Have you sorted out the existing clothes already?

Jillian,

I would take small steps and organize one space at a time so your not overwhelmed.. I think once you go thru items and organize you will find you have more space than you thought. I see a lot of wasted space. I would have your son help go thru his items and maybe donate or sell at a consignment store then he will either feel good about giving to less fortunate or the $ made he can put in his piggy bank! Good luck with the closets and the new baby!

I agree with queen_regina....You first need to organize and determine how much and what type (hanging/folded, etc.) of storage you need. IMHO, the Elfa system (Container Store) is one of the best out there. It is expensive, but it can be customized and reconfigured for your needs and is easily removed if you happen to relocate. After I carefully measured everything that would be going in, we installed Elfa in a small closet for my scrapbooking and photograph supplies.

I tried the Rubbermaid closet organizer and loved it so much that I bought four more, some as housewarming gifts for my son's first house. They are quite flexible for organizing, have various components you can get for them, and are wonderfully affordable. It took us three days to install it: one day to remove clothes, demo the old hanging rod & shelves, & patch any holes; one day for fresh paint; then one day to install (took 90 minutes) & sort clothes & rehang them. My Rubbermaid closets don't look magazine worthy like Elfa, but they are organized just as well.

Rubbermaid closet organizer -- note the positive comments

OK thanks all! Both kids will have dressers, so I don't think we need much room in the closets for folded clothes. I also realized that I tend to be more organized when I can hang stuff. I will take a look at Elfa, thanks for the recommendation!

I would get a Rubbermaid or closetmaid fast track system. They are easy to adjust according to your needs as they get older. I find it really helpful to have a lower rack which my daughter can reach......she can pick out her outfit and get herself dressed in the morning. In a year or two, I will need to move shelves around (her clothes will start getting too long to hang in current position). But it is easy to move or add shelves once the fast track brackets are in the wall.

This is what I mean by having a lower shelf from which you can also hang clothing from. You can see the fast track on the wall, with slots along the entire length, so you can place supporting brackets wherever you want. We have more shelves than you would need (I have three kids sharing this closet, no dressers). But you could just do two long shelves across and use them for hanging, and for storage, diapers, baskets, etc.

So I decided to start with organizing the smaller closet first. I think I have enough hanging space....what I'm lacking is storage. I need a space for extra wipes, diapers, bibs, etc.

What are your thoughts if I were to assemble and ikea billy bookcase sideways at the bottom of the closet, and purchase little storage bins? I could even stack 2 of them? Thoughts?

http://m.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/art/50263838/

The Ikea Kallex might be worth a look. They sell the drawers or bins to fit.

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/20275885/#/80275887