"We Couldn't Walk into Our Walk-in Closet!"
 Before (PHOTO: FRANCES JANISCH)

The problem: After two pregnancies in four years, Marjorie Steuer, 38, had filled her New York City bedroom closet with a mishmash of her pre-mom wardrobe and her maternity wear. The side belonging to her husband, Jonathan, 39, was almost as jammed. The result: Although the couple's closet is a spacious walk-in, "you certainly couldn't tell that when you opened the door," says Randall Koll, coauthor of The Organized Home: Design Solutions for Clutter-Free Living (Quarry Books), who came to help out.
How to purge like a pro: An interior designer based in San Francisco, Koll teaches that clutter can be controlled in stylish ways. "People treat closets like makeshift storage units, but they're an extension of your home," he says. "You don't want to just cram stuff in there; you want a space that's functional and fabulous."

Already crammed? "You must go through every item," Koll insists, even if you have to do the job in five-minute chunks. The reward: "You'll discover that a quarter of your clutter is empty hangers and dry-cleaning bags," he says. Koll's rule of thumb for sorting clothes: "If it doesn't fit, get rid of it!"

And he believes there are exceptions to the hard-and-fast standard "if you haven't worn it in a year, toss it." For instance, you can keep a rarely worn designer dress or special accessories, as long as they're still flattering. As for that suit you never wear because the skirt is too snug: Split up the pieces, tossing the skirt but keeping the jacket to wear as a blazer.

Koll likes organizer products but says you shouldn't overlook the space-saving solutions you already have. Case in point: Marjorie had a bunch of five-skirt hangers in her closet �? each holding only one skirt. Koll ultimately helped Steuer fill six large garbage bags with stuff to throw out, plus four bags of giveaways �? and that was just one side of the closet. "The weeding-out exercise was invaluable," says Marjorie, who unearthed a cleanup dividend: a still-usable Tiffany's merchandise credit.

Stay-neat solutions: With Marjorie's wardrobe freshly pruned, Koll hung bright, colorful hangers from The Container Store on either side of the closet �? tangerine for her, lime for him. "When you open a closet, your eye goes right to the hangers, so choosing one or two colors creates visual organization," Koll says. He used orange mesh baskets (also from The Container Store) to hold accessories and T-shirts. (Bonus: These baskets can fold flat when not in use, which gives the Steuers flexibility if they reorganize later on.)

To keep your closet looking attractive, "don't fill up all the available space," Koll advises. Leaving some room between the clothes and on the shelves provides visual relief. But if you're stumped on how you'll eliminate even more items, try Koll's easy idea: Buy a few plastic under-the-bed storage bins so you can tuck away clothes that are out of season as well as items that never belonged in the closet to begin with, like wrapping paper, borrowed baby clothes and old photos.

Organizing must-have: A pal can really help you cope with the purging process. Says Marjorie, "Ask a friend who's fun but firm �? someone who will push you to make yes-or-no decisions." With Koll's support, Marjorie says, "I was able to be much more decisive in my decluttering."

Lightbulb moment: Organizing your closet isn't just about getting rid of stuff, but gaining a fresh perspective. "You realize things about yourself �? like, I will never fit into that again, I don't need four pairs of overalls, and I never have found that perfect pair of jeans," says Marjorie.