You walk in to your wardrobe, look at your clothes and spend a good few minutes thinking what to wear for the day before finally picking something up. It’s like an everyday routine but what comes across as weird is that despite spending so much time and energy in shopping for new clothes and keeping up with fashion trends, decluttering the wardrobe is something that you keep putting off. And the reason is simple. It takes more time and energy to declutter your wardrobe than what it takes to buy new clothes or deciding the outfit of the day.
I, for one, often find myself standing in front of the wardrobe wondering why I have nothing to wear even though it seems like there’s an entire shopping mall stuffed in my closet.
While decluttering my closet a few days ago, I happened to realize that it was actually a box of junk disguised as a wardrobe. I noticed that I had been holding on to the clothes that could no longer fit me and there were clothes that I didn’t like to wear anymore. Despite the knowledge that these clothes were of no use to me, I didn’t want them to be thrown way because they were expensive. Many of my clothes had turned old and were no longer wearable but I didn’t want to part with them because of the sentimental value attached. There was hardly any space to add new clothes to the wardrobe and there I was, thinking why I didn’t have anything to wear. I downsized my closet by 40% that day and I haven’t been happier about the space that I have now made in it. Yay! I can buy myself some new dresses.
Here are some very simple steps I took to declutter my wardrobe that I’m now completely in love with:
1. Vacate The Entire Closet
For your clothes to be arranged properly and for the closet to look absolutely beautiful, you need to empty it out first. I usually just haphazardly pull out everything that is kept in including the hangers and jewellery, if any. Emptying out the closet won’t take more than a minute and it will give you a clean slate to start with.
2. Clean The Inside Of The Closet
What you wear is often a reflection of your personality, which is why your clothes need a clean and tidy place to stay in. You sure as hell don’t want to step into your workplace wearing clothes that had been collecting dust from a grubby closet. The need to keep your closet clean also explains why you should empty it out first. So pick up a wet cloth and swipe away the dust sitting on the rod, the walls, the floor and the ceiling of your closet. Clean the dirt settled on the light bulb and replace it if required.
3. Trim Down Your Wardrobe
Now that you have cleaned your closet, turn to the pile of clothes you just pulled out and start separating them into categories. I usually just divide my clothes into three categories while decluttering the closet – Party Wear, Daily Wear and Sell/Donate. The third category always gets me thinking because I hate parting with my stuff. But every time I think about the space I’ll get after donating or throwing away the clothes I don’t need, trimming down the wardrobe looks easy and manageable.
In order to properly declutter your wardrobe, you need to ask yourself a few questions:
- When was the last time you wore a particular piece of cloth? – If it was more than a year ago, ask yourself if you intend to wear it in the near future. If yes, wear it today. If not, you must either donate it, sell it or throw it away.
- Does it fit you? – Any piece of cloth that doesn’t fit you today or doesn’t match your style statement should be tossed away into the Donation Box.
- Do you like this dress? – Many things in your wardrobe might have been lying untouched because you don’t like them anymore. Maybe you bought them on impulse or maybe they just don’t suit your personality. But you know what to do with them.
The accessories and clothes that you decide not to keep should either be thrown away or donated, depending upon their wearability.
4. Pack away the Seasonal Stuff
What really would help you in keeping the closet organized for a long time is packing away the clothes that you won’t be needing for the next few months. For example, you won’t need those snow jackets, long boots and winter caps during summers and packing them away until winters will get you some space for clothes that you would actually be wearing during the ongoing season. Similarly, when winter arrives, you can switch your wardrobe by packing away the summer wear while organizing the winter wear back into the closet.
5. Get Rid Of Visual Clutter
Visual Clutter might not be a huge area of concern for your closet, but it can sure make it look messier than it actually is. While decluttering my closet last week, I realized that having hangers of different designs and colors were making my closet look all the more cluttered and ugly. And as soon as I replaced them with some beautiful hangers of similar sizes and colors, the closet seemed to look organized and clean.
Visual Clutter is also caused by the clothes piled up to different heights and widths. In order to organize them evenly, you can separate your clothes into categories and stack them nicely to a particular height in the cupboard.
6. Use The Space Optimally
I can’t stress enough upon the need to utilize closet space in a way that makes it look less cluttered. I maintain an accessory box to store all the accessories that I need on a daily basis. I have this nice basket to keep the clutches and handbags and I make it a point to keep them back into the basket after using them. In order to utilize the wall space, I have pasted these wall hooks to hang the sling bags and accessories. There are many options and storage solutions to optimally utilize the closet space and it’s on you do it creatively.
So if you decide to declutter your wardrobe, try taking into consideration the tips and tricks mentioned above. If it seems overwhelming to part with your stuff, start by decluttering just 10% of your closet. Even after you have been able to get a perfectly maintained wardrobe, remember that it needs work to keep it that way. After all, the only person that benefits from a clutter-free wardrobe is you.