As I've gotten older and more selective about what's in my wardrobe, I've found myself becoming more particular about what I choose to hang on its small clothing rail. I often use it for my favorite items as seeing them sparks joy or for items I worry may crease if they get squashed in a drawer.
It got me thinking about what thought process other people go through when deciding which clothing items should be hung up versus folded away in a drawer. Each have their perks for sure, but is there a giant difference between these methods, making one come out on top?
I spoke to professional organizers to dig a bit deeper into hanging versus folding clothes to see if one option reigns superior and promotes less closet mistakes. Here's what they had to say.
Should You Hang Your Clothing?
There are many reasons why people choose to hang up their items of clothing, but the main reason is to avoid creasing in clothes made from materials such as cotton. This is why people more often than not choose to hang up their smart shirts and blouses. If they aren't hung up and become creased, they will look less smart on the wearer and require ironing before every use. Hanging in this respect saves a person time that would otherwise be spent on maintaining their clothes.
People also find hanging up their items of clothing to be appealing as it's a way for them to easily see and navigate through everything in their collection. Mary Jo Contello, professional organizer and founder of Organized by MJ, says, "Using a clothing rod or well-organized wardrobe typically makes seeing and accessing your clothes easier. When people can see all of their clothes, they will tend to wear more of what they own."
If you don't have space for any other furniture in your bedroom, hanging up your clothing is also a great way to store clothes without a dresser. Hanging clothing is often seen as the faster of the two storage methods as no time will be required for meticulously folding up items so they fit in your designated drawer space. This is especially useful when dealing with more bulky items, as very few of them will be able to fit into the average dresser drawer.
Linda Samuels, certified professional organizer and founder of Oh, So Organized!, says, "If you have hanging space, hanging items such as suits, dresses, slacks, blouses, robes, and coats are preferable. When placed on suitable hangers, these bulky and easily wrinkled clothing items will be more accessible and ready to wear." For more dressy items that you wish to keep free from dust, hanging them up in a storage bag such as the Sleeping Lamb Long Hanging Garment Bags, from Amazon is the perfect place to keep them protected and pristine.
Linda further suggests storing off-season clothing such as sweaters elsewhere in rotation to always have hanging space left in your wardrobe for efficient use. Keeping these items in under bed storage or a clothing bag such as the Lifewit Large Capacity Clothes Storage Bag are both good choices.
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Should You Fold Your Clothing?
Folding or rolling up items of clothing into drawers is seen as one of the best storage for clothes as a chest of drawers can typically hold more items than if you were to hang items up in a closet. People also often opt to fold up their clothing as it can serve as a simple way to create categories, with folded t-shirts in one drawer and rolled up dresses in another.
Linda points out that some clothes are actually better off folded, as hangers can stretch their necklines. "Generally, I don’t recommend hanging sweaters because they can stretch out," says Linda. "Sweaters will last longer when folded."
Dawn Falcone of The Chaos Liberator added, "Sweaters, especially heavy wool blends, cardigans, active wear, jeans and t-shirts can all be folded safely. But jackets, blouses, button down shirts, skirts and dress and casual pants all benefit from being hung, especially if they are made from a wrinkle-prone material such as linen or silk."
Some items are more difficult to hang up, such as shorts, and they may repeatedly fall off of a hanger. In these cases folding items up becomes more efficient in that particular moment as a solution. "Items like shorts are not easy to hang because they take special kind of hangers with clips. Things like jeans are super easy to fold and do well when folded up as well," says Mary, from Organized by MJ.
There are also items such as pyjamas that people typically don't hang up as they are only worn in the household. I have a designated drawer for my PJs, but if you invest in high quality ones of certain materials hanging them up may prove beneficial. If you run out of room in your dresser you can always consider looking into how to hide storage boxes in a room, and fill those up with folded items fro additional space. There are plenty of items out there designed to assist you in best folding and storing your clothing as well such as the BoxLegend Shirt Folding Board from Walmart and the 12 Pack Drawer Organizers for Clothing.
What's the Verdict? Hanging Vs Folding
As with many matters concerning organization, subjectivity and the size of a person's space are important factors to consider when deciding what works. If you don't have space for a closet, folding clothing and then ironing what creases may work for you. However, if you have a closet rod and no space for a dresser, hanging up lots of clothing and tucking away items that there isn't space for in storage baskets, such as the Freestanding Laundry Basket with Handle from Walmart that comes in many colors, might work as a great combination to suit your storage needs.
Linda says it best, she tells us: "The choice to hang or fold clothes is based on three main factors: space, accessibility, and preference." If you find that folding your clothing is the easiest way for you to access what you need instead of hanging them up in a small closet, then it works for you. But if you struggle to find what you're looking for unless your items are hanging up, that's completely fine as well.
The priority should be what you find efficient and to create a storage solution that allows you to see what you have, regardless of whether it is hung up in your closet or folded. So, if you're folding up your items, perhaps consider trying out the file folded method of organizing, so you can easily see everything as items won't be traditionally stacked into piles. With this method, you stack items vertically to reach the height of your drawer space. This ensures that none of your items cover each other up.
Choosing to hang or fold your clothing is a very personal choice, and what works best for one person may not help another. If you're seeking to downsize your wardrobe to make the task of organizing it more approachable, try out this minimalist wardrobe challenge that will help you understand which clothes to declutter from your closet.
