Storing Your Jeans In A Drawer Is A Breeze When You Fold Them The Right Way

There are endless possibilities when it comes to the ways to organize your jeans — fold them onto a hanger in the closet, clip them onto hangers, put them onto a shelf folded, use a brilliant shower hook hack, utilize S-hooks to hang them, or fold them to tuck them away in a drawer. You could lay your folded jeans flat, but you'll be able to fit more denim in a dresser by using the file folding method. If you're wondering what file folding is and why you should use it to get more organized, it's a technique that comes from Japanese organizing consultant Marie Kondo. 

It involves folding the pants in halves and thirds before storing them in the drawer vertically, like folders in a filing cabinet (hence the name). The technique can also be adapted to the type and size of drawers you have, since some drawers are shallower than others. Small drawers are about 14 inches deep, while large ones can be around 18 inches in depth. All you have to do is use the folding approach that fits the space where the jeans will be stored.

When it comes to deep or standard drawers, use the following approach. Lay a pair of jeans down, then fold them in half lengthwise, placing one leg over the other. It's optional to tuck in the inseam, but it will create a more streamlined finish product. Bring the bottom pant leg up so the hem is touching the base of the back pocket. Fold that section in half and then bring down the waistband, so the jeans look like a compact package. Now, they're ready for filing in your dresser — just insert them into the drawers vertically in neat rows, and you'll be able to store a whole bunch of jeans in one spot.

For shallower drawers, you'll still fold the jeans in half lengthwise to lay the legs on top of one another, and tuck away the inseam. Next, fold the pants in half from top to bottom and then thirds from top to bottom. The denim will be in a tighter, more compact package that'll fit into shorter drawers. Of course, both space-saving ways to fold your clothes can be modified to fit your specific drawer sizes; it just takes some trial and error to fold the jeans in a way that they are slightly shorter than the drawer height. And more than just jeans can be folded with this method; you can use it for storing short-sleeved T-shirts or sweaters, too. You can sort the folded clothes by color, style, or other characteristics, and you can use dividers to separate different types of clothes to make items easier to find.