First Published: 18th December 2021, written by Chloé Safilo | Last Updated on 6th January 2024 | Reviewed and Edited by Chloe Safilo
It’s time for a wardrobe audit! How many clothes do you have? Surveys have shown the average person has 138, but the question should be how many do you need? We often rely on the same capsule pieces. So is it time to declutter your wardrobe?
If you are reading this you’ve decided to clean out your closet after years of accumulating too much stuff. You’ve got the motivation, you’ve got the time, and probably a whole new range of clothes to fit on hangers or into drawers. Now all you need to know is how to declutter your clothes to make room.
If you are feeling procrastination or overwhelmed by the prospect of a good clear-out of your belongings, it’s honestly possible to make a huge difference in just a few hours. You can only keep, donate, sell, repair, recycle, or throw away so you will be successful if you follow our five simples tips for decluttering your wardrobe:
Step 1 – Take out the obvious keepers
Eventually, we will want everything into piles of keep, get rid and maybes. To get there, we will have interim piles for each clothing type. But let’s be honest, this is a redundant process for favourites and new items.
If it’s worn regularly, you will want to keep it. So cut straight to the chase and put it in a special keep pile out of the way. This is just a time saver and will limit that overwhelming feeling when can only be combatted by being organised.
Step 2 – Get Sorting into piles
There are two ways to do this. Either one section at a time, or by putting everything in a big pile. The approach is best suited to how it is now; if it’s already well organised then do it in sections. If it’s heaped up, just move that to a clear space.
We want to sort these into garment types, like putting all t-shirts together, and separating out the jeans and trousers. The point of this is to see how much you have of each item to help you thin things out.
Step 3 – Be Ruthless when decluttering clothes
Simples fact, if you haven’t worn it in a while, why is that and will you ever wear it again? If the answer is never, it has no place in the wardrobe. Sentimental storage box maybe, but not for the every day clothes. Ask yourself:
- If it doesn’t fit, will it ever?
- If it’s got holes or stains, will you ever wear it again? Can it be salvaged with repair or stain removal powder?
- Is it still in style? Will it be again?
- Have you worn it in the last year? If not, why not?
If it falls into any of the above, it really should not be in the keep pile. I’m not saying a minimalism lifestyle is needed, we are decluttering unwanted possessions here.
Ones that you are unsure of can go in the maybe pile, and at the end you can look at what you are definitely keeping as often there will be similar styles and colourways here.
Step 4 – Put away the keepers correctly
There is no point doing this to put everything back in a mess. Habits can be broken, putting things back in an organised fashion and keeping it there will help in the long run. If you are naturally messy or a hoarder this is the time to make a change.
You should not have an abundance of skirts, shirts tops, denim, sweater, leggings or trousers, just enough to have variation in your outfits. The clothing here should be used regularly or it has no point in taking up valuable space.
If you have any storage options, now is a good time to consider a seasonal rotation.
Step 5 – Sell, donate, repair, recycle or store
So well done, you’ve done the hard bit and let go. Now time to get rid of the unwanted clutter. Options here are to donate, sell, repair, recycle, throw out or store in self-storage until needed later.
You can sell unwanted clothing on Depop or ebay, but mostly unworn and labelled unless vintage.
Personally, I would always prefer donating clothes to worthy charities or thrift stores than going to landfill. Textile recycling banks are also common so might be an option to help with sustainability.
Conclusion on how to declutter your wardrobe effectively
Clothes are a part of our everyday life. In order to keep them in order, we need to declutter and keep organised. This can do wonders for you to see what can be accessorised together. Hopefully these hints and tips will help you find that place of Zen.