Help I need advice on how to organize closest and office without it costing a fortune.?

Answer 1

Look at the kits available, then look at the space you have. Then buy the components separately as you can afford them.
I did that, and it cost me around $90.00 total for a complete closet organization.
That includes 2 6-foot shelves that also act as clothes hanging bars, 4 15"x32" shelves, 2 15'x24" shelves, and 3 shoe racks.

Answer 2

Start with decluttering. It is free except for the time it takes and you can streamline that effort to be very efficient. Decluttering your stuff removes a lot of expense because you don't have as much left over to store and organize, so less containers, less time and supplies to clean.

Lots of containers out there! They are available to suit every need, every taste, and every budget. Find the ones that suit your home that you can afford. Keep in mind, though, that there are free storage containers for deep storage (attic, basement, etc) that do not have to be pretty. These are found at the LIQUOR store. Ask for boxes from 24 packs of longneck beer, they have uniform size, handles, and are very sturdy, AND they sometimes have cardboard grid dividers for each bottle that you can either use, or remove...some however, only have four sixpack containers. Other booze boxes may not give you identical sizes but they will also be nice sizes and very very sturdy. A case of liquor needs to be easy enough to handle but also needs a sturdy box. If you want, you can outfit them for more display by wrapping them with giftwrap. Try your hand at wrapping so you can still utilize the box and get to it without unwrapping. You can also change the look easily if you want to...the place I can see this idea used most is for things like out of season clothes boxed on the floor or shelf of the closet.

Another way to organize on the cheap is to use your existing furniture, drawers, cabinets, and shelves to keep things separated. Again this is free. If you are considering letting go of any furniture or replacing it, keep storage in mind, is this a versatile piece? A dresser is simply a bank of drawers, it doesn't HAVE to go in a bedroom for clothing. It can be a lovely office piece, in a corner of the kitchen, IN a walk in closet, in the hall for linens, in the dining room for dinner party stuff. A bookshelf is simply that as well, it doesn't HAVE to hold books. You can organize things in neat piles inside your furniture, skip the containers, a little more effort to keep it corralled but certainly not impossible.

Bookends might be another way to keep things together. Videos, photo albums, CD's. You don't NEED a commercially made specialized rack for anything.

For closet kits, you MAY come out ahead buying the materials to make your own. Brackets, shelving, hardware, maybe a plan. Check home and garden websites from TV networks to see if you can find a recipe for a great do-it-yourself closet system. It wouldn't be in wicker or plastic coated wire, probably it would be MDF or similar wood product or plastic. You can model it after one you think will work or you can sketch out what you think you want and try to just whip it out. If you have access to someone handy with things like this, tell them what you want and see if they can help you make it happen. There are bracket systems that are extremely lightweight and use simple physics to be very very sturdy, otherwise you need to keep weight limits in mind.

So in all things, keep containers and gadgets versatile, low-end prices, neutral in style. If something doesn't work for the purpose you intended, you can try it somewhere else. Some containers that you might consider purchasing that are cheap and versatile?
Drawer sorters, especially those expandable ones. Freezer containers. Dishpans. Cardboard underbed boxes that you put together. Plastic drawer systems. LAUNDRY BASKETS are huge for me, I am always using them for sorters. Assorted plastic or wicker baskets. Same size cereal keepers for in the kitchen instead of bulky canister systems. Inboxes that stack. Napkin holders for mail. Plastic shoeboxes. Picnic carriers with one long compartment on one side and three on the other, and a handle. PERFECT for office supplies, health and beauty, hair care stuff. I guess what I am saying is...keep your eyes and mind open when you are shopping. Browse various places and look at items apart from their intended use. What can that piece do for YOU?

Last word for you is to practice your system, as you fiddle with things and find homes for stuff, you are GOING to get different ideas and want to play around with the space. If you think three bins will help you sort your laundry, try the system with three cardboard boxes as a prototype for your method. Did it work? Then invest in the pieces to help you. If not, you didn't spend on a big sectional hamper. This is when things like garbage bags, grocery sacks, cardboard boxes, velveeta boxes, tupperware, laundry bags, pillowcases, purses, totebags, etc, can help you figure out what size, how many, for what purpose the container needs to be. Then go buy exactly what you need, when you KNOW you have come up with a good plan. The container is just a container, it only needs to serve its purpose in the meantime and will assist you in looking for the way you want to get to your stuff. If you are experimenting with the size and shape of the container, and want to see if having certain things together (used together, goes together AND like with like) is effective for you, then you can mix and match freebies until you get it right. It is the system NOT the container that will be hard to figure out so spending money before you know is ridiculous. After you know what you want, and how many, then you can buy exactly what you need.

ONE MORE THING. I talked a lot about budget items here. Cheap plastic pieces, existing furniture. As always though, sometimes you can buy a lot of cheap stuff, OR you can buy one really nice piece. If you are trying to outfit a storage system with cubbies that can be displayed, the cost of baskets and shelving to do it MAY add up to more than an unfinished or used armoire. So try to keep total projects on a budget, multiple pieces to keep things contained may cost more than a single piece with the built-in storage you want.