How to Start Decluttering and Organizing Your Closet Fast
Is your closet full of clothes? Do you feel you have “nothing to wear?” Do you spend too much time choosing an outfit?
It’s time to declutter your closet.
Too many clothes creates noise making it difficult to choose an outfit. Not to mention, the confined space incites irritation. A cluttered closet is not functional!
Limit your closet to pieces you enjoy and wear regularly.
Follow these steps below to easily say goodbye to excess in your wardrobe.
1. Adopt the Right Attitude
We hold on to clothing because we tell ourselves that we might wear it someday.
There is truth to this. You should keep a handful of pieces for certain occasions.
But you must be careful not to let this idea manifest as a fear to let go of clothes.
Owning too many clothes causes clutter and irritation. Nobody wants a stuffed, dusty, dysfunctional closet.
When you limit your closet to pieces you actually wear, it feels good. Your closet becomes spacious, efficient, sorted, and functional. When your closet is decluttered, your clothes offer the pleasurable sensations of gratitude.
Also know that getting rid of clothes doesn’t mean they’re headed to the landfill. Donate your clothes. Sell them at a consignment store.
Give your clothes new life through a new owner. Someone will find joy in wearing them! Isn’t that better than your clothes sitting in your closet, collecting dust?
2. Pass On Your Old Clothes
What will you do with the clothes you no longer need?
Will you take them to a consignment shop and get paid for your donations? Will you sell them on depop?
If you choose to donate rather than sell, Dress for Success is a wonderful organization that accepts donations of women’s business clothing. These donations are then provided to women in need to wear for job interviews.
Knowing that your clothes will be worn again makes it easier to say goodbye to old clothes.
3. Keep the Clothes You Wear.
It’s time to start decluttering. Start by taking all your clothing out of your closet except for the clothes you wear regularly. Lay all of your other unworn clothes on the bed.
Then take a few moments to notice. Notice how few clothes you wear regularly. Notice how spacious your closet is. Notice how big the pile of unworn clothes is.
4. Make the Easy Goodbyes
Let’s sort through the unworn clothes. Start by organizing your clothes into two piles: No and Other.
Let this decision be easy. What clothes are easy to say goodbye to? Stick those clothes in a bag and put them in the other room. Everything that remains is Other.
5. Keep the Sentimental
Let’s sort what remains into two new piles: Sentimental and Other.
This step is a little tricky. Do your best not to fall into the trap of everything holding sentimental value. What clothes hold significant sentimental value?
Remember, the clothes you part with will be given new life through a new owner.
Here are some tips sorting sentimental clothing:
- If multiple clothing items point to the same memory, don’t keep them all. Keep one.
- Sentimental clothing will probably never be worn again. So if you could wear it out today, it may not be sentimental.
- After you’ve sorted out your sentimental clothes, go through those clothes again. Can you reduce these clothes even further?
When you are finished, add the clothes you have chosen to keep back to your closet. If it feels like they take up too much space in your closet, go through them again.
As for the clothes you chose to donate, stick those clothes in a bag and put them in the other room. Those clothes have been decluttered.
6. Dress for the Occasion
Let’s keep going. Sort the remaining clothes into two piles: Occasion and Other.
Occasion clothes are fancy. Pick out your fancy dresses, suits, slacks, and business attire. Separate out those special clothes that you would only wear for specific occasions.
Then you can use your discretion to pick and choose which fancy clothes you want to keep and which would be better off donated.
Which dresses are too old? Which dresses are no longer your style? Which slacks are faded? Which clothes do not fit anymore? Consider saying goodbye.
And remember, the clothes are not headed for the landfill. Someone else will wear them! They will be worn by their new owner and given new life.
When you are finished, add the clothes you have chosen to keep back to your closet. If it feels like they take up too much space in your closet, go through them again.
As for the clothes you chose to donate, stick those clothes in a bag and put them in the other room. Those clothes have been decluttered.
Free Workshop – Join our free Simplify Money Workshop
The *only* way to save money is to spend less than you earn. That means you need to decrease your expenses or increase your income.
We want to help you do both.
Join our FREE Simplify Money Workshop to learn the fundamentals of growing wealth. Because when you can spend less than you earn, your money has no choice but to grow. You will build your savings and pay down debt.
What’s more? We’ve got a bunch of free money-hacks to share with you:
- Hacks to lower your monthly bills
- Hacks to spend less on debt
- Hacks to start investing
- Hacks to increase your income by $20/month (with no extra effort)
This workshop has everything you need to accomplish the cardinal rule of personal finance: keep your income over your expenses.
Join our free 5-day Simplify Money Workshop, and start growing your wealth today.
7. What to do with Casual Clothes
All of the clothes that remain are general, casual clothes. These clothes are not sentimental or dressy. They are clothes you would wear on any given day.
But here’s the thing. You don’t wear these clothes. They’ve been taking up space in your closet for years.
So as you sort these clothes, go in with the mindset that you don’t need them, nor do you wear them, nor are they special.
They can, however, be worn by a person in need. Or you can sell them and turn them into cash. Someone else somewhere will get enjoyment out of these clothes.
8. Stay Decluttered
Try the hanger trick.
As you put your “keep” items back in the closet, do so with all the hangers hooked in backwards.
The items you wear will be taken out and hung back up in the closet, and the hanger will be placed in the correct direction direction.
At the end of a year, you will quickly see what clothes you wear versus the clothes you never touch.
9. Organize Your Clothes
Consider how you want to organize the space.
Do you want to organize your closet seasonally? Do you want to organize your closet based on wear (work, nights out, church, etc.)? Do you want to organize your closet by color scheme?
The better organized your closet is, the easier it will be to avoid re-cluttering.
10. Keep a Decluttering Basket in Your Closet
Now that your closet is decluttered, you want to keep it that way.
One way to ensure the clutter doesn’t pile back up is to keep a decluttering basket in your closet.
Whenever you take something out of your closet and realize you don’t feel the same way about the item, place it in the donation basket.
This is great for clothes that shrink and start to feel a little too snug or simply no longer bring you joy.
11. Stop Adding More Clothes to Your Closet
The best way to keep your closet clutter-free is to stop adding more clothes to it!
Follow the one-in one-out rule. The next time you go to buy a new piece of clothing, sell a piece you don’t wear. This prevents your closet from becoming cluttered, and you can make some money selling your clothes.
You May Also Like...
About the author Michelle Salater
Michelle Salater is a freelance finance writer with a passion for personal finance education. When she’s not in front of her computer, she’s reading biographies and exploring remote areas of the world. She also freelances for Wooster Media Group LLC.
