11 Strategies To Declutter Your Clothes
In this step by step tutorial, I’m showing you 11 strategies to declutter your closet quickly and strategically.
My Shopping Addiction
I used to have a shopping addiction, just like Rebecca Bloomwood in Confessions of a Shopaholic. In college, I asked my dad to build me a wooden clothing rack because I didn’t have enough closet space in my dorms to store all of my clothes. Not even like a little 3-foot clothing rack but a six-foot-long clothing rack. I love clothes.
So, what’s the problem with having so many clothes?
When you open the closet, you see chaos and it stresses you out.
You have to try on multiple outfits because some of your clothes don’t fit.
You need to get dressed quick but accidentally put on pants with a hole in it that you forgot to get stitched.
Having a closet filled with old, dated and ripped clothes makes the mornings a little more stressful because getting dressed takes longer than it should.
Why is it so hard to “Marie Kondo” our clothes?
Decluttering our closet is hard because we have so many excuses to keep our things.
What if I want to wear it again?
It would be a waste of money to get rid of it or throw it away.
But one day, when I lose these few pounds, it will fit better.
Instead of listening to your excuses, print off my decluttering checklist to get started! You don’t need to hire a professional organizer and you don’t need to read another book about minimalism. My PDF checklists simplify the decluttering process and help you work efficiently.
Get Started
Write down your why
Once you have printed off the checklist, start by writing down the reason you are minimizing the number of clothes in your closet.
Here are some common reasons to minimize your closet.
I want to open my closet and see the clothes that actually fit me.
I want to wear clothes that represent who I am now, not who I used to be.
I want to get ready quicker in the morning.
Clarifying your motive will give you the motivation to finish this project.
2. What supplies do you need?
You will need:
1 trash bag
3 containers or boxes
1 for donations
1 for the tailor
1 for questionables
What if you don’t have time?
You don’t need to spend an entire Saturday afternoon on this project. Start with one category. One small category like belts only takes 5 minutes. If you have a 15-minute window, instead of checking Instagram or watching YouTube, pick one category of clothes to declutter.
The Decluttering Process
1.Take everything out of your closet
Our closets are like Mary Poppins bags, we always find things in there that we had no idea we still had.
2. clean the closet
Dust the shelves and vacuum the floor.
3. Start with one category of clothes
4. do you love it?
Pick up an item and ask yourself if you love it and you look great in it. If so, hang it up in your closet.
5. Does it need to be tailored?
If you’ve been needing to tailor the item or have it stitched, put it in the tailor box.
6. can you donate it?
Questions to ask before you put an item in the donation box.
Is it still in good condition?
Would someone else be able to wear it?
Would someone pay for it?
If yes, put it in the donation box.
7. Throw it away
If it isn’t worth donating, put it in the trash bag.
Throw away anything that:
Has stains on it.
Is ripped and it’s not worth sewing.
It’s monogrammed or has your name stitched on it.
8. What if you can’t decide?
For the clothes you are unsure of, ask yourself these three questions.
Does it fit you?
Does it make you feel beautiful?
Does it represent who you are right now?
If you don’t want to part with it yet, place it in the questionable box. Write a date on the box and donate it by that date if you haven’t changed your mind and decided that you need to keep it. If you haven’t opened that box, 2 weeks or 1 month later, go ahead and donate it.
9. Write a shopping list
Page 2 of the guide is an empty template for you write down what you need to buy.
What do you need to replace?
Did you trash all of your white t shirts? Put it on the shopping list.
Did you donate the bottoms that don’t fit you anymore? Put it on the shopping list.
Are your brown sandals past their prime? Put it on the shopping list.
What if you have a special memory or an emotional attachment to an item?
For me, I had a hard time donating bridesmaid dresses. I felt guilty for spending so much money on a dress that I only wore once and it felt wrong to get rid of a dress that is associated with a great memory.
What I realized is that letting go of the bridesmaid dress isn’t going to take the memory away. The wedding will always be in my memory and there are a lot of pictures whenever I want to remember it. Clothing takes up a lot more space than pictures do so don’t waste space by keeping the clothing associated with that memory.
Do you have a picture with it on? If you don’t have a picture, take one with you in it, then donate the item.
Examples of emotional attachments:
Gifts given by family members
Wedding accessories
Specific Categories
Hats/Gloves/Scarves
Do you live in a location that you use all of your winter gear?
Is your hat still in style? Does it match your coat?
Are your gloves in good condition and can you wear them to work?
Does your scarf represent your style?
Belts
How many times a week do you wear a belt?
Do you need to buy bottoms that fit you better?
Purses
When was the last time you used that purse?
Would you bring it on a nice vacation?
Coats
What coat would you bring on vacation?
Does it rain enough for you to keep multiple raincoats?
Swimsuits
Does the swimsuit fit?
Does it make you feel confident and beautiful?
Underwear/Socks
I buy a pack of black socks from Target so that I don’t have to match them.
Throw away any underwear that you wouldn’t want to be wearing in the Emergency Room. You never know when you’ll end up in an accident and needing to go to the ER. You don’t want to be embarrassed.
Sleepwear
Is it comfortable to sleep in?
Would you be embarrassed to wear it around house guests?
Jewelry
Does it match your current style?
Do you love it?
Shoes
Are they clean?
Do they need to be replaced with a newer pair?
Dresses
Does it fit?
Does it make you feel beautiful?
Is it your current style?
Bottoms
Do they fit?
Do they make you feel beautiful?
Do they represent who you are?
Tops
Do they fit?
Do they make you feel beautiful?
Do they represent who you are?
Say goodbye to anything that:
Doesn’t fit you.
Doesn’t make you feel beautiful.
Represents who you used to be.
Print off your downloadable guide below.
Whether you are also like Rebecca Bloomwood, moving houses or just want to minimize the clothes in your closet, this is a great time to declutter! I hope that this decluttering tutorial has inspired you to take action and declutter your clothes today! Print off my checklist to declutter your closet quickly and strategically.