Organizing winter gear is so much simpler with a few smart storage ideas for winter accessories that will whip your coat closet and entryway into shape.
If I look out my master bathroom at just the right angle on a clear winter day, I can see our local ski hill between the trees.
It’s not much, but it’s a great spot for my kids to learn to ski and we can’t beat the convenience of having it just a fifteen-minute drive from our house.
But even though the hill is so close, we always underestimate how long it will take the kids to get into their gloves, snow pants, and boots before we head out the door.
Luckily, I organized our tiny mudroom and coat closet with some simple but effective products that maximize the space.
Although we still manage to be in a rush to ski lessons every Sunday afternoon, at least we know where all our winter gear is.
How to Organize Winter Gear So You’ll Be Ready for Cold Weather
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If you’re worried that organizing winter gear will be expensive and complicated, let me assure you that it’s not! But, you must take some time up front to create your organization game plan.
Step 1: Find all those stray hats and mittens
First, gather up all the hats, gloves, mittens, scarves, boots, ski helmets, and snow pants.
Seriously, track down all of them – even the hat at the bottom of your kid’s backpack and the box of ski stuff under your bed.
Step 2: Purge your collection
Next, get rid of what you don’t use or need and donate items that are in good condition.
I recently scheduled a donation pickup with Big Brothers Big Sisters and it couldn’t have been easier! I just bagged up our unwanted winter stuff and they picked it up from my doorstep.
Step 3: Create a place for everything
Now that you’ve purged the winter gear your family doesn’t need or want anymore, it’s time to organize what’s left.
We use plastic bins on our coat closet shelf that are labeled for ski stuff, snow pants, and baseball caps (for warmer months!).
Ski goggles and the kids’ helmets fit perfectly in a deep basket that’s easy to remove from the shelf.
On the closet floor, a plastic boot tray corrals muddy winter boots and shoes when we get home.
Step 4: Make room to dry wet hats and mittens
When we come in from playing in the snow, we hang our wet mittens and hats on a multi-tier skirt hanger on the closet door.
When the hanger’s not in use (or the hats and gloves are dry) we simply hang it back in the closet.
Wet coats and snow pants go on hooks near the front door, or on a folding drying rack near our laundry closet.
The Quickest Way to Organize Hats & Gloves in a Closet
A clear pocket shoe organizer is awesome for storing our large hat and glove collection!
Although there are many over-door shoe organizers made from fabric, I recommend using either a mesh or plastic version so you can see what you have.
The Most Useful Products for Organizing Winter Gear
Whether you’re trying to organize your coat closet or mudroom for winter, or need to store your ski and snowboard equipment in the garage, here are some helpful products to keep all your winter gear tidy!
- Boot Tray
- Clear Shoe Pocket Organizer
- Cute “Hello/Good-bye” Doormat
- Wall-mount Ski Organizer
- Glove and Mitten Drying Rack
- Snowboard Storage Rack
- Hanging Scarf Organizer
- Glove and Hat Dryer
- Plastic Stacking Basket
Easily Organize All Your Winter Accessories
Now that you have these simple but effective tips for organizing your winter gear, your family will know exactly where to find everything they need to have fun in the snow!
Check out these other organizing ideas:
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Wow, nice, neat, and well organized. In order for our winter closet to look this nice, I would have to get rid of so much more coats and winter caps. Nice job you did.
That skirt hanger idea is so clever! We don’t really have a mudroom, and all the cold, wet stuff ends up getting strewn. It’s awful. Thanks so much for sharing at the #happynowlinkup!