How to Organize Your Purse (So It’s Easy to Maintain)

Published October 30, 2020
woman sorting items on bag in bedroom

How to organize a purse so you can easily find things is an important goal. You can modify a purse organization method to better suit your personal needs and lifestyle.

How to Organize a Purse and Maintain It

You want to first empty your purse of all its contents before you can organize it. Make sure you check each pouch/pocket, zipper pouches/pockets and compartments. Once you have everything out onto a table or counter, separate and group items.

1. Keeper Category

The group under the keeper category are items you need to return to your purse. These items will be returned and placed inside your purse in an organized manner.

2. Place in Pouches/Bags Category

These are items you will sort into specific category pouches/bags. These can include feminine products, cosmetics, emergency supplies, or items for a specific event.

3. Leave Out Category

These items are usually something you put in your purchase when going to an event or other activity, just in case you needed it. This could be jewelry, clothing, makeup, perfume, or paper instructions, citations, and other items collected that normally aren't kept in your purse.

4. Trash Category

This category includes things you need to toss in the trash. These items can include folded flyers, empty wrappers, receipts, business cards you don't need, matchbooks from restaurants, and freebies given out in stores, such as hand cream or perfume samples.

Store Items From Leave Out Category

Put the items in the leave out category in your bathroom cabinet or drawer. These should be items you use on a regular basis or items you use rarely.

woman in front of a bathroom cabinet

Return Sorted Items Back to Purse

Once you've sorted items into each category, you first want to toss out the trash. Next return the keepers to your purse and place them in a high-profile area of your purse where they are easily accessible.

Items to Place in Zipper Pouches or Bags

There are several ways you can use pouches. Zipper pouches are more secure that snap, drawstring, or magnetic closures. With a zipper pouch, you don't ever need to worry that items will spill out of the pouch and get lost in the bottom of your purse. Select different sizes and even colors for the pouches.

  • Cosmetic bag: Include all kinds of cosmetics and feminine products.
  • Small clasp coin purse: Use a coin purse for loose change and/or keeping up with your car keys.
  • Zipper wallet: Choose a zipper wallet to store your credit cards.
  • Small long bag: This bag is great for storing pencils, ink pens, markers, and a small pad of paper.
  • Medicine pouch: Use a pouch to keep pill bottles in or substitute with a pill box. This pouch can also hold extra band aids, Neosporin, alcohol swabs, hand sanitizer,

Loading Your Purse for Organization

Once you have everything sorted and stored in the appropriate pouch/bag, you can begin loading them back into your purse. Add the most commonly used items to the most accessible part of your purse. This may be a zipper compartment or an open compartment design.

Next you can add:

  • Cell phone to pouch
  • Car key coin purse
  • Cosmetic bag
  • Pens, pencils and small notepad in pouch/bag
  • Medicine pouch/bag

How to Organize Your Purse and Maintain It

Once you have your purse organized and reloaded, you need a plan to keep it organized and maintained. You don't want to cut corners for this part of your purse organization.

Woman searching through handbag

Declutter Your Purse Weekly

You'll want to declutter your purse at least once a week. This will be the time when you get rid of fast food condiments tossed into your purse, loose pieces of gum, business cards, receipts, and free samples. Set a specific day that you take a few minutes to go through your purse to get rid of clutter. Some people prefer to declutter on a daily basis. Decide how you wish to do this and then stick with it.

Replace and Refill Weekly

If you take regular medication included in your medicine pouch/bag, set one day a week as the time you refill your pill box or replace used items like a packet of tissue papers.

How to Organize Your Purse to Make It Easy to Use

When you organize your purse, it suddenly becomes easy to use. You will be happy when you can instantly find what you need in your purse since it organized.

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How to Organize Your Purse (So It’s Easy to Maintain)