A New Way to Declutter Your Closet {Part Four}

Well, we’ve made to Part Four!  Today will be easy-peasey since we are just going over how to build this process into a routine that will help you pare down your wardrobe with purpose and intention.  If you haven’t yet read Parts One, Two, and Three, please do.  The rest of this won’t make a whole lot of sense if you don’t.

Now you are all set with the current season’s wardrobe in your closet, the next season’s possible selections stored in a box, your beloved clothing items that don’t fit packed away in another box, and everything else nicely sorted into categories that make sense to you.

All you have to do for the next three months is have fun and get creative with making your current wardrobe work for you and enjoy having a nice decluttered closet! 

In order to really use this process to simplify your wardrobe, you’ll need to keep up with reiterating the steps every three months.  At the end of this season, you’ll start from the beginning.

The first sorting session will be much faster since you set up that box for “Next Season”.  Just start by selecting your next season’s wardrobe and getting that in your closet.  You might be including items that were already in your closet, things from your “Next Season” box, and even some things from your space bags.  Just keep it to your predetermined hanger limit.

Don’t even touch the “Doesn’t Fit” box for this part unless your size has changed and you want to see if anything in that box can be removed.

Now choose your new set of “Next Season” items and put them in that box.  If you haven’t already, you might find yourself pulling out the space bags at this point, and that’s ok.  You might also realize that this is easier than you thought and you might just fill the “Next Season” box with items that you just removed from your closet.

“Clutter creates stress and stress creates more clutter.”  – Christina Scalise, OrganizeYourLifeAndMore.com

For me, it was a combination of the two.  I learned that I made some poor choices with my first season wardrobe.  I ended up putting a few of those items in the “Get Rid Of” pile because I came to the realization that while I loved certain clothing items, I still didn’t wear them because they were uncomfortable or unflattering.  At that point, I knew I should donate them because as cute as those things were, it was very unlikely that I would ever wear them.  If I had 50 clothing items to choose from for three months and an item NEVER got worn, it is pretty clear I’m not going to wear it and can just get rid of it.

Now, if you are ready (and I hope you are), you can sort through those space bags.  Challenge yourself.  Set a goal to reduce the number of space bags by one. Or to try some things on and get rid of things that are not comfortable to wear.

This time around, you will probably have a much larger “Get Rid Of” pile because the last three months have hopefully taught you some lessons about what you like to wear and don’t like to wear.

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Keep in mind, this is an ever-evolving process.  It is a learning process.  It is YOUR process and you ultimately make the rules.  If something doesn’t work, you can change it in three months.

I know this seems like a long and complicated procedure, and the irony of that (being that we are simplifying our wardrobes) is not lost on me.

But I truly believe that a slower and more methodical approach is better for finding your own personal style that transcends seasonal fast fashion trends.  That is the ultimate goal here anyway. 

Doing one big sort and purge might feel great at the time, but it might also set you up for succumbing to next season’s “must-have” fashion trends even if they don’t really fit into your true style.

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I believe this process will help you learn your own likes and dislikes, will help you to become more cognizant of your purchases, and maybe even save you some money. 

Most of all, I hope waking up every morning to your newly decluttered closet and knowing the progress you are making on cultivating a personal style that fits your personal values will help you start your day with feelings of peace and confidence.

Quick links to the rest of this series:

A New Way to Declutter Your Closet {Part One}

A New Way to Declutter Your Closet {Part Two}

A New Way to Declutter Your Closet {Part Three}