Confession time. I have a lot of clothes. More than I need. And shoes……. we’ll talk about them another now. My habit of culling my closet had sadly been neglected and it was time to get some organisation back.
I have a large bedroom with a tinsy walk-in robe. Since I have to share with big Al I have less than optimal space for clothes. Usually I will go through my closet at the end of each season and throw out what I did not wear in the past 12 months. I will also check my up-coming season clothes for out of fashion items or where the gremlins have snuck in and sewn the seams tighter.
I used the 3 pile method, “Keep”, “Undecided” & “Dispose of”. Anything to “Keep” was kept on a hanger and put on the clothes airer. I had one pile for “Undecided” and another for “Dispose of”. Working through every article until everything has been moved out of the closet and assessed. This takes time as you need to be ruthless and unemotional.
This is the perfect time to give your closet area a thorough clean. The amount of dust that can accumulate here always amazes me. Vacuum and wipe down walls, shelves, hanging rails and drawers. Now your closet is ready for every “keeper” to be put back.
Organise all similar articles together. All jeans together, next to other pants, then skirts. This way, all bottoms are found in one area when you need to co-ordinate an outfit. Do the same with tops, all sleeve-less together then t-shirts, button up shirts then others, separating Summer & Winter weight. At this stage you could even sort by colour, if you really wanted to make choosing outfits simple. Separate Summer & Winter dresses and hang, doing the same for coats and jackets. Now step back and check it out. Looks good huh?
Now the “Undecided“ pile. Go through each item. Look at what you have kept and ask “Will it match any ‘keepers’?” “Does it fit?” “Do I feel good when I wear this?” If you can answer yes to all of these then put it in your closet with similar items. This is a hard one but you need to be candid in your answers. How many grey t-shirts do you need? If you still can’t decide or are struggling, you may need a second opinion. Ask a friend you trust to be honest in their answer. Or put it in another room or store in a suitcase. If you don’t go looking for it within 3 months then let it go.
The “Dispose of” pile now needs to be sorted. Again use 3 piles, “Bin” “Sell” “Donate”. Any damaged, stained or torn items need to go in the bin. Anything that may be slightly out of fashion or shows signs of wear but are still good can be donated to charity, or given away. Anything still with a tag or only worn once (we all have them), try selling on eBay or other online site. You could have a swap party with your friends and trade any of their discarded items.
Take time to look at your work. You should feel accomplished. There is a liberating feeling that comes from minimising and sorting. Once you have organised things so they are neat tidy and orderly, it saves time and does give a sense of harmony.
The challenge now is to keep it that way. Each week spend 10 – 15 minutes tidying your closet so you can find everything easily.
“being organised isn’t about getting rid of everything you own or trying to become a different person; it’s about living the way you want to live, but better.” Andrew Mellen
hey fairy godmother 