Have you ever noticed how you spend an entire day decluttering your wardrobe only to find it stuffed again with unwanted clothes within a month? You might have spent a lot of time thinking about what stays and what goes and asked yourself the right questions while decluttering it, but it still went back to being cluttered for no fault of yours.
Despite getting rid of a lot of discoloured, stained and worn-out clothes, I still keep stumbling upon items of clothing that don’t add value to my life. If it happens to you as well, let me tell you that it has nothing to do with your ability to make decisions. The only factor that’s stopping you from keeping your wardrobe clutter-free is the lack of a few daily habits that can prove to be a game-changer in your decluttering routine.
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As much as you want to argue that you don’t have the required time to incorporate these everyday habits in your decluttering routine, you will be surprised to know that these habits can actually turn out to be timesaving in the long run.
Still don’t believe me? Try following these habits for a month to witness the change with your own eyes:
1. Have A Donate Box In Your Closet
No one has the time to go through their closet every day to declutter it. The best way to make sure that you don’t keep any unwanted item is by keeping a donate box in a corner of your closet. Now as you are trying on clothes in the morning or while going out, keep an eye for any item that has holes or is stained/worn-out and immediately toss it in the donate box.
Having a Donate box works great for many people as it is the least time-consuming way to keep your wardrobe decluttered at all times. It’s also the easiest way to declutter as you go about living your regular life.
2. Declutter As You Launder
As you return your clothes to the wardrobe after laundering them, keep an eye on the clothes that you haven’t worn in the last one year. This is a great way to make sure that your wardrobe stays up-to-date and doesn’t have anything that you don’t love or wear.
3. Follow The One In, One Out Rule
While you may not have the time to organize or declutter your closet, you can still prevent it from being stuffed with more clothes by religiously following the one-in-one-out rule. For every new item that you put in your closet, get rid of an old one.
For instance, if you are returning home with a new pair of heels, you must get rid of an old pair that you don’t love to wear as much. The one in, one out rule is a great way to ensure that the clutter in your home doesn’t get out of control.
4. Do A Weekly Clutter Sweep
Promise yourself to do a weekly clutter sweep in your closet to get rid of anything that isn’t adding value to your life.
As someone who organizes her closet every Sunday, I use this opportunity to let go of clothes, shoes and accessories that are either worn-out or unloved. And the best part is that it doesn’t end up consuming a lot of time because my closet is being decluttered regularly using this method.
A weekly clutter sweep allows you to declutter as you organize. Every time you are rearranging or reorganizing the clothes that have fallen out of place, look for the items that have been lying unused for more than a year.
5. Plan Outfits In Advance
Your closet is bound to get cluttered if you are in the habit of digging through it every morning to find that one piece of clothing to wear. And I’m sure that organizing it immediately isn’t a viable option given how busy your life is. This not only disturbs the entire look and feel of your closet but also hides useful items beneath a pile of unwanted ones.
If you are looking to keep your closet clutter-free all the time, get into the habit of planning your outfits in advance. It wouldn’t cost anything to plan what you are going to wear at work tomorrow in advance. I know people who plan an entire week’s outfits to prevent any kind of chaos in the morning and this has surely been a life-changing habit for them. This simple habit can acquaint you with the outfits that haven’t been worn in a while thereby making it easier for you to declutter them.
6. Use The Reverse Hanger Trick
Reverse hanger trick is a hassle-free way to declutter clothes that you no longer wear or love. It requires you to put all your clothes on hangers that should all be facing backward, meaning that the open end of these hangers should be facing you. Now every time you wear any of these clothes, make sure that you put them back in a way that the open end of the hanger faces against you this time around.
You need to be following this trick for a certain period of time, say a month or 2 months or 3 months. After the stated period, take out the clothes that are still facing backward. Note that these are the pieces that you haven’t worn during this time period. Sort through them and ask yourself the right questions to decide which of these items go and which ones get to stay.
So there you have it! While this may not be the concrete list of habits you need to follow for a clutter-free wardrobe, it can help you build a foundation for the same. You just need to have a little bit of decluttering motivation and an intent to turn your home into a relaxing sanctuary for yourself and your family.
Even if you have ruthlessly decluttered your clothes and cut down on impulse buying, it’s important to spare a few minutes every day to cut the clutter in your wardrobe.