Do you have a wardrobe full of clothes but nothing to wear? If so then it’s time to have a good Spring clean and bring some order to your closet.
- Firstly you have to be in the right frame of mind and have the time to set aside. Tell yourself you will be ruthless and more than anything that you will be honest with yourself. If that’s going to be difficult then enlist a professional or a friend who will be honest with you. Maybe do the same for each other, it could be fun.
- Take out every item one by one and ask yourself the same question about every item “do I love it, have a worn it in the last few years, is it in good enough condition to keep wearing and do I look and feel great in it”. If the honest answer is yes to all of those questions then put in in the first pile to keep. Don’t put it straight back in the wardrobe. If you ‘um’ and ‘ah’ and make excuses like “oh but it cost a fortune” “I haven’t worn it yet because I haven’t had the right occasion” or my particular favourite “I know it doesn’t fit me now but I’m losing weight and just know it will fit me soon” then it needs to go in another pile for the charity shop. Time to recycle these items and let someone else have a turn at loving them.
- If there are items that you have worn and washed so many times that they have lost their shape, faded or have moth holes then they should be put in a separate pile for disposal. You may have some items that have sentimental value and hard to part with. Find a nice box or bag to protect these items and put them in the loft or somewhere out of the way.
- So by the time you have gone through all the clothes in your wardrobe you should now have 3 piles. Some on their hangers ready for putting back, a pile for the charity and a pile for disposal. Before you put the clothes you are going to keep back give the wardrobe a really good clean and hoover. Why not treat yourself to some new hangers as well to make your wardrobe and your clothes feel extra special.
- The last step is to place your clothes back in the wardrobe. There are 2 preferred ways of doing this. The first way is to put everything in just colour order. I prefer to hang everything in groups, ie. Skirts, tops, cardigans, trousers, dresses, jackets etc and then you can put like colours together in those groups. Enjoy this process and while you’re doing it start to look at how you could put new outfits together. Have a look at outfits that you might not have thought of before. Have fun with it.
Once you have got your clothes in order then onward and upward to your shoes! Use the same method as the clothes. Be honest, do you ever wear them, do they actually fit, are the heels looking sorry for themselves, do they go with anything you own. Are there many pairs in one colour and you only ever wear one of them. Remember that the less shoes you have there the easier it is to choose which ones are perfect to wear with your outfit.
Lastly, if you repeat this process every 6 months then it will keep your wardrobe at bay and you will have a calm, clutter free wardrobe.
Does this sound a but daunting to do on your own, if you would like an expert eye then contact me to find out about my wardrobe editing service. It will be quicker and more thorough with a professional eye cast over your pieces.