this post, I noticed I need to get rid of things I know I’m not wearing.
I hope this was helpful to you and you’re inspired to get those dresser drawers in shape. Hashtag any photos #lifeinaptb so I can see what you’ve done. Thanks so much for being here!
This post was all about dresser drawer organization.
