Karen! Doesn't EVERYONE have a closet? NO, not everyone has a closet. For starters, I live in Israel. While there may be exceptions, most apartments don't have closets. In lieu of closets, we have free-standing closets or wardrobes called aronot (plural of aron, pronounced 'ah ro NOTE', or 'AH rone' in the singular). They come in varying sizes, with a combination of drawers, shelves, and hanging space. Have fun scrolling on the IKEA website to see what I'm talking about.
Hence, one needs to purchase an aron unless one was left by a previous tenant or owner. Even if one has an aron, there are instances when we simply need more space and need a solution. Let's pretend there was decluttering ahead of time, but more room is still needed.
However, let's say there is no aron. What's front and center right now is that many families are fleeing their homes from different communities in Israel, seeking refuge in other areas of the country. My community is an example where empty apartments that were recently built and are not yet occupied are being utilized for these evacuees. These apartments are EMPTY of furniture, appliances, and aronot.
There are many individuals who are diligently working to furnish these places. Because my husband and I run Secondhand Israel, we often have these items for sale and my inbox is constantly getting inquiries "Do you have wash machines, refrigerators, driers, beds, closets...?" When we're running a moving sale we often have these things to sell. We currently have lots of dishes, kitchen things, and some beds but no closets. I wish we did....
So I pondered the situation and in good home organizer form, I came up with some solutions on how to manage clothing storage when you don't have a closet.
Use a bookshelf. Almost everything can be folded and stored on the shelves
Free-standing coat rack
A coat tree
Over the door hooks
Laundry baskets. Keep them the same size and shape for consistency, and stackable/nesting for when they are empty. If you have a spare table, put some baskets on top and some beneath.
Cubes, like Ikea Kallax.
Large, lidded tubs. They will stack nicely.
Stackable shelves or baker's rack.
There are all good options when you don't have a closet, or have a closet and need additional space. Hopefully the situation with be such that the families can return to their own homes, but in the meantime, these are good solutions to managing without.
Karen, The Klutter Koach
If you're interested in finding out more about MOVING SALES and having us run one for you, contact me for questions.
To see what's available for sale in our shop Secondhand Israel in Ramat Bet Shemesh Aleph (RBS-a) under Yeish or what furniture and appliances we have available visit our website secondhandisrael.com