I’m constantly amazed at how much I find myself wishing for more space. “If only I had an extra bedroom to put stuff in.” “Another closet here would be great. A walk-in, that is.” “Where am I going to keep all this?” The truth is, though, that when I buckle down and organize the spaces that I actually already have, finding the necessary place to store things isn’t as hard as it originally seemed.

Sometimes it just takes a little inspiration, a little elbow grease, and a little re-prioritizing to create a dream storage space. Here are five ideas for maximizing the organization potential of your bedroom closet(s):

Utilize coordinated boxes.

To keep exposed closets from being the eyesore of the entire room, one simple move will make a major difference. Assume that people will, indeed, look “in” the closet and use this to your advantage by maximizing the room’s color scheme in the closet. Choose colorful, coordinated boxes and baskets to provide a stylish face to quick and easy organization. Don’t worry about what you throw in the boxes, because they’ll look great regardless!

Built-in shelves.

I’m pretty sure that a closet’s ideal is wall-to-wall built-in shelving. Of course, this isn’t always possible, but when it is, it’s an organizer’s dream. Shelves, particularly ones like the varied height ones in this photo, allow for easy compartmentalization. A bonus of built-in shelves is that everything is within immediate eyesight, making finding and storing items a breeze.

Maximize vertical storage space.

No matter the size of your closet, you can almost always use vertical space a little more to your advantage. Stackable boxes, shelves on top of (or below) hanging rods, and having different sizes of storage spaces are all methods to help you maximize the vertical storage space your closet offers.

Although this closet is larger than the closets I’m used to, it’s not physically a huge closet…it just uses every square inch to a storage advantage, and definitely provides a massive bang for the buck.

Group similar items.

In bedroom closets especially, clothes tend to follow the path of least resistance. Meaning that, without deliberate effort on your part, hung slacks will likely be interspersed with dresses, and work shirts just might mingle with painting attire.

A tip for keeping your closet organized is to separate items into groups (for example: dresses, skirts, slacks, casual shirts, work shirts, etc.) and hang them accordingly. (Don’t forget to rotate clothes seasonally to make the most of your closet space.) Take it a step further and organize by color for ultimate clothing organization.

Make it beautiful.

When a closet looks like a scary dungeon, chances are you aren’t going to want to spend much effort organizing anything in there. A little bit of pretty wallpaper (or a painted stenciled design) is one way to add a touch of class to the closet, making it actually feel like more part of your home.

You might be surprised at how a simple addition like this, or a chandelier, or a fun rug, or (space permitting) a pretty chair in the closet will make keeping the space organized thoroughly enjoyable.

Picture sources: 1, 2, 3, 4,5and 7.