My parents always used to complain about my clothes occupying too much space in the house. And yet every morning, I would find myself standing in front of the mirror thinking how I had nothing to wear. I was practically living under a heap of clothes but would still feel overwhelmed every time I had to go out. I still remember how I once decided to purge my closet but could hardly get rid of anything because of the emotional attachment I had with my clothes.
I bought that shrug with my first salary. There’s no way I’m throwing it away.
That pretty little skirt is way too cute to get rid of even though I never find an occasion to wear it.
Yes, I’m bored of this top. But I can’t even think about parting from it because it has made me look pretty so many times.
I had almost given up on decluttering clothes as it was the most draining part, emotionally and mentally, of the entire decluttering process. But when you’re constantly filling up your closet with new clothes and still have ‘nothing to wear’, you know that the only solution to the issue is making yourself go through a ruthless closet declutter. Needless to say, my life totally changed once I realized that.
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Even though I have less number of clothes residing in my closet now, I feel more liberated than ever. The time that was previously spent scouting for clothes in the closet is now spent doing things that I love.
What exactly is ruthless decluttering?
If you’re someone who easily gets attached to clothes and accessories, ruthless decluttering can seem like a difficult decision because it doesn’t give you the leverage to keep anything that’s not serving a purpose in your life. As the word itself says, ‘ruthless decluttering’ requires you to get rid of anything that is not adding value to your wardrobe.
No matter how expensive the clothes are or what memories reside in them, you just have to make a conscious decision to get rid of anything that is stopping you from enjoying your wardrobe. It also means choosing your personal style over owning a mountain of clothes that aren’t even worn to the capacity.
How to know if your clothes need a ruthless declutter?
Not everyone needs to undergo a ruthless declutter of clothes. Not having anything to wear doesn’t necessarily mean that most of your clothes are useless and are needed to be thrown out.
So it’s on you to decide if your wardrobe needs a ruthless declutter or just a little organization. Maybe you only need a couple of hanging shelves to utilize the vertical spaces in your closet. Or just some hooks and hangers to accommodate lightly-worn clothes and accessories.
In order to be sure if ruthless declutter is the only solution to your messy closet, ask yourself a few questions before giving it a go:
- Do you have a lot of clothes that you haven’t worn in ages?
- Are there clothes that don’t go along with your personal style?
- Does your closet make you feel overwhelmed every time you have to choose something to wear?
If any of the above questions gets a ‘yes’ for an answer, then it’s surely time to have a ruthless declutter of your closet.
Benefits of ruthless decluttering
If I were to be honest, having a closet full of clothes makes me way too happy. After all, who doesn’t like having an array of clothes to choose from? But when the same wardrobe that was supposed to make you dance with joy starts making you feel helpless, you just know that it makes more sense to have a few clothes that are serving their purpose rather than a bunch of useless ones. While you may think that there’s no sense in doing a ruthless declutter, it’s benefits will surely prompt you to think otherwise:
- Lowered stress – A single session of ruthless declutter might surely take up a few hours but will give you so much more in return. Imagine your mornings without the anxiety and stress of having to dive into a closet full of junk to choose one outfit to wear. Not just that, ruthless decluttering leaves your closet with clothes that are all useful and are meant to add value to your life rather than making it more stressful.
- Saves time – The one task that always takes up most of my time and energy in the morning is scouting for the right piece of cloth in my closet. There are times when I’m looking for a particular dress which is somewhere buried underneath the heap of useless clothes. It eventually ends up taking all the time that I could have spent doing something productive.
Now ruthless decluttering can be a little time-consuming when you do it but if you take into consideration the many minutes it will save every morning for the next few months, you’ll realize that it was all worth it. - Makes cleaning easy – A cluttered closet always used to make me feel demotivated. Every time I would think about decluttering or organizing my closet, merely looking at the mess would make me want to delay it for a few more days. Days would turn into weeks with my closet getting messier and messier. But after adopting ruthless decluttering as a way of life, I find it much easier to clean my closet. Although it has taken away a good 40 percent of my clothes, I enjoy my minimalist closet and feel motivated to clean it on a regular basis.
