When divvying up an apartment, the only thing worse than getting the smallest room is getting stuck with the one that doesn’t have a closet. Sure, the converted dining room might have charming Victorian moldings or huge bay windows, but neither will look very attractive when hidden by piles of clothes and ever-important "stuff" (which Mom might refer to as "junk"). Never mind; clear a path to the door and learn to love your non-closet living.

Step one: find a place for everything that used to hang in your real closet. Try a garment rack, which is easy to find in a variety of heights and styles at places like Bed Bath & Beyond ($19.99–$39.99), Economy Hardware ($24.99–$89.99), and Target ($49.99). If the sight of your clothes hanging exposed on a rack makes your room seem too much like a thrift store, hide them with a folding screen, like the Sona Screen Frame ($129.99) at BB&B, which, as an added bonus, also holds 15 photos. Or, build a garment rack from steel shelving ("baker’s rack"), sold as individual pieces ($4.99–$89.99) at Economy Hardware and Tags, or as a kit ($149.99–$199.99) at Hold Everything. If wire shelving looks too industrial next to your vintage-lace curtains, get a canvas slipcover ($79.99–$129.99), typically sold alongside the steel-rod materials. The shelving’s flat top means this makeshift closet can hold even more, like wicker baskets with canvas linings ($9.99–$24.99) at BB&B or canvas storage boxes ($24–$34 for a set of two) from Hold Everything. These stores also offer a wide variety of hanging canvas organizers for things like sweaters and shoes. Bed Bath & Beyond offers the best deal on these space savers ($19.99).

Those with slightly bigger budgets can splurge for furniture, like Davis Unfinished Furniture’s armoire ($299.99), which is sold alongside a host of shelves, cubes, and dressers that can all be stained to match. Economy Hardware has a similarly impressive collection of unfinished pieces in a variety of woods like pine, maple, and oak. And check out the solid-wood furniture at Crate & Barrel. The Villagio set has a distressed country look, and the armoire ($1199) matches the mirror, which matches the dresser, etc. A trunk from Pier 1 Imports ($200–$250) can be a catchall for anything that doesn’t fit anywhere else.

Finally, if there’s still too much stuff and not enough room, try bed elevators ($14.99) from BB&B. These sturdy plastic feet are kinder to stubbed toes than cinder blocks, and they’ll add another five inches between the floor and your box spring — plenty of room for under-bed storage containers like Rubbermaid’s wheeled storage box ($12.99), available at Target. Then, if non-closet life still leaves you with too much unstored stuff, Goodwill will happily accept your donation.

Where to get it:

• Bed Bath and Beyond, various locations, www.bedbathandbeyond.com.

• Crate & Barrel, various locations, www.crateandbarrel.com.

• Davis Unfinished Furniture, 238 Elm Street, Somerville, (617) 776-4221.

• Economy Hardware, various locations.

• Hold Everything, various locations, www.holdeverything.com.

• Pier 1 Imports, various locations, www.pier1.com.

• Tags, 29 White Street, Cambridge, (617) 868-7711.

• Target, various locations, www.target.com.