De-Clutter Your Clothes Closet Part Two (of Two)

De-Clutter Process: Basics

Select clothing to keep and which items to discard.
Items cluttering your wardrobe are those you don’t wear – whatever the reason.
Don’t empty the entire closet. You’ll just create a mess of clothing on your bed.
De-stress the decision making by –
Dividing clothing into broad categories;
Choosing a type of clothing from one category;
Proceeding type by type through each category;
Comparing like items in deciding what to keep and what to let go.

De-Clutter Process: Broad Categories

Top Half of the Body: Types – Sweaters, Blazers, Blouses, Shirts
Bottom Half of the Body: Types – Slacks, Skirts
Whole Body: Types – Dresses, Robes, Suits
Special Occasion Items

Note: For most people, types will be sufficient. However, if you an extensive number of a type, such as blouses, you’ll need to further divide that type by sleeve length (long, mid, short, sleeveless). If too many slacks to compare, you’ll divide slacks by length (long, knee-length, shorts).

De-Clutter Process: Action Steps

Step 1. Choose a broad category, then select one type from that category, such as blouses or slacks or robes.

Step 2. Remove all items of that type from the closet and place them on your bed.

Step 3. Select from your bed the items you wear regularly. Put them back in the closet, together in one section which will be for that broad category of clothing. These are your “keepers” and belong in your active clothes closet because you are wearing them. Don’t dawdle.

Example: You started with Top Half of the Body and chose blouses. You removed all the blouses from the closet, put them on the bed, selected the ones you wear regularly and put them back in the closet. Remaining on your bed are blouses you are not wearing for one reason or another. The reasons come into play now. Keeping going.

Step 4: Throw-Away Clothes. You aren’t wearing some items because they are damaged. Take damaged clothes from your bed and put them in the trash — with confidence!

Worn out clothiing Include items which are:

Badly Faded
Not Fit to Donate
Itchy
Not Fixable

Note: If you wear poor quality items for dirty work, like painting or gardening, select items to store in the tool area, a tote bag or a drawer, but not in your active clothes closet.

Fix-it box Action Step 5: Items which Need Fixing Put in a “Fix-It” box or basket any item on the bed which you want to wear but needs a hem, a button, alterations or cleaning and you intend to “fix” it before you purchase any new item of clothing.

Step 6: Give Away Items. When clothing comes back in style, it does not come back for us. Select items to donate now which:

You’ve Not Worn in at Least Two Years
Need Minor Mending, but You Won’t Mend it
Are Just Not You
Don’t Go with Anything
Were on Sale, but Wrong for You
Don’t Fit Comfortably
You Won’t Walk out of the House in
You Won’t Pay to Dry Clean
Are Too Small/Too Large
Are Not the Right Color
If Someone Else Would Be Happy Wearing It, and Wear it More than You Would.

Note: Pass It On is a page on my web site which lists non-profit organizations and their wish lists. If you don’t know of an organization needing clothing, click here to go to Pass It On. Find an organization and call them to see if they are taking clothing and when you may leave them there.

Step 7: Items Still on the Bed?

Caution: Clothes deteriorate over time. The longer you wait, the less likely you’ll be able to give away an item (i.e. elastic only lasts so long). If you’re generous of heart and prefer to give away, rather than toss an item in the garbage, give it away – now.

If you aren’t ready to give an item away, probably because you tell yourself that maybe you will wear it someday create one “Maybe Box” and put the item in the box. Use one Maybe box for all types of items from all categories.

Store your Maybe Box in your Off-Season Space. If you do want to wear a Maybe item, take it out of the box at that time, wear it, then put it in your closet. At change of season, toss or give away every item in the Maybe Box. You thought that you might wear them later, but you didn’t.

Repeat De-Clutter Process Action Steps

For the rest of the types in the broad category you selected.
Then for each of the other three broad categories.

When Finished, You’ll Have:

Items you wear – in your closet
Items which are damaged – in the trash
Items which need fixing – in a fit-it box
Items to give away – in a give away bag/box
Items which you don’t wear, which aren’t damaged, don’t need fixing and which you’re not willing to donate now – in a maybe box in your off-season storage area.

CONGRATULATIONS!
You’ve De-Cluttered Your Clothes Closet

You’re now ready to
Organize Your Clothes Closet

Organizing Process: Basics

Organize = to put your clothes in order so you can find them when you want them, with a minimum of effort.
Use two key strategies: category and frequency.
Keep your system as simple as possible.
Make your closet reflect the everyday reality of your life style.

Organizing Process: Two Key Organizing Strategies

Strategy 1. Keep Like Things Together

Organize your clothes so items of the same type are together. Used the broad categories and any options (below) you choose to organize your clothing.

Action Step: Will any of these options will work for you in any category or type of clothing? If so, rearrange each category/type, now.

Group items by professional, casual, and special occasion.
Group items from light to dark color.
Arrange blouses or shirts according to sleeve length: sleeveless, short sleeve, long sleeve.
Arrange skirts or pants according to length: short, knee, long.

Note: The more clothing, the more options you need to use, the more complicated your system will be. To simplify, de-clutter!

Strategy 2. Frequency Principle

Your closet has spaces that are more accessible than others. Frequency governs the order of your categories and types. Make frequently worn items more accessible; put less-frequently worn items behind the more frequently worn items or more toward the wall space. The items you wear most frequently will be the easiest to reach.

Key Question to Ask Yourself: How often do I wear each type of clothing in each category?

Examples:

Tend to wear black slacks most of the time? Put black slacks go in the most accessible space in the bottom of the body area; other colors go behind black.
Tend to wear short sleeve blouses more frequently than any other type? Give them yourmost accessible blouse area. Put sleeveless and long sleeve blouses behind short sleeves.

Action Step: Rearrange each type of clothing within its category to reflect the frequency with which you wear each one.

CONGRATULATIONS!
You’ve Organized Your Clothes Closet

Let Helen know how this article helped you.
Email: helen@beyondclutter.com or www.Facebook.com/Helen.Volk

Want Helen’s help? Click here for her de-cluttering services.
Have trouble letting go? Order Helen’s De-Clutter, De-Stress® Your Life book, Click here
Looking for a motivational speaker? Hire Helen! Click here

For De-Clutter Your Clothes Closet, Part One, click here

To maintain de-cluttered space, see “One In, One Out” Rule (Click here)

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