If you’re anything like us, you have a huge closet that is filled to the brim with clothes. You might think that that’s a good thing, but we have learned from experience that it isn’t. Having endless options not only makes dressing yourself much harder, but it will keep your mind as cluttered as your closet. With summer on the horizon, it’s time to trim down our closets and make our wardrobes far more streamlined! Is it gonna be easy? No, it never is. But take a deep breath, steel yourself, and follow these tips to get started.
Drop those “one-in-a-million” items
You’ve got a piece of clothing for every possible situation. There’s a nice, secure feeling about that. But you bought those ski goggles eight years ago and still haven’t worn them. Are you ever going to? We’ll answer that for you: no. You aren’t. All of those items that you bought thinking that you might someday have a need for them just aren’t necessary in your closet. The space that they are taking up could be used for something that is actually useful. Go and sell them (or better yet, donate them)!
Uncomfortable clothing is no good
We’ve all heard the term “suffer for fashion” before, but to be honest, we’ve become convinced that there’s no purpose in wearing things that aren’t comfortable. We wear clothing to express ourselves, right? The only thing that you’re expressing when you’re wearing that itchy sweater is, “Wow, I’m really itchy.” No matter how good it looks, people are still going to think that you have a skin condition. Get rid of all of that stuff that is super uncomfortable. You can replace those items with pieces that both look and feel good.
Time to upgrade your hangers
Most people tend to focus only on their actual clothing when cleaning their closets. But when they do that, they are skipping past an important closet component: hangers. If you want your closet to be more functional and look better, it’s time to upgrade those old hangers that you have! Either buy one set of really nice hangers or get a few different colors that let you easily sort your clothing. Both options work, but try to invest in some hangers that will actually last you. Those cracked plastic ones that you’re currently using need to go.
Sentimental value isn’t real value
This one is definitely going to make some people angry, but it needs to be said: sentimental value isn’t real value. We aren’t saying that you need to get rid of all of the clothing that you’ve been holding onto for a long time, but really evaluate whether each piece actually matters to you or not. That sweater your boyfriend bought you might be worth keeping, but that jersey from fifth grade that is still somehow stained in sweat? It has nice memories, sure, but it’s the memories that are worth keeping. Not the jersey.
Ill-fitting clothes
A lot of things change over time. Our preference for the fit of our pieces changes. Our bodies change. Our styles change. That means that you need to regularly try on old clothing to see if it still fits you in the way that you want. If it doesn’t, that’s a really good sign that you are never going to wear it again. Those jeans that are super tight now aren’t going to do you any good; the same goes for those pants that are super loose. Both have no reason to be in your closet any longer.
Unnecessary duplicates
We’ve all been there before. We find a dress that we really, really love, and suddenly we have ten different copies of it in our closets. It’s happened to the best of us, but that doesn’t mean that it’s actually a good decision. Sometimes it’s nice to have duplicate items in our closets, but usually these duplicates are just taking up a ton of space. Evaluate whether those duplicates are actually doing you any good. Our guess is that they probably aren’t.
Say goodbye to your old shoes
There is nothing that drags down an outfit as much as a pair of raggedy, old shoes. Beat up sneakers definitely have their place in certain fits, but most old shoes just tend to, uh, look bad. Throwing away shoes always feels a bit harder than throwing away other clothing items, but it’s definitely worth it. Your huge collection of kicks is just filling up your closet. Pair down your shoes to just the pairs that you actually wear.
Clothes you don’t wear anymore
Okay, this one is a no brainer, but it still needs to be said. If you don’t wear something, get rid of it! Most people think that they need to hold onto clothing simply because they spent money on it. That’s totally untrue. If you bought something that you don’t actually like, you are going to either never wear it or wear it and hate it the entire time. Own up to your shopping mistakes and just get rid of that stuff that you don’t wear. Your closet will thank you.
You’re never going to patch up those jeans
All of us have those items in our closet that we never wear because they need to be repaired. Some of us hold onto old jeans with holes in them for years simply because we think that one day we will get the motivation to patch them up. We hate to break it to you, but you’re not gonna do it if years have already passed. A much better option is to just donate your old clothes that need repairs and invest in fresh clothes with no issues.
Stuff you got for free
There’s something about free items that just makes us hold onto them for forever. The same can be said for clothing items that we got at a huge discount. But there really is nothing special about the items in your closet that were free or discounted. If you don’t wear them, they deserve to be cleaned out as much as anything else. Try to set aside the actual cost of an item and just consider whether you actually want it or not. That should be your true guiding principle when cleaning your closet.
