Here's how to easily purge your closet this spring-cleaning season!
There are around 300,000 items in the average American household. You hide most of these items away in attics and garages and you likely have no memory of putting them there.
If you're being honest, a significant percentage of your 300,000 items are hanging in your closet! Since it's something you open every single day, it's the perfect place to start your spring cleaning this year.
Unlike other years, you are not going to take out an old dress, shrug, and put it back. Not this year, Nope! This spring season you will purge your closet so everything that remains not only fits inside but also looks neat.
This simple step-by-step guide will help you achieve a tidy household one closet at a time.
Step 1: Take Everything Out and Clean
Picture this: You open your closet, you remove a blouse that has seen better days, shrug, and put it back in while you mull over getting rid of it or not. You repeat this a few more times before realizing you've gotten nowhere, and you give up.
This strategy never works because you're not serious enough about closet cleaning. It's time to shape up or ship out!
Remove everything from your closet (yes, everything) and pile it on your bed. Take a duster and vacuum cleaner and clean your closet so you have a beautiful blank canvas. Vow to not let your closet get messy ever again.
Step 2: Try On All Your Clothes
You might need to spend a weekend cleaning your closet with all these steps, but it will be worth it. The next step is to try on every item of clothing you have. Move any items of clothing that don't fit (or you don't like) to a separate "remove" pile.
Free yourself by getting rid of anything that is too small or big for you. Live only in the present and keep clothes that fit you right now. This will pay off!
Step 3: Ask Yourself These Questions
This is where spring cleaning your closet starts getting harder. The clothes left in the pile on your bed are clothes that fit you and that you like, but you likely don't (and won't) wear a lot of them and don't have the closet space for them all either.
Continue to cull your closet clutter by asking yourself the following questions (and be honest):
- Have I worn this item of clothing in the last six months?
- Will I wear this item of clothing in the next six months?
- Can I make at least three different outfits with this item?
- Do I love it or is it a necessary item of clothing? (e.g. uniform)
- Is this item of clothing very worn, damaged, or outdated?
- Is it comfortable and doesn't need constant readjusting?
If you answered "no" to any of these questions, you should toss the item of clothing into the "remove" pile. It might be the case that you can buy a new item of clothing to replace two or three items because it's much more versatile and comfortable.
Step 4: Split Your Clothes Into Seasons
Most of your clothing should be appropriate for more than one season, but it's understandable if you live somewhere like New England that you have specific clothes for colder and warmer weather.
Since you're heading into spring, now is the perfect time to take your winter clothes out of your closet. Invest in vacuum bags to store anything you are not using right now so they take up as little space as possible.
Insert: storage-for-clothing
Step 5: Consider Storage Alternatives
Look at the pile left on your bed and look at your closet. Will you need to pile up your shoes on the bottom because you don't have enough racks? Are you having to hang up quite a few small tank tops when they would take up less room in drawers?
Consider redesigning your wardrobe so it caters to your specific storage needs. You might be able to hang your shoes on the back of the doors and you can get specialized coat hangers to organize accessories like scarves and hats.
Step 6: Reorganize Your Closet
Once you've curated your closet and are happy with your final selection, you don’t want to throw it all back in. Nope, you're going to use a system instead.
One option is color-coordinating your closet. This would look very eye-catching but it's not always the most practical option. You could also separate your items by category, or do a mix of both.
From left to right, organize your closet like this:
- Jackets and blazers
- Pants and jeans
- Dresses and jumpsuits
- Skirts and shorts
- Sweaters and knits
- Long-sleeved shirts
- Short-sleeved shirts
Within each category, hang everything from dark to light. The idea is that your wardrobe gets lighter in color and fabric from left to right.
This high level of organization will help you remember exactly what you have in your closet. Then, the next time you are out shopping, you will know whether you need a white blouse or if you already have one.
If you are still short on closet space and need to purge more items, turn all your coat hangers around. When you wear an item, you can turn the coat hanger back the right way. After a few months, it will be clear which items you wear a lot and which you don't.
Move Your Spring Cleaning Clutter So You Can Start Fresh
Purging your closets and wardrobes can help you feel calmer and more organized. However, decluttering is only half of the battle with spring cleaning. The other half is working out what on earth you're going to do with the stuff you don't want!
That's where College H.U.N.K.S. can help. We will take the junk you don't want and dispose of it in the most responsible way whether that's discarding or recycling.
Check out our junk removal prices here!