I am not a “purse person” but I do know how to store them! I have one fancy purse and one casual backpack purse and I have room on my coat closet shelf to leave them both out. It makes them easy to grab-and-go and they don’t take up a lot of space. Since I only have two purses, it’s also very easy to transfer their contents between the two so I never leave the house without the things I need. A lot of my clients, however, have lots of purses and lots of, dare I say it, “trash” in them.

My first advice regarding purse or bag storage is to clean them out every time you use them. The amount of food wrappers, disintegrated gum, melted throat lozenges, loose change, expired credit cards, useless receipts, tampons and super important paperwork I find inside purses and bags is honestly astonishing. Whether you’re coming home from work, an errand running day or a week-long vacation empty out your purse every time you come home. If you don’t, you’re wasting food items, putting your financial security at risk, losing money and embarrassing yourself at the cash register by dropping sticky tampons on the counter while digging for a non-expired credit card.

If you are in fact a “purse person” you’ll need to transfer items from purse to purse every time you choose to take a new one with you. One way to make this easier is to buy a wallet that compliments several of your purses. At least you won’t have to transfer your driver’s license, credit cards and money from wallet to wallet every time you switch purses. Don’t forget to clean out your wallet every once in a while, though!

So now you have cleaned out purses and wallets but how do you store them when you’re not using them? There are so many options depending on the space you have! You can place them on a shelf in your coat closet, hang them on hooks on the wall or door inside of your master closet, place them in a bin on the floor of a closet or store them inside of other bags. The latter is my preference because you don’t have to buy additional storage containers and it keeps dust off of the smaller bags inside the big bag!

Most of my clients do not have the space to display their purses and they’re not willing to let them go. So, I ask them to choose a few purses that they’re planning on using during the current season and we leave those out implementing some of the above methods. Then, I store the remaining purses and bags inside other bags and luggage. If you’re a gym-goer or a world-traveler, it’s likely that you have a couple different gym bags and a set of luggage or two. Do you use all of your gym bags and suitcases at the same time? No, so go ahead and treat them like a storage bin. You might surprise yourself by how many bags and purses you can store inside duffel bags and luggage.

Not only are you creating storage but you’re also making it easier to pack when it’s time to use your bags. If you’re able to keep all of these bags in one place, you’ll know exactly where to go before your next hiking trip or cruise. All of the luggage you’ll possibly need will be clean and in one place. I even go one step further and store my travel sized toiletries and packing lists inside of my suitcases. When I pack for a trip, it’s super easy to grab the bag(s) I need and know that all I really have to choose are clothes and shoes because most of the rest of what I need is already packed!

Let’s talk about grocery bags too! How many plastic grocery bags do you possibly need? Not many unless you’re putting cat litter, dog poop, dirty diapers or coffee grounds and eggshells in them. Please take the time to recycle the plastic grocery bags you don’t need. When you unload your groceries, place all of the plastic bags in a location that reminds you to take them back to the grocery store for recycling and store the few that you want to keep for just-in-case situations where they make sense. That may be under your kitchen sink, with your dog’s leash or by the litter box. If you use re-useable cloth grocery bags, store those somewhere where you’ll be reminded to use them, preferably in the trunk of your car! But only keep as many as you actually use at one time. These type of bags tend to accumulate paperwork and items that don’t have a home in your house yet. Don’t tempt yourself with that opportunity! It just leads to more clutter that you’ll have to address.