The New Year is a great time to take a step back, evaluate the current state of your wardrobe, and establish a plan for cleaning out and refreshing your closet. This will give you a fresh start for the upcoming year and allow you to stock up on some new items like those trendy dresses you’ve had your eye on.
Your closet cleanout could be as simple as donating a bag of clothes and creating a small list of must-haves for the new season, or you could benefit from a complete overhaul. No matter what scale of project you’re looking at, keep the following tips in mind.
Tip 1: Take Everything Out and Sort
It can be difficult to sort through clothes, shoes, and bags when they are all packed together. Start by taking everything out of your closet and sorting it into piles. Your best bet is to create piles to keep, donate, and throw away.
Donate as much as you can to help those who may need gently used clothing and accessories. Throw away items that are stained, ripped, have holes, or are otherwise unwearable. You may also consider reselling opportunities. For example, if you have some designer bags that you no longer use, you could resell them to get some of your money back and make someone else’s day.
Tip 2: Be Conscious Of What You Keep
Most of us are guilty of hanging onto items that we no longer wear or use. This could be because they no longer fit, they have some type of sentimental value, or they’re in brand-new condition but don’t suit your style or today’s trends.
Think about the last time you’ve worn something and when you plan to wear it again. If you’re struggling to find an answer, it’s probably time to donate. You may even try the backward-hanger method. This entails turning all your hangers backward and turning them around only when you wear something. After six months, you know it’s okay to get rid of everything that is still backward.
Tip 3: Take Away Your “Donate And Trash” Piles
You may find yourself overwhelmed when you empty out your closet and are surrounded by piles of clothes. Once you have piles to donate, sell, and throw away, bag them up and get them out of your room. This will help free up space and relieve some potential stress. Ultimately, you want to be looking only at everything that you’re keeping as you start to take stock of what you need to put away.
Tip 4: Categorize What You’re Keeping
Instead of just throwing everything you’re keeping back in your closet and dresser, do an additional level of categorization. This can be done by season or type of clothing. Some people like to put away summer clothes in the winter and vice versa to help limit their choices and save space. Others like to keep everything out to mix, match, and layer according to the season’s latest trends.
Think about categorizing based on clothing style. For example, make a stack of athleisure clothing, workwear, and leisure. This will help you identify what you have a lot of and what you could shop for. For example, is your leisurewear pile looking thin? Shop cute loungewear for some new cozy essentials.
Tip 5: Know The Latest Trends
Keep the latest fashion trends in mind as you’re going through your clothes. You may realize some of your tops are outdated and won’t be worn again (donate!). Or, you may realize you don’t have a lot of options for layering but it’s a trend you really wanted to embrace in the New Year. Use your style goals to shape your wardrobe, and keep your staples front and center in your closet.
Tip 6: Invest In Organizational Solutions
Yes, a clothes bar and hangers are the basics of what you need in your closet. But other organizational tools can help you stay decluttered. See if you can add shelves, shoe racks, or hooks to your closet space to get shoes, bags, and other accessories up off the floor. Totes are also a great solution, especially if you’re tucking away seasonal clothing.
There are also ways to keep items out of sight while still accessible. For example, you can sort items into different baskets and line them up on a shelf along the top of your clothing bar for quick access. You won’t have to see stacks of socks and scarves, but you know right where they are when you need them.
Tip 7: Don’t Forget About Laundry
As you’re putting items away, be conscious of what clothing you have in the laundry. If everything is put back and you don’t have room for anything else, you may hit a roadblock when you go to put clean laundry away. Aim to have some wiggle room for the clothing you have floating around your home or apartment. Plus, the extra room will give you the opportunity to go shopping!
Setting up laundry hampers or bags can help keep your closet clean, too. Avoid leaving piles of dirty clothes on the floor. Instead, sort them into hampers based on color or wash/dry settings. This will help keep your space clean and will save you time on laundry day.
Final Thoughts
Cleaning out your closet and taking inventory of your wardrobe doesn’t have to be a difficult task. Put on your favorite music, create a vision board with the looks you want to create this year, and keep your end goal in mind. A clean space, an organized closet, and an exciting shopping list can turn this chore into an extremely rewarding weekend project.