If you ask a New Yorker for small closet ideas, they might say, “Wait, you have a closet?” And no, out-of-towners, it’s not a joke; plenty of New Yorkers live in apartments that don’t even have a single closet, let alone multiple ones. In fact, we’re a little tired of seeing those HGTV programs where people in other parts of the country pooh-pooh 30-foot-square closets, declaring them too small. But that’s OK — we’re New Yorkers, and we’re going to do what we always do: make it work. Listed below are some simple creative hacks that, when done, will turn your tiny closet into something that might remind you of Mariah Carey’s famous MTV Cribs closet (well, maybe if you squint).

1. Hang a rod on the inside back of the closet door.

This is so brilliant, it’s shocking more people don’t do it. You probably already know about (and even use) hooks on the back of the door. By hanging a rod, you get even more hanging space. If you want to hang clothes on hangers, you’ll need to get hangers with the handles that twist so that you can slant them to the side as they hang, allowing you to layer more clothes.

2. Hang additional poles in a tall closet.

If you’ve got a standard closet with a bar and shelf, take out the shelf and bar. Cut two smaller bars that fit the depth of the closet, and install one in the left corner of the closet and hang the other one on the right side. Then cut two bars that fit the width of the closet. Hang one of those bars high up and one of them lower. You now have four bars to hang all of your stuff. You could even use one of the bars to hang some of your favorite shoes. If you still want to use the shelf, you can hang it above the top bar, and use that space to store things like your out-of-season items.

3. Invest in a ready-to-go closet organization system.

You may think that you want to save money and figure out a way to make more space in your tiny closet on your own, but there are systems out there that have already done all the thinking for you. Before you balk at the price, be aware that a lot of them are a lot more affordable than you think..

With these small closet ideas, you can take full advantage of even the most Lilliputian of spaces.

Image Source: Flickr/Tammy Strobel

[cf]skyword_tracking_tag[/cf]