- Saves money – I have learned more from the clothes that I have gotten rid of than the ones I chose to keep. Ruthless decluttering helped me understand what clothes I would never buy again and the ones that go along with my personal style. Merely understanding what suits me and what I like to wear helps me save a good few hundred dollars every year. And I couldn’t be prouder of that.
Now that you’re sure your clothes need to be decluttered ruthlessly and the many benefits it will have, it’s time to move on to the actual process. Here’s how you can get going and achieve that drool-worthy minimalist wardrobe that you can enjoy to the fullest:
1. Empty Out Your Closet
This might sound crazy. But in order to ruthlessly declutter your clothes, it’s important to give yourself a glimpse of what all clothes you have. And the only way this can happen is by emptying out all your clothes out of the closet. If you have more than one closet, then you need to create a pile of all your clothes in one place.
Now this might sound overwhelming and demotivating. But having all your clothes right in front of your eyes would help you acknowledge the fact that you own more than you need. To some extent, this is the step where you will actually be able to get a faint picture of which clothes to keep and what to get rid of.
2. Pull Out The Torn And Damaged Clothes
Now that you have all your clothes lying in front of you, start by finding the ones that are torn, ripped, stained or damaged. These are the clothes that can neither be worn nor be donated. Maybe there’s a pair of jeans that got damaged after you accidentally spilled a cup of tea on it, or a dress that is too stretched out to be worn again. These are the clothes that are a definite ‘throw outs’ and should be put aside in the beginning. My mom tends to use these clothes as cleaning rags.
3. Get Rid Of The Clothes That You Haven’t Worn In The Past One Year
Now that you’ve gotten rid of the clothes that are damaged, you know that the ones lying in front of you are all wearable. And you might never be able to bring yourself to get rid of them which is why you need to undergo ruthless decluttering.
If you’re having difficulty choosing the clothes that you should get rid of, start with pulling out the ones that haven’t been worn in the last one year. The reason is simple. If you haven’t worn it in the last one year, there’s little chance you’ll wear it ever again. There might be clothes that have run out of fashion during the past year, or the ones that don’t fit you anymore either because you’ve gained or lost weight. Whatever the reason is, every piece of cloth that you haven’t worn in a long time needs to be tossed in the donation box.
4. Get Rid Of Clothes You Don’t Like
We all have clothes that we just don’t like hiding in a far corner of our closets but haven’t discarded them yet because they were either too expensive or were gifted by someone too close. But let’s face the truth. These clothes won’t magically turn themselves into a beautiful Cinderella gown over time, and you need to acknowledge the fact that they are unnecessarily occupying that valuable space in your closet. If that particular item isn’t adding value to your life and isn’t making you feel good, it’s time to toss it in the donation box at the earliest.
5. Set Aside The Ones That You Love
Now that you’ve gotten rid of the many pieces of clothing in the above-mentioned steps, it’s time to set aside the ones that you love wearing. These are the items that make you feel good and that you wear as frequently as possible. If you have a dozen tops sitting in your closet, there may be 3 or 4 that you wear all the time. Similarly, any pairs of jeans that you label as your ‘favourite’ should be kept aside as definite keeps.
6. Be Ruthless In Decluttering The Remaining Pile
Now that you’ve decided on the clothes that you want to keep and the ones you want to get rid of, what remains is a pile of Maybe items. This is the part that will test your strength and where you need to be ruthless in order to give yourself a beautiful wardrobe.
There might be many reasons why you’ve been sticking on to these maybe items, some financial and others sentimental. Whatever the reason, ruthless decluttering requires you to get rid of any piece of clothing that isn’t adding value to your wardrobe. And in order to do that, you need to ask yourself a few questions before deciding whether to keep or discard the clothes:
- Why am I holding on to this dress?
- Was it gifted by someone special?
- Was it bought off my first salary?
- Do I plan to wear this dress in the near future?
- Does this dress match my personal style?
If there’s a reason, give yourself some leverage and keep the cloth. If not, donate.
Ruthless decluttering is hard. It’s exhausting and can even prompt you to keep delaying the process because you’re too busy to go through the emotions. But let me tell you that it’s totally worth it. Ruthless decluttering is how you gift yourself a closet that holds everything that you love and adore